The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda/Volume 8/Epistles - Fourth Series/XVII Babies
XVII
To the Hale Sisters
DETROIT,
15th March, 1894.
DEAR BABIES,
I am pulling on well with old Palmer. He is a very jolly, good old man. I
got only 127 dollars by my last lecture. I am going to speak again in
Detroit on Monday. Your mother asked me to write to a lady in Lynn. I have
never seen her. Is it etiquette to write without any introduction? Please
post me a little letter about this lady. Where is Lynn? The funniest thing
said about me here was in one of the papers which said, "The cyclonic Hindu
has come and is a guest with Mr. Palmer. Mr. Palmer has become a Hindu and
is going to India; only he insists that two reforms should be carried out:
firstly that the Car of Jagannath should be drawn by Percherons raised in
Mr. Palmer's Loghouse Farm, and secondly that the Jersey cow be admitted
into the pantheon of Hindu sacred cows." Mr. Palmer is passionately fond of
both Percheron horse and Jersey cow and has a great stock of both in his
Loghouse Farm.
The first lecture was not properly managed, the cost of the hall being 150 dollars. I have given up Holden. Here is another fellow cropped up; let me see if he does better. Mr. Palmer makes me laugh the whole day. Tomorrow there is going to be another dinner party. So far all is well; but I do not know — I have become very sad in my heart since I am here — do not know why.
I am wearied of lecturing and all that nonsense. This mixing with hundreds
of varieties of the human animal has disturbed me. I will tell you what is
to my taste; I cannot write, and I cannot speak, but I can think deeply, and
when I am heated, can speak fire. It should be, however, to a select, a very
select — few. Let them, if they will, carry and scatter my ideas broadcast
— not I. This is only a just division of labour. The same man never
succeeded both in thinking and in scattering his thoughts. A man should be
free to think, especially spiritual thoughts.
Just because this assertion of independence, this proving that man is not a
machine, is the essence of all religious thought, it is impossible to think
it in the routine mechanical way. It is this tendency to bring everything
down to the level of a machine that has given the West its wonderful
prosperity. And it is this which has driven away all religion from its
doors. Even the little that is left, the West has reduced to a systematic
drill.
I am really not "cyclonic" at all. Far from it. What I want is not here, nor can I longer bear this "cyclonic" atmosphere. This is the way to perfection, to strive to be perfect, and to strive to make perfect a few men and women. My idea of doing good is this: to evolve out a few giants, and not to strew pearls before swine, and so lose time, health, and energy.
Just now I got a letter from Flagg. He cannot help me in lecturing. He says,
"First go to Boston." Well, I do not care for lecturing any more. It is too
disgusting, this attempt to bring me to suit anybody's or any audience's
fads. However, I shall come back to Chicago for a day or two at least before
I go out of this country. Lord bless you all.
Ever gratefully your brother,
VIVEKANANDA.