It was Rajiv Gandhi who began celebrating the birthday of Swami Vivekananda as National Youth Day since 1985.
Swami Vivekananda and our present Prime Minister share the same first name “Narendra”. But the similarities end there. The two men do not preach the same values. The Congress party leaders celebrate and follow his principles more closely.
It was Rajiv Gandhi who began celebrating Swami Vivekananda’s birthday as National Youth Day since 1985. Swami Vivekananda whose original name was Narendra Nath Datta was born in West Bengal in 1863. Swami Vivekananda preached that all paths whether Christian, Muslim or Sikh lead to the very same God.
Nehru had delivered several speeches on Swami Vivekananda. In one of them he had said: “You must try to learn from the teachings of Swamiji. Whatever he has written, you must read and take advantage of; that is the most important thing. Some people, however, are in the habit of just making noise or creating fuss. But you will see that they do it only out of fear. It happens only where there is fear. One who is fearless never does this sort of thing. I have come here to pay my homage to Swamiji, but while remembering him, so many thoughts come into my mid. I am simply fascinated by his personality.”
Sonia Gandhi while paying homage to Swami Vivekananda on the occasion of the 125 years of his historic address at the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago on 11 September said: “In today’s atmosphere of intolerance and hate, Swamiji’s message should be the Magna Carta or the way forward.”
Recalling what Vivekananda spoke about universal acceptance, Gandhi said: “Today, more than ever; we are engulfed with the same challenges of prejudices, which Swamiji spoke about.” She also added his clarion call: ‘Arise! Awake! And stop not till the goal is reached!’ — a call to spiritual and political liberation. Calling his message as time-invariant, she said that it is as relevant today as it was over 124 years ago.
The ideologies of Swami Vivekananda should be read in its pristine form and not in the corrupt form that the right wing wants us to read. The principles of Swami Vivekananda have been twisted by the RSS to suit them.
Can it be said that present-day India is liberal? Far too many restrictions abound — from how many children to produce to what meat should be consumed, to what a girl should wear to what religion must be followed. From a common man to film stars to writers to journalists — everybody is under fear to express themselves freely.
Swamiji had said: “We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true. I am proud to belong to a nation which has sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all nations of the earth.” Swamiji’s speech made all Indians proud. But the several incidents of lynching of a Muslim youth for alleged consumption of beef makes our head hang in shame.
Finally, here is an incident from Swamiji’s life that is most relevant for Indians to remember today.
Once, a preacher dressed in saffron approached Swami Vivekananda seeking financial help for a gaushala. Swamiji then asked him about the great famine that broke out in central India just a few years ago, and wanted to know what contribution the preacher’s society had done for saving human lives?
The preacher candidly replied that his society did not help because the famine was a result of the karma of the victims. Swamiji turned him away with these words: “Those associations which do not feel sympathy for men and, even seeking their own brothers dying from starvation, do not give them a handful of rice to save their lives, while giving away piles of food to save birds and beasts, I have not the least sympathy for, and I do not believe that society derives any good from them. If you make a plea of karma by saying that men die through their Karma, then it becomes a settled fact that it is useless to try or struggle for anything in this world; and your work for the protection of animals is no exception. With regard to your cause also, it can be said – the mother-cows through their own karma fall into the hands of the butchers and die, and we need not do anything in the matter.”
Also Read: Nobody owns Swami Vivekananda, stop playing politics over him
The author is an advocate at the Supreme Court of India, and spokesperson for the Indian National Congress.