Swami Vivekananda Quotes
Ours is the only religion that does not depend on a person or persons; it is based upon principles. At the same time there is room for millions of persons. There is ample ground for introducing persons, but each one of them must be an illustration of the principles. We must not forget that. These principles of our religion are all safe, and it should be the life-work of everyone of us to keep then safe, and to keep them free from the accumulating dirt and dust of ages.
Vivekananda, Swami. The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, Vol. 3. Advaita Ashrama, 1960, p. 280.
This quotation is sometimes used to show that Washington thought religion important. Most of the founding fathers thought religion both important and potentially dangerous. They had observed Europe tear itself apart over religious differences. Note that Washington uses the words “religious principles” as opposed to “religion” or “religious prescriptions” or “religious doctrine.” The founders were not hostile to the concept of religion—even Jefferson and Franklin saw potential values in religion and religious institutions. They were hostile, however, to letting any particular sect dominate the religious environment of the nation. Nor did they want any of the religions controlling or operating the civil government. See {625616}.
Swami Vivekananda, born Narendranath Datta (Bengali: [nɔrendronatʰ dɔto]), was an Indian Hindu monk. He was a chief disciple of the 19th-century Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the introduction of the Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world, and is credited with raising interfaith awareness, bringing Hinduism to the status of a major world religion during the late 19th century. He was a major force in the contemporary Hindu reform movements in India, and contributed to the concept of nationalism in colonial India. Vivekananda founded the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission. He is perhaps best known for his speech which began with the words "Sisters and brothers of America ...," in which he introduced Hinduism at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago in 1893.
