Need to bring down walls that create differences among people, says Vice President

Paying homage to Swami Vivekananda on his 157th birth anniversary, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday said that there is a need to bring down walls that create differences among people.

"Today more than ever, there is a need to bring down walls that create differences among people. We follow Sarva Dharma Sama Bhavana -- that is in our Indian blood and part of our civilisation," Naidu said.

He also appealed to the youths to strive to spread the message of Swami Vivekananda.

Naidu, while participating in the centenary celebrations of the magazine 'Sri Rama Krishna Vijayam' being published by the Ramakrishna Mutt, said: "On this National Youth Day, the youths should re-dedicate themselves to the ideals of Swamiji, who is the embodiment of Indian culture."

Taking to Twitter, Naidu said: "A great saint, teacher and social reformer, Swami Vivekananda played a major role in introducing Hinduism to the West."

"Swami Ji was a social reformer and was against religious dogmas. He believed in the uplift of humanity, irrespective of caste or creed and emphasised the importance of spiritualism for the survival and progress of mankind," he added.

Further, Naidu said: "Swami Vivekananda believed in the religion of humanity. Swami Ji said that he did not believe in a god or religion 'which cannot wipe the widow's tears or bring a piece of bread to the orphan's mouth.