What do each of the following quotations mean to you? (a) We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far." - Swami Vivekananda

Swami Vivekananda rightly points towards the importance of one's thoughts - i.e. what one thinks inside the mind.

one must take care of what one thinks as

→ It affects mental health; negative thoughts generate anxiety, positive thoughts lead to contentment → Thoughts convert into deeds e.g.: Hitler's thoughts against Jews led to set up of concentration camps and mass killings → Thoughts live and travel far

as the person might die but his ideology continues to influence e.g. Gandhian principle of nonviolence → Three finger salute in Vietnam e.g. 2: Osama Bin Laden died but Taliban lives on

But, words also matter. As negative words lead to hatred Sometimes, even though one doesn't mean it, but hurtful words → revenge seeking and these echo in one's minds

Thus, an individual must work consciously on his thoughts, stay in good company, meditate and speak good.