Vivekananda on the Vedas (part 171)

[Guest guest]

Earlier postings can be seen at http://www.vivekananda.btinternet.co.uk/veda.htm

 

SWAMI VIVEKANANDA ON THE VEDAS AND UPANISHADS

By Sister Gayatriprana

part 171

 

PART III, SECTION 7: THE FRAGMENTATION OF THE VEDIC MESSAGE IN INDIA

 

Chapter 20: Saving India through the Spiritual Inheritance of the Vedas

 

a) We Must Give Up Weakness and Effeminacy and Learn How to Reduce the Doctrines

of Vedanta into Practice

 

1. Chalk Out an Independent Path from the Europeans and Go Back to the

Human-Making Upanishads

 

In Alwar in 1890, following the swami’s instructions many young men applied

themselves to the study of Sanskrit. At times Swami Vivekananda used to teach

them himself. And doing so, he told them, " Study Sanskrit, but along with it

study Western science. Learn accuracy, my boys! Study and labor so that the time

will come when you can put our history on a scientific basis. For now Indian

history is disorganized.

 

We have no chronological accuracy. The histories of our country by the English

writers cannot but be weakening to our minds, for they hold prominently before

our view the picture of our downfall. How can foreigners who understand very

little of our manners and customs, our religion and philosophy, write faithful

and unbiased histories of India? Naturally, many false notions and wrong

inferences have found their way into them. But the Europeans have shown us how

to proceed in making researches into our ancient history. Now it is for us to

chalk out an independent path for ourselves in these departments of learning.

Study the Vedas and Puranas and the ancient annals of India, and from these make

it your life’s sadhana to write accurate, sympathetic, and soul-inspiring

histories of the land. Study the life of Shivaji and you will find him a

nation-maker instead of a marauder, as the Europeans represent him. We should

not be guided absolutely by the histories produced by European minds. What

respect can they have for our culture which they do not understand? In point of

fact, we have no connected history from the Vedic times down to a period of a

thousand years after Lord Buddha. Of course, now a new era is dawning in this

respect. But IT IS FOR INDIANS TO REWRITE INDIAN HISTORY. Therefore, set

yourselves to the task of rescuing our lost and hidden treasures from oblivion!

Even as one whose child has been lost does not rest until he or she has found

it, so do you never cease to labor until you have redeemed the glorious past of

India in the consciousness of the people. That will be the true national

education; and with its advancement, a true national spirit will be awakened.(1)

 

You have been told and taught that you can do nothing, and nonentities you are

becoming every day. What we want is strength; so believe in yourselves. We have

become weak and that is why occultism and mysticism come to us - these creepy

things. There may be great truths in them, but they have nearly destroyed us.

Make your nerves strong. What we want is muscles of iron and nerves of steel. We

have wept long enough. No more weeping, but stand on your feet and be true men

and women. It is a human-making religion that we want. It is human-making

theories that we want. It is human-making education all round that we want….

 

These mysticisms, in spite of some grains of truth in them, are generally

weakening. Believe me, I have had a lifelong experience of it; and the one

conclusion that I draw is that it is weakening. I have traveled all over India,

searched almost every cave here, and lived in the Himalayas. I know people who

lived there all their lives. I love my nation - I cannot see you degraded,

weakened, any more than you are now. Therefore I am bound, for your sake and for

truth’s sake, to cry, " Hold! " and to raise my voice against this degradation of

my race. Give up these weakening mysticisms and be strong. Go back to your

Upanishads - the shining, the strengthening, the bright philosophy - and part

from all these mysterious thing, these weakening things. Take up this

philosophy. The greatest things are the simplest things in the world, simple as

your own existence. The truths of the Upanishads are before you. Take them up,

live up to them, and the salvation of India will be at hand.(2)

 

Cross reference to:

 

Brih. Up., 4.14.4