"Swamiji and Narayana Guru were the spiritual emancipators of India. They took inspiration from the Indian philosophical traditions, especially Vedanta. On the basis of which they presented a new design for life: a model contentment, compassion, balance, and harmony. Both of them accepted religion as one of the most important aspects of human life."

"Both of them tried to base a religion on the rational ground by accepting reason as the final guide even in the field of religion and the aim of religion as realisation. One of the most important things in these two rishis is that they conducted and participated in religious conferences. The religious ideas of these two rishis suggest some new ideas and could throw new light on religious concepts."

"Sri Narayana Guru was a wisdom teacher of India whose life followed the ancient and immemorial pattern of oriental saints and prophets. His basic stand was that of a non-dualist Vedantic visionary. This made it possible for him to appreciate the value elements of all traditions and to view all religions with the attitude of a devoted lover of beauty, goodness, and truth. Hence his philosophy is at once traditional and modern, as well as scientific and religious; which makes it all comprehensive, universal, and unitive."

"Swamiji and Guru have the same opinion that religion was not theoretical but can be applied in daily life. They gave a practical demonstration of Advaita in real life. The unique trend of their philosophies is that religion was brought down from the whimsical heights to the midst of the masses. In their views, we have seen a lot of similarities and slight differences. But their formation of a new ideal of universal religion and one religion can be called universal love or universal brotherhood. It has given an equal value for all the religions of the world, as they truly exist. Their identification of truth was absolute and scientific, and they showed that religion can be practised by each and everybody. They made all understand that it is not necessary to have a vast literary knowledge, but the practice—it is very much needed. Therefore, it can be applied to all nations, all societies, and individuals. It is the harmony of all religions and one of the best solutions for the prevalent religious conflicts in the world, and to make the people aware that essentially all religions are one and the same."

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This article was first published in the February 2018 issue Prabuddha Bharata, monthly journal of The Ramakrishna Order started by Swami Vivekananda in 1896. This article is courtesy and copyright Prabuddha Bharata. I have been reading the Prabuddha Bharata for years and found it enlightening. Cost is Rs 180/ for one year, Rs 475/ for three years, Rs 2100/ for twenty years. To know more http://advaitaashrama.org/pbSubscription