Swami
Vivekananda,one of the greatest ever personalities produced in the history of mankind was
born in Calcutta on January 12,1863. His father Vishwanath Datta, was an attorney at-law
and possessed the qualities of head and heart. His mother Bhuwneshwari Devi was an
accomplished lady with a great regal bearing. The Dattas were well-to-do in the beginning,
but after the death of Vishwanath Datta, the family had to face poverty.
As a
boy-Narendranath, (the childhood name of Swami Vivekananda) was restless, turbulent,
brilliant, inquisitive but essentially pure.Traits such as courage sympathy for the poor
and attraction towards the wandering monks appeared spontaneously in him.
His thirst for
the knowledge of the supreme took Narendranath to the Ashram of Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa
where he put a straight question-"Have you seen God?" and the answer came with
simillar straightness and an end to all the difficulties which Vivekananda passed through
"Yes I can see Him more clearly and intensely than I see you". The Paramhansa
showed him the way and he accepted him as the highest ideal of spirituality. After the
passing away of the master in 1886, Naren began to organise the disciples into a monastic
brotherhood. In February 1891, the Swami became a solitary monk and began his historic
sujourn through the length and breath of India. He gained first hand knowledge of India
which was both intensive and extensive; its glorious past, its subsequent degeneration and
its prevailing poverty, squalor and backwardness. His knowledge of India and Indians was
so complete that Tagore later remarked, "If you want to know India, then study Swami
Vivekananda."
On may 31,1893
Swami Vivekananda left for America to attend the Parliament of Religions at Chicago. While
in America, he met Prof. J.H. Right, the Head of Greek Deptt. in the University, who was
so impressed by the Swamiji’s knowledge that he declared, "Here is a man, who is
more learned than all our professors of America, put together." His address at
Chicago was delivered on 11th of September in 1893. Describing the scene, Mrs.
S.K. Blodgett writes. "I was at the Parliament of Religions in Chicago, when that
youngman got up and said, "Sisters and brothers of America," seven thousand
people rose at their feet as a tribute to something, they knew not what! When it was over,
I saw scores of women walking over the benches to get near him and I said to myself,
‘Well my lad, if you can resist that onslaught, you are indeed a God!’ He was
universally acknowledged as the most popular, most influential and the greatest figure at
the Parliament of Religions. He became a world famous personality who established the
supermacy of the Vedantic vision of man and cosmos. |
After
preaching in America and many other Europeon countries, he returned to India who rose as
one man to greet and embrace the graet son of the soil. While in India, he founded the
great Ramakrishna mission and dedicated himself and his mission to the great national
awakening which provide a spiritual foundation to the national movement for freedom. His
heart was so broad as the sky and his thinking reached the unsurpassed hides. He preached
no particular religion and yet embrased all religions. He says, "I do not simply
tolerate all religions that is an insult to God. I accept all religions. I worship all
religions." He felt the pangs of all human beings and he wanted that every human
being should lead a decent life. "Most of us exist, but don't live. I am the
worshipper of daridranayana; of a Narain who is located in all the poor of the world. No
wonder that incompassion he has been equated with christ and Bhudda. He believed that the
greatest sin on the earth is weekness. He was the very incarnation of truth, purity,
self-confidence, compassion and patriotism. In the words of Dr. Radhakrishan," He
gave us fortitude in suffering. He gave us hope in distress, he gave us courage in
dispair." |
