Context:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited and meditate at the Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Tamil Nadu
Vivekananda Rocks:
- Located in – Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu
- Kanyakumari – Southern tip of mainland India, at the confluence of the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.
- Significance – It is believed that Swami Vivekananda attained enlightenment here
- Attractions –
- Comprises of the ‘Shripada Mandapam’ and the ‘Vivekananda Mandapam’.
- A life-sized bronze statue of Swami Vivekananda on the premises.
Swami Vivekananda:
- One of the most celebrated spiritual leaders of India.
- Born in – 1863, as Narendranath Datta
- Disciple of – Sri Ramakrishna Paramhamsa
- He attempted to combine Indian spirituality with Western material progress, maintaining that the two supplemented and complemented one another.
- Introduced Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world
- Vedanta – Saw Veda as the ultimate source of information and whose authority could not be questioned.
- He believed that the path to self-purification is through helping others.
- Participated in the 1893 World’s Parliament of Religions convened during the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
- Founded Ramakrishna Order at Belur in 1897.
- His birthday on January 12 is celebrated as National Youth Day
Source: The Indian Express
Previous Year Question
Satya Shodhak Samaj organised:
[UPSC Civil Service Exam -2016 Prelims]
(a) a movement for upliftment of tribals in Bihar
(b) a temple-entry movement in Gujarat
(c) an anti-caste movement in Maharashtra
(d) a peasant movement in Punjab
Answer: (c)
