Memorable events from the life of Swami Vivekananda - 2

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Memorable events from the life of Swami Vivekananda - 2

 

His mother once gave him this advice: " Be pure, live a

clean life, defend your dignity and be respectful to

others. Be gentle and modest, but do not hesitate to be

firm when the situation requires it " .

 

This wise counsel helped to mould Narendra's character.

From the time he was a child, he knew how to maintain

his self respect. He never hesitated to show due respect

to others; at the same time he was not prepared to stomach

unprovoked insult from anyone. Narendra was amazed one day

when one of his father's friends treated him with contempt

for no reason at all. He was unfamiliar with such an

attitude, for his parents had never considered him to be

too young to be treated respectfully. 'How strange', he

thought, 'even my father never belittles me this way'.

Then he stood erect like a bruised king cobra and firmly

said to the gentleman: 'Look, there are many like you who

think age and intelligence are synonymous, but that is not

so'. The gentleman readily admitted his error.

 

In the Katha Upanishad we come across Nachiketa, another

fearless child who had great self-confidence. Swami

Vivekananda always admired Nachiketha who had said:

" I may be the best or atleast better than many; but I'm

never the worst "

 

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Taken from the book

" My India The India Eternal " published by

The Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Calcutta.

 

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