Venkaiah Naidu pays homage to Swami Vivekananda on birth anniversary

The Vice President of India, M Venkaiah Naidu, has said that preserving the invaluable heritage of India was true nationalism and India can provide a sheet-anchor and a spiritual compass to the world witnessing unprecedented changes. He said that India could provide honey of wisdom gathered from different flowers by different bees to the world filled with bitterness.

Interacting with youth on the occasion of National Youth Day celebrated to commemorate the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda at Swarna Bharat Trust in Hyderabad, Naidu said that Vivekananda believed in the upliftment of humanity, irrespective of caste or creed and emphasised the importance of spiritualism for the survival and progress of mankind. Swami Vivekananda was a social reformer and was against religious dogmas, he added.

Talking about Swami Vivekananda's teachings that resonate with the youth of all times, Naidu said he wanted the youth to be healthy, enlightened, and confident. He stressed upon the need to popularise teachings of Swami Vivekananda among the younger generation so that they realize and assimilate the greatness of India's culture, spiritual heritage and traditions.

Recalling Swami Vivekananda's words: "Give me 100 energetic young men and I shall transform India", Naidu said that youth must follow the path laid down by Swami Vivekananda and lead by the ideals of Tyaga (Sacrifice) and Seva (Service) to transform India. Propagate and practice the teachings of Swami Vivekananda, he added.

Describing Swami Vivekananda as an embodiment of Hindu Culture, the Vice President opined that his address to the World's Parliament of Religions 125 years ago was a momentous event and played a major role in introducing Hinduism to the West. His Chicago speech encapsulated the timeless values of Indian culture and its eternal relevance, he said.

The Vice President said that there was a need to bring down walls that create differences among people in the name of religion, bigotry, caste or region in present time more than in any other time.

He said that religious tolerance was of paramount importance for peaceful co-existence of people of all faiths and for the celebration of religious diversity.

Naidu added that Swamiji saw education as an important medium to empower people and wanted measures to educate the masses and the poor. "If the poor boy cannot come to education, education must go to him", he said quoting Vivekananda.

He urged the youth to strive for building a strong India.

Earlier, he also paid floral tributes at the statue of Swami Vivekananda.