"Swami means 'master of self,' " said Dr. Green. "Literally,
the Sanskrit word means simply 'master,' I believe, but
Swami Rama says that a real swami is one who has achieved
self-mastery. What Swami does not mean is master of some- one else. And that makes sense, doesn't it? The Hindu idea
is that all of us are responsible for our own actions and their
results. That's what karma is. And after all, masterv over
others is only a matter of inducement or of force—some sort of temporary agreement of mutual agreement or of submission that may have nothing to do with skill or wisdom or growth. Any jerk can seem to be a master of others, but ulti- mately one can really master nothing other than one's own
self.