"Can you weep for Him with intense
longing of heart? Men shed a jugful of tears for the sake of their
children, for their wives, or for money. But who weeps for God? So long
as the child remains engrossed with its toys, the mother looks after
her cooking and other household duties. But when the child no longer
relishes the toys, it throws them aside and yells for its mother. Then
the mother takes the rice-pot down from the hearth, runs in haste, and
takes the child in her arms."
Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
(Dakshineshwar 1884)
"I fervently hope that the bell that
tolled this morning in honour of this convention may be the death-knell
of all fanaticism, of all persecutions with the sword or with the pen,
and of all uncharitable feelings between persons wending their way to
the same goal."
Swami Vivekananda
Representative of Hindus
Parliament of Religions
Columbian Exposition, Chicago World Fair
11 September 1893.
Short biographies of Sri
Ramakrishna (by Swami Tejasananda, published 1940), Sri Maa (by Swami
Pavitrananda, published 1942) and Swami
Vivekananda (by Swami Tejasananda, published 1940).
Special thanks to Swami Bodhasaranandaji of Advaita Ashrama,
Kolkata, India, for
his whole-hearted support for placing the Complete Works of
Swami Vivekananda
and Vivekananda A Biography online.
The originals of the two unpublished letters
in The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda are available at
the Ramakrishna
Vedanta Society of Boston's website.
Special thanks to the volunteers who have helped with this
project.
