Swami Shivapadananda on the truthfulness of Swami Vivekananda
DAILY READINGS
Selected from Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji.
Day 472
Swamiji continues talking about the pre-monastic Swami Vivekananda
Naren [Narendranath Datta, later Swami Vivekananda] was also truthful. At school, during a lesson, the teacher heard talking in the class and thinking that it was Naren he said, "Right, Naren, you tell the class what I just said." Naren repeated the whole thing word for word, so the teacher thought it could not have been him talking. Later on however, after the other boy had been punished, Naren went to the teacher and admitted that it had been him. His mind could not tolerate lies because he had a conscience. It seems that some of our consciences have become paralysed. You have no conscience if you speak lies and bluff others. Swami Vivekananda, from that young age, manifested this love of truth. This is an example of how your children too should be.
This same Swami Vivekananda liked to play games. He would gather all his friends around him and tell each one which part to play: "You are a servant, you are a shoe maker, you must sweep the floor and I am the king." [laughter] Even when he was young that inner nature of his manifest itself. He was a ruler – he grew up ruling. He ruled his own mind and body and today he rules a universe with his thoughts. He is the one that changed the thought waves of the whole universe.
It appears that he loved his charioteer – the man who drove him to school in a horse drawn carriage. He would say, "When I grow up I'll become a charioteer." In the beginning he learned from this man how to discipline the horses. Later he disciplined the 'horse' of his own mind and became the charioteer for thousands of people in India and the rest of the world.
Do not take anything on faith unless it is proved. No superstition whatsoever could catch hold of Swami Vivekananda. We are living in a scientific age and we should not accept everything without question.
There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.
Reference websites: Ramakrishna Math & Mission, Ramakrishna Centre of Southern Africa, Ramakrishna Dham