Crossing the ocean.

Vivekananda’s Journey to the West

A Monk Who Crossed the Oceans

In 1893, a young Indian monk set out from Bombay on a journey that would change the way the world heard about India.

He was Swami Vivekananda, then only thirty years old.

But how did a monk with virtually no personal wealth manage to reach Chicago?

Who funded the journey?

The journey was made possible through the faith of many people.

His young disciples and admirers in Madras, led by Alasinga Perumal, collected money for his passage and expenses. The rulers of Mysore and Ramnad also extended support. Finally, the Maharaja Ajit Singh of Khetri gave substantial financial assistance and personally helped make the arrangements for the journey.

Ajit Singh arranged his travel, provided money and clothing, and sent his secretary with him to Bombay to ensure that everything was properly organized. It was also at Khetri that the name “Vivekananda” became his chosen monastic name.

Thus, the journey to America was not the work of a single benefactor. It was a collective act of faith in a monk and in the message he carried.

The remarkable route

On 31 May 1893, Vivekananda sailed from Bombay aboard the Peninsular.

But he did not travel westward across the Arabian Sea.

His route was:

Bombay → Colombo → Penang → Singapore → Hong Kong → China → Japan → Yokohama → Vancouver → across Canada by train → Chicago.

He reached Vancouver in July and travelled across Canada by train, arriving in Chicago at the end of July.

The journey itself became part of his education. In China and Japan he encountered Buddhist monasteries and ancient manuscripts; Japan particularly impressed him with its combination of discipline, beauty and modern development.

Chicago — and an unexpected difficulty

He had imagined that reaching Chicago meant reaching the Parliament.

It did not.

The World’s Parliament of Religions would not open until September. Worse, Vivekananda discovered that delegates needed credentials, and the registration period had already closed.

He was virtually unknown, had limited money and had no official credentials.

He therefore went to the Boston area, where he met Professor J. H. Wright of Harvard. After meeting Vivekananda, Wright helped arrange the necessary introduction to the Parliament.

Vivekananda returned to Chicago.

On 11 September 1893, he stood before the Parliament of Religions and began with the words:

“Sisters and Brothers of America…”

The response was extraordinary.

A monk who had arrived with very little money had suddenly become one of the most memorable voices of the Parliament.

Four years in the West

The Chicago address was only the beginning.

From 1893 onward, Vivekananda travelled extensively through the United States, lecturing, teaching Vedanta and speaking about Hinduism, spirituality, the unity of religions and the dignity of the human being.

He lived for periods in New England and travelled through different parts of America. He taught small groups as well as large audiences, formed friendships with scholars and thinkers, and attracted devoted students.

His financial circumstances also changed. In one letter he wrote that his lectures in Chicago were bringing him substantial fees. He had gone to America partly hoping to raise money for work in India, and he gradually learned how to support himself through teaching and lectures.

In 1895, he went to England, where he lectured and gathered another circle of students. Among those who came deeply under his influence was Margaret Noble, later known to India as Sister Nivedita.

He returned to America and continued his teaching and organization.

Then came the return journey.

After nearly four years in the West, Vivekananda sailed back to India and reached Colombo in January 1897.

He had left India as an almost unknown wandering monk.

He returned as a world-famous spiritual teacher.

From one monk to a movement

What makes the journey remarkable is not simply that Vivekananda crossed the oceans.

He crossed them without wealth, without an established institution behind him and without certainty about what awaited him.

His passage was paid for by people who believed in him.

His route took him through Asia before carrying him across the Pacific.

His difficulties in America were overcome through the unexpected kindness of strangers.

And his four years in the West transformed a solitary monk's message into an international movement.

He had gone to America intending to speak about India.

He returned having made India's spiritual voice audible to the world.