Today, 12th January, marks the 161st birthday of Swami Vivekananda.
6 reasons why Swami Vivekananda’s is celebrated
His name was Narendranath Dutt. He took deeksha from Shri Ramakrishna Paramahansa and became an ascetic in 1886, at the age of 23. (shortly after the passing of his Guru)
In 1893, a Parliament of World Religions was held at Chicago (USA). When Swamiji reached there, no one knew about Hinduism. He started his address with the words – Brothers and Sisters of America. The hall resounded with immediate applause. He was only 30 years old at the time.
He first toured India to understand the plight of the people. At Kanyakumari, he meditated on a rock for almost 3 days. When he came out of that Samadhi (state of meditation), his path was clear to him. This was in December 1892.
He established the Ramakrishna Ashram to carry forward the spiritual legacy of his guru. The Headquarters of this ashram is at Belur Math near Kolkata.
However, he also gave discourses on Vedanta and the Hindu philosophy of universal brotherhood (Vasudhaiv Kutumbkam – the World is one family) to citizens the philosophers in the US and other parts of the world. He was responsible for carrying the message of Vedanta philosophy to the West.
The reason his birthday is celebrated as National Day of the Youth is that he truly believed that only the youth could transform India through their contribution and consistent hard work. Through his writings, he often exhorted (encouraged) young people to follow a path that combines spiritualism and positive action for people.
