**“Arise, Awake, and Stop Not Till the Goal Is Reached”:
Swami Vivekananda’s Call to the Modern World**
Every year, Swami Vivekananda Jayanti, celebrated as National Youth Day,
{today 12 1 26 his day} reminds India and the world of a voice that
continues to echo across time—a voice that did not merely inspire thought,
but demanded action. Among his many powerful utterances, none has resonated
more deeply or enduringly than his clarion call:
“Arise, awake, and stop not till the goal is reached.”
This is not a slogan of momentary motivation; it is a philosophy of life,
rooted in the spiritual wisdom of India and directed toward the
regeneration of humanity.
The Spiritual Source of the Call
Swami Vivekananda drew this statement from the Katha Upanishad, where it
appears as:
“Uttishthata, jāgrata, prāpya varān nibodhata”
(Arise! Awake! And learn by approaching the great ones.)
Verse 1.3.14 Adyaya I, Valli III - The parable of the chariot
उत्तिष्ठत जाग्रत प्राप्य वरान्निबोधत ।
क्शुरस्य धारा निशिता दुरत्यया दुर्गं पथस्तत्कवयो वदन्ति ॥ १४ ॥
uttiṣṭhata jāgrata prāpya varānnibodhata |
kśurasya dhārā niśitā duratyayā durgaṃ pathastatkavayo vadanti || 14 ||
14. Arise, awake; having reached the great, learn; the edge of a razor is
sharp and impassable; that path, the intelligent say, is hard to go by.
Shankara’s Commentary:
Com.—Having thus merged into the purusha, the atman, all the three, i.e.,
name, form and karma which are produced by false knowledge and are of the
nature of action, agents and fruits, by a knowledge of the true nature of
his atman, as the water in the mirage, the serpent in the rope and the
colour of the sky, disappear by seeing the true nature of the mirage, rope
and the sky, one becomes free from anxiety and calm, his purpose
accomplished. Therefore, to know that, arise, Oh, living beings sleeping in
beginningless ignorance, i.e., turn towards the acquisition of the
knowledge of the atman; and awake, i.e., put an end to the sleep of
ignorance, horrible in form and the seed of all misery. How? Having
approached excellent preceptors who know that, realise the atman taught by
them, the innermost and in all, thus ‘I am he.’ This is not to be
neglected. Thus, the Sruti, like a mother, says from compassion; because
the object to be known can be realized only by very subtle intelligence.
Why is it stated ‘by subtle intellect’'? The edge of a razor is pointed,
i.e., made sharp and impassable, i.e., passable with difficulty; as that
cannot be walked over by the feet, similarly hard to attain, the
intelligent say, is the road of the knowledge of truth. The meaning is that
because the object to be known is very subtle, they say the road of
knowledge leading to that is not easily attainable.
In Kathopanishad [1.3.14] it says "Uttisthata Jagrata
Prapya Varannibodhata"/ "Arise, awake, and stop not till the goal is
reached" and in Gita [2.47], it says "Karmanye Vadhikaraste Ma Phaleshou
Kada Chana Ma Karma Phala Hetur Bhurmatey Sangostva Akarmani". My question
is there any contradiction that in Upanishad it says focus/think about the
result/goal whereas Gita says don't focus/think about the result/goal?
Excerpts from Shankara Bhāsyam: The Upanisad says out of
compassion, like a mother, that this should not be neglected, for the thing
to be known is comprehensible by a very fine intellect. With what can that
fine intellect be compared? It is like the edge of a razor, being
sharpened, can be passed over with great difficulty, so be attentive.
2) Rāmānuja's Interpretation:
Verse-1.3.14 (Rāmānuja): Rise Up! Be Awake! Approach Superiors [and] learn!
The knife edge is sharp and difficult to walk on. The learned speak of this
path as difficult to attain.
Excerpts from Rāmānuja Bhāsyam: What is meant here is that just as he who
walks on a knife-edge has to lose his life if there is least attention [on
his part], even so, at the time of knowing the nature of the self if there
is committed the blunder of inattention there happens loss of one's self.
In other words, you lose your life (die) if you are inattentive while
walking over sharp-edged razor whereas you lose yours self (ātman) if you
are not attentive while knowing the nature of self.
Summarizing (1) and (2) both Sankara and Rāmānuja unanimously
say *that unless you are attentive (don't neglect) you can't tread the
path.*
II) Your second question and in Gita, it says
"Karmanye Vadhikaraste Ma Phaleshou Kada Chana Ma Karma Phala Hetur
Bhurmatey Sangostva Akarmani".
To explain Niṣkāma karma, let us bring in an extremely popular verse of
the Bhagavad Gita [sloka-2.47] which advices to perform action without
expectation as follows:
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन |
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥ २.४७ ॥
karmaṇy-evādhikāras te mā phaleṣhu kadāchana
mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇi || 2.47 ||
Thy concern is with action alone, never with results. Let not the fruit of
action be your motive, nor let your attachment be for inaction.
Sankara Bhashyam: You are qualified for works alone, not for the path of
knowledge. And then, while doing works, let -there be no desire for the
results of works under any circumstances whatever. If you should have a
thirst for the results of works, you will have to reap those fruits.
Therefore let not your motive be the fruits of your action. When a person
performs work thirsting for the results of those works, then he will be
subject to rebirth as the result of action. Neither may you be attached to
inaction, thinking " Of what avail are these painful works if their fruits
should not be desired ?
Thus, Bhagavat Gita [Chapter-2, verse-47] asserts that Niṣkāma karma will
never result in seeds of samskāra (संस्कार/Latent impressions) which causes
samsāra (संसार/cycle of birth and death).
III) Your third and final question My question is there any
contradiction that in Upanishad it says focus/think about the result/goal
whereas Gita says don't focus/think about the result/goal?
Your claim "Arise, awake, and stop not till the goal is reached"
is incorrect and fallacious because the Upanishad only says "be attentive"
as the path is like a sharpened razor-edge which is difficult to walk on
(or difficult to tread). Sankara says in [BG-2.47] "be attentive on action
rather than desire for fruits of action (karma) in order to surmount
samsāra (संसार/cycle of birth and death).
*Since both (Kathopanishad and Bhagavat Gita) are talking about 'pay
attention' so there is no contradiction.*
Beware: Does Kathopanishad [1.3.14] talk about goal? YES, IN UPANISHAD IT
IS ATMAN REALISATION; IN b g DO IT UNATTACHED; IN VIVEKANANDA, ANY TASK
DONE NISHKAMA ONLY AND NOT FOR SELF HELP GREEDINESS AS GOAL. INDIANS OF
TODAY IN MAJORITY REMAIN SNOOZING OR IN DEEP SLEEP; SO, ARISE AND AWAKE TO
BUILD THE NATION WHICH ELEVATED THE MORAL STANDARDS AND STATUS OF PEOPLE.
Answer is that it is mentioned in previous mantra [1.3.13] which says goal
is seeking the soul (Ātman) as follows:
Verse-1.3.13: The discriminating man should, merge the [organ of] speech
into the mind; he should merge that [mind] into the intelligent self; he
should merge the intelligent self into the Great Soul [Hiranyagarbha], he
should merge the Great Soul [Hiranyagarbha] into the peaceful Self [Ātman].
Rāmānuja in his Bhāsyam of Kathopanishad [1.3.13] says "Soul (Ātman) is
that which is to be sought after".
Kathopanishad says focus on 'path' (path of knowing the nature of self),
which is difficult (or hard) to tread because it is like a sharp
edged-razor, rather than destination (or goal) whereas Gita says focus on
the 'task in hand' rather than result (fruits of karma) in order to cross
samsāra (संसार/cycle of birth and death).
In Vivekananda’s interpretation, this ancient Upanishadic exhortation
was transformed into a modern manifesto—one that addressed not monks alone,
but students, workers, leaders, and nations. For him, awakening was not
merely intellectual; it was spiritual, moral, and social.
To arise was to reject inertia.
To awake was to overcome ignorance.
To persist was to refuse defeat.
Arise: Breaking the Chains of Weakness
Swami Vivekananda identified fear and weakness as the greatest enemies of
human progress. He believed that individuals and nations decline not
because of lack of resources, but because of lack of self-belief.
“Arise,” therefore, meant:
Rise above self-doubt
Rise above fatalism
Rise above imposed limitations
For the youth, this was a call to discover the divinity within, a central
Vedantic idea that Vivekananda tirelessly preached: “Each soul is
potentially divine.”
Awake: From Ignorance to Awareness
To “awake” was to become conscious of one’s true nature and responsibility.
Vivekananda warned against blind imitation, superstition, and passive
acceptance. Awakening required critical thinking, moral courage, and inner
discipline.
In today’s world—marked by information overload but wisdom deficit—this
message is especially relevant. Awakening today means:
Thinking independently
Acting ethically
Balancing material progress with spiritual depth
Without awakening, activity becomes mechanical. With awakening, action
becomes purposeful.
Stop Not: Perseverance as Spiritual Discipline
Perhaps the most demanding part of the quote is the insistence on
unwavering perseverance. Vivekananda knew that ideals collapse without
endurance. He himself embodied this spirit—travelling relentlessly,
speaking fearlessly, and enduring hardship for the sake of his mission.
“Stop not” is a reminder that:
Failure is not final
Struggle is not shameful
Obstacles are part of growth
This principle applies equally to personal development and national
reconstruction.
The Goal: Individual Perfection and Collective Uplift
For Swami Vivekananda, the “goal” was never narrow success. It was
man-making and nation-building, grounded in character, service, and
spiritual realization.
The goal included:
Self-realization for the individual
Education for the masses
Service to the poor as worship
Harmony between science and spirituality
He envisioned a society where strength was tempered by compassion, and
knowledge guided by wisdom.
Relevance in the Contemporary World
In an age of anxiety, competition, and distraction, Vivekananda’s message
offers clarity. It urges us to:
Arise from complacency
Awake from unconscious living
Persist in the pursuit of meaningful goals
Whether addressing youth struggling with identity, professionals facing
burnout, or nations seeking direction, his words remain timeless.
Swami Vivekananda’s call—“Arise, Awake, and Stop Not Till the
Goal Is Reached”—is not merely to be remembered on a commemorative day; it
is to be lived daily. It is a reminder that greatness is not accidental,
awakening is not optional, and perseverance is not negotiable. On this
Swami Vivekananda Jayanti, may we not only admire his words, but embody
them—rising with courage, awakening with wisdom, and moving forward without
fear until our highest potential is realized.
K RAJARAM IRS 12126
On Mon, 12 Jan 2026 at 07:58, Jambunathan Iyer <[email protected]>
wrote:
> *My Learning From Swami Vivekananda’s teachings,*
>
> Thought is the inner engine of life. When we fill our minds with noble
> ideas and nurture them daily, they shape our destiny.
>
>
> Failures are not obstacles they are the ornaments of life. They remind us
> that struggle gives meaning to existence. Without challenges, life would
> lose its depth and worth.
>
> Let us embrace failures as stepping stones, for they are silent teachers
> guiding us toward strength and success
>
>
>
>
> *N Jambunathan , Chennai " What you get by achieving your goals is not as
> important as what you become by achieving your goals. If you want to live a
> happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things "*
>
>
>
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