Swami Vivekananda

“The great secret of true success, of true happiness, is this: the man or woman who asks for no return, the perfectly unselfish person, is the most successful.”

Swami Vivekananda (12th January 1863 – 4th July 1902) is best known in the United States for his groundbreaking speech to the 1893 World’s Parliament of Religions in which he introduced Hinduism to America and called for religious tolerance and an end to fanaticism. Born Narendranath Dutta, he was the chief disciple of the 19th-century mystic Ramakrishna and the founder of Ramakrishna Mission. Swami Vivekananda is also considered a key figure in the introduction of Vedanta and Yoga to the West and is credited with raising the profile of Hinduism to that of a world religion.

Swami Vivekananda served as one of the most inspiring intellectual fervor behind the Indian freedom struggle. He was looked upto as a source of motivation by great leaders such as Aurobindo Ghose, Hemchandra Ghosh, Mahatma Gandhi, and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. He was also one of India’s greatest spiritual leaders and a revered figure in India's history and culture. He strived to inculcate national consciousness among the people. His message was universal and was based on rationality and righteousness. It was a message that appealed to the people of all classes, castes and creeds. In fact, Swami Vivekananda's birthday on 12th January is celebrated as ‘National Youth Day’ every year. On this day, his memorable call to "Work, work, work" is remembered.

Swami Vivekananda thought deeply about education and what it meant for the Indian society. He conceived education as the primary means of rebuilding Indian society. For him, education meant secular learning that built character and instilled human values in students. His ideals were based on value based education.

Swami Vivekananda travelled extensively as a monk. His period of meditation at Kanyakumari is immortalized by the famous rock named after him. Swamiji started his ‘Desh Bhraman’ with the goals to counter disbelief in religion, inculcate "Atam Gaurav" and stress on the uniqueness of Indian culture. The mission of Swami Vivekananda was to abolish differences of caste and creed and work for progress of the country.

There have been various legends and personalities in Indian society who have made a greater impact on the minds and lives of the people. These people have made their mortal lives truly a glaring example for all to emulate and Swami Vivekananda is one such great personality.

Anandam Foundation Trust
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