The great Master Sri Ramakrishna and his most illustrious disciple Swami Vivekananda are well known to the world as the twin personalities who have ushered in a spiritual renaissance of mankind in modern times. They imparted moral and spiritual instructions through the example of their own lives and actions. When we study their lives, certain virtues are prominently seen, which stand before mankind as the very essence of Vedanta in practice.

The central theme of Vedanta is the divinity of man. All Vedantins assert that each being of this creation is a soul (Atman), a spark of the Divine, the Absolute. About how to make this central truth of Vedanta practical in day-to-day life, Swami Vivekananda enunciates a general principle. Swamiji says, "We believe that every being is divine, is God... We believe that this is the conscious or unconscious basis of all religions, and that this is the explanation of the whole history of human progress either in the material, intellectual, or spiritual plane ; the same Spirit is manifesting through different planes. We believe that this is the very essence of the Vedas."

The Ramakrishna Sangha or Ramakrishna Order was brought into existence by Bhagavan Sri Ramakrishna Himself through painstakingly organizing his own disciples, Sannyasins or Householders. It was under the instructions received from Him that Swami Vivekananda gave shape to the new way of monastic life we are following since. Our monastic traditions have been built by the great disciples of Sri Ramakrishna. These traditions are deeply rooted in spirituality. Although we are engaged in various types of social service, this Order is first and foremost a typical form of a spiritual organization. Our real strength lies in the Sangha's spiritual foundation. Swami Vivekananda established Ramakrishna Sangha making love and compassion as its backbone. He constantly exhorts the monks to recognize the divinity within themselves and in all other persons and then to plunge into useful acts of service.

The innermost tenet of our Sangha is to be spiritual, to radiate spirituality and to realize the divinity in all. The preeminent aim of the Monastic Order or Sangha is to give away the extract of Vedanta as elicited by Swami Vivekananda because Vedanta contains the distilled essence of spiritual treasures in the midst of thepeople belonging to all strata of society, all religions and all races that helps themselves to instil self-confidence, to confront the challenges of life and to fill their hearts with love and the spirit of service. Thus the motto of this organization is defined by Swami Vivekananda as : Atmano Mokshartham Jagaddhitaya Cha …

In the year 1897 Swami Vivekananda convened a meeting of the disciples of Bhagavan Sri Ramakrishna at Calcutta and formed an Association called the Ramakrishna Mission. This was registered under the Society Registration Act in 1909. In the mean time a Trust was formed with the Monks of Ramakrishna Mission and this trust was called Ramakrishna Math both having Head Quarters at Belur Math, Dist. Howrah, West Bengal. These are like twin organization. The President of Ramakrishna Math is regarded as the Spiritual Head of the Organization whereas the General Secretary of Ramakrishna Mission is regarded as the Executive Head of the twin organization. The philanthropic and social services are mostly conducted by the Ramakrshna Mission while the religious festivals and spiritual activities come under the purview of Ramakrishna Math.

Currently there are 220 branch Centres of Ramakrishna Mission all over the world engaged in various activities like General Education, Technical Education ( e.g. Engineering, Medical and other typical vocational courses ), Relief Activities during Disasters and national calamities, Preaching Vedanta, Running Hospitals and Educational Institutions in under-graduate, post-graduate and Ph D. levels. At Belur Math there is a Veda Vidyalaya which is run by the Math to inculcate the Values promoted by the Sanatan Dharma or the Vedic Dharma.