MY IDEA AS TO THE KEYNOTE OF OUR NATIONAL DOWNFALL IS THAT WE DO NOT MIX WITH OTHER NATIONS - THAT IS THE ONE AND THE SOLE CAUSE.

Q: "What made Your Holiness carry the mission of Hinduism to Western countries?"
Ans: "I wanted to get experience. My idea as to the keynote of our national downfall is that we do not mix with other nations — that is the one and the sole cause. We never had opportunity to compare notes. We were Kupa-Mandukas (frogs in a well)."

- Swami Vivekananda
THE MISSIONARY WORK OF THE FIRST HINDU SANNYASIN TO THE WEST AND HIS PLAN OF REGENERATION OF INDIA
 (Madras Times, February, 1897)