Swami Vivekananda was a Hindu monk and a great philosopher. He is very well known for his philosophies about self-realization and God. He discovered to the world what knowledge and self-knowledge are. His speech at the Parliament of the World’s Religion in Chicago can not be forgotten. It changed the perspective of the whole world to look towards him. In his speech, he addressed the audience as, “my brothers and sisters of America…”, this is what made him loved by the world.

He was born on 12th January 1863 in Calcutta in India. His name was Narendranath Datta. At the age of 23, he was given two choices by his father, to accept all the luxuries of life but not to meet his purpose of life or to leave all the luxuries, become a monk, find God and his purpose in life. He chose to become a monk. He decided to leave his home and find his purpose at the age of 25.

He began to follow the preaching of Ramakrishna who was the religious leader of the time. He became a part of the reform movement in India of the period. According to him, all living things are equal and should be treated without any discrimination. He also believed that one should follow humanity in order to reach out to God because service to people is equal to assistance to God.

After the death of Ramakrishna, he decided to build a math for his guru. He then, determined himself to travel all over India and promote the religious beliefs of Swami Ramakrishna. In 1893, he went to the United States to represent India in the Parliament of the world’s religions. He made people aware of the Hindu religious beliefs and Hindu teachings. He traveled the United States, England, and Europe, giving lectures about Hindu philosophy. Because of this, he was appreciated by Indians for being a loyal Indian monk. He lost his life in Belur on 4th July 1902 when he was 39 years old.

His teachings are followed even now, by leaders like Anna Hazare and Narendra Modi. He quoted some quotes that are very well known to the world today.

“Truth can be stated in a thousand different ways, yet each one can be true.”

In this quote, Swami Vivekananda talks about being true to oneself. There are many different ways to perceive truth. The truth is all dependent on the perspective of every person and so, no one is wrong.

“Be the servant while leading. Be unselfish. Have infinite patience, and success is yours.”

Swamiji, in the quote, promotes the habit of serving others. Making efforts for others, without thinking about the benefits of that to oneself. It is called being unselfish. Success is not achieved so easily and it takes a lot of time, so be patient about it and wait for it. After all this, you are sure to get success.

“We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.”

Swami Vivekananda says, we should take care of our thoughts. We should not be negative about ourselves as well as others because we are made of thoughts. And the universe manifests upon the things that we think and whatever we say is not a priority.

“They live alone, who live for others.”

The people who are dedicated to others dare to live their lives alone. They are strong enough to take care of themselves. Swami Vivekananda was an inspiring personality and all that is reflected in his life and quotes.