Lucknow, Jan 12 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday hailed Swami Vivekanand on his birth anniversary, saying he awakened India’s self-awareness, which had then been dormant.
He was addressing a programme in Lucknow on the occasion of National Youth Day.
“Swami Vivekanand represented that India which, at that time, due to its dormant consciousness, had almost lost its self-awareness. If you want to understand what slavery truly means, you can learn about it by looking at India of that time, which had lost its self-awareness to the extent that a handful of foreign invaders succeeded in enslaving the country. India was being plundered by a few people; its civilisation, culture, and traditions were being insulted,” Adityanath said.
He said that the “young ascetic” played a crucial role in awakening the country’s self-consciousness.
Swami Vivekanand was born in 1863 as Narendranath Dutta in Calcutta. His birth anniversary is celebrated as National Youth Day.
Adityanath said that the entire journey of Swami Vivekanand from Narendra to Vivekanand is the journey of a spiritual seeker to that of a transformer.
“His message was: focus on the goal, steadfastness in resolve, and continuity in action. Until these are achieved, success cannot be achieved,” the chief minister said.
Swami Vivekanand declared at the World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago, in 1893, that he came from a tradition of India that has always shown the path of human welfare, Adityanath said.
Adityanath also said that in the World’s Parliament of Religions, Swami Vivekanand had said that we had intellect, opulence, and strength, but we did not impose our views forcibly.
“Swami Vivekananda had firm faith that India would establish itself as the ‘vishwa guru’ on the strength of youth power and spiritual consciousness. Today, we are seeing it taking a concrete shape,” Adityanath said.
He appealed to the youth to stay away from drugs. “We will run a campaign against drugs, you provide confidential information, the government will confiscate the property of drug traffickers,” he said.
The Uttar Pradesh chief minister added that under Mission Rozgar, government jobs have been provided to nine lakh youths of the state. “Now, no recommendations, money transactions, and ‘Mahabharat ke Rishte’ (apparently referring to the Samajwadi Party) can step out for recovery. If they do so now, they will go to jail. Investment proposals worth Rs 15 lakh crore have been brought to the ground,” he said.
Earlier in a post on X, CM Adityanath hailed Swami Vivekanand as the torchbearer of Indian intellectual tradition and one who re-established Sanatana Dharma on the world stage.
“Swami Vivekanand’s thoughts proved that Hinduism is the supreme guide for the overall progress and welfare of humanity. On this National Youth Day, let us embrace his ideals in our lives and strengthen our resolve for national service and social upliftment,” Adityanath said in his post. PTI NAV MNK MNK MNK
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