National Youth Day-12 January

National Youth Day is celebrated in India on 12 January on the birthday of Swami Vivekananda. In 1984 the Government of India declared the day as the National Youth Day and since 1985 the event is celebrated in India every year.

Swami Vivekananda, known in his pre-monastic life as Narendra Nath Datta, was born in an affluent family in Kolkata on 12 January 1863. His father, Vishwanath Datta, was a successful attorney with interests in a wide range of subjects, and his mother, Bhuvaneshwari Devi, was endowed with deep devotion, strong character and other qualities. A precocious boy, Narendra excelled in music, gymnastics and studies. By the time he graduated from Calcutta University, he had acquired a vast knowledge of different subjects, especially Western philosophy and history. Born with a yogic temperament, he used to practise meditation even from his boyhood, and was associated with Brahmo Movement for some time.

Swami Vivekananda's lectures and writings, deriving their inspiration from Indian spiritual tradition and the broad outlook of his Master Sri Ramakrishna, are a source of inspiration and have motivated numerous youth organizations, study circles and service projects involving the youth. All his teachings can be found in The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, in nine volumes, published by Advaita Ashrama, Kolkata.

It is well known that the Government of India had declared to observe the National Youth Day every year on the birthday of Swami Vivekananda on 12^th of January. It was decided by the Government of India in order to inspire all the youths of country towards the philosophy of Swami Vivekananda and his ideals. The birthday of the Swami Vivekananda was decided to be celebrated as the National Youth Day to complete the aim of making better future of the country by motivating the youths through the way of life and ideas of the Swami Vivekananda.
It is the aim of great importance of distributing the ideas and ideals of the Swami Vivekananda among the youths of India. It is the great way to wake up the eternal energy of the youths as well as their big efforts to make the country developed.

National Youth Day Quotes

Following are some famous quotes on national youth day said by the Swami Vivekananda:

• “Choose the highest ideal and live your life upto that. Look at the “ocean” and not at the wave”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “A few heart-whole, sincere, and energetic men and women can do more in a year than a mob in a century”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Religion is the manifestation of the Divinity already in man”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Struggle hard to get money, but don’t get attached to it”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “He who sees Shiva in the poor, in the weak, and in the diseased, really worships Shiva”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Each soul is potentially divine”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Talk to yourself once in a day…Otherwise you may miss meeting an EXCELLENT person in this World”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “My faith is in the younger generation, the modern generation, out of them will come my workers!”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Work, work, work – let this be your motto”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “The earth is enjoyed by heroes—this is the unfailing truth. Be a hero. Always say, “I have no fear””. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Feel that you are great and you become great”. –  Swami Vivekananda
• “My hope of the future lies in the youths of character, intelligent, renouncing all for the service of others, and obedient – good to themselves and the country at large”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Death being so certain, it is better to die for a good cause”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Your country requires heroes; be heroes; your duty is to go on working, and then everything will follow of itself”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “Arise! Awake! and stop not until the goal is reached”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “You cannot believe in God until you believe in yourself”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “When an idea exclusively occupies the mind, it is transformed into an actual physical or mental state”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “It is best to work among the youth in whom lies our hope — patiently, steadily, and without noise”. – Swami Vivekananda
• “The child is father of the man.” Would it be right for an old man to say that childhood is a sin or youth a sin?” – Swami Vivekananda

Reference:

http://www.vivekanandahouse.org/about-vivekananda
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Youth_Day_%28India%29
http://www.indiacelebrating.com/events/national-youth-day/