A Comprehensive Collection - Swami Vivekananda

""VEDANTA. 399)curse of unnumbered millions is on our heads, to whomwe have been giving ditch water to drink when they havebeen tJying of thirst and when the perennial river of waterwas flowing past, the unnumbered millions whom we haveallowed to starve at sight of plenty, the unnumbered millions to whom we have talked of Advaita and hated witha, 1 ! our strength, the unnumbered millions againstwe have invented the doctrines of lokachara, to whom wehave talked theoretically that all are the same, and all arethe same, Lord, without even an ounce of practice. Yet,my friends, it must only be in the mind never;inpractice!"Aye, wipe off this blot.Arise and awake."What matters it if this little life goes ; every one has gotto die, the saint or the sinner, the rich or the poor. Thebody never remains for anyone. *^rise and awake and beperfectly sincere. Our insincerity in India is awful ;what we want is character, that steadiness and characterthat make a man cling on to a thing like grim death.Nindantu nitinipivna jcma yadiva stuvantu.Let the sages blame or let them praise, let Lakshmicome to-day, let her go away, let death come just now, orin hundred years ; he, indeed, is the sage who does notmake one false step from the path of right." Arise andawake, for the time is passing away when all our energieswill be frittered away in vain talking. Arise and awake,let minor things and quarrels over little details and fightsover little doctrines be thrown aside, for here is the greatestof all works, here are the sinking millions. Mark, whenthe Mahomedans first came into India, there were 60millions of Hindus here :to-day there are less than 20millions. Every day they will become less and less till thewhole disappear. Let them disappear, but with them willdisappear the marvellous ideas with all their defects and all