A Comprehensive Collection - Swami Vivekananda

He164 MAYA AND ILLUSION.is so large that it passes all description. Scarcely could Igo to a meeting or a society butI found three-quarters ofthe women present had turned out their husbands andchildren. It is so here, there and everywhere. Whatdoes it show ? That, after all, not much happiness has beengained by all these ideals. We all struggle for happiness,and before we get a little on one side, on the other sidethere begins unhappiness.Shall we not work to do good then ? Yes, with morezest than ever, but what this knowledge will do for us is tobreak down our fanaticism. The Englishmanwill no more"become a fanatic to curse the Hindu Oh, the diabolicalHindu, how he treats his women !" will have learnt torespect the customs of different nations. There will beless of fanaticism and more work ;fanatics *cannot work ;they waste three-fourths of their energy. It is what theycall the level-headed, calm, practical man who works. Mereto work willranting fanatics do not do much. So the powerincrease from this idea. Knowing that this is the state ofthings, there will be more patience. The sight of misery orof evil will not be able]to throw us off our balance and makeus run after shadows.Therefore, patience will come to us,knowing that the world will have to go on in this way. Sayrfor instance, that all men will have become good, then theanimals will have become men, and will have to go throughthe same state, and so the plants. But only one thing iscertain ; the mighty river is rushing towards the ocean ;andthere are bits of straw and paper in the stream, which aretrying to get back, but we are sure that the time will comewhen each one of these pieces will be drawn towards thatInfinite ocean. So, in this life, with all its miseries andsorrows, its joys and smiles and tears, one thing is certain,that it is rushing towards that Infinite ocean, and it is only