SWAMI VIVEKANANDA - Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture

Memorable Events in the Life of Swami Vivekananda 11
you who think age and intelligence are synonymous, but
that is not so.' The gentleman readily admitted his error.
In the Katha Upanisad we come across Naciketa,
another fearless child who had great self-confidence.
Swami Vivekananda always admired Naciketa who had
said : 'I may be the best or at least better than many; but
I'm never the worst.'
Narendra's father, Vishwanath Datta, was well
known for his charity. Mahendranath Datta, his second
son, writes of him : 'The impulse to help the poor was
almost like a disease with him.' In his locality he was
popularly called 'Vishwanath the benevolent'. He could
hardly remain silent when he found someone in distress.
He would bear ungrudgingly the educational expenses
for the children of his distant relatives and would go out
of his way to alleviate the poverty of his neighbours.
What is striking is he did not discriminate in matters of
charity. He would give financial aid even to drug addicts.
Narendranath noticed this and once drew his father's
attention to this gross misuse of money. At this
Vishwanath said, 'Life is full of suffering, my son! When
you grow up you will realize all this yourself and will
have pity even on addicts or those who take to drink
and other vices to get temporary relief from the endless
miseries of life.'