Swami Vivekananda-The Swami's Wandering Days

Swami Vivekananda

oi-Staff

Monday, February 1, 2010, 17:33

Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa while in Cossipore owing to His illness, brought his disciples under the leadership of Narendra.

After the Mahasamadhi of Sri Ramakrishna, the monks under the leadership of Narendra, in the Baranagore house, involved in rigorous spiritual practices. It was during these days that in Antpur that they all took to Sannyasa on Christmas Eve in 1886. However there arose a wander lust in the monks that Narendra began to take temporary excursions from the monastery somewhere around 1888.

It was in 1890 that he departed from his brethren and began his travel as a mendicant assuming different names. Narendra came across a lot of eminent personalities and befriended the rich and the poor alike. He first made his way to Varanasi where he met the Sanskrit scholar, Pramadadas Mitra, whom he had already known earlier.

Narendra then visited Agra, Vrindavan, Hathras and Hrishikesh, after which he returned to Baranagore for sometime. It was in Hathras that he met his first and foremost disciple, Sharatchandra Gupta who later assumed the name, Swami Sadananda. It was to him that the Swami shared about his spiritual mission entrusted to him by his master regarding the spiritual regeneration of both India and the world.

Narendra had the intense desire of getting absorbed in the ultimate which constantly intervened with his life's purpose. It was during that time that he met Pavhari Baba for whom he had great admiration. However he had to yield to the unwillingness of Sri Ramakrishna and Pavhari Baba through visions to guide him for the divine absorption. He thus gave up his desire and tread on the path set by his master.

Narendra tread the soil of different parts of India. Apart from being exposed to the glorious grandeur of the nation, the Swami also came across the common picture of misery the country portrayed across. Narendra, during his wandering days came across a lot of great personalities. It was Raja of Khetri, Maharaja Ajit Singh who gave him the name that he was widely known across as 'Swami Vivekananda'.

It was during this wandering times did Swami Vivekananda study the Mahabashya of Patanjali. He befriended Bala Gangadhar Tilak, the great freedom fighter of India in Poona and the king of Mysore who assured financial assistance if he was to travel to the West to preach. He then visited Trivandrum and proceeded to Kanyakumari.

The Swami's travel took almost three years to complete and the most of it was done by foot. At Kanyakumari he paid his respects to the Divine Mother, Kumari after which he swam across to a rock on which he contemplated and meditated on the past, preset and future of India. The rock where he meditated came to be famously known as the Vivekananda rock in Kanyakumari. It was here that he decided to go to the West to seek material help for the poor of India and thereby to shape up his mission.

Swam Vivekananda then proceeded towards Rameshwaram and Madurai. In Madurai that he met the Raja Of Ramnad who assured his help in his mission. The Swami then made his way to Madras where a group of young men under the leadership of Alasinga Perumal waited eagerly for his arrival. The Swami disclosed his plan of taking part in the 'Parliament of Religions' convened in Chicago, America. The young alert aspirants immediately collected money for the Swami's mission.

The Swami denied the fund and asked it to be distributed to the poor as he was not sure if the Divine Mother's will matched his wish to attend the 'Parliament of Religions' However a symbolic vision of Sri Ramakrishna walking into the sea, summoning him to follow and Sri Ramakrishna's vision to the holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, expressing His consent, settled the Swami's issue. The young men again started collecting funds while the Swami made a short trip to Hyderabad.

Swami Vivekananda was then requested by the Raja of Khetri to attend the celebrations owing to the birth of his son. The Swami consented to the the Raja's request, who in turn made all necessary arrangements for him to leave for Chicago. He even sent his personal attendant who escorted the Swami to see him off at Bombay.

Swami Vivekananda then began his journey to America on 31st May 1893.

To be continued