To spread the message of Sri Ramakrishna in Bengali, Swamiji asked Trigunatita to start the magazine that he had thought of in 1896. Vivekananda contributed one thousand rupees that Josephine MacLeod had given him; Haramohan Mitra donated another thousand. These contributions enabled Trigunatita to buy a press and inaugurate the publication of Udbodhan. Trigunatita rented a couple of rooms at Combuliatola Lane, Calcutta, for the magazine, labouring on this pioneering job alone, without any previous experience. His main assets were his sincerity, patience, perseverance, and above all, his love for the ideal. As he had no monastic assistants at first, Trigunatita was the editor, proofreader, manager, and supervisor of the press; and when the typesetters were sick, he had to compose the type also.
Sometimes he would go door to door to collect subscriptions, in addition to eliciting articles from various writers. Since his funds were limited, he didn’t travel by tram; instead, he would walk ten miles a day, then eat one meal at a devotee’s house at noon, and eat some puffed rice in the morning and evening. He slept one hour a day, between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m. To avoid sleep he would splash cold water on his eyes or read the proofs at night while standing. Over and above all this, if any of his press workers were sick, he would nurse them. When he was sick, he would lie down and cover himself with a blanket for a while, then continue his regular work the next morning.
Thus in January 1899, the biweekly (later monthly) magazine came into existence. Swamiji named the magazine Udbodhan, “The Awakening.” Sharat Chandra Chakrabarty, a disciple of Swamiji, recorded the following in his Talks with Swami Vivekananda:
Disciple: “Sir, it is impossible for any other man to exert himself as Swami Trigunatita is doing for the magazine.”
Swamiji: “Do you think these monastic children of Sri Ramakrishna are born simply to sit for meditation under trees lighting dhuni-fires? Whenever any of them will take up some work, people will be astonished to see their energy. Learn from them how to work. Look, Trigunatita has given up his spiritual practices, his meditation and everything, to carry out my orders, and he has set himself to work. Is it a matter of small sacrifice? He will not stop short of success!”
Disciple: “But, sir, it looks rather odd in our eyes that monks in ochre robes should go about from door to door as the swami is doing.”
Swamiji: “Why? The circulation of the magazine is only for the good of the householders. The masses will benefit by the spread of these new ideas in the country. Do you think this unselfish work is in any way inferior to devotional practices? Our object is to do good to humanity.”
Disciple: “Sir, the other day I saw that Swami Trigunatita worshipped the photograph of Sri Ramakrishna in the press room before beginning to work, and he asked for your blessings for the success of the work.”
Swamiji: “Well, the Master is our centre. Each one of us is a ray of that light-centre. So Trigunatita has started the work by worshipping the Master — he did the right thing… .Tell him when you go that I am exceedingly delighted with his work. Give him my loving blessings.”
Trigunatita edited and managed the Udbodhan for four years. Later Swami Shuddhananda was engaged to assist him. Trigunatita was methodical, frugal, and bore responsibility without complaint. His love for the ideal never allowed him to be discouraged. In spite of his heavy workload, he remained cheerful. He kept a picture of Mother Durga on his desk. The Divine Mother endowed him with both physical and mental strength. Once at Balaram’s house, where he used to stay at night, he carried a tin of kerosene oil (weighing nearly fifty pounds) from the first floor to the second floor with one finger. He was short and heavyset and would sometimes put a book on a high stool and read standing the whole night. (Source: God Lived with Them)