"This World Is The Great Gymnasium" — Swami Vivekananda ~ Swami Vivekananda Quotes

Thank God for giving you this world as a moral gymnasium
to help your development, but never imagine you can help the world.

—Swami Vivekananda

Image source: Wikimedia Commons (modified)

Swami Vivekananda several times described human life, this world or this universe as a "gymnasium". He told that here we come to develop and strengthen ourselves. In this article we'll make a collection of these quotations.

Death lies in the senses. Life on the plane of the Spirit is the only life, life on any other plane is mere death; the whole of this life can be only described as a gymnasium. We must go beyond it to enjoy real life.^[Source]
Thank God for giving you this world as a moral gymnasium to help your development, but never imagine you can help the world. Be grateful to him who curses you, for he gives you a mirror to show what cursing is, also a chance to practise self-restraint; so bless him and be glad.^[Source]
The next time you see these silly phrases about the world and how we must all help God and do this or that for Him, remember this. Do not think such thoughts; they are too selfish. All the work you do is subjective, is done for your own benefit. God has not fallen into a ditch for you and me to help Him out by building a hospital or something of that sort. He allows you to work. He allows you to exercise your muscles in this great gymnasium, not in order to help Him but that you may help yourself. Do you think even an ant will die for want of your help? Most arrant blasphemy!^[Source]
The world is a grand moral gymnasium wherein we have all to take exercise so as to become stronger and stronger spiritually.^[Source]
This universe is simply a gymnasium in which the soul is taking exercise; and after these exercises we become gods. So the value of everything is to be decided by how far it is a manifestation of God. Civilisation is the manifestation of that divinity in man.^[Source]
This world is just a gymnasium in which we play; our life is an eternal holiday.^[Source]
This world is neither good nor evil. It is the Lord's world. It is beyond both good and evil, perfect in itself. His will is going on, showing all these different pictures; and it will go on without beginning and without end. It is a great gymnasium in which you and I, and millions of souls must come and get exercises, and make ourselves strong and perfect.^[Source]
This world is the great gymnasium where we come to make ourselves strong.^[Source]
We only help ourselves in this gymnasium of the world. This is the proper attitude of work. If we work in this way, if we always remember that our present opportunity to work thus is a privilege which has been given to us, we shall never be attached to anything.^[Source]