Swami Vivekananda, born Narendranath Dutta, was prominent Hindu saint who introduced Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world. He is disciple of Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.
Swami Vivekananda, born Narendranath Dutta, was prominent Hindu saint who introduced Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world. He is disciple of Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. He is perhaps best known for his speech which began, "Brothers and sisters of America ...," in which he introduced Hinduism at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago in 1893.
Vivekananda was inclined towards spirituality from childhood. He was influenced by his Guru, Ramakrishna Deva, from whom he learnt that all living beings were an embodiment of the divine self; therefore, service to God could be rendered by service to mankind. After Ramakrishna's death, Vivekananda toured the Indian subcontinent extensively and acquired first-hand knowledge of the conditions prevailing in British India. He later traveled to the United States, representing India at the 1893 Parliament of the World Religions. Vivekananda conducted hundreds of public and private lectures and classes, disseminating tenets of Hindu philosophy in the United States, England and Europe. In India, Vivekananda is regarded as a patriotic saint and his birthday is celebrated there as National Youth Day.
