Asserting that the teachings of Swami Vivekananda should be followed, Yogendra Yadav, on Friday, said it is unfortunate how the present condition of apathy in terms of false notions of nationalism and patriotism, which the youth are misled with, is a sheer misinterpretation.
“The notions of patriotism went much beyond any religion, caste, or creed for Swami Vivekanand. The idea of tolerance and ‘Bharat belonging to the Shudra or the last man’ was upheld by him. So, idolising him as the face of a single religion is incorrect,” he said while addressing the students at the Vivekananda Youth Summit 2018. His appeal of giving two years and contributing to new politics inspired the youth present in the summit.
Each year in India, the National Youth Day is observed on January 12, on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. Mr. Yadav was the chief guest of honour along with MLA Pankaj Pushkar, Professor Shashi Shekhar, Professor Harish Khanna and a few other dignitaries. The event’s beginning was marked by a documentary clip on the life and struggles of Swami Vivekanand as Narendra Dutta and his journey to become the representative of India and the ‘Hindu Dharma’ in the World Parliament of Religions, 1893, in Chicago.
Manisha, a student of Ram Lal Anand College recited the entire speech, which Swami Vivekananda had delivered at the World Parliament of Religions. The focus of the speech was to reiterate the latter’s ideology in front of the youth today. The glorification of his ideas about the nation and oneness, which ‘hindu dharma’ propagates, was central to the narration.
Winners of Vivekanand Youth Contest, which was a write-up contest, were awarded. Viren Sheoran of Dyal Singh College was the winner of the contest. Sakshi Wadhawa, Sumantra Mukherjee, Malik Ul Haq, and Karishma Arora were the runners-up of the contest. Top 50 write-ups were also awarded by Prof Harish Khanna.
MLA Pankaj Pushkar’s address to the youth was an oration declaring the similarity in the issues that the youth faces today and the issues faced by Narendra Dutta.
Anupam (Delhi President, Swaraj India) also addressed the gathering and said, “You don’t need a big mob to bring the change. You and your five friends with hope, vision, and commitment can create a revolution. ”
Youth4Swaraj announced that this event was not the end but the start of a campaign. Youth4Swaraj will continue this talk in various cities across the nation. Punjab University(Chandigarh), BHU, JNU, Kurukshetra University among others, are marked for this. After the event, students had an informal talk with Professor Yogendra Yadav for more than an hour.