Swami Vivekananda (The Master Builder of Our Nation)

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THE STRANGE LIGHT

Another strange experience which came naturally to Naren was the bright luminosity that used to appear between his eyebrows when he retired to bed at night. As soon as he closed his eyes, this wonderful bright light would appear, blaze forth and then burst out enveloping his whole body in a flood of light and radiant lustre. He used to feel that he was drowning in an ocean of light as he fell asleep. As it was a daily experience with him, he believed that it must be so with others as well. It was much later that Sri Ramakrishna explained to him that this experience was a part of his inborn dhyana siddhi and was a very rare phenomenon indeed.

 

PRESENCE OF MIND

Courage coupled with presence of mind, was a unique characteristic of Naren. In an emergency, when others would lose their presence of mind and become bewildered, Naren would maintain his poise and act in a surprisingly efficient way, much to the admiration of the people around. There are several instances in his life, where this rare capacity could rescue people from danger.

 

TO THE RESCUE OF A LADY

One day, an elderly lady was travelling in a horse-driven coach when suddenly people realized that there was no coachman and the horses were galloping at terrific speed. The lady in the coach looked forlorn and terrified. The embarrassed onlookers did not know how to rescue her. Naren, who came to the street to see what the commotion was about, understood the gravity of the situation in a moment. With lightning speed he ran towards the carriage, jumped on to the horse and with masterly skillfulness brought it to a sudden halt. The lady, who naturally had given up her hope of life was thus saved, thanks to the bold and quick action of Naren. Those who were watching the scene admired the skill, courage, ability and the great presence of mind the young boy.

 

FACE TO FACE WITH A TIGER

To anticipate a few years and meeting him as a wandering monk, we are told several similar instances, revealing his courage and presence of mind. Once he went with the Raja of Khetri on a hunting expedition. While the Raja and his men were busy hunting, Swamiji sat under a tree in a contemplative mood with only his staff for company. Just than, a tiger rushed along. Swamiji's first instinct was to raise his staff and put up a fight. But, immediately he realised how foolish it was to confront a hungry tiger which positively could finish him in no time. Yet, he did not lose his presence of mind. He remained absolutely quiet, staring at the tiger. The tiger watched Swamiji for a while and then silently walked away without harming him. Meanwhile, the Raja and others rushed to the spot to give him a gun to defend himself from the man-eater. Swamiji politely refused saying, 'Sadhus need no guns to protect them. Even a tiger would not harm them. Let no creature of God have any fear from me'.

 

FACING A MAD BULL

Another such incident occurred in England. Swamiji had gone for a walk with a gentleman and a lady. Suddenly, there came a mad bull rushing down the road towards them. The gentleman ran away in fear. The lady attempted to run but unable to do so, fell on the ground. Anxious, Swamiji made a quick bold decision. He coolly stood in front of the lady with his arm folded. Later, he said that he was mentally calculating how far the bull would be able to throw him away. Seeing the daring standing posture of Swamiji the animal silently retreated.

 

MEANING OF IDOL WORSHIP

On another occasion during his parivrajaka life, he had become a close friend of the Diwan of Alwar. Once during his conversation with Swamiji, the Maharaja of Alwar, who was some-what of a Western materialist, had expressed that he had no faith in idol worship. The teacher in Swamiji could not rest contented, till he cleared the misunderstanding from the king's mind. He waited for a situation in which the Maharaja could be brought to a correct understanding. One day, seeing a portrait of the Maharaja, he asked the Diwan to bring it to him. Holding the portrait in his hand, Swamiji asked the Diwan, in the presence of Maharaja, to spit on the portrait. This shocked both the Diwan and the Maharaja. The Diwan was horrified at this mad behest and began to shiver. At this, Swamiji explained that the portrait was certainly not the person of the Maharaja, but only a piece of paper with colors on it, yet it deserved all the respect, because, for all practical purposes, it was a true image of the Maharaja and it virtually represented him. He explained that in the same way did an idol or image represent divinity and hence we worship the Divine in the idol. Through this clever method Swamiji could bring light to both and Diwan and the Maharaja and turned them in favour of idol worship.

 

Cont.