In studying books we are sometimes deluded into thinking that thereby we are being spiritually helped; but if we analyse the effect of the study of books on ourselves, we shall find that at the utmost it is only our intellect that derives profit from such studies, and not our inner spirit.
This inadequacy of books to quicken spiritual growth is the reason why, although almost every one of us can speak most wonderfully on spiritual matters, when it comes to action and the living of a truly spiritual life, we find ourselves so awfully deficient.
To quicken the spirit, the impulse must come from another soul.
The person from whose soul such impulse comes is called the Guru -- the teacher; and the person to whose soul the impulse is conveyed is called the Shishya -- the student.
To convey such an impulse to any soul, in the first place, the soul from which it proceeds must possess the power of transmitting it, as it were to another; and in the second place, the soul to which it is transmitted must be fit to receive it.
- Swami Vivekananda, Bhakti-Yoga
This inadequacy of books to quicken spiritual growth is the reason why, although almost every one of us can speak most wonderfully on spiritual matters, when it comes to action and the living of a truly spiritual life, we find ourselves so awfully deficient.
To quicken the spirit, the impulse must come from another soul.
The person from whose soul such impulse comes is called the Guru -- the teacher; and the person to whose soul the impulse is conveyed is called the Shishya -- the student.
To convey such an impulse to any soul, in the first place, the soul from which it proceeds must possess the power of transmitting it, as it were to another; and in the second place, the soul to which it is transmitted must be fit to receive it.
- Swami Vivekananda, Bhakti-Yoga
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