You might have seen the following quotes which often appear in the internet and are falsely attributed to Swami Vivekananda. Please beware of them! One should not forward these quotes in the name of Swami Vivekananda. Some of them may be apt, but they are literally not by Swamiji.
You can verify a quote of Swami Vivekananda by searching it in the Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, which is freely available online in three places:
1. ramakrishnavivekananda.info
2. wikisource.org
3. advaitaashrama.org
Quotes FALSELY attributed to Swami Vivekananda - Do not forward these!
(arranged alphabetically)
- A monk of the RamaKrishna Mission was being interviewed by a journalist from NY. The journalist started interviewing the monk as planned earlier.
Journalist - "Sir, in your last lecture, you mentioned Jogajog (contact) & Sanjog (connection). It is really confusing. Could you please explain?"
The monk smiled and apparently deviating from the question asked the journalist:
"Are you from New York?"
Journalist - "Yeh"
Monk - "Please tell me about your family."
.......
You have 'contact' with your father but you don't have a 'connection' with him. In fact you are not connected to him in any way. Connection is heart to heart, sitting together, sharing meals and caring for each other, touching, shaking hands, having eye contact, spending some time together. You brothers and sisters may 'contact' you but there is no 'connection' with each other."
The journalist wiped his eyes and said : "Thanks for teaching me an unforgettable lesson."
- Always try to represent yourself happy because initially, it becomes your look. Gradually it becomes your habit and finally, it becomes your personality.
- Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle. (Good quote, but not of Swami Vivekananda)
- Believing others is easy but believing in yourself - that's the real challenge.
- Don't overthink. Overthinking leads to negative thoughts.
- Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.
- Heart is a very good fertilizer; anything we plant - love, hate, fear, hope, revenge, jealousy - surely grows and bears fruit.
- Humbleness is the sign of maturity.
- If I love myself despite my infinite faults, how can I hate anyone at the glimpse of a few faults.
- If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader
- If we both exchange one rupee, we have one rupee. But if we both exchange one good thoughts we have two good thoughts.
- Mind is not a dustbin to keep anger, hatred and jealousy. But it is the treasure box to keep love, happiness and sweet memories.
- People with good intentions makes promises but people with good character keeps them.
- Positive people also have negative thoughts. They just don't allow those thoughts to control them.
- Sharing your feelings is not a sign of weakness. It shows you have the strength to trust someone completely.
- Silence tells more sometimes than all the speech in the world.
- Stay strong, make them wonder how you are.
- Success and failure are both part of life. Both are not permanent. (Good quote, but not of Swami Vivekananda)
- Take risks in your life. If you win, you can lead, if you lose, you can guide.
- Talk to yourself once in a day, otherwise, you may miss meeting an excellent person in this world.
- The struggle your'e in today is developing the strength you need for tomorrow.
- What people think about you is not important. What you think about yourself means everything.
- When someone is rude, keep a smile on your face. When you keep your joy, you take away their power.
- Who is helping you don't forget them. Who is loving you, don't hate them. Who is believing you, don't cheat them.
- With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.
- Words may lie, but actions will always tell the truth.
- You have to fight some of the bad days to earn some of the best days.
... will be added more if met.
If you think any of these quotes are truly by Vivekananda, kindly let us know the exact source. Also, if you come across any other quote misattributed to Swami Vivekananda, help us by reporting it as a comment in the homepage of this website. We will be grateful to you!
