Swami Vivekananda: Equanimity and Quote

Swami Vivekananda was an eminent Swami (monk)  and scholar who popularized Vedanta around the world. I have already written about him here so that we will look at few instances from his life.

“Arise! Awake! And stop not until the goal is reached.” 

In the above quote, Vivekananda means that you awaken from within. He is not implying that you wake up, brush your teeth and do your work diligently until you meet your goal. Here Swami Vivekananda means to awaken spiritually for within. To be mindful of your thoughts, feelings and work toward your spiritual quest. Once you are aware of your self, then only can one embark on the spiritual journey.  I read a bit on the life of  Swami Vivekananda, he ardently all his life made attempts to met his goal of self-actualization. He traveled around India and is known for his spiritual trip to Kanyakumari the southern most tip of India. The goal here is your ultimate spiritual actualization. The interpretation of the goal could differ individually depending on your experiential truth.

Many Americans do not know that Vivekananda stunned the world with his mesmerizing personality and eloquence through his inaugural speech at Chicago Parliament of World Religion in 1893.  Vivekananda played an influential role in the genesis of philanthropy in the US.

Rockefeller was the richest person in the US and maybe the world then. He was very arrogant and not very happy in life. The first encounter between Vivekananda and Rockefeller is very inspiring and impactful. Rockefeller walked into Vivekananda’s room unannounced with aplomb expecting Vivekananda to acknowledge his presence. Vivekananda was reading a letter or a book. On the contrary, Vivekananda with utmost mental calmness ignored Rockefeller and addressed him very calmly the reason for his anxiety. This is an excellent example of equanimity since Rockefeller was one of the most forceful personalities of his era. Anyone would have immediately got up to met him but not Vivekananda. Rockefeller was very pleased and positively influenced to see the superlative calm demeanor of Swami. Vivekananda urged Rockefeller to give his substantial earnings to a charitable cause and Rockefeller would go on to become the greatest philanthropist of his time and hugely impact the charity sector going forward.

This is just a small take on the life of Vivekananda and will, later on, write a bit more.