Swami Vivekananda
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The Complete Works

Volume VIII

by Swami Vivekananda

Lectures, writings in prose and verse, notes of class talks, sayings, and the fourth series of letters.

245 items · about 11 hours of reading

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Contents

Lectures and Discourses7 · 3 hr 21 min
  1. Discourses On Jnana-Yoga49 min
  2. Six Lessons On Raja-Yoga21 min
  3. Women Of India29 min
  4. My Life And Mission29 min
  5. Buddha's Message To The World20 min
  6. Discipleship23 min
  7. Is Vedanta The Future Religion?30 min
Writings: Prose and Poems17 · 32 min
  1. The Struggle For Expansion4 min
  2. The Birth Of Religion6 min
  3. Four Paths Of Yoga5 min
  4. Cyclic Rest And Change4 min
  5. A Preface To The Imitation Of Christ3 min
  6. An Interesting Correspondence5 min
  7. Thou Blessed Dream1 min
  8. Light1 min
  9. The Living God1 min
  10. To An Early Violet1 min
  11. To My Own Soul1 min
  12. The Dance Of Shiva1 min
  13. Shiva In Ecstasy1 min
  14. To Shri Krishna1 min
  15. A Hymn To Shri Ramakrishna1 min
  16. A Hymn To Shri Ramakrishna1 min
  17. No One To Blame1 min
Notes of Class Talks and Lectures23 · 1 hr 41 min
  1. Notes Of Class Talks4 min
  2. Man The Maker Of His Destiny7 min
  3. God: Personal And Impersonal3 min
  4. The Divine Incarnation Or Avatara2 min
  5. Pranayama8 min
  6. Women Of The East1 min
  7. Congress Of Religious Unity1 min
  8. The Love Of God-I1 min
  9. The Love Of God--II3 min
  10. India6 min
  11. Hindus And Christians8 min
  12. Christianity In India8 min
  13. The Religion Of Love6 min
  14. Jnana And Karma7 min
  15. The Claims Of Vedanta On The Modern World5 min
  16. The Laws Of Life And Death3 min
  17. The Reality And The Shadow2 min
  18. Way To Salvation2 min
  19. The People Of India3 min
  20. I Am That I Am8 min
  21. Unity2 min
  22. The Worship Of The Divine Mother2 min
  23. The Essence Of Religion7 min
Sayings and Utterances1 · 26 min
  1. Sayings and Utterances26 min
Epistles: Fourth Series197 · 5 hr 2 min
  1. 1. I have received the book of Pānini which you so kindly sent me1 min
  2. 2. The will of Vishweshwara, the Lord of the universe, will prevail1 min
  3. 3. I am under homoeopathic treatment1 min
  4. 4. My difficulties here have almost come to a close1 min
  5. 5. We also are spreading out here and there in small groups of two or three.1 min
  6. 6. I have seen the Library and the pictures of Ravi Varma1 min
  7. 7. It was quite a privilege to make his acquaintance1 min
  8. 8. This is the first and the last of its kind and made only under very peculiar circumstances.1 min
  9. 9. The world really is enriched by men, high-souled, noble-minded, and kind, like you2 min
  10. 10. I start for Dharwar by the morning train tomorrow.1 min
  11. 11. Experience is the greatest teacher in the world2 min
  12. 12. Have you got lion’s cubs now in Junagad? Can you lend me one for my Rājā?1 min
  13. 13. I love you and respect you like a father3 min
  14. 14. The very best of men even are troubled and visited with tribulations in this world1 min
  15. 15. Three things are necessary to make every man great, every nation great5 min
  16. 16. My last address was the best I ever delivered1 min
  17. 17. My idea of doing good is this: to evolve out a few giants, and not to strew pearls before swine3 min
  18. 18. The full name being Narendra meaning the “Chief of men”1 min
  19. 19. Long life brings queer experiences!2 min
  20. 20. Educate and raise the masses, and thus alone a nation is possible.7 min
  21. 21. Oh! If only I had one man of some true abilities and brains to back me in India!6 min
  22. 22. Each must follow his own religion.1 min
  23. 23. I am weeping like a child at His mercy—He never leaves His servant, sisters.1 min
  24. 24. Darn it, forget everything2 min
  25. 25. To your family I am ever, ever beholden.2 min
  26. 26. I am very anxious about the Indian mail1 min
  27. 27. If a Guru dies, his disciple is his heir1 min
  28. 28. It also has been penetrated with my deep meditations on the Absolute2 min
  29. 29. Hindus are head and shoulders above all other nations in morality and spirituality1 min
  30. 30. Your kindness has left nothing more to be desired here1 min
  31. 31. Hope your worry is over.1 min
  32. 32. The word “Dharma” means religion1 min
  33. 33. I am neither a sightseer nor an idle traveller; but you will see, if you live to see, and bless me all your life.4 min
  34. 34. The secret of success of the Westerners is the power of organisation and combination.4 min
  35. 35. I have a class every morning here on Vedānta and other topics.1 min
  36. 36. Why do you not come to see Mrs. Ole Bull, Miss Farmer, and Mrs. Adams the physical culturist from Chicago?1 min
  37. 37. I am going away next Tuesday to New York.1 min
  38. 38. Women deserve and are fit for everything1 min
  39. 39. It is an unavoidable circumstance, and not the will, that stands in the way1 min
  40. 40. The West is the field for work if a man wants to benefit humanity2 min
  41. 41. The man who is pure, and who dares, does all things1 min
  42. 42. I am glad now the old man has seen the truth1 min
  43. 43. I have succeeded in doing something in this country at last1 min
  44. 44. Experiences are gathering a bit thick round you. I am sure they will lift many a veil more.1 min
  45. 45. This is the bark in which all holy writings are written in India1 min
  46. 46. This world will always be a mixture of good and evil, of happiness and misery3 min
  47. 47. Denial of the will to live, knowledge, and same-sightedness is the trinity of liberation3 min
  48. 48. Hari Om Tat Sat. He exists; nothing else does2 min
  49. 49. Multitude counts for nothing2 min
  50. 50. The lifelong struggle not to talk alone, but to live the life.4 min
  51. 51. I have a cordial invitation from Miss Müller1 min
  52. 52. I am very much more at home here than anywhere out of India1 min
  53. 53. Be up and doing! “Fortune favours the brave and energetic.”3 min
  54. 54. Breaking the ice is slow always.1 min
  55. 55. This being in a sense my native country, I send you my welcome first1 min
  56. 56. I have become an awful vegetarian now1 min
  57. 57. In the ordinary sense religion is philosophy concretised through rituals and symbols.2 min
  58. 58. The subject is “Indian Philosophy and Western Society”1 min
  59. 59. We shall work on our own lines and let things grow1 min
  60. 60. So far the journey has been very beautiful.1 min
  61. 61. After ten days of a most tedious and rough voyage I safely arrived in New York1 min
  62. 62. After 10 days of the most disastrous voyage I ever had I arrived in New York1 min
  63. 63. There is no willing without knowing. How can we desire unless we know the object of desire?3 min
  64. 64. My health is breaking down under constant work.2 min
  65. 65. I would not have called you to any task which you are incompetent to do3 min
  66. 66. We will work. “Wah guru ki fateh"1 min
  67. 67. This year my work in New York is going on splendidly2 min
  68. 68. My friends have engaged a stenographer (Goodwin)2 min
  69. 69. I tell you plainly, I would not be played upon by any rogue.2 min
  70. 70. One book, the Karma-Yoga has been already published1 min
  71. 71. Ours is the Gospel of oneness of all beings2 min
  72. 72. Every little bit of time I get I spend in the library1 min
  73. 73. I sail on board the White Star Line Germanic tomorrow1 min
  74. 74. Have you written for the Atharva-Veda Samhitā?1 min
  75. 75. I love America more when I am out of it1 min
  76. 76. I had a beautiful visit with Prof. Max Müller. He is a saint—a Vedantist through and through2 min
  77. 77. By rousing interest here I really do more for India than in India1 min
  78. 78. The scenery is very beautiful1 min
  79. 79. Ought great attempts to be made1 min
  80. 80. Do not for a moment give up your trust in the Lord, and you will see the light1 min
  81. 81. What is there to be desired in this little mud-puddle of a world, with its ever-recurring misery, disease, and death?5 min
  82. 82. The Seviers are good and kind1 min
  83. 83. America is a good training ground to bring out all that is in a man1 min
  84. 84. I have at last seen Prof. Deussen1 min
  85. 85. He who wants perfection in the world is a madman, for it cannot be.5 min
  86. 86. The coming of Goodwin was very opportune1 min
  87. 87. Poor souls! Let them have a little satisfaction in barking1 min
  88. 88. What am I? Asiatic, European, or American?2 min
  89. 89. I do not work alone, but He is always with me1 min
  90. 90. The episodes of the divine relationship between Rādhā and Krishna are quite unsuitable for young minds2 min
  91. 91. Things come and go, dear friend. Only the Lord is unchangeable and He is Love.2 min
  92. 92. We want more and more new members.3 min
  93. 93. Keep a copy of the letter you sent me.1 min
  94. 94. Sleep, eat, and exercise; exercise, eat, and sleep—that is what I am going to do some months yet.2 min
  95. 95. It is through the heart, and that alone, that the world can be reached.2 min
  96. 96. For the first time since the days of Buddha, Brahmin boys are found nursing by the bed-side of cholera-stricken pariahs.1 min
  97. 97. The best time to come is to arrive in India by October or beginning of November3 min
  98. 98. A work can be judged by its results only3 min
  99. 99. Is not the soul the Light of the world?5 min
  100. 100. I did not know before that I could be oratorical in Hindi.1 min
  101. 101. The Punjab and Rajputana are indeed fields for work.1 min
  102. 102. Today I am leaving by the two o’clock train with all my party for Kashmir.1 min
  103. 103. The secret of the whole thing is to agitate and agitate without respite.3 min
  104. 104. It is the one land fit for Yogis, to my mind.2 min
  105. 105. I am in Kashmir. I have travelled far and wide, but I have never seen such a country.1 min
  106. 106. From November to the middle of February India is cool1 min
  107. 107. To do good, perfect unselfishness is absolutely necessary.3 min
  108. 108. The people of our country have not yet offered me even as much as a pice for my travelling expenses1 min
  109. 109. Do what you think best after considering the healthiness and other factors.1 min
  110. 110. A leader must be impersonal.2 min
  111. 111. I want my work to be quick like lightning, and firm as adamant.5 min
  112. 112. Accounts, accurate to the last pie, must be kept of the amounts1 min
  113. 113. Too much sentiment hurts work.1 min
  114. 114. Without regular exercise the body does not keep fit1 min
  115. 115. Now, come on, work with redoubled energy.1 min
  116. 116. If you can get hold of some very old ghee, then send some of it1 min
  117. 117. We must hold the big festival on our own plot of ground1 min
  118. 118. Unless each goes about independently, he will not be able to do anything.2 min
  119. 119. See that nobody is unduly bossed over.1 min
  120. 120. No immediate result can be expected, but in the long run it will prove a more beneficial work1 min
  121. 121. My gratitude for your very kind invitation to speak.1 min
  122. 122. Work on with energy. India is a rotten corpse inside and outside. We shall revive it by the blessings of Shri Mahārāj.4 min
  123. 123. Death I have conquered long ago when I gave up life. My only anxiety is the work3 min
  124. 124. I have him always in mind, poor child; his devotion I can never repay.2 min
  125. 125. I am so glad to learn that Miss Noble delivered an address at the R. K. Mission.1 min
  126. 126. My health was excellent on my return from Sandukphu1 min
  127. 127. On Sunday I leave Darjeeling, probably stopping for a day or two at Kurseong1 min
  128. 128. Take care that funds do not run short in times of need and that there is no waste of money.3 min
  129. 129. It was arranged between us that we would not object to anybody’s publishing my books.1 min
  130. 130. For stomach troubles a cold climate is an unfailing remedy.2 min
  131. 131. Set up such a machine as will go on automatically, no matter who dies or lives.2 min
  132. 132. My head will be a full-blown white lotus by the time you see me next.2 min
  133. 133. My present plan is to go to America via China and Japan in November or December1 min
  134. 134. I have not witnessed the Durgā-Pujā for the last nine years1 min
  135. 135. Shri Mother is going this morning to see the new Math.1 min
  136. 136. Did you come across Max Müller’s new book, Ramakrishna: His Life and Sayings?2 min
  137. 137. Turiyānanda is with me1 min
  138. 138. Grind on, old lady; it is Karma and none can avoid.2 min
  139. 139. If you want, even if the body be torn and bleeding, you may enjoy the greatest peace in your mind.3 min
  140. 140. I want work, I want vigour—no matter who lives or dies.2 min
  141. 141. It is an awful spell of the bad turn of fortune with me last six months.1 min
  142. 142. I never saw a man who could satisfy everyone.2 min
  143. 143. I am going to learn French.4 min
  144. 144. I am much better now and growing so every day.1 min
  145. 145. We have started a new India—a growth—waiting to see what comes.3 min
  146. 146. My method is never to ask but wait for voluntary help.2 min
  147. 147. How I curse the day that brought me celebrity!1 min
  148. 148. Get experience while still there is a chance; I am not concerned whether you win or lose.1 min
  149. 149. I never was so bad as now in finding my way in and out.1 min
  150. 150. Die in obeying commands like a soldier, and go to Nirvāna, but no cowardice.1 min
  151. 151. I am grinding on in Pasadena; hope some result will come out of my work here.2 min
  152. 152. The only way to keep my peace is to teach others. Work is my only safety valve2 min
  153. 153. I am happy just now and hope to remain so for all the rest of my life.2 min
  154. 154. Mother wants me to undergo the same that She made the great Āchārya undergo in old days3 min
  155. 155. I can always work better alone, and am physically and mentally best when entirely alone!1 min
  156. 156. When my father died, it was a pang for months, and I had been so disobedient.1 min
  157. 157. The last two years have been specially bad. I have been living in mental hell.1 min
  158. 158. I can use my voice, however, to make 3,000 people hear me1 min
  159. 159. They come in crowds when there is a free lecture and very few when there is something to pay.4 min
  160. 160. You have done for me more than I ever deserve.1 min
  161. 161. Alas, sickness, sorrow, and pain have been my companions for the last two years.2 min
  162. 162. I am only a worker. My mission is to obey and work.1 min
  163. 163. So glad to hear of Margot’s success. I have given her over to you, and am sure you will take care of her.1 min
  164. 164. My nature is the retirement of a scholar. I never get it!1 min
  165. 165. Thank God, nothing is eternal except Himself.3 min
  166. 166. I have just received a bill of lading from Mrs. Banerji. She has sent some Dāl (pulses) and rice.1 min
  167. 167. Work morning and evening, go to bed at 12 p.m. after a heavy supper!1 min
  168. 168. I am cooking, eating whatever comes, working day and night, and I am all right and sleeping soundly!1 min
  169. 169. The boys are working up; well, scolding has both sides, you see; it makes them up and doing.2 min
  170. 170. Doing good is not always smooth!3 min
  171. 171. Well, take what comes.1 min
  172. 172. I am the servant of Ramakrishna. I am merely a machine. I know nothing else.1 min
  173. 173. Money is not evil after all—in good hands.2 min
  174. 174. I have finished my work. I am retired, Joe.2 min
  175. 175. I am learning now how to be detached as well as attached1 min
  176. 176. The Mother will take care of me. She is not going to strand me now after guarding me all my life.2 min
  177. 177. After the incessant work I require a breath of God’s free air1 min
  178. 178. Sudden indisposition and fever prevent my starting for Chicago yet.1 min
  179. 179. I am going to throw off all worry, and glory unto Mother.1 min
  180. 180. All blessings on you. Don’t despond in the least.1 min
  181. 181. The Upanishads teach us all there is of religion.4 min
  182. 182. I am only existence and knowledge.1 min
  183. 183. I have been much censured by everyone for cutting off my long hair.1 min
  184. 184. I am all alone, and washing; I like it.1 min
  185. 185. I have to get the passage and sail. Mother knows the rest.1 min
  186. 186. May the Swan (the Supreme Self) send us that.1 min
  187. 187. They like you immensely, and I am sure you have found in them genuine, pure, and absolutely unselfish friends.1 min
  188. 188. Devotion to the mother is the root of all welfare.1 min
  189. 189. His work He knows, you and I are but servants and nothing else.1 min
  190. 190. I like boldness and adventure and my race stands in need of that spirit very much1 min
  191. 191. There is not a single person on whom I can depend1 min
  192. 192. I have been having intense meditation and repetition of the Lord’s name.2 min
  193. 193. Through Mother’s will all work will go on; don’t be afraid.1 min
  194. 194. I have been very happy and content here.1 min
  195. 195. We shall in the end find what we are looking for, isn’t it?3 min
  196. 196. I am holding my soul in patience.1 min
  197. 197. I don’t know the future of the work in the Himalayas.1 min