Excerpts from
the speech of Swami Bodhamayananda at Ramakrishna Mutt, Hyderabad on National Youth day-2012
“ Excellence is
a habit. Just like brushing or bathing. For 20 years you take bath, so, tomorrow
don’t take bath. It’s a habit. We have to clean the body. Poison from the body
must go. Then what are we doing for the mind? Antivirus for computer, what are
we doing for this super computer (mind)? GHMC dustbin. Infuse yourself with
swamiji’s blood. Train yourself, inspire yourself and no power on earth can inspire
you more than Vivekananda.How people are wasting money on parties and pubs when there are people who have no food to eat. When thousands of children are dying of malnutrition people are concerned if a celebrity child is a boy or girl. How hypocritical the society has become.
When a policeman is there, we won’t break the law, traffic etc. One man makes all the difference. But, that we do out of fear, not out of respect. Recently, I got a mail about this amazing story that happened in the tsunami hit Japan. Many people were standing in the queue for food packets after tsunami. There was an 8 year old boy in the queue and a photographer from Thailand. As it happened that the packets were running out of stock and it would take another 3 or 4 hours for the next set to arrive, the photographer decided to give his food packet to the kid. The kid took the packet, thanked the photographer, went to the distributor and returned it to him. When the photographer asked the boy why he returned it back, then the mind and heart of the boy speaks out, “ Uncle, I know it’ll take another 3 or 4 hours. But, my mother told me I should not eat at the cost of others. I’ll wait. My mom told me if I eat at the cost of others, I’ll be eating sin. I’ll eat when my turn comes.” This shows the real character of the boy and a nation. Out of character flows milk and honey.
UNESCO made a survey of youth in India. There are 3 kinds of youth. One is the PUB culture youth. Every weekend, drinking, dancing, making merry. 2nd category youth who go every week to psychiatrists, depression, suicide etc and the 3rd category who come to RK mutt.
1st category youth, they have no time. Very busy people they are. VIP category. Very busy in Pubs, multiplexes etc. Come what may, dreaming about it, thinking about it, SMSing about it. 24 hours is not sufficient for them. 2nd category of youth, they are also very busy people. Kashmir to Kanyakumari everyday writing entrance exams, no goal, no idea. In that there is another category, 1st day party, last day party, internal exam over party, brain empty. What is this? Whose money? What is the nation doing? Reading science and not thinking scientifically. This is the problem. Another kind of youth, BA, B Com MBA and some other degree they do, why? To settle DOWN in life. Vivekananda says Arise, Awake and here settle DOWN.” Young, Rich, Retired Indians”- High BP, high Cholesterol, most of the time spending in Apollo hospital and spending 25,000 per month on medicines. National liability. When wealth accumulates without values men will decay.
We have technological excellence, management excellence, business excellence, but we should strive for human excellence. Boys and girls today have Cell Confidence and lost Self confidence. You have sold yourself in the market. You are not known by yourself but by your job, bank balance and gadget. Thanks to the invasion of media, cinema, technology, we do not have training of mind. We can operate a machine but can’t operate our own mind. Emptiness in mind and eternal vacuum in your heart. Technology should not be at the cost of your personality.
It’s not just public speaking, communication skills, job etc. this is nothing. The three worlds will be at your feet if you are manifesting divinity. What you are worrying about jobs? If at all it is a job, why don’t you create jobs. Did Narayanmurthy, Azim Premzi or Abdul Kalam ask for jobs. This is where your thought process has to intensify. You have to give a new alternative ideology. That is possible. Vivekananda was there for that. “They alone live who live for others, the rest are more dead than alive.”
Swami Vivekananda and his teachings are relevant even 110 years after he left this world because he had the power of discrimination. The whole world was at his feet in just three minutes. He said sisters and brothers of the world and 7000 people present there were up on their feet. That is the power of discrimination or Viveka buddhi. Please discriminate what is right and what is wrong, what is cinema life and what is real life, what is character and corruption. Corruption starts in the mind, in the subconscious. Don’t get lost in PEER PRESSURE, It’s not worth it. It’s not your dignity. Don’t get lost in the market. Discriminate, whether you want to become one among many or one above many. Only YOU can decide your future, create history, and leave your mark not on sand but on rocks of eternity. ARISE, AWAKE and STOP NOT TILL THE GOAL IS REACHED!”
