Swami Vivekananda is the iconic hero of youths not only in India, but also in the whole world. Narendra Nath Dutta is his childhood name. He was born in Kolkata on 12th January, 1863 in an Dutta family. His father, Vishwanath Datta, was a successful attorney with interest in varied subjects, and his mother, Bhuvaneshwari Devi, was endowed with qualities like deep devotion, strong character etc. The precocious boy, Narendranath mastered music, gymnastics and studies. By the time he completed his graduation from Calcutta University, he had acquired a vast knowledge of different subjects, especially Western philosophy and history. He had a yogic temperament and used to practice meditation even from his boyhood, and was also involved in 'Brahmo Movement' for time being.
Meeting the Mentor
At the threshold of youth, Narendra had to undergo a period of spiritual crisis when he was confused by doubts about the very existence of God. And at that time, he came to know about Shri Ramakrishna from his English professor at college. In November 1881, one day Narendra went to meet Shri Ramakrishna at the Kali Temple in Dakshineshwar. He straight away asked him a question, which he had asked to several others but had received no satisfactory answer, "Sir, have you seen God?"
Without a moment's hesitation, Shri Ramakrishna replied, "Yes, I have. I can see Him as clearly as I see you, only in a much deeper sense."
Shri Ramakrishna not only removed doubts from the mind of Narendra, but also won him over through his pure, selfless love. And thus began a unique Guru-disciple relationship in the history of spiritualism. Narendra now started visiting Dakshineshwar frequently and, under the guidance of the Guru, made rapid progress on the spiritual path. At Dakshineshwar, Narendra also met many youngsters who were devoted to Shri Ramakrishna, and they all became close pals. . Tough Times
After a few years two incidents distressed Narendra considerably. One was the sudden death of his father in 1884, leaving his family in miserable condition. Hence, Narendra had to bear the burden of supporting his mother, brothers and sisters. The second event was the illness of Shri Ramakrishna which was diagnosed as throat cancer. In September 1885, Shri Ramakrishna was taken to a house at Shyampukur, and a few months later to a rented villa at Cossipore. At these two places the young disciples nursed their Guru with utmost care. Though there was poverty at home, as he was unemployed, Narendra had lead his fellows.
Shri Ramakrishna instilled the spirit of renunciation and brotherhood in these youngsters. One day he distributed ochre robes among them and sent them out to beg food. He specifically instructed Narendra about the formation of the new monastic Order. In the wee hours of 16th August 1886, Shri Ramakrishna left his mortal body. After the Guru's demise, all his fifteen young disciples began to live together in a decrepit building at Baranagar in North Kolkata. Under the leadership of Narendra, they formed a new monastic fraternity and in 1887 and took the formal vows of Sanyasa, consequently acquiring new names, Narendra now became Swami Vivekanand, although this name was actually assumed much later.
Cognizance of Life
After establishing the new monastic order, Vivekanand heard the voice of his soul for a greater mission in his life. While most of the disciples of Shri Ramakrishna thought about him in relation to their own personal lives, but Vivekanand thought of the Guru in relation to India and the rest of the world. As the prophet of the present era, what was Shri Ramakrishna's message to the modern world and to India in particular? This question and the awareness of his own intrinsic powers urged Vivekanand to explore the whole world. So, in the middle of 1890, he received the blessings of Shri Sarada Devi, the divine companion of Shri Ramakrishna, known to the world as Holy Mother, who was then staying in Kolkata and left Baranagar Math and set out for a long journey to explore and discover the real India.
Exploring the Real India
During his travels across India, Swami Vivekanand was deeply touched by the terrible poverty and backwardness of the people. He was the first religious leader in India to understand and openly declare that the real cause of India's ruin was the neglect of the masses. The urgent need was to provide food and other bare requirements of life to the starving millions. For this, they should be trained about improved agricultural techniques, village industries, etc. It was in this context that Vivekanand grasped the core problem of poverty in India, which had never attracted the attention of social reformers of those days. Because of centuries of repression, the exploited masses had lost the confidence in their ability to improve. The priority was to instill into their minds the faith in themselves and for this they needed a revitalizing and inspiring message. Vivekanand could find this message in the principle of the Atman, the doctrine of the potential divinity of the soul, taught in Vedanta, the ancient system of religious philosophy of India. He saw that, in spite of poverty, the masses adhered to religion. But they had never been enlightened by the stimulating principles of Vedanta and how to apply them in practical life. Thus, the people needed two kinds of knowledge, firstly, secular knowledge to improve their economic condition and secondly, spiritual knowledge to infuse self-confidence and reinforce their morality. The challenge was to spread these two kinds of knowledge among the people. Education was the only answer that Vivekanand found. Need for an Organization
Vivekanandji was very clear that to carry out his plans for the spread of education for the strengthening of the poor people, including women, an efficient organization of committed people was required. As he stated later on that he wanted to set in motion, a mechanism, which could bring the noblest of ideas to the doorstep of even the poorest and the meanest. A few years later, Swamiji founded the Ramakrishna Mission to serve as a part of this 'mechanism'.
