Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday paid tributes to advocate of non-violence Acharya Vinoba Bhave on his birth anniversary and said his life was a manifestation of Gandhian principles.

“Remembering Acharya Vinoba Bhave on his Jayanti. His life was a manifestation of Gandhian principles. He was passionate about social empowerment and gave the clarion call of ‘Jai Jagat.’ We are inspired by his ideals and are committed to realising his dreams for our nation,” PM Modi said in a tweet.

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Bhave is best known for starting the ‘Bhoodan’ (gift of land) movement in India. Today is his 125th Birth Anniversary.

Vinoba Bhave is known as the originator of the Bhoodan Movement and was fluent in various languages including Kannada, Gujarati, Marathi, Hindi, English, Urdu and Sanskrit.

PM Modi also remembered Swami Vivekananda’s speech at Chicago in the US on this day in 1893.

While on this day in 1893, Vivekananda delivered a speech at the World Parliament of Religions. He is believed to have introduced the concepts and ideals of the Vedanta to the Western world.

On September 11 in 1893, more than a century ago, Swami Vivekananda delivered a speech at the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago and introduced the world to the human values of India.

Taking to Twitter, PM Modi said, “September 11 has a special connection with Swami Vivekananda. It was on this day in 1893 that he delivered one of his most outstanding speeches in Chicago. His address gave the world a glimpse of India’s culture and ethos.”

Swami Vivekananda is believed to have introduced the concepts and ideals of the Vedanta to the Western world. He became popular in the West after his famous speech at the World’s Parliament of Religions.

He was also the chief disciple of the 19th-century Indian mystic Ramakrishna and the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission.

Swami Vivekananda was considered a major force in the revival of Hinduism in India and brought it to the status of major world religion in the late 19th century.

Swami Vivekananda’s birthday on January 12 is also observed as National Youth Day in the country.