Indian Hindu monk, orator, Vedanta scholar, and Yoga practitioner Swami Vivekananda. His master Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa considered him to be his most important disciple. As he spoke at the 1893 Chicago Parliament of the World’s Religions, he suddenly became a household name around the globe. Its significance lies in disseminating the idea and philosophy to the Western world.

10 Best Books By Swami Vivekananda That One Should Read In Lifetime

1. Complete Works Of Swami Vivekananda (9 vols.)

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1941

This comprehensive collection of Swami Vivekananda’s writings and lectures spans nine volumes and covers many topics. It’s a compilation of his ideas on Vedanta, philosophy, and the nature of the human mind. In these books, he explains Vedanta philosophy in a way everybody can grasp.

2. Raja-Yoga (1896)

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1896

As the name implies, this book about Raja Yoga was written by Swami Vivekananda. Therein is found mostly his explanation of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. He wrote this book with his Western readers in mind.

3. Karma Yoga: The Yoga Of Action (1896)

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1896

Swami Vivekananda’s teachings were recorded by Joseph Josiah Goodwin and published as Karma Yoga: The Yoga of Action. The book focuses mostly on Karma (Work) and Karma Yoga (The Yoga of Action). Vivekananda bases his philosophy on Karma, a notion outlined in the Bhagavad Gita.

4. Meditation And Its Methods

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1976

Meditation and its methods are one of the best books by Vivekananda. Vivekananda has numerous references to his thoughts on meditation. This book is a compilation of many points of view, ideas, and lectures.

5. Jnana-Yoga (1899)

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1899

Jnana Yoga is one of the books written by swami Vivekananda. This book, The Yoga of Knowledge, is a collection of lectures by Swami Vivekananda and transcribed by Joseph Josiah Goodwin. Most of these presentations took place in New York. This book provides Vivekananda’s scientific explanation of the teachings of the Vedas, Upanishads, and the Bhagavad Gita.

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6. Teachings Of Swami Vivekananda

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1971

One of the 13 best books by Swami Vivekananda depicts the most insightful speeches, statements, and teachings collected in his book. Moreover, there are 44 distinct groups. If you are just getting started with Vivekananda’s works, this is the book to start with. The book is ideal for individuals who don’t have the time to read all of his works.

7. Swami Vivekananda On Himself

Author: Swami Sambudhdhananda

Publication year: 1963

This is essentially an autobiography of Swami Vivekananda, whose life is being chronicled. In 1963, it was released to the public for the first time. Several publishers have taken passages from his works and rewritten them in the first person.

8. Vedanta: Voice Of Freedom

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1990

Vedanta: Voice of Liberation is the best book by Swami Vivekananda. It is a compilation of the spiritual knowledge of India as it has developed over the past five thousand years. It achieves so in a straightforward, simple, and concise manner.

9. Lectures From Colombo To Almora

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1897

On January 15, 1897, Vivekananda returned to Colombo after he travelled in the West. In India, he arrived to be greeted as a hero. He gave talks in front of crowds numbering in the thousands across the country. Many of these addresses are collected in Lectures from Colombo to Almora.

10. Lectures On Bhagavad Gita

Author: Swami Vivekananda

Publication year: 1990

If you’re attempting to get to the depths of the Gita, this is one of the 13 best books by Swami Vivekananda that will help you. The collection “Lectures on the Bhagavad Gita” by Vivekananda is a compilation of his thoughts and remarks on the holy Hindu literature. Swami Vivekananda kept a copy of the Bhagavad Gita in his pocket throughout his life. Ida Ansell took shorthand notes for each of these lectures in 1900.

Check out 3 more books by Swami Vivekananda in the full article on the Paavan blog.