Kathamrita Volume II - Swami Vivekananda

it is all futile unless one has love anddevotion [6] for God, unless one has the desireto realize Him. A mere pundit withoutdiscrimination [7] and non-attachment [8] hashis attention fixed on ‘lust and greed’. Avulture soars high in the sky but its eyes remainfixed on the charnel pits where carcasses ofanimals are burnt.“The knowledge which leads one to therealization of God is real knowledge. All else isfutile.“Well, what is your idea of God?”Shrish — I have only understood this much –that there is an All-knowing Person, by seeingwhose creation one can know how muchwisdom He has. Just take this illustration –what skill God shows to save the lives of fishand other aquatic creatures in a cold country!The colder it is, the more the water contracts.But how wonderful! A little before it turns intoice, the water becomes lighter and expands.Thus fish can survive in the coldest of seasonsin the water of a lake. The whole of the upperlayer turns into ice, but underneath the waterremains liquid. If a very cold wind blows, itonly affects the upper surface of ice. The waterbelow it remains warm.Sri Ramakrishna — That God exists may be