2023 · GS Paper 4 · Q3(c) · 10 marks

What do each of these quotations convey to you in the present context? "Do not hate anybody, because that hatred that comes out from you must, in the long run, come back to you. If you love, that love will come back to you, completing the circle." — Swami Vivekananda

In short

Vivekananda's quote conveys that hatred and love return to their source, so hatred harms the hater and divides society while love builds trust and fraternity. Nelson Mandela's choice of reconciliation over revenge in South Africa shows love breaking a cycle of retaliation.

Model answer

Ghissu Editorial · Verified 4 Oct 2026

Introduction
In an age of viral outrage, Vivekananda's words read as a warning for today. Rooted in his Advaita belief that all beings share one Self, the quote conveys that whatever we send out returns, so hating another is hating oneself.
The Law of Return Behind the Quote
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Moral reciprocity

Like the law of karma, hatred breeds counter-hatred, while love invites trust in return.

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Inner cost of hatred

Hatred first harms the hater through an Emotional Hijack, where anger overrides reason.

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Love as strength

Martin Luther King Jr. wrote that "hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that", making love an active force.

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Oneness of all

If the same divinity lives in everyone, compassion is not charity but recognising oneself in the other.

The Quote in the Present Context
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Online polarisation

Hate speech on social media returns as real violence, so the Supreme Court in 2023 directed states to register such cases on their own.

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Reconciliation

Nelson Mandela chose reconciliation over revenge, and South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission broke a cycle that retaliation would have prolonged.

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Winning hearts

The Army's Operation Sadbhavana in Jammu and Kashmir runs schools and health camps, and goodwill returns as trust.

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Public service

An officer who treats complainants with empathy earns cooperation, while arrogance invites hostility.

Conclusion
Hatred fragments a society and consumes its source, while love builds the trust on which fraternity, the Preamble's binding value, rests. A compassionate civil servant completes Vivekananda's circle every day.

This model answer is indicative and the model can make mistakes; please verify key facts independently.

Hand-drawn diagram: Two circles that return. Two circles that return. Comparison of Hatred sent out and Love sent out
Diagram: Two circles that return

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Question from the official UPSC Civil Services (Main) Examination 2023 paper. Answer written by Ghissu's engine and checked against our editorial standards. Found an error? Tell us and we correct it within 48 hours.

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