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About this quote

What does it mean?
Reliance on others hinders direct connection with ultimate truth.
In plain terms
You cannot serve truth if you depend on other people for your path.
What can you take from it?
Seek truth directly rather than depending on others' guidance.

Where it applies

  • religious study
  • leadership
  • personal growth

Putting it to work

  • question authority
  • trust your intuition
  • study primary sources

Questions to consider

  • Who do you lean on instead of your own judgment?
  • What truth are you avoiding by depending on others?

Another view

Some truths require community or mentorship to fully grasp.

More from Swami Vivekananda

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  2. Our first duty is not to hate ourselves, because to advance we must have faith in ourselves first and then in God. Those who have no faith in themselves can ne…

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  3. Neither seek nor avoid; take what comes. It is liberty to be affected by nothing. Do not merely endure; be unattached.

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