Puran Chander Sharma
Birth of the Apostle Born to Vishwanath Datta & Bhuvaneshwari in 1863, Narendranath from his early years was a distinguished figure among his play-mates and companions. Keen in intelligence, and vivid imagination, extraordinary memory, deep power of though, combined with a love of truth, a passion for purity and compassion for the needy-all these marked him-out a prodigy from his youth. He soon acquired a mastery in various branches of learning, particularly history and philosophy. He was also a good athlete and a good musician.
In the Company of his Master
It so happened in November 1881, that he was invited to sing at a house where Sri Ramakrishna was a guest. The Master has been greately attracted by his singing and he invited him to Dakshineswar. This meeting marked the opening of a new chapter in the spiritual life of Narendranath.
From the first, Narendra was intrigued and puzzled by Sri Ramakrishna’s personality. He had never met anyone quite like this splender, bearded man in his midd forties who had the innocent directness of a child. For Ramakrishna, Smadhi was a dialy experience and the awareness of God’s presence never left him. Vivekananda recalls that, “one day I crept near him and asked him the question I had been asking others all my life” ‘Do you believe in God, Sir?’ ‘Yes’. ‘How’? ‘Because I see him just as I see you here,’ that impressed me at once. For the first time, I found a man who dared to say that he saw God.
He began to visit Dakshineswar and was more and more struck by the saints’ extraordinary spiritual powers. His absolute non-attachment to wealth, his power of reading a person’s mind through and through, and, above all, his super human love and compassion. At his touch, Narendra one day almost lost his body consciousness and begged to be restored to the normal state for the sake of his parents, a request which the saint granted with a smile. No wonder that Narendranath gradually surrender himself to Sri Ramakrishna.
Training of the Disciple
The Master was fully aware of the potentialities of the disciple from very beginning and accordingly trained him along the time of least resistance of the highest form of truth, the Advaita, or the absolute oneness of existance. Thus under the watchful and loving guidance of Sri Ramakrishna, he understood the full import of the teaching of the Hindu scripture and accepted all forms of discipline prescribed in them.
As it has been said by Sri Ramakrishna that whenever, God comes in the form of Avtar by obtaining this human body, he has to undergo the clutches of ‘Maya’, he has to face all the miseries. And Narendranath was no exception to it. His father Vishwanath’s sudden death placed the whole family in a desperate condition. He had to maintain his mother, brothers and sister and at the same time, to allay his burning thirst for God realization. This was the darkest period of his life. He had to knock about in search of a job. Starving and bare footed, he wandered from office to office with an application in hand, but everywhere, the door was slammed in his face. Inspite of all those troubles however, he never lost faith in the existance of God nor in his divine mercy.
Afterwards Sri Ramakrishna said to the other disciples, ‘Narendra will passaway only of his own will. The moment he realises who is he, he will refuse to stay a moment longer in the body. The time will come when he will shake the world to its foundations through the strength of his intellectual and spiritual powers. There is much work to be done by him.’
A wondering monk
After the passing away of his Master Sri Ramakrishna in 1886, Narendranath became the leader of his brother disciples. Now and then he suggested them to sit in meditation, prayers and all sort spiritual disciplines. After some time, he resolved to set-out for ‘Bharat Darshana,’ and during this period he visited almost every corner of India interacting with the people belonging to all castes, creeds and sects. This is during his visit to Rajputana, he was invited by the Raja of Khatri Ajit Singh to be his Royal Guest.
The Raja Ajit Singh was very much impressed by this wondering Monk and he begged him to be initiated by him. At the request of Raja Ajit Singh of Khetri, the Swami reassumed the name Vivekananda, for good in place of Sachchidananda, which he has been using in South India.
Many were the times when the Swami faced danger, hardship and want in solitude. With nothing in his possession save perhaps a photograph of Sri Ramakrishna and a copy of the ‘Gita: people refuse to give him food and shelter. It was that in period that he lived with a family of sweeper cabte and saw the price less worth and potentialities that could be found among those whom society rejected. Poverty and misery he saw on every side and his heart over-whelmed with compassion.
The single minded monk had become transformed into a reformer, and national builder a world-Architect. What use is a religion, He thought from which the masses are excluded. But, what was the remedy? This haunted him every moment.
The clear-eyed Swami saw that renuniciation and service must be the twin ideals of India. If the National life would be intensified in these channels, everything else would be taken care of. Renunciation alone had always been the great dynamo of strength of India. So, at this critical time he looked to the man of renunciation to uphold the cause of India’s downtrodden masses.
But, what could he do, a penniless Sannyasi? In the midest of despair inspiration came to him. A ray of light shot his vision. Yes, he would go to America in the name of India’s millions. There he would earn money by the power of his brain. Returning to India, he would devote himself to the regeneration of this countrymen or-die in the attempt.
The message of Swami Vivekananda
In recent times in India, it was Swami Vivekananda alone who preached a great message which is not tied to any do’s and don’ts, Addressing one and all in the Nation, he said: “In every one of you there is the ‘Power of Brahman’ (God): the God in poor desires you to serve Him.” He coined a new word “Daridra-Devobhav, Murkh-Devo-Bhab” i.e. all the sane, destitude, lepors, inflicted, poors and downtrodden are all our living ‘Gods’, work for them, serve them, educate them. This is all of the religion. I believe in no religion and ‘God’ who cannot wipe the tears of a widow, who cannot give a piece of Bread to the mouth of orphen.
“Arise, Awake, and stop not till the goal is reached,” great things can be done by great sacrifices. Workhard. Be holy and pure and thefire will come. Have faith in yourself. Let the people say whatever they like, stick to your own convictions, and rest assured, the world will be at your feet. Money does not pay, nor name; fame does not pay, nor learning.
It is love that pays; It is character that cleaves its way through adamant-time walls of difficulties.
Conclusion
Swami Vivekanand was not just ordinary illumined saint. He was commissioned by Sri Ramakrishna to be a world teacher. He was divinely empowered and he could change the courage of our times. Verify, he was the rock of ‘Vadanta’ and the Master singled him out as the one upon whom to build the stricture of the modern Gospel, the eternal Religion.
He was a splendid type of the famous sages of Himalayas, a prophet of a new religion.
It was the voice of the ancient Rishis of the vedas, speaking words of love. toleration, renunciation, sacrifice and service through the Hindu-Monk Swami Vivekananda. India gave birth to the Swami, America discovered him. No other single human being was reverenced more during his life time than was Swami Vivekananda. He was one of those great comets who appeared in the spiritual firmament, once perhaps after several centuries.
Swami Vivekananda was only 39 year, 5 month and 24 days old when the athlete lay strached upon the Pyre-on 4th July, 1902. But the flame of that Pyre is still alight today.
(The author is the translator of, “The ssssGospel of Sri Ramakrishna” into Urdu titled as “Sri Ramakrishna Ke Akwal-E-Zarin.” The Book is available at Ramakrishna Mission, Udheywala, Jammu)
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