Statue of Sri Swami Vivekananda

[Guest guest]

At The Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago, IL, USA.

 

 

The first statue of Swami Vivekananda in America was installed at 4 PM on

Sunday, July 12, 1998 at the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago in Lemont,

Illinois. The statue was installed on " Vivekananda Hill " , a hillock in the

temple compound, which overlooks the main entrance. The statue was unveiled

by Shri J.C. Sharma, Consul General of India, Chicago at an elaborate

ceremony. The Vice President of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission,

Swami Atmasthananda, performed the dedication.

 

The ceremony was attended by more than 2,000 people from all walks of life.

 

 

The 10-foot, 2 inch bronze image of Swami Vivekananda in a standing pose

was modelled after his photograph taken in Chicago after his appearance at

the World's Parliament of Religions in 1893.

 

 

Swami Vivekananda's maiden speech on September 11, 1893 at the World's

Parliament Religions made history. His address " Sisters and Brothers of

America " brought him overnight fame and his subsequent orations at the

Parliament formally introduced the oriental thought to the Western world.

 

Swami Vivekanda's important contributions have been recognised by both

America and India. During America's bi-centennial celebrations in 1976, the

National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution included Swami

Vivekananda among the 29 eminent foreign visitors described in its book,

'Abroad in America'.

 

On September 11, 1995, the Art Institute of Chicago, which was the site of

the Parliament of Religions put up a bronze plaque to commemorate Swami

Vivekananda's historic address in that building. The plaque reads in part,

" His unprecedented success (at the Parliament) opened the way for the

dialogue

between Eastern and Western religions " . On November 11, 1995, a section of

Michigan Avenue, one of the most prominent streets in Chicago was formally

renamed " Swami Vivekananda Way " .

 

The installation of the statue is yet another step in the direction of

making Swami Vivekananda's memory immortal in the great city of Chicago. The

statue is a gift from the Vivekananda Vedanta Society of Chicago, a branch of

the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission.

 

The ceremony began with a purificatory ceremony by temple priests which was

followed by a welcome address by Mr. GLN Reddy, President of Hindu Temple of

Greater Chicago and an introduction by Swami Chidananda, Swami Incharge of

Vivekananda Vedanta Society of Chicago. Mr. Amrish Mahajan, Chairperson of

Vivekananda Statue Committee, gave a brief speech which was followed by an

address by Hon'ble Shri JC Sharma, Consul General.

 

While referring to a number of quotes from Swami Vivekananda's works, Consul

General underlined the importance of his message of one universal religion

and

his interpretation of the East. He highlighted the fact that Swamiji was

against excessive rituals and was for reaching the soul. He remarked that it

was rather unfortunate that fanaticism and hatred in the name of religion

still existed in this world and hoped that the statue would remind us of

Swami

Vivekananda's message of the universality of religion and bring peace to

earth.

 

Consul General unveiled the statue which was later dedicated by Swami

Atmasthananda, Vice President of Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission,

India. This was followed by a devotional song (bhajan) by Anuradha Paudwal, a

noted singer from India. Swami Atmasthananda while addressing the audience

brought out some of the important messages of Swami Vivekananda.

 

A souvenir on the occasion was released by Hon'ble Shri Bangaru Lakshman,

Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha). While commending the efforts of the

Vedantic Society, he appreciated the great city of Chicago for its role in

making Swami Vivekananda a world leader and a hero. He recalled a number of

his teachings and reminded the audience that Swami Vivekananda believed in

leading a life in totality and not in renunciation. He underlined the fact

that India in its 5,000 years of history has never committed aggression and

has been pursuing the path of spirituality and peace. He narrated a few

anecdotes from his life indicating how Swami Vivekananda believed in equality

of all religions and people and how he disliked untouchability. He affirmed

his belief that Swami Vivekandanda's thoughts would continue to guide the

world and make world a better place to live.

 

Messages from various dignitaries who could not attend the function were read

out. Various representatives from Vedantic Soceities/ Ramakrishna Missions in

other cities of the North America (Toronto, San Francisco, New York, Seattle,

Portland, Sacramento) also made brief remarks.

 

The ceremony concluded with vote of thanks and devotional songs (bhajans).

 

July 13, 1998

Press Release From the Consulate General of India, Chicago, IL, USA

 

SEE THE STATUE @ URL:

http://www.ramatemple.org/vivekan.htm

 

 

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[Guest guest]

Thank you for sharing this wonderful article with us.

 

Jody

[Guest guest]

At 12:15 AM 6/20/99 -0700, you wrote:

><omtatsat

> On November 11, 1995, a section of

> Michigan Avenue, one of the most prominent streets in Chicago was formally

> renamed " Swami Vivekananda Way " .

 

I've heard about this. Personally, I would have preferred just

" Vivekananda Way. " The fact that Vivekananda was a Swami is entirely

unimportant next to the utter simplicity and truth inherent in his

writings, and it doesn't have a good " ring " as a street name, in my

opinion. Still, it's better than no renaming at all.

 

In Sadhana,

 

Tim

 

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