Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that Swami Vivekananda saw India as a cultural consciousness that has been living and breathing for centuries. He said, Swami ji wanted to create an 'Awakened India', beyond just a political or territorial entity. Addressing the 125th anniversary celebrations of ‘Prabuddha Bharata’, a monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order, started by Swami Vivekananda, through video conferencing today, Mr Modi said, Swami Vivekananda named the journal Prabuddha Bharata to manifest the spirit of our nation.
Referring to Swami Vivekanand’s letter to
the Maharaja of Mysore and to Swami Ramakrishnananda, the Prime
Minister stressed on two clear thoughts in Swami Ji's approach to
empowering the poor. First, he wanted empowerment to be taken to the
poor, if the poor themselves cannot easily go to empowerment. Second,
Swami Ji said about India's poor, they are to be given ideas, their eyes
are to be opened to what is going on in the world around them, and then
they will work out their own salvation. Mr Modi asserted that this is
the approach with which India is moving ahead today. He said, if the
poor cannot access banks, then banks must reach the poor and that is
what the Jan Dhan Yojana did. If the poor cannot access insurance, then
insurance must reach the poor and this is what the Jan Suraksha schemes
did.
The Prime Minister said, if the poor
cannot access health-care, then we must take health-care to the poor and
this is what Ayushman Bharat scheme did. Mr Modi said, roads,
education, electricity and internet connectivity are being taken to
every corner of the country, especially to the poor. He said, this is
igniting aspirations among the poor and it is these aspirations that are
driving the growth of the country.
The Prime Minister said, India’s
proactive stance during the COVID 19 pandemic is an example of Swamiji’s
approach of not feeling helpless in a crisis. Similarly, instead of
complaining about the problem of Climate Change, India went for a
solution in the form of the International Solar Alliance. He said, this
is the Prabuddha Bharata of Swami Vivekananda's vision being built and
this is India which is giving solutions to the world's problems.
Mr Modi expressed happiness that Swami
Vivekananda’s big dreams for India and his immense faith in India's
youth is reflected in India's business leaders, sports persons,
technocrats, professionals, scientists, innovators and so many others.
He asked the youth to move ahead by following Swamiji’s advice in his
lectures on Practical Vedanta where he talks about overcoming setbacks
and to see them as a part of the learning curve. The Prime Minister
said, second thing that must be instilled in people is, to be fearless
and to be full of self-belief. He also asked the youth to follow Swami
Vivekanada who achieved immortality by creating something of value for
the world.
The Prime Minister also pointed out that
Swami Vivekananda did not see spiritual and economic progress as
mutually exclusive and he was against the approach where people
romanticise poverty. Terming Swami Ji as a spiritual giant, a highly
elevated soul, the Prime Minister stressed that he did not renounce the
idea of economic progress for the poor.
Mr Modi said, Prabuddha Bharata has run
for 125 years, spreading Swami Ji's ideas and they have built upon his
vision of educating the youth and awakening the nation. It has
contributed significantly towards making Swami Vivekananda's thoughts
immortal.
The event was organized by Advaita
Ashrama situated at Mayavati, Uttrakhand. Prabuddha Bharata, a monthly
journal of the Ramakrishna order started by Swami Vivekananda in 1896.
The journal ‘Prabuddha Bharata’ has been an important medium for
spreading the message of India’s ancient spiritual wisdom. Its
publication was started from Chennai where it continued to be published
for two years after which it was published from Almora. Later, in April
1899, the place of publication of the Journal was shifted to Advaita
Ashrama and it has been continuously published from there since then.
Some of the greatest personalities have
left their imprint on the pages of ‘Prabuddha Bharata’ through their
writings on Indian culture, spirituality, philosophy, history,
psychology, art and other social issues. Luminaries like Netaji Subhas
Chandra Bose, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Sister Nivedita, Sri Aurobindo,
Former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan have contributed to the
Journal over the years. The Advaita Ashrama is working towards making
the entire ‘Prabuddha Bharata’ archive available online on its website.
(With input from news agency language)
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