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SwamiVivekananda
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Forotheruses,seeSwamiVivekananda(disambiguation).
SwamiVivekananda(Bengali:

SwamiVivekananda

)Bengali:[ami
bibekanno]( listen),ShmiBibeknondo12
January18634July1902),bornNarendranath
Datta(Bengali: )(Bengali:[nrend
ronat

d
t
t
o]),wasanIndianHindumonk,achiefdiscipleof
the19thcenturyIndianmysticRamakrishna.Hewas
akeyfigureintheintroductionoftheIndian
philosophiesofVedantaandYogatotheWestern
world[4]andiscreditedwith
raisinginterfaithawareness,bringingHinduismtothe
statusofamajorworldreligionduringthelate19th
century.[5]Hewasamajorforceintherevivalof
HinduisminIndia,andcontributedtotheconcept
ofnationalismincolonialIndia.[6]Vivekananda
foundedtheRamakrishnaMathandtheRamakrishna
whichbegan,"Sistersandbrothersof

VivekanandainChicago,September1893.Ontheleft,
Vivekanandawrote:"oneinfinitepureandholybeyondthought
beyondqualitiesIbowdowntothee".[1]

America...,"[7]inwhichheintroducedHinduismat

Born

NarendranathDatta
12January1863
Calcutta
(nowKolkata)

Died

4July1902(aged39)
BelurMath,BengalPresidency,BritishRaj
(nowinBelur,WestBengal)

Mission.[4]Heisperhapsbestknownforhisspeech

theParliamentoftheWorld'sReligionsinChicagoin
1893.
BornintoanaristocraticBengalifamilyofCalcutta,
Vivekanandawasinclinedtowardsspirituality.Hewas
influencedbyhisGuru,RamakrishnaDeva,from
whomhelearntthatalllivingbeingswerean

Nationality Indian

embodimentofthedivineselftherefore,serviceto

Founderof RamakrishnaMission
RamakrishnaMath

Godcouldberenderedbyservicetomankind.After
Ramakrishna'sdeath,VivekanandatouredtheIndian
subcontinentextensivelyandacquiredfirsthand
knowledgeoftheconditionsprevailinginBritishIndia.
HelatertravelledtotheUnitedStates,representing
Indiaatthe1893ParliamentoftheWorldReligions.
Vivekanandaconductedhundredsofpublicand
privatelecturesandclasses,disseminatingtenets
ofHinduphilosophyintheUnitedStates,England
andEurope.InIndia,Vivekanandaisregardedas
apatrioticsaintandhisbirthdayiscelebratedthere

Guru

Ramakrishna

Philosophy ModernVedanta,[2][3]Rjayoga[3]
Literary
works

RajaYoga,KarmaYoga,BhaktiYoga,Jnana
Yoga,MyMaster,LecturesfromColombotoAlmora

Notable
Ashokananda,Virajananda,Paramananda,Alasinga
disciple(s) Perumal,Abhayananda,SisterNivedita,Swami
Sadananda
Influenceon

Quotation

[show]

"Arise,awake,andstopnottillthegoalisreached"
(moreinWikiquote)

Signature

asNationalYouthDay.
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Contents[hide]
1 Earlylife(186388)
1.1 Birthandchildhood
2 Education
2.1 SpiritualapprenticeshipinfluenceofBrahmo
Samaj
2.2 WithRamakrishna
2.3 FoundingoffirstRamakrishnaMathat
Baranagar
2.4 Monasticvows
3 TravelsinIndia(188893)
4 FirstvisittotheWest(189397)
4.1 ParliamentoftheWorld'sReligions
4.2 LecturetoursintheUKandUS
5 BackinIndia(189799)
6 SecondvisittotheWestandfinalyears(18991902)
7 Death
8 Teachingsandphilosophy
9 Influenceandlegacy
10 Works
10.1 Lectures
10.2 Literaryworks
10.3 Publications
11 Seealso
12 Notes
13 References
14 Sources
14.1 Printedsources
14.2 Websources
15 Furtherreading
16 Externallinks

Earlylife(186388)
Birthandchildhood
VivekanandawasbornNarendranathDatta
(shortenedtoNarendraorNaren)[9]athis
ancestralhomeat3GourmohanMukherjee
StreetinCalcutta,thecapitalofBritishIndia,on12
January1863duringtheMakar
Sankrantifestival.[10]Hebelongedtoa
traditionalBengaliKayasthafamilyandwasoneof
ninesiblings.[11]Hisfather,VishwanathDatta,was
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anattorneyattheCalcuttaHigh
Court.[12][13]DurgacharanDatta,Narendra's
grandfatherwasaSanskritandPersian
scholar[14]wholefthisfamilyandbecameamonk
atagetwentyfive.[15]Hismother,Bhubaneswari
Devi,wasadevouthousewife.[14]The
progressive,rationalattitudeofNarendra'sfather
andthereligioustemperamentofhismother
helpedshapehisthinkingandpersonality.[16][17]
Narendranathwasinterestedspirituallyfroma
youngage,andusedtomeditatebeforethe
imagesofdeitiessuchasShiva,Rama,Sita,
andMahavirHanuman.[18]Hewasfascinatedby
wanderingasceticsandmonks.[17]Narenwas
naughtyandrestlessasachild,andhisparents

(left)BhubaneswariDevi(18411911)"Iamindebtedtomymother
fortheefflorescenceofmyknowledge."[8]Vivekananda
(right)3,GourmohanMukherjeeStreet,birthplaceofVivekananda,
nowconvertedintoamuseumandculturalcentre

oftenhaddifficultycontrollinghim.Hismother
said,"IprayedtoShivaforasonandhehassentmeoneofhisghosts".[15]

Education
In1871,attheageofeight,NarendranathenrolledatIshwarChandraVidyasagar'sMetropolitanInstitution,where
hewenttoschooluntilhisfamilymovedtoRaipurin1877.[19]In1879,afterhisfamily'sreturntoCalcutta,hewas
theonlystudenttoreceivefirstdivisionmarksinthePresidencyCollegeentranceexamination.[20]Hewasanavid
readerinawiderangeofsubjects,includingphilosophy,religion,history,socialscience,artandliterature.[21]He
wasalsointerestedinHinduscriptures,includingtheVedas,theUpanishads,theBhagavadGita,theRamayana,
theMahabharataandthePuranas.NarendrawastrainedinIndianclassicalmusic,[22]andregularlyparticipatedin
physicalexercise,sportsandorganisedactivities.NarendrastudiedWesternlogic,Westernphilosophyand
EuropeanhistoryattheGeneralAssembly'sInstitution(nowknownastheScottishChurchCollege).[23]In1881he
passedtheFineArtsexamination,andcompletedaBachelorofArtsdegreein1884.[24][25]Narendrastudiedthe
worksofDavidHume,ImmanuelKant,JohannGottliebFichte,BaruchSpinoza,GeorgW.F.Hegel,Arthur
Schopenhauer,AugusteComte,JohnStuartMillandCharlesDarwin.[26][27]Hebecamefascinatedwith
theevolutionismofHerbertSpencerandcorrespondedwithhim,[28][29]translatingSpencer'sbookEducation(1861)
intoBengali.[30]WhilestudyingWesternphilosophers,healsolearnedSanskritscripturesandBengali
literature.[27]WilliamHastie(principalofGeneralAssembly'sInstitution)wrote,"Narendraisreallyagenius.Ihave
travelledfarandwidebutIhavenevercomeacrossaladofhistalentsandpossibilities,eveninGerman
universities,amongphilosophicalstudents'SomeaccountshavecalledNarendraashrutidhara(apersonwitha
prodigiousmemory).[citationneeded]

SpiritualapprenticeshipinfluenceofBrahmoSamaj
Seealso:SwamiVivekanandaandmeditation
In1880NarendrajoinedKeshabChandraSen'sNavaVidhan,whichwasestablishedbySenafter
meetingRamakrishnaandreconvertingfromChristianitytoHinduism.[31]Narendrabecameamemberof
aFreemasonrylodge"atsomepointbefore1884"[32]andoftheSadharanBrahmoSamajinhistwenties,a
breakawayfactionoftheBrahmoSamajledbyKeshabChandraSenandDebendranathTagore.[31][23][33][34]From
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1881to1884hewasalsoactiveinSen'sBandofHope,whichtriedtodiscourageyouthsfromsmokingand
drinking.[31]
Itwasinthiscultic[35]milieuthatNarendrabecameacquaintedwithwesternesotericism.[36]Hisinitialbeliefswere
shapedbyBrahmoconcepts,whichincludedbeliefinaformlessGodandthedeprecationofidolatry,[18][37]anda
"streamlined,rationalized,monotheistictheologystronglycolouredbyaselectiveandmodernisticreadingof
theUpanisadsandoftheVedanta."[38]RammohanRoy,thefounderoftheBrahmoSamajwhowasstrongly
influencedbyunitarianism,strivedtowardanuniversalisticinterpretationofHinduism.[38]Hisideaswere"altered[...]
considerably"byDebendranathTagore,whohadaromanticapproachtothedevelopmentofthesenewdoctrines,
andquestionedcentralHindubeliefslikereincarnationandkarma,andrejectedtheauthorityof
theVedas.[39]Tagorealsobroughtthis"neoHinduism"closerinlinewithwesternesotericism,adevelopment
whichwasfurtheredbyKeshubchandraSen.[40]Senwasinfluencedbytranscendentalism,anAmerican
philosophicalreligiousmovementstronglyconnectedwithunitarianism,whichemphasisedpersonalreligious
experienceovermerereasoningandtheology.[41]Senstrivedto"anaccessible,nonrenunciatory,everymantype
ofspirituality",introducing"laysystemsofspiritualpractice"whichcanberegardedasprototypesofthekindof
YogaexerciseswhichVivekanandapopularisedinthewest.[42]
ThesamesearchfordirectintuitionandunderstandingcanbeseenwithVivekananda.Notsatisfiedwithhis
knowledgeofphilosophy,Narendracameto"thequestionwhichmarkedtherealbeginningofhisintellectualquest
forGod."[33]HeaskedseveralprominentCalcuttaresidentsiftheyhadcome"facetofacewithGod",butnoneof
theiranswerssatisfiedhim.[43][25]Atthistime,NarendrametDebendranathTagore(theleaderofBrahmoSamaj)
andaskedifhehadseenGod.Insteadofansweringhisquestion,Tagoresaid"Myboy,youhavetheYogi's
eyes."[33][30]AccordingtoBanhatti,itwasRamakrishnawhoreallyansweredNarendra'squestion,bysaying"Yes,I
seeHimasIseeyou,onlyinaninfinitelyintensersense."[33]Nevertheless,Vivekanandawasmoreinfluencedby
theBrahmoSamaj'sanditsnewideas,thanbyRamakrishna.[42]ItwasSen'sinfluencewhobroughtVivekananda
fullyintocontactwithwesternesotericism,anditwasalsoviaSenthathemetRamakrishna.[44]

WithRamakrishna
Mainarticle:RelationshipbetweenRamakrishnaandSwamiVivekananda
Seealso:SwamiVivekananda'sprayertoKaliatDakshineswar
In1881NarendrafirstmetRamakrishna,whobecamehisspiritualfocusafterhisownfatherhaddiedin1884.[45]
Narendra'sfirstintroductiontoRamakrishnaoccurredinaliteratureclassatGeneralAssembly'sInstitutionwhen
heheardProfessorWilliamHastielecturingonWilliamWordsworth'spoem,TheExcursion.[37]Whileexplaining
theword"trance"inthepoem,HastiesuggestedthathisstudentsvisitRamakrishnaofDakshineswarto
understandthetruemeaningoftrance.Thispromptedsomeofhisstudents(includingNarendra)tovisit
Ramakrishna.[46][47][48]
TheyprobablyfirstmetpersonallyinNovember
1881,[note1]thoughNarendradidnotconsiderthis
theirfirstmeeting,andneithermanmentionedthis
meetinglater.[46]AtthistimeNarendrawas
preparingforhisupcomingF.A.examination,
whenRamChandraDattaaccompaniedhim
toSurendraNathMitra's,housewhere
Ramakrishnawasinvitedtodelivera
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lecture.[50]AccordingtoParanjape,atthismeeting
RamakrishnaaskedyoungNarendratosing.
Impressedbyhissingingtalent,heasked
NarendratocometoDakshineshwar.[51]
Inlate1881orearly1882,Narendrawentto
Dakshineswarwithtwofriendsandmet
Ramakrishna.[46]Thismeetingprovedtobea
turningpointinhislife.[52]Althoughhedidnot
initiallyacceptRamakrishnaashisteacherand
rebelledagainsthisideas,hewasattractedbyhis
personalityandbegantofrequentlyvisithimat
Ramakrishna,guruofVivekananda

VivekanandainCossipore
1886

Dakshineswar.[53]HeinitiallysawRamakrishna's
ecstasiesandvisionsas"merefigmentsof
imagination"[16]and"hallucinations".[54]Asa
memberofBrahmoSamaj,heopposedidol

worship,polytheismandRamakrishna'sworshipofKali.[55]HeevenrejectedtheAdvaitaVedantaof"identitywith
theabsolute"asblasphemyandmadness,andoftenridiculedtheidea.[54]NarendratestedRamakrishna,who
facedhisargumentspatiently:"Trytoseethetruthfromallangles",hereplied.[53]
Narendra'sfather'ssuddendeathin1884leftthefamilybankruptcreditorsbegandemandingtherepaymentof
loans,andrelativesthreatenedtoevictthefamilyfromtheirancestralhome.Narendra,onceasonofawelltodo
family,becameoneofthepooreststudentsinhiscollege.[56]Heunsuccessfullytriedtofindworkandquestioned
God'sexistence,[57]butfoundsolaceinRamakrishnaandhisvisitstoDakshineswarincreased.[58]
OnedayNarendrarequestedRamakrishnatopraytogoddessKalifortheirfamily'sfinancialwelfare.
Ramakrishnasuggestedhimtogotothetemplehimselfandpray.FollowingRamakrishna'ssuggestion,hewent
tothetemplethrice,butfailedtoprayforanykindofworldlynecessitiesandultimatelyprayedfortrueknowledge
anddevotionfromthegoddess.[59][60][61]Narendragraduallygrewreadytorenounceeverythingforthesakeof
realisingGod,andacceptedRamakrishnaashisGuru.[53]
In1885,Ramakrishnadevelopedthroatcancer,andwastransferredtoCalcuttaand(later)toagardenhouse
inCossipore.NarendraandRamakrishna'sotherdisciplestookcareofhimduringhislastdays,andNarendra's
spiritualeducationcontinued.AtCossipore,heexperiencedNirvikalpasamadhi.[62]Narendraandseveralother
disciplesreceivedochrerobesfromRamakrishna,forminghisfirstmonasticorder.[63]Hewastaughtthatservice
tomenwasthemosteffectiveworshipofGod.[16][62]Ramakrishnaaskedhimtocarefortheothermonastic
disciples,andinturnaskedthemtoseeNarendraastheirleader.[64]Ramakrishnadiedintheearlymorninghours
of16August1886inCossipore.[64][65]

FoundingoffirstRamakrishnaMathatBaranagar
Mainarticle:BaranagarMath
AfterRamakrishna'sdeath,hisdevoteesandadmirersstoppedsupportinghisdisciples.Unpaidrentaccumulated,
andNarendraandtheotherdiscipleshadtofindanewplacetolive.[66]Manyreturnedhome,adopting
aGrihastha(familyoriented)wayoflife.[67]NarendradecidedtoconvertadilapidatedhouseatBaranagarintoa
newmath(monastery)fortheremainingdisciples.RentfortheBaranagarMathwaslow,raisedby"holybegging"
(mdhukar).ThemathbecamethefirstbuildingoftheRamakrishnaMath:themonasteryofthemonasticorderof
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Ramakrishna.[52]Narendraandotherdisciplesusedtospendmanyhoursinpractisingmeditationandreligious
austeritieseveryday.[68]Narendralaterreminiscedabouttheearlydaysofthemonastery:[69]
WeunderwentalotofreligiouspracticeattheBaranagarMath.Weusedtogetupat3:00amand
becomeabsorbedinjapaandmeditation.Whatastrongspiritofdetachmentwehadinthosedays!
Wehadnothoughtevenastowhethertheworldexistedornot.
In1887,NarendracompiledaBengalisonganthologynamedSangeetKalpataruwithVaishnavCharanBasak.
Narendracollectedandarrangedmostofthesongsofthiscompilation,butcouldnotfinishtheworkofthebook
forunfavourablecircumstances.[70]

Monasticvows
InDecember1886,themotherofBaburam[note2]invitedNarendraandhisotherbrothermonkstoAntpurvillage.
NarendraandtheotheraspiringmonksacceptedtheinvitationandwenttoAntpurtospendfewdays.InAntpur,in
theChristmasEveof1886,Narendraandeightotherdisciplestookformalmonasticvows.[68]Theydecidedtolive
theirlivesastheirmasterlived.[68]Narendranathtookthename"SwamiVivekananda".[71]

TravelsinIndia(188893)
Mainarticle:SwamiVivekananda'stravelsinIndia(18881893)
In1888,NarendraleftthemonasteryasaParivrjakatheHindureligiouslifeofawanderingmonk,"withoutfixed
abode,withoutties,independentandstrangerswherevertheygo".[72]Hissolepossessionswere
akamandalu(waterpot),staffandhistwofavouritebooks:theBhagavadGitaandTheImitationof
Christ.[73]NarendratravelledextensivelyinIndiaforfiveyears,visitingcentresoflearningandacquaintinghimself
withdiversereligioustraditionsandsocialpatterns.[74][75]Hedevelopedsympathyforthesufferingandpovertyof
thepeople,andresolvedtoupliftthenation.[74][76]Livingprimarilyonbhiksha(alms),Narendratravelledonfoot
andbyrailway(withticketsboughtbyadmirers).Duringhistravelshemet,andstayedwithIndiansfromall
religionsandwalksoflife:scholars,dewans,rajas,Hindus,Muslims,Christians,paraiyars(lowcasteworkers)and
governmentofficials.[76]NarendraleftBombayforChicagoon31May1893withthename"Vivekananda",as
suggestedbyAjitSinghofKhetri,[77]whichmeans"theblissofdiscerningwisdom".[78]

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