A Comprehensive Collection - Swami Vivekananda

524 SANNYAS : ITS IDEAL AND PRACTICE.Then as to the methods of carrying the ideals intoFirst, we have to understand that we rifustpractical life.not have &ny impossible ideal. An ideal which is too highmakes a nation weak and degraded. This happened after theBuddhistic and the tjain reforms. On the other nand, toomuch practicality is alsv>wrong. If youhave not even alittle imagination, if you have no ideal to guid you, youvare simply a brute. So we must not lowerour ideal, neither are we to lose sight of practicality.We must avoid the two extremes. In our country theold idea is, to sit in a cave and meditate and die. To goahead of others in salvation iswrong. One must learnsooner or later, that one cannot get salvation if one doe, 5*not try to seek the salvation of his brothers. ^ 7&kimust combine in yourlife immense idealismwith immensepracticality. You must be prepared to go into deepmeditation now, and the next moment you must be readyto go and cultivate these fields (Swamiji said, pointing tothe meadows of the Math). You must be prepared toexplain the difficult intricacies of the Shastras now, andthe next moment to go and sell the produce of the fieldsin the market. You must le prepared for all menial services, not only here, but elsewhere also.The next thing to remember is,that the aim of thisInstitution is to make men. You must not merely learnwhat the Rishis taught. Those Rishis are gone, and theiropinions are also gone with them. You must be Rishisyourselves. You are also men as much as the greatestmen that were ever born even our Incarnations. Whatcan mere book-learning do ? What can meditation do even ?You must standWhat can the Mantras and Tantras do ?on your own feet. You must have this new method themethod of man-making. The true man is he who is strong