Teachings and Philosophy
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Swami Vivekananda believed a country's future depends on its people; his teachings focussed on this area. He wanted “to set in motion a machinery which will bring noblest ideas to the doorstep of even the poorest and the meanest.” Swami Vivekananda believed that the essence of Hinduism was best expressed in the Vedanta philosophy, based on the interpretation of Adi Shankara. He summarised the Vedanta's teachings as follows:
- Each soul is potentially divine.
- The goal is to manifest this Divinity within by controlling nature, external and internal.
- Do this either by work, or worship, or mental discipline, or philosophy—by one, or more, or all of these—and be free.
- This is the whole of religion. Doctrines, or dogmas, or rituals, or books, or temples, or forms, are but secondary details.
Vivekananda advised his followers to be holy, unselfish and have Shraddha (faith). He encouraged the practice of Brahmacharya (celibacy). In one of the conversations with his childhood friend Priya Nath Sinha, he attributes his physical and mental strengths, and eloquence, to the practice of Brahmacharya.
Read more about this topic: Swami Vivekananda
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