Attired in saffron colour robes and a matching turban, 150 children held their heads high and gathered at Ramakrishna Mission to celebrate the National Youth Day on the eve of the 150 birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda here on Friday.
It was a beautiful sight to watch children from Sri Prakash Vidyaniketan walking up to the stage to share inspirational quotes of Swami Vivekananda such as ‘You cannot believe in god until you believe in yourself’, ‘You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul’, ‘Be not afraid of anything and you will do marvellous work’, and ‘The moment you are afraid, you are nobody. It is fear that is the great cause of misery in the world’, among others.
For V. Harshitha, it was a great opportunity to dress up like Swami Vivekananda and share his inspiring quotes on the stage.
“He had inspired many a young mind. It is a privilege to follow in his footsteps and share about his achievements on the occasion,” she said.
Supporting the statement, G. Kranthi Kiran said: “In our society, we need to promote non-violence and brotherhood in order to help reduce the percentage of crime around us. We all are leading stressful lives. It is only through great personalities such as Swami Vivekananda we feel inspired to concentrate on our goal and face life courageously.”
Famous lines
Students from LKG to Class X took part in the event and paid respect to Swami Vevekananda by garlanding his statue at the Mission. The famous quote of Vivekananda ‘Arise, awake, and stop not till the goal is reached’ was underlined by secretary of Ramakrishna Mission Swami Amruthanand.
“Swami Vivekananda ignited many young minds. It is an opportunity for children to know more about the great personality, share, and express themselves on stage,” said director of the school Ch. Vasu Prakash.
“In line with the National Youth Day celebrated on January 12 across the country, we wanted to celebrate it in an inclusive manner,” he explained.
Swami Guneshananda of Ramakrishna Mission, teachers, and staff of the school participated.
Published - January 12, 2013 11:44 am IST
