by Swami Vivekananda

All these secret societies and humbugs make men and women impure, weak and narrow; and the weak have no will and can never work. Therefore have nothing to do with them. All this false love of mystery should be knocked on the head the first time it comes into your mind.

No one who is the least impure will ever become religious. Do not try to cover festering sores with masses of roses. Do you think you can cheat God? None can. Give me a straightforward man or woman; but Lord save me from ghosts, flying angels, and devils. Be common, everyday, nice people.

Spiritual knowledge is the only thing that can destroy our miseries forever; any other knowledge satisfies wants only for a while.

Vedanta knows no sin. There are mistakes but no sin; and in the long run everything is going to be all right. No Satan -- none of this nonsense. Vedanta believes in only one sin, only one in the world, and it is this: the moment you think you are a sinner or anybody is a sinner, that is sin. From that follows every other mistake of what is usually called sin. There have been mistakes in our lives. But we are going on. Glory be unto us that we have made mistakes! Take a long look at your past life. If your present condition is good, it has been caused by all the past mistakes as well as success. Glory be unto success! Glory be unto mistakes! Do not look back upon what has been done. Go ahead!

Those who are always downhearted and dispirited in this life can do no work; from life to life they come and go wailing and moaning. "The earth is enjoyed by heroes" .... this is an unfailing truth. Be a hero. Always say, "I have no fear." Tell this to everybody: "Have no fear." Fear is death, fear is sin, fear is hell, fear is unrighteousness, fear is wrong life. All the negative thoughts and ideas that are in this world have proceeded from this evil spirit of fear.

Wait, money does not pay nor does name; fame does not pay nor does learning. It is love that pays; it is character that cleaves its way through adamant walls of difficulties.

One who leans on somebody cannot serve the God of Truth.

Great work requires great and persistent effort for a long time. Character has to be established through a thousand stumbles.

The greatest religion is to be true to your own nature. Have faith in yourselves!

The Law of Life: All expansion is life, all contraction is death. All love is expansion, all selfishness is contraction. Love is therefore the only law of life. He who loves lives; he who is selfish is dying. Therefore love for love's sake, because it is the only law of life, just as you breathe to live.

Are you sincere? Are you unselfish even unto death? Are you loving? Then fear not, not even death.

It is unswerving love and perfect unselfishness that conquer everything. We Vedantists in every difficulty ought to ask the subjective question, "Why do I see that? Why can I not conquer this with love?"

I am not a Shopkeeper. All the teachers of the humanity are unselfish. Suppose Jesus of Nazareth was teaching, and a man came and told him, "What you teach is beautiful. I believe that is the way to perfection, and I am ready to follow it; but I do not care to worship you just as the only begotten Son of God." What would be the answer of Jesus of Nazareth?

"Very well, brother, follow the ideal and advance in your own way. I do not care whether you give me the credit for the teaching or not. I am not a shopkeeper. I do not trade the religion. I only teach truth, and the truth is nobody's property. Nobody can patent truth. Truth is God Himself."

Those that want to help mankind must take their own pleasure and pain, name and fame, all sorts of interest and fold them into a bundle and throw away into the sea, and then come to the Lord. This is what all the Masters said and did.