Maharaja Ajit Singh of Khetri
Encyclopedia
Maharaja Ajit Singh Bahadur (1861–1901) was a ruler of the Indian princely state
of Khetri
between 1870-1901. He was a close friend and disciple of Swami Vivekananda
. Ajit Singh is known for his monetary support he provided to Vivekananda, and encouraging him to speak at the Parliament of the World's Religions
at Chicago in 1893.
Swami Vivekananda and Ajit Singh had a very intimate and cordial relationship. Vivekananda first visited Ajit Singh as a wandering monk in 1891. As a state-guest, Swamiji spent two and a half months at Khetri. Influenced by Vivekananda's ideas, he became his disciple. Later when Vivekananda decided to sail to the West to talk at the Parliament of the World's Religions
in Chicago at 1893, Ajit Singh provided him the financial aid and got him the ticket for the ship to America from Bombay. It was under Ajit Singh's request, that Swamiji assumed his monastic name Vivekananda in preference to Sacchidananda.
Vivekananda wrote a stream of letters to Ajit Singh from the West, and later from India. Ajit singh is known for the financial support he provided for Vivekananda for his social service. On 17 December 1897, at Khetri, Swamiji said in a meeting that whatever little he had done for the uplift of India would not have been possible had he not met the Raja of Khetri. Again, he wrote in a letter to Munshi Jagmohanlal on 11 October 1897, "Certain men are born in certain periods to perform certain actions in combination. Ajit Singh and myself are two such souls—born to help each other in a big work for the good of mankind.… We are as supplement and complement."
In 1958, Ramakrishna Mission
was started at the Palace of Khetri, which was donated by Raja Ajit Singh's grandson, Raja Bahadur Sardar Singh. The palatial building has been named as "Vivekananda Smriti Mandir", which houses marble statues of Raja Ajit Singh and Swami Vivekananda. The room at the topmost storey where Swamiji used to stay and had spiritual discourses with Raja Ajit Singhji, has been converted into a prayer room.
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...
of Khetri
Khetri
Khetri Nagar is a town in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan in India. It is part of Shekhawati region. Khetri is actually two towns, the first "Khetri Town" was founded by Raja Khet Singhji Nirwan. The other is the town of "Khetri Nagar", which is about 10 km away from Khetri. It is known for...
between 1870-1901. He was a close friend and disciple of Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda , born Narendranath Dutta , was the chief disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission...
. Ajit Singh is known for his monetary support he provided to Vivekananda, and encouraging him to speak at the Parliament of the World's Religions
Parliament of the World's Religions
There have been several meetings referred to as a Parliament of the World’s Religions, most notably the World's Parliament of Religions of 1893, the first attempt to create a global dialogue of faiths. The event was celebrated by another conference on its centenary in 1993...
at Chicago in 1893.
Swami Vivekananda and Ajit Singh had a very intimate and cordial relationship. Vivekananda first visited Ajit Singh as a wandering monk in 1891. As a state-guest, Swamiji spent two and a half months at Khetri. Influenced by Vivekananda's ideas, he became his disciple. Later when Vivekananda decided to sail to the West to talk at the Parliament of the World's Religions
Parliament of the World's Religions
There have been several meetings referred to as a Parliament of the World’s Religions, most notably the World's Parliament of Religions of 1893, the first attempt to create a global dialogue of faiths. The event was celebrated by another conference on its centenary in 1993...
in Chicago at 1893, Ajit Singh provided him the financial aid and got him the ticket for the ship to America from Bombay. It was under Ajit Singh's request, that Swamiji assumed his monastic name Vivekananda in preference to Sacchidananda.
Vivekananda wrote a stream of letters to Ajit Singh from the West, and later from India. Ajit singh is known for the financial support he provided for Vivekananda for his social service. On 17 December 1897, at Khetri, Swamiji said in a meeting that whatever little he had done for the uplift of India would not have been possible had he not met the Raja of Khetri. Again, he wrote in a letter to Munshi Jagmohanlal on 11 October 1897, "Certain men are born in certain periods to perform certain actions in combination. Ajit Singh and myself are two such souls—born to help each other in a big work for the good of mankind.… We are as supplement and complement."
In 1958, Ramakrishna Mission
Ramakrishna Mission
Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission are twin organizations which form the core of a worldwide spiritual movement known as Ramakrishna Movement or Vedanta Movement. The Ramakrishna Mission is a philanthropic, volunteer organization founded by Ramakrishna's chief disciple Swami Vivekananda on...
was started at the Palace of Khetri, which was donated by Raja Ajit Singh's grandson, Raja Bahadur Sardar Singh. The palatial building has been named as "Vivekananda Smriti Mandir", which houses marble statues of Raja Ajit Singh and Swami Vivekananda. The room at the topmost storey where Swamiji used to stay and had spiritual discourses with Raja Ajit Singhji, has been converted into a prayer room.