Question map
What was Vivekanandas special contribution to Hindu culture and civilisation?
Explanation
Swami Vivekananda's special contribution was his bold proclamation of the spiritual richness and superiority of Hindu culture on a global stage. Before his 1893 address at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago, Hinduism was often viewed through a colonial lens as a collection of superstitions [t1, t8]. Vivekananda emerged as a spiritual ambassador, presenting Vedanta as a rational, universal system that could harmonize Eastern spiritualism with Western materialism [c3, c4, t2]. By doing so, he instilled a sense of pride and confidence in Indians regarding their cultural heritage [c4]. While he did advocate for social reform and the infusion of humanistic values, his unique historical impact was transforming Hinduism into a world religion and asserting its philosophical parity—and in spiritual matters, its superiority—to the Western world [t2, t6].
Sources
- [1] Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 9: A General Survey of Socio-Cultural Reform Movements > Swami Vivekananda > p. 218
- [2] Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 9: A General Survey of Socio-Cultural Reform Movements > Swami Vivekananda > p. 219
- [3] https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/document/926384