Chapter 9: The Chosen Ideal
Volume 3, Bhakti Yoga
by Swami Vivekananda (1894)
Swami Vivekananda's works are in the public domain. This is due to the following reasons:
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The next thing to be considered is what we know as Ishta–Nishthâ*. One who aspires to be a Bhakta must know that so many opinions are so many ways
. He must know that all the various sects of the various religions are the various manifestations of the glory of the same Lord. They call You by so many names; they divide You, as it were, by different names, yet in each one of these is to be found Your omnipotence… You reach the worshipper through all of these, neither is there any special time so long as the soul has intense love for You. You are so easy of approach; it is my misfortune that I cannot love You.
Not only this, the Bhakta must take care not to hate, nor even to criticise those radiant sons of light who are the founders of various sects; he must not even hear them spoken ill of. Very few indeed are those who are at once the possessors of an extensive sympathy and power of appreciation, as well as an intensity of love. We find, as a rule, that liberal and sympathetic sects lose the intensity of religious feeling, and in their hands, religion is apt to degenerate into a kind of politico–social club life. On the other hand, intensely narrow sectaries, whilst displaying a very commendable love of their own ideals, are seen to have acquired every particle of that love by hating every one who is not of exactly the same opinions as themselves. Would to God that this world was full of men who were as intense in their love as worldwide in their sympathies! But such are only few and far between. Yet we know that it is practicable to educate large numbers of human beings into the ideal of a wonderful blending of both the width and the intensity of love; and the way to do that is by this path of the Istha–Nishtha or steadfast devotion to the chosen ideal
. Every sect of every religion presents only one ideal of its own to mankind, but the eternal Vedantic religion opens to mankind an infinite number of doors for ingress into the inner shrine of divinity, and places before humanity an almost inexhaustible array of ideals, there being in each of them a manifestation of the Eternal One. With the kindest solicitude, the Vedanta points out to aspiring men and women the numerous roads, hewn out of the solid rock of the realities of human life, by the glorious sons, or human manifestations, of God, in the past and in the present, and stands with outstretched arms to welcome all — to welcome even those that are yet to be — to that Home of Truth and that Ocean of Bliss, wherein the human soul, liberated from the net of Mâyâ, may transport itself with perfect freedom and with eternal joy.
* Ishta–Nishthâ is a term used in Hindu philosophy, particularly in the context of Bhakti Yoga and/or spiritual devotion.
Ishta =
chosenorpreferred.Nishthâ =
faithordevotion.Ishta–Nishthâ ultimately means having a single–minded focus on one's personal god or spiritual ideal.
Bhakti–Yoga, therefore, lays on us the imperative command not to hate or deny any one of the various paths that lead to salvation. Yet the growing plant must be hedged round to protect it until it has grown into a tree. The tender plant of spirituality will die if exposed too early to the action of a constant change of ideas and ideals. Many people, in the name of what may be called religious liberalism, may be seen feeding their idle curiosity with a continuous succession of different ideals. With them, hearing new things grows into a kind of disease, a sort of religious drink–mania. They want to hear new things just by way of getting a temporary nervous excitement, and when one such exciting influence has had its effect on them, they are ready for another. Religion is with these people a sort of intellectual opium–eating, and there it ends. There is another sort of man
, says Bhagavan Ramakrishna, who is like the pearl–oyster of the story. The pearl–oyster leaves its bed at the bottom of the sea, and comes up to the surface to catch the rain–water when the star Svâti* is in the ascendant. It floats about on the surface of the sea with its shell wide open, until it has succeeded in catching a drop of the rain–water, and then it dives deep down to its sea–bed, and there rests until it has succeeded in fashioning a beautiful pearl out of that rain–drop.
* Svāti is the name of a Nakshatra (lunar mansion) in Vedic astrology.
This is indeed the most poetical and forcible way in which the theory of Ishta–Nishtha has ever been put. This Eka–Nishtha* or devotion to one ideal is absolutely necessary for the beginner in the practice of religious devotion. He must say with Hanuman† in the Râmâyana‡, Though I know that the Lord of Shri and the Lord of Jânaki are both manifestations of the same Supreme Being, yet my all in all is the lotus–eyed Râma.
Or, as was said by the sage Tulasidâsa**, he must say, Take the sweetness of all, sit with all, take the name of all, say yea, yea, but keep your seat firm.
Then, if the devotional aspirant is sincere, out of this little seed will come a gigantic tree like the Indian banyan, sending out branch after branch and root after root to all sides, till it covers the entire field of religion. Thus will the true devotee realise that He who was his own ideal in life is worshipped in all ideals by all sects, under all names, and through all forms.
* Eka–Nishthâ is a term used in Hindu philosophy and spiritual practices, particularly in the context of devotion (Bhakti) and meditation.
Eka = one, single.
Nishthâ = devotion, steadfastness, or commitment.
Eka–Nishthâ refers to single–minded devotion or undivided commitment to a single goal, deity, or practice. It is the state of having a focused, unwavering dedication to a spiritual path, practice, or a chosen deity (Ishta–Devata).
† Hanuman is one of the most revered and beloved deities in Hinduism, known for his immense strength, devotion, and loyalty. He is often depicted as a monkey–faced god with a human body, symbolizing both his powerful nature and his association with the Vanaras (monkey people) in Hindu mythology.
‡ The Rāmāyaṇa is one of the two great epics of ancient Indian literature, the other being the Mahābhārata. It is a revered and foundational text attributed to the sage Valmiki. The Rāmāyaṇa narrates the life and adventures of Lord Rama, the seventh incarnation of the god < em>Vishnu.
** Tulsidāsa was a renowned Hindu saint, poet, and devotee of Lord Rama, best known for his devotional works. His most famous work is the Rāmcharitmanas, a retelling of the Rāmāyaṇa in the Hindi language, making the epic more accessible to the common people.
Chapters
| Gauni (Preparation): DefinitionBhakti Narada karma raja Shandilya Vyasa Sutras jnana gnana love hinduism christians Mohammedanism muslims islam christianity Nishtha gauni prepatory Sutra avrittirasakridupadeshat Bhagavan Shankara Shruti atman liberation vedas Sutra of Patanjali Ishvara pranidhanadva supreme atman Brahman |
| Gauni (Preparation): IshvaraIshvara satchitananda sat chit ananda Brahman Absolute Reality Sutras pada Moksha Jiva aphorism Kshatras Varuna Soma Rudra Parjanya Yama Mrityu Ishâna Atman Ramanuja Advaita brahman not this not this Shrutis Sankhyas Samkhyas Bhagavata Purana Prahlada gopis krishna Acharya Shankara Vyasa Varaha Purana Madhvacharya |
| Gauni (Preparation): Spiritual Realisationbhakti bhakta realization realisation god moksha gauni para Ishtapurta |
| Gauni (Preparation): The Need of Guruguru spiritual Shishya student teacher fools blind leading the blind |
| Gauni (Preparation): Qualifications of the Aspirant and the Teacherguru teacher sun purity bible vedas koran Bhagavân Ramakrishna mango bhakta mango leaves counting twigs Shantih shanti sine qua non sin religion Himalayas the Alps the Caucasus Tibet gobi |
| Gauni (Preparation): Incarnate Teachers and IncarnationShri Krishna Bhagavata omnipotence omnipresence Avataras of Ishvara Paramahamsa buffalo fish Bhagavan Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa big talker man on the street |
| Gauni (Preparation): The Mantra: Om: Word and Wisdommantra Chittavritti nama rupa name and form Sphota Brahma Hiranyagarbha Mahat om aum krishna Akhanda-Sachchidânanda Tattvas |
| Gauni (Preparation): Worship of Substitutes and ImagesPratikas Pratimas Brahman Bhagavan Ramanuja akasha Devas Shankara Karma omnipresent Vidya Ishvara Shrutis Smritis Vishishtâdvaitin Adityas Brahma Sutra Bhasya Vedantism Buddhism Christianity islam Mohammedans Protestantism agnostics August Comte Drishtisaukaryam |
| Gauni (Preparation): The Chosen IdealIshta Nishtha bhakta vedanta home of truth ocean of bliss maya Svati Hanuman Ramayana Tulasidasa |
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