What does each of the following quotations mean to you?
- (a)“Every work has got to pass through hundreds of difficulties before succeeding. Those that persevere will see the light, sooner or later.” —Swami Vivekananda
- (b)“We can never obtain peace in the outer world until and unless we obtain peace within ourselves.” —Dalai Lama
- (c)“Life doesn’t make any sense without interdependence. We need each other, and the sooner we learn that, it is better for us all.” —Erik Erikson
Approach · directive: “what does each quotation mean”
What it asks · Interpret each quotation (perseverance, inner peace, interdependence) and apply it to public life.
The question has 3 parts — answer each
- (a) Interpret Swami Vivekananda's quotation on perseverance and apply it to life and public service
- (b) Interpret the Dalai Lama's quotation on inner peace and apply it
- (c) Interpret Erik Erikson's quotation on interdependence and apply it
Open with · The quotations trace a journey outward: from persevering effort, to the calm mind behind it, to the interdependent society that sustains both; each is a rule of public service.
Cover
- (a) Meaning: every worthwhile goal meets repeated obstacles, and those who persist through failure reach success; perseverance means patience, resilience and staying with a purpose.
- (a) Application: long reforms meet resistance, as India's decades-long polio campaign (polio-free in 2014) shows; persistence must be guided by ethics, not stubbornness.
- (b) Meaning: outer peace depends on inner calm; anger, greed and fear within individuals fuel conflict outside, so compassion and self-control come first.
- (b) Application: an officer with emotional balance resolves disputes fairly; society needs inner discipline and just institutions, as Gandhian non-violence combined both.
- (c) Meaning: human beings cannot flourish alone; families, communities and nations depend on mutual support, and cooperation learned early saves later cost.
- (c) Application: pandemic and climate response, cooperative federalism and citizen-government partnership; interdependence is not dependence and respects individual dignity.
- Anchors: Chandrayaan-3's 2023 south-pole landing; Ashoka's turn to Dhamma after Kalinga (NCERT); Erikson's psychosocial stages; G20 theme Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.
Close with · Together they describe a public servant resilient in effort, calm in judgement and cooperative in action.
Add value (verified)
- India's lunar programme built from Chandrayaan-1 and Chandrayaan-2 to Chandrayaan-3, which on 23 August 2023 made India the first country to soft-land near the Moon's south pole. PIB press note on India's lunar programme (Department of Space) ↗“Chandrayaan-1and Chandrayaan-2 established India as a serious contributor to global lunar science and laid the groundwork for future exploration. That foundation further culminated in a historic achievement on 23 August 2023. Chandrayaan-3 made India the first country to achieve a soft landing near the Moon's south pole”
- Erik Erikson conceived eight stages of development, each with its own psychosocial demands; personality develops through a series of crises overcome by the individual. Erik Erikson — Encyclopaedia Britannica ↗“Erikson conceived eight stages of development, each confronting the individual with its own psychosocial demands, that continued into old age . Personality development, according to Erikson, takes place through a series of crises that must be overcome and internalized by the individual in preparation for the next developmental stage.”
- India's G20 Presidency theme, 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' or 'One Earth One Family One Future', from the Maha Upanishad, affirms the value of all life and its interconnectedness. G20 Series #2: Decoding the G20 Logo and Theme — PIB explainer, November 2022 ↗“The theme of India’s G20 Presidency - “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” or “One Earth One Family One Future” - is drawn from the ancient Sanskrit text of the Maha Upanishad. Essentially, the theme affirms the value of all life – human, animal, plant, and microorganisms – and their interconnectedness on the planet Earth and in the wider universe.”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2021, GS Paper IV — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 419 words (UPSC limit 150) · Minimalist IAS
The three quotations trace a moral journey outward: from effort, to the mind behind the effort, to the society that sustains both. Each is also a working rule of public service.
(a) Vivekananda: perseverance through difficulty
- Meaning: every worthwhile work meets repeated obstacles, and those who keep going succeed, sooner or later. The effort is in our hands; the timing is not.
- Not obstinacy: perseverance keeps the goal but changes the method; persisting with a failed method is pride, not virtue.
- In science: India's lunar programme went from Chandrayaan-1 through Chandrayaan-2 and (since then) to Chandrayaan-3, which on 23 August 2023 made India the first country to soft-land near the Moon's south pole.
- In public health: round after round of immunisation over decades made India polio-free in 2014.
- For an officer: a reform meets apathy, litigation and transfers; the officer who persists with integrity sees it take root.
(b) Dalai Lama: outer peace begins within
- Meaning: conflict in homes, offices and nations starts in the mind, in anger, greed and fear. A person at war with himself exports that war, so inner calm is the first condition of outer peace.
- In history: after the Kalinga war, in which a hundred thousand were killed and one hundred and fifty thousand deported, Ashoka's own inscription records his turn to Dhamma; an inner change became state policy.
- In administration: an officer facing a communal flare-up must first master his own fear and anger; only a calm mind hears both sides and acts fairly.
- Caution: inner peace complements just institutions; it is no excuse for tolerating injustice outside.
(c) Erikson: we need each other
- Meaning: no one flourishes alone. Erikson saw personality grow through eight stages, each with its own psychosocial demands, so the self is formed in relationships.
- Not dependence: interdependence is mutual and dignifying; it respects each person's autonomy while sharing burdens.
- Globally: the pandemic showed that an outbreak anywhere threatens everyone. Since then, the theme of India's G20 Presidency, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam or "One Earth One Family One Future", has affirmed the interconnectedness of all life.
- In governance: cooperative federalism, partnership with citizens and civil society, and teamwork with shared credit inside the office.
| Quotation | Core value | In public service |
|---|---|---|
| Vivekananda | Perseverance | Stay with long reforms |
| Dalai Lama | Inner peace | Calm, fair decisions |
| Erikson | Interdependence | Teamwork, cooperative federalism |
Together they describe a public servant who is resilient in effort, calm in judgement and cooperative in action: one who can carry a long reform through conflict without losing either composure or colleagues.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.