Meditation and its methods according to Swami Vivekananda

by Vivekananda

Swami Vivekananda’s lectures on Meditation

Genres: Spirituality, Meditation, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Self Help, Hinduism, Health

136 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2003

About the author

"Arise Awake and Stop not til the goal is reached"

Vivekananda left a body of philosophical works (see Vivekananda's complete works). His books (compiled from lectures given around the world) on the four Yogas (Raja Yoga, Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Jnana Yoga) are very influential and still seen as fundamental texts for anyone interested in the Hindu practice of Yoga. His letters are of great literary and spiritual value. He was also considered a very good singer and a poet.By the time of his death, He had composed many songs including his favorite Kali the Mother. He used humor for his teachings and was also an excellent cook. His language is very free flowing. His own Bengali writings stand testimony to the fact that he believed that words - spoken or written - should be for making things easier to understand rather than show off the speaker or writer's knowledge.

Swami Vivekananda [ স্বামী বিবেকানন্দ ] (1863 – 1902), born Narendranath Datta, was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the introduction of Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world and is credited with raising interfaith awareness, and bringing Hinduism to the status of a major world religion.

Born in Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India (present-day Kolkata, West Bengal, India)

Reviews

[Catie · Rating 3 out of 5]

"This is the first part of the study, the control of the unconscious."

"Whatever exists is one. There cannot be many."

"The very essence of education is concentration of the mind, not the collecting of facts."

"The powers of the mind are like rays of light dissipated; when they are concentrated, they illumine. This is our only means of knowledge."

"It is all play. Play!"

[Bharath · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brings out the most important talks of Swami Vivekananda on meditation. The language is simple and very easy to read. Covers good points on meditation techniques, yoga, values and Advaita Vedanta. Very concise and a recommended read

[Braga · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not have many expectations before picking this book except that I wanted to explore what other techniques of meditation are possible other than the one I've practiced for the past 3 years.

However, this book is not more about the technique but about the teachings of Swami Vivekananda who was an entirely different class to have lived and spent time on earth. If I had picked this book up say 4 years before and read things like Vivekananda used to see light at his forehead, I would've thrown this calling it a hoax, however, some of these I experienced during my own practice, only that I did not know what they were.

This book was a short read. However, each and every page beamed with wisdom and irrefutable truth!

[Jesus Rojas torres · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have written a similar review for Google and Amazon, I believe. Anyway this is another opportunity to talk about beloved master Swami Vivekananda.

Before the West knew anything about Yoga, there was a man of immense human noble qualities and stature who was destined to change that forever.

And so, in 1893, during the World of Parliament of Religions forum at the Art Institute of Chicago, Swami Vivekananda talked about Hinduism, about Vedanta and Yoga.

Yogananda's forerunner, Narendra and who only lived 39 years, listen to this, 39 years! I am so flattered and humbled at the same time, to be able to talk about him on The Spiritual Journalist and El Periodista Espiritual, in Yachua and in La Columna de Jesus.

Amen & OM,

This is the most elevated of teachings about self realization and all I can say is do please purchase this book, it will change your perception of life for the better!

JESUSJAY

[Pratik · Rating 5 out of 5]

It help me to understand what is the real meditation ,what is power of meditation . and how meditation can bring enlightenment, happiness and peace to the the life of every human-being.

[Rucha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books you want to keep in your purse, bag, car, any place that you can grab and read when you have some down time. Just turn to any page and there is food for thought, spiritual reminders, and wisdom waiting for you. It is thin and compact enough to take with you. One of the things I love about Swami Vivekananda's books, Hindu and yogic philosophy in general, is that these truly are ways of living your life that ANYBODY can follow, which lead to inner happiness, and not temporary happiness, but true freedom and joy. So, there is no limit to the times you can read it, because as humans we very easily forget, we easily get caught up in the mundane and insignificant, so having something you can read to remind us of what really matters helps us to evolve on a frequent, if not daily basis. This is the essence of spirituality.

[Bella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow

What a wonderful book. It kindled the light in my heart. Made me think so deeply about what I am doing with my life.

[Gaurav Aradhye · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on ways to meditate. It doesn't merely state practical ways of meditation, but explains the philosophy behind it and ultimate goal of meditation. Broadly it describes two ways to meditate. One through Raj-yoga (through control of mind) and other through understanding Vedanta - the non-duality (soul and brahma).

This is more of philosophical book than a guide to those who are just beginners wanting to learn meditation. Some discussions and terms are highly difficult to understand, you need a guru to explain to you that in detail.

This book will certainly help you to take a step towards fearlessness and equanimity.

[Goswami Hardik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This deals with techniques of self realisation in simplest and most informative manner
just follow the lifestyle , path shown and in near future you felt the bliss.

[Manthan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meditation Tips and Spiritual Insights from Book:

The first step in meditation is to focus your mind on a single object. Understand and control your mind by mastering your senses.

Protect your energy by avoiding negative thoughts and distractions. Stay focused, seek truth, and keep your mind on what truly matters.

Build strength in all areas: mentally, spiritually, physically, and morally. Remember, all suffering comes from ignorance and desire.

Ojus (aura) is stored in brain. Completely abstaining from sexual thoughts or actions one could significantly improve aura and spiritual development as well as his brain power.

Be grateful especially to those who criticize you—respond with kindness.

Set an ideal to strive for and meditate on it; I personally find inspiration in figures like Krishna or Hanuman. Swamiji said a person who has ideal in his life makes significantly less mistakes than person who doesn’t.

Cowards and fool says it was my fate, but only strong men stands up and says I will create my fate.
Infinity divinity has to be manifested.

Swamiji said almost everyone is good at talking about spirituality but when it comes to action we find ourselves deficient.

Very essence of education is concentration of mind, not the collecting of facts.

3 valuable lesson swamiji recommend for students to follow on spiritual path: 1. Give up on all enjoyment 2. Care only for god and truth. 3. Intense desire for god.

6 restrains 1. Restrain from going outward, 2. Restrains from senses 3. Turning mind inwards 4. Suffering everything without murmuring 5. Stick mind to one idea and do not count time 6. Think constantly of your real nature.

In the end, what we think about is what we become!

[Shubham Bansal · Rating 2 out of 5]

This review is purely for the writing style and book structure. The entire book was a collection of mostly-unrelated anecdotes. It failed to create a storyline which made it hard for me to recall knowledge provided inside the book. Every individual sections in itself was filled with amazing lifelessons. Seen from that perspective, I would rate it 4. But from book point of view, in which I expect a connected story, I rate it 2. Also, I feel this is not for readerswho are just beginning there mediation journey. The lessons are very abstract for beginners to grasp the richness.

[Shubham Verma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is all about meditation and Swamiji does has given everything he had about meditation in this book in so effective manner.
The book is a bit boring if you will not read it with an open mind and the possibilities.

If you are open to anything then this book will help you understand meditation a little better, but will not make a pro because meditation cannot be understood if not done practically.

[Suhas Vishwanath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though the title makes the subject clear, this book touches upon many factors beyond it, yet related. The mind, it's ways of functioning and the essence of meditation techniques in light to understand this whole logic. The simplistic nature of swamiji's explanations are easy to understand and comprehend.

[Sandeep Bhalla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ocean in a pond.

[Hardik Jani · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is Awesome

[Venkat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for everyone. Clear articulation of ideas. Brilliant choice of words.

[Abhishek Biswas · Rating 5 out of 5]

How the heck a tiny book like this contain this much information and wisdom? This man is deep.
I just started reading The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda.

[Sooryaprakash · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each soul is potentially divine.
The goal is to manifest destiny within by controlling nature, external and internal.

Kmowledge is inherent in man. No knowledge comes from outside; its all inside.

The ideal man is he who, in the midst of greatest silence and solitude, finds the intensest activity.

3 things are necessary for students to succeed
1) Give up all ideas of enjoyment in this world and the next, care only for god and truth.
2) Intense desire to know Truth and God.
3) six trainings 1) restraining the mind from going outward 2) restraining the senses 3) turning the mind inward 4) suffering everything without murmuring 5) fastening the mind to one idea 6) think constantly of your real nature. Get rid of superstition. Do not hypnotise yourself into a belief in your own inferiority. Day and night tell yourself what you really are, until you realise, actually realise, your oneness with God.

Religions of the world have become lifeless mockeries. What the world wants is character.
The world is in need of those whose life is one burning love, selfless.
That love will make every word tell like thunderbolt.
Bold words and bolder deeds are what we want. Awake, awake, great ones! The world is burning with misery. Can you sleep?

[Anusha Gupta · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is good for someone to get the basic understanding of the idea of Meditation that Swami Vivekananda has mentioned in his works. I felt that many excerpts taken in the book from the Original works were incomplete and hence didnt convey the exact meaning they were supposed to. I would recommend people to read his original works instead and draw their own interpretations.
(this is my personal opinion, not aimed at hurting anyone.)

[SHYAM · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meditation and its method by Swami Vivekananda throws light on life of Vivekananda and helps the reader to understand the science behind mindfulness and the methods to achieve higher consciousness..
Books talks meditation on the Indian perspective which is Slightly different from Zen practice.

[Amit · Rating 2 out of 5]

Snippets of Vivekananda’s talks and books. Overall a disappointment as context suffers with snippets but finally no worthwhile takeaways I found, only minor ones like keeping the space clear, etc

[Srinivas Katragadda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spectacular work on spirituality and presented in a basic explanation...

[Pomit Biswakarma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting..

[Maharsh Shah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apart from being an excellent read on basic meditation, especially for people who need the push and are intrigued vis a vis where to begin learning to meditate from, this book is probably the best source of the topic I have come across. Along with meditation there are various other things that the book talks about, and the basic teaching about how to really be a better human being. It talks about mind restraint, patience and dealing with people and misery on a daily basis. It briefly touches upon the Vedanta philosophy and acts as a excellent entry point into the same. Going to definitely read a lot more about Swami Vivekananda. Great first book of his to start from I think.

[Chitrank Dixit · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book teaches meditation by two approaches "meditation by yoga" and "meditation by vedanta". I really like the thoughts expressed in the book about the need of religion and how religion can drive people to greater potentials, except the superstitions people follow those are the part of some non-sense that some people have made a part of religion. I also like the simple but effective yoga techniques presented in the book, though that requires time and effort to achieve but it provides great mental balance and energy for you to work throughout the day.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

As most of the religions preach you to abide strictly to the rules laid out in their respective religious doctrines to make god happy, and to attain a peaceful state after death. Vedanta and Swami Vivekanda tells us the methods or mental exercises to leave peacefully when you are alive. The catch here is that, you need to work hard to get the fruits depicted in the book where as in other religions you can make god happy by simply chanting some lines from a book.

[Vignesh Rajendiran · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is regrettable that we Indians who were once known as pioneers in this field, do not realise the power of meditation. We are always skeptical about meditation and its effects. Youngsters in this generation think that it is not cool to practice meditation. People should try to approach this with a scientific mind. Through this book swami vivekananda helps us understand what meditation is and how it should be approached. Hope everybody recognizes the use of meditation.

[Pradnya Raghuveer · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to motivate yourself towards meditation, yoga and spirituality, I think this is the best book to go for! It is a unique and priceless collection of several bits of Swamiji's speeches, writings and talks. It is a simple yet serious read, brings out different aspects of self, the universe and the oneness of it all without overwhelming the reader.

[Sooraj Naga · Rating 5 out of 5]

•"Reducing the many into one is science... The whole of the universe has been demonstrated into one. That science is called the science of Vedanta. The whole universe is one."

•"It is one existence appearing in all these variations."

The relative elements of the universe in time, space and causation can be understood by (Dhyana) meditation that it's the same in both microcosm and macrocosm.

[Shantanu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enlightening

Its a nice books which cover the sublte part of spiritual path, need of guru, Restrain of mind all things revealed by Swami Vivekanand . Book also cites the refrences of every things written in book.