"Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life; dream of it; think of it; live on that idea. Let the brain, the body, muscles, nerves, and every part of your body be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success, and this is the way great spiritual giants are produced."

― Swami Vivekananda

Why is National Youth Day celebrated?

National Youth Day is celebrated on 12th January each year, to mark the occasion of the birth anniversary of Narendranath Datta or lovingly known as the Swami Vivekananda. 12th January was declared as the National Youth Day in 1984 by the Government of India to honor and celebrate the ideals, teachings and contributions of Swami Vivekananda Ji. The day encourages youth to follow his principles and teachings.

Brief about Swami Vivekananda:

Swami Vivekananda was born on 12th January 1863 in Calcutta (now Kolkata), India. He was born into an aristocratic Bengali Kayastha family and is known to have always been predisposed towards spirituality since he was young, which then led to him adopting the lifestyle of an Indian Hindu monk in his later years. He was the chief disciple of the 19th-century Indian mystic and religious leader Ramakrishna Paramahansa, also spelt Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. It is the ideology and philosophies of Ramakrishna that inspired Vivekananda to revive Hinduism in India.

Facts about Swami Vivekananda:

Swami Vivekananda spearheaded the foundation of Ramakrishna Mission and Ramakrishna Math.

Long before he started the well-known Ramakrishna Math, Swami Vivekananda had the desire to start a female-only monastic institution which was fulfilled with the foundation of Sri Sarada Math- an institution founded in respect of Sri Sarada Devi, the consort of Ramakrishna.

He was a major force in the revival of Hinduism in India and a prominent figure in the introduction of the Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world.

As a representative of India, he introduced Hinduism at the first Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago in 1893 where he addressed the crowd with a speech beginning with the words “Sisters and brothers of America ...,” which then became one of the most renowned speech addresses of Swami Vivekananda. He received an immediate response from the crowd with a huge round of applause because usually, the opening statements are often started with good morning/noon/evening but addressing with such a respectful manner as Swami Ji's was quite outstanding and unheard of. 

Hinduism became a significant world religion in the late 19th century owing to Vivekananda, who is credited with promoting interfaith awareness.

Swami Ji is also known to have made contributions to the idea of Indian nationalism as a weapon in colonial India's struggle against the British Empire.

Vivekananda is highly credited with a significant impact on eradicating child marriage and illiteracy from India with his teachings and ideology.

Although, Swami Vivekananda was a man of the 19th century, his philosophy and outlook towards life was way ahead of his time. His legacy towards the betterment of society through the propagation of pure ethics, religion, education, nationalism, awareness and youth upliftment is still cherished and widely followed by many. To commemorate the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, the four-day National Youth Festival will be inaugurated by the Honourable Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi in Hubbali, Karnataka under the theme "Viksit Yuva - Viksit Bharat ''. The festival will take place at Hubballi-Dharwad from January 12 to January 16, 2023.