Published by:
Last updated:
![Statue of Swami Vivekananda in Belgaum, Karnataka, where he stayed from October 19 to October 27, 1892. He later started the Ramakrishna Mission in Belgaum. (Image: Shutterstock) Statue of Swami Vivekananda in Belgaum, Karnataka, where he stayed from October 19 to October 27, 1892. He later started the Ramakrishna Mission in Belgaum. (Image: Shutterstock)](https://images.news18.com/ibnlive/uploads/2021/07/1627283897_news18_logo-1200x800.jpg?impolicy=website&width=510&height=383)
Statue of Swami Vivekananda in Belgaum, Karnataka, where he stayed from October 19 to October 27, 1892. He later started the Ramakrishna Mission in Belgaum. (Image: Shutterstock)
A precocious interest in spirituality marked Swami Vivekananda's early years. He meditated before idols of Hindu deities and showed a keen interest in all things religious and spiritual.
Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902) was a prominent monk and an important figure in introducing Indian philosophy. Born in Calcutta (now Kolkata) to a wealthy Bengali family, Swami Vivekananda's real name was Narendranath Dutta. He was the chief disciple of saint Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of the Ramakrishna Mas and Ramakrishna Mission.
A precocious interest in spirituality marked Vivekananda's early years. He meditated before idols of Hindu gods and showed a keen interest in all things religious and spiritual. In 1893, by order of Maharaja Ajit Singh (ruler of Khetri, a small state in Rajasthan), he took the name 'Vivekananda'.
Swami Vivekanand represented India at the World Parliament of Religions held in Chicago in 1893. He delivered a courageous speech based on the theme, ‘All religions are different paths leading to the One Lord.’
Swami Vivekanand visualized, “Religion and science are not contradictory but complementary. This universal concept liberates religion from the dominion of superstition, dogmatism, priesthood and narrow-mindedness and makes religion the highest and noblest pursuit – the pursuit of the highest freedom, the highest knowledge and the highest happiness.”
10 Inspiring Quotes from Swami Vivekananda
- “You cannot believe in God unless you believe in yourself.”
- “Get up! Awake! Don’t stop until you reach your goal.”
- “Ask nothing, expect nothing. Give what you can, and it will come back to you. But for now, don't think about it.”
- “When any thought fully occupies the mind, it is transformed into an actual physical or mental state.”
- “Do one thing at a time. And while you're doing it, put your whole soul into it, excluding everything else.”
- “Think of one idea. Live that one idea. Dream it. Think of it. Live by that idea. Let your brain, your body, your muscles, your nerves, every part of your body be filled with that idea, and let all other ideas be left alone. This is the way to success, and this is how great spiritual giants are made.”
- “In the conflict between the heart and the brain, follow the heart.”
- “Reject as poison anything that weakens you physically, intellectually, or spiritually.”
- “We are what our thoughts make us, so be careful what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts are alive and travel far.”
- “All love is expansion, all selfishness is contraction. Therefore love is the only law of life. He who loves lives, he who is selfish dies. Therefore love for love's sake is the only law of life, just as you breathe in order to live.”