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About this quote

What does it mean?
The same universal Self appears as God behind the cosmos and as the soul behind the individual body.
In plain terms
God is the Self behind the universe; the soul is the Self behind the body.
What can you take from it?
Individual identity and divine reality share the same source.

Where it applies

  • theology study
  • meditation
  • philosophical inquiry

Putting it to work

  • contemplation
  • self-inquiry
  • spiritual reading

Questions to consider

  • Is the soul distinct from God?
  • How do you define self?

Another view

This conflates distinct concepts of divinity and individuality.

More from Swami Vivekananda

  1. The powers of the mind should be concentrated and the mind turned back upon itself; as the darkest places reveal their secrets before the penetrating rays of t…

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  2. The Soul is not composed of any materials. It is unity indivisible. Therefore it must be indestructible.

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  3. The power of purity-it is a definite power.

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