The life and message of Swami Vivekananda are a source of great inspiration to many in their individual as well as collective life. The present short biography published by Advaita Ashrama, a Publication House of Ramakrishna Math, Belur Math, is intended to meet the needs of those who have neither the time nor the opportunity to read bigger works about the Swami. A versatile genius as the great Swami was, and many-sided as were his activities, it is idle to hope that a complete picture of his wonderful life could be given in such a small compass. Here an attempt is made to give only a glimpse of this great personality so that people may become interested to know more about him.

Written in simple English, this books tries to introduce Swami Vivekananda to young readers in the hope that they will want to know more about this great man and get acquainted with his ideas and draw inspiration from them. All the important events in Swami Vivekananda's life are presented in an engaging manner. A few important teachings of Swami Vivekananda are presented topic wise so that the reader may apply them in their own life. This book may also serve as an excellent rapid reader for school students. Published by Advaita Ashrama, a publication house of Ramakrishna Math, Belur Math.

This book published by Advaita Ashrama, publication house of Ramakrishna Math, Belur Math, is specially written for young boys and girls. Written in simple English, it tries to introduce Swami Vivekananda to young readers in the hope that they will want to know more about this great man and get acquainted with his ideas and draw inspiration from them. This book may also serve as an excellent rapid reader for school students.

An intimate portrait of the little-known aspects of Swami Vivekananda’s life. Wandering mystic, India’s spiritual ambassador to the West and founder of the Ramakrishna Mission, Swami Vivekananda awakened India’s masses to the country’s spiritual richness while stressing the importance of scientific inquiry. These aspects of Swamiji’s life have been well chronicled by Swamiji himself, through his letters, speeches and writings; his own brothers who between them have written more than a hundred books; his co-disciples, disciples and others whose lives were enriched by their interactions with him; and, more than a century after his death, followers who had only read or heard of the magnetic personality of this revered teacher. Gleaned from all these sources, through painstaking research Sankar’s biography focuses on the personal life of the saint: What was Vivekananda like as a man? What role did his mother play in his life, both before and after he renounced all family ties? Could he reconcile the duties of a monk with the duties of an eldest son? What prompted him to promote Vedanta and biriyani in the West? Did the long drawn battles over family property affect his health and cut short his life? Did his sister commit suicide? Why did his brother not write a single letter for six years when he was wandering around the world? What was Swamiji’s favourite dish and what fruit did he like the least? What was his height? Where did he have his second heart attack? How much did the Calcutta doctor charge him at his chamber? Sankar’s composite picture of the monk as man has sold over one lakh copies in Bengali and this translation brings the unfamiliar Vivekananda to a larger readership.

With historical-critical analysis and dialogical even-handedness, the essays of this book re-assess the life and legacy of Swami Vivekananda, forged at a time of colonial suppression, from the vantage point of socially-engaged religion at a time of global dislocations and international inequities. Due to the complexity of Vivekananda as a historical figure on the cusp of late modernity with its vast transformations, few works offer a contemporary, multi-vocal, nuanced, academic examination of his liberative vision and legacy in the way that this volume does. It brings together North American, European, British, and Indian scholars associated with a broad array of humanistic disciplines towards critical-constructive, contextually-sensitive reflections on one of the most important thinkers and theologians of the modern era.