Today Remembered

Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached!

Swami Vivekananda

He needs no introduction. I'd rather say that I'm not qualified to introduce an eminence such as him!

In commemoration of the birth of Swami Vivekananda, India observes the National Youth Day, today. A renowned thinker, social reformer, educator and philosopher, Swami Vivekananda greatly influenced people from all sections of the society alike, not only in India but across many countries where he travelled during his lifetime.

His visit to Chicago to participate in the Parliament of World's Religions was particularly significant. On September 11, 1893, during the opening of the parliament he began his speech with "Sisters and brothers of America!" He immediately got a standing ovation from a crowd of seven thousand people which lasted for two minutes. The photograph below, shows Swami Vivekananda on the Platform of the Parliament



Subsequently, he met Professor John Henry Wright of Harvard University who invited him to speak at Harvard, to which the Swami replied that he had no credentials from any bona fide organization! Professor Wright is then reported to have said "To ask for your credentials is like asking the sun to state its right to shine in the heavens." Wright then wrote a letter to the Chairman in charge of delegates, writing, "Here is a man who is more learned than all of our learned professors put together."

During the course of his lecturing tours in the United States and England, he received two academic offers, the chair of Eastern Philosophy at Harvard University and a similar position at Columbia University. He politely declined both and continued his lecturing tours, stating that he was wandering monk, he could not settle down to work of this kind!

Back home in India, his lectures greatly influenced a posse of Indian leaders including Mahatma Gandhi, Bipin Chandra Pal, Chakravarti Rajagopalachari and Balgangadhar Tilak. Upon returning to India in 1897, he founded the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, which continues to promote his ideologue and works for the promotion of social service. He also impressed upon Sir Jamshetji Tata to set up a research and educational institution which resulted in the formation of the Research Institute of Science (now, Indian Institute of Science, IISc). Tata then invited the Swami to head the insitution, an offer that was politely declined stating a conflict with spiritual interests.

His string of remarkable accomplishments cannot certainly be chronicled in this post, which is intended to convey to the reader the underlying principles governing the Swami's school of thought and to particularly call out to the Indian youth to realize the potential within and strive for change, one that brings progress and excellence in spirit and system!

Of all the rich tributes and accolades that His Eminence received, perhaps the words of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose comes closest to describing the person that Swami Vivekananda was.

About the Swami, Netaji Bose once remarked, "I cannot write about Vivekananda without going into raptures. Few indeed could comprehend or fathom him even among those who had the privilege of becoming intimate with him. His personality was rich, profound and complex... Reckless in his sacrifice, unceasing in his activity, boundless in his love, profound and versatile in his wisdom, exuberant in his emotions, merciless in his attacks but yet simple as a child, he was a rare personality in this world of ours."

Footnotes:

Image Courtesy: Vivekananda Vedanta Network
With inputs from Wikipedia