they have become only panols, and not Pandits. He indeed.
who has gained Prema (Divine Love) by leading even one word o ^ Mere book learned Pandits arc of no avail. Nowadays, everyone ^ even a poor beggar wants to make a gift of a lac of Rupees! Then, the Guru IZ L wRhout a touch of cahu; aud he must be by any LECTURES—FROM COLOMBO TO AIM OR A desire, — he has no other motive except that of purely doing good to others, he whe is the ocean of mercy-without-reason, he who does not impait religious leaching with a view to gain name or fame, or anything pertaining to seliish interest. And h( must be the intense knower of Brahman, that is, one who has realised Biahman, evei as tangibly as an Amlaki-fiuit in the palm of the hand. Such is the Guru, says th( Sruti. When.spiiitiial union is established with such a Guru, then comes realisatioi of God- then God-\isiou becomes easy of attainment.
After initiation, theie should be in the aspiiant after Tiuth, ahhyuU, or earnest anc repeated attempt at practical application of the Truth by piesciibed means 0 constant meditation upon the chosen Ideal. Even if you liave a burning ihirs for God, or have gained the (juru, unless you have along with it, the ahhyiUa, unles you practise what you have been taught, you cannot gel realisation. When all thesi are liimly established in you, then you will reach the Goal.
Theiefore I say unto you. as Plindus, as descendants of the glorious Aryas,— Do not forget the great ideal of our religion — the gieat ideal of the Hindu, — whic! is, to go beyond this Sams.lra, — not only to renounce the world, but to give u; heaven too; aye, not only to give up evd, but to give up good too; and thus to gi beyond all, beyond this phenomenal existence, and ultimately realise the “ SauChil Anandam Brahman ” — the Absolute Existence-Knowledge-Bliss, which is Brahman.
THE RELIGION WE ARE BORN IN.
At an open-air meeting, delivered at Dacca, on the 31st March 1901, the Swamiji spoke in English for two hours on the above subject before a vast audience. The following is a translation of the lecture from the Bengalee report of a disciple: — In the remote past, our country made gigantic advances in spiritual ideas. Let us, to-day, bring before our mind’s eye that ancient history. But the one great danger in meditating over long-past greatness is, that we cease to exert ourselves for new things, and content ourselves with vegetating upon that by-gone ancestral glory, and priding ourselves upon it. We should guard against that. In ancient times there • were, no doubt, many Rishis and Maharshis, who came face to face with Truth. But if this recalling of our ancient greatness is to be of real benefit, we too; mu.st become Rishis like them. Aye, not only that, but it is my firm conviction that we shall be even greater Rishis than any that our history presents to us. In the past, signal were our attainments, — I glory in them and I feel proud in thinking of them. I am not even in despair at seeing the present degradation, and I am full of hope in picturing to my mind of what is to come in the future. Why? Because I know, the seed under- goes a complete transformation, aye, the seed as seed is seemingly destroyed, before it develops into a tree. In the same way, in the midst of our present degradation lies, only dormant for a time, the potential potency of the future greatness of our religion, ready to spring up again, perhaps more mighty and glorious than ever before.
Now let us consider what are the common grounds of agreement in the religion we are born in. At first sight we undeniably find various differences among our sects. Some are Advaitists, some are Visishtadvaitists, and others are Dvaitists. Some believe in Incarnations of God, some in Image-worship, while others are upholders of the doctiine of the Formless. Then as to customs also, various differences are known to exist. The Jats are not outcasted, even if they marry among the Mahommedans and Christians. They can enter into any Hindu temple without hindrance. In many villages in the Punjab, one who does not eat swine will hardly be considered a Hindu. In Nepal, a Bdhman can marry in the four Frt/'//(W; while In Bengal, a Brahman cannot marry even among the sub-divisions of his own caste. So on and so foith. But in the midst of all these differences we note one point of unity among all Hindus, and it is this, that no Hindu eats beef. In the same way, there is a great common ground of unity underlying the various forms and sects of our religion.
First in discussing the Scriptures, one fact stands out prominently,— that only those religions which had one or many Scriptures of their own as their basi.s advanced by leaps and bounds, and survive to the present day notwithstanding al the persecution and repression hurled against them. The Greek religion, wuh al its beauty, died out in the absence of any Scripture to support it; but the rehg.on of the Jews stands undiminished in its power, being based upon the authority of he Old Testament. The same is the case with the Hindu religion, w.th its Scripture the Vedas, the oldest in the world. The Vedas are divided into the Karmayanda and the Jnana-kanda. Whether for good or for evil, the Karraa-kanda has fallen into disus in India, though there are some Brahmans in the Descan, who still perform d'r.y.mr now and then with the sacrifice of goats; and also we find here and there, traces of the Vedic Kriya-kanda in the Mantras used in connection with out marriage and Shtiddha ceremonies, &c. But there is no chance of its being rehabilitated on its original footing. Kumarilla Bhatta once tried to do so, but he was not successful in his attempt.
94 LECTURES— FROM COLOMBO TO ALMORA The Jnana-kanda of the Vedas comprises the Upanishads and is known bj the name of Vedanta, the pinnacle of the Srutis, as it is called. Wherever you find the Acharyas quoting a passage from the Srutis, it is invariably fiom the Upanishads The Vedanta is now the religion of the Hindus. If any sect in India wanti to have its ideas established with a firm hold on the people, it must base them or the authoiity of the Vedanta. They all have to do it, whether they aie Dvaitists or Advaitists. Even the Vaishnavas have to go to the Gopiilati^pani Upanishad to prove the truth of their own theories. If a new sect does not find anything in the Siutis in confirmation of its own ideas, it will go even to the length of manufacturing a new Upanishad, and make it pass curient as one of the old original productions. Theie have been many such in the past.
Now as to the Vedas, the Hindus believe that they are not mere books composed by men in some remote age. They hold them to be an accumulated mass of endless Divine Wisdom, which arc sometimes manifested or at other times lemain unmani- fesled. The Siiyanachaiya says somewheie in his woiks, 5^r — “Who cieated the whole univeise out of the knowledge of the Vedas." No one has ever seen the compiler of the Vedas, and it is impossible to imagine one. 'i'he Rishis were only the discoveicrs of the Mantras or Eternal Laws; they merely came face to face with the Vedas, the Infinite mine of knowledge, wdiich lias been there fiom tini'^* w-ithout beginning.
Who are these Rishis? Vatsayana says, — “ He who has attained thiough pioper means the diiect realisation of Dhaima, he alone can be a Rishi, e\en if he is a by biitli." Thus it is that in ancient times, Vasishtha boin of an illegill- male union, Vyasa the.son of a fisheiman, Naiada the son of a maid-seivant w iih uncei tain parentage, and many others of like natuie, attained to Rishihood. I'liily speaking, it comes to this then, that no distinction should be made with one w’ho has icaliscd the Truth. If the persons just named all became Rishis, then. O yii Kulin Ihahmans of the piescnt day, how' much greater Rishis you can become ' Stii\e alter that Rishihood, stop not till you have attained the goal, and the whole woild will of il&elf bow at your feet I ]?e a Rishi, — that is the secret of powei.
This Veda is oui only authority, and cveiyone has the light to it.
I ” ll d ims sais the Std/a Yajur Veda. Can you show any authority fiom this Veda of ouis, that e\ei}one has not the right to it } The Puianas, no doubt, say that a ceilain caste has the light to such and such a recension of the Vedas, or a certain caste has no light to sliuh them, oi that this portion of the Vedas is for the Satya Yitga and that poition is foi the Kah Yuga. But, inaik you, the Veda docs not say so; it is omy your Bui anas that do so.
But can the seivant diaate to the master? The.Smitis, Buiauas, d’antias — -all these are aec(fj>tahle only so far as they agree with the Vedas; and wherever they are conlia- diLUii’}, the) aie to be loiecled as uniehable. But nowadays we have put the Ihiranas on e\en a higher pedestal than the Vedas ' The study of the Vedas has almost dis- api)eaied fiom Bengal. How I w'ish that day will soon come, wlien in ewery liome the Veda will be w'or.shipped together with the SalagrAma, the household Deitv, when the young, the old, and the women will inauguiate the w'oislnp of the Veda.
1 have no faith in the theories advanced by Western Savants with legaid to the Vedas. They are to-day fixing the antiquity of the \Tdas at a ceilain peiiod, and again to-moiiow upselling it and biinging it one thousand years forwaid, and soon. IIowc\er, about the Puranas, I base told you that they are aulhoiiiative THE RELIGION WE ARE BORN IN, .Mly in so far as they agree with the Vedas, otherwise not. In the Puranas we find *Mny things which do not agree with the Vedas. As for instance, it is written in the I tiranas that some one lived ten thousand years, another one, twenty tliousand rais, but in the Vedas we find--^^^^;— “ Man lives, indeed, a hundred i us.” Which are we" to accept in this case? Ceitainly the Veda. Notwith- .•tU-nding statements like these, I do not depieciate the Puianas. They contain ,,- 'ny beautitul and illuminating teachings and woids of wisdom on Yoga, Bhakti, '.ana, and Karma; those, of course, we should accept. Then there are the i mtras. The real meaning of the woid Tantia is Shastia, as for example, Kiipila i iiitia. But the word Tantra is generally used in a limited sense. Under the sway 1.; kings who took up Buddhism and preached broadcast the doctiine of Ahimsd, ' peifoimances of the Vedic Tdgit Tajuas became a thing of the past, and no could kill any animal in sacrifice, for fear of the king. But subsequently .n mgst the Buddhists themselves — who weie converts fioin Hinduism — the best ,. I s of these y<ig(t Vajnas were taken up, and piactised in secret. Pioni those -ng up the Tantias. Baning some of the abominable things in the Tantias, such he Vamdehara &o., the I’antias arc not so bad, as people are inclined to I*. Theie are many high and sublime Vedantic thoughts in them. In fact, the I mana poitions of the Vedas weie modified a little, and incorpoiated into the ; of the Tantras. All the foims of our woiship and the ceieinonials of the present 1 i-, compiising the Kaima-kanda, aie observed in accoidance with the Tantias.
Now let us discuss the pi inciples of oui religion a little. Notwithstanding the . srences and contiovcisies existing among our vaiious sects, there are in them seseial grounds of unity. Fust, almost all of them admit the existence of three gs— ihiee entities- Islnaia. Atman, and the Jagat. Ish\aia is He who is eternally ting, [u-cseiwing and destioying the whole universe. Fxcepling the Sllnkhyas, ' the others believe in this. Then the doctiine of the Atman, or the re-incaination he sou!, it maintains that innumerable individual souls having taken body after again and again, go loiind and lound in the wheel of bhth and death accoid- to then icspectiie Kaunas; this is Siimsdi ai'dda 01 as it is commonly called, the . line of le-biiih. Then Iheie is this Jagat 01 uni\cise, without beginning and i iOuL end. Though some hold these three as different phases of one only, and ■ s olheis as thiee distinctly diffeicnt entities, and otheus again in vaiious ..u w'ays, yet they aie all unanimous in believing in these ihice.
Here I should ask you to reinemhei that Hindus, fiom tune iinmemoial, knew the > \n as scjiaiatc ficin Manas, mind. But the Occidentals could nevci soai be)ond Mind. The West knows the imiveMC to be lull of happiness, and as such, it is to ' ( 't a place wiicie they can enjoy the most; but the Fast is born with the couMCtiou hib Sam<'ai a, this ever-changing exiiilence, is full of misery, and as such, it is ..criiiing, nolhmg but unieal, not worth baiLeiing the soul foi its ephemeral joys and possessions, I'oi this veiy leason, the West is ever especially adioit in organised Action, and so also, the J'.ast is cvci bold in seaich of the inysteiies of the internal woild, I Let us, liow'eicr, turn nowMo one or two other aspects of Hinduism, There is doctiine of the Incarnations of God. In the \ edas we find mention oi iMaliva Avaldra, the Fish Incai nation, only. Whether all believe in this doctime or not is not the point; the real meaning, however, of this Avohiraidda is, the woiship of Man, to see God in man is the leal God-vision. The Hindu does not go through Nature to Natuie’s God, — he goes to the God of man thiough Man.
bn4#e;4lfi««« "“f H in ^UuTshlstmn; the bivest of all the lovr forms of V.:- i6wfl*ri,b<!?«i descnbed in all o thing to do. ' Despite the many ■•>- »MP» that does " XVrf.
'fH'fl dTrlln rXe 'tere «ouW I have been, if I had not been bles - i,d^^ol condemn i. ^ ’ orthodox imaee-worshippl^g Brahman 1 Viih itie d»j9t of the holy feet of 1 1. worshio or what they denounce ^ fdolatry.-to them I say, h ^7 ^o you condemn others who cannot ■.
discarding any external help,, „lnrious r»lic of a hoary antiquity has, the same f A beautiful large edi ice, ^ ^o^jition; accumulations of dirt ■>.’
Pf neglect or disuse, fal^n ° “"1 portions are tumbling do., dust may be ^>'"8 ''''’■J''!. / > \yill you take in hand the necessary del i.- to the ground. What ' J'lX you pull the whole edifice d. ' ing And repays and thus resto Id^^^^^^ Us place, after a sordid modem Jil to the ground se«^ to ^ ^o reform it, which Uuly mMu whose permanence has y necessary cleansing and repaiis, not by demolishi^i to make ready or perfect by -L^rm ends When the work of renayaU'^; the whole thing. T'’-*, “X" td Jles U -rve f Do that if you can, if n.
•the old is finished, what further ‘J;', „ jUe contiary, to bui hands off! ' The band of re however, done good work; may tl.
Up a separate sect of their o\. y ^ » should you, Hindus, wai .blfessings of God be fold? Why should you feel, asham.= to 'lseparate ^du tvhich is your greatest and most glorious possessio; to take the name of Hind, Immoitals my countrymen, has lx Tbisjiational ship of ours, ye enriching the whole world with its inev plying for ages, carrying ‘‘''f'^ ^g centurs tWa national ours has b.
mable treasures. For f d^has taken millions of souls to the other sho ferrying across the ocean o,<. „ ^ leak and got damaged, thro>i beyond all misery. But to-day it ‘ ^ j ® \Vhal would you, who have pli yourselves in it, do now? wouia )o 8 slop.v And to the Brdhmans I say,-W am have no more now, be- Shake it off. Brihroanhood, Va AcMa kings. If you at all believe in thej cause, you have for so long lived.f^ffmoment and make expiation by enter-j words of your own ancestors, then go t Kumdrilla Bhatta, who witk; ing into the slow fire kindled \>y Tusha > of the Buddhists and thel once more their just and -* j. iij