The Order on the March

News & Notes from Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission

Belagavi Centenary of Salem Ashrama

A small group of enlightened citizens guided by Swami Nirmalananda initiated the Ramakrishna Movement in Salem in 1919. Today, the ashrama complex has a charitable dispensary, a library, a balaka sangha, and a free tuition centre for about 130 students. The ashrama also regularly renders welfare services to Leprosy afflicted people (LAP) from two nearby Govt. rehabilitation centres.

The centenary celebration of the ashrama was recently inaugurated by Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji, one of the Vice-Presidents of the Order in a 3-day function from 2 to 4 February with a public meeting, cultural programmes, a grand procession with Sri Ramakrishna’s

Rajkot chariot, and a youth convention, attended by 9,300 people in total. Samarpan, the centenary sourvenir was released on the occasion. Swami Vivekananda Memorial at Belagavi

During his parivrajaka days, Swami Vivekananda stayed for 12 days — 16 to 27 October 1892 at Belagavi in North Karnataka. For the first 3 days he stayed in the house of Sri Sadashiv Balakrishna Bhate in the town, and the remaining 9 days he was at Sri Haripada Mitra’s house inside the Fort. In 1987, a group of Ramakrishna-Vivekananda devotees received one-third of Sri Bhate’s house as a donation from its then owner Sri Balwant D. Belvi. They converted the room where Swamiji stayed into a shrine and preserved

Salem there the cot, the large mirror and the walking stick used by Swamiji. In 2006 this portion of the house became a subcentre of Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Belagavi which was established at the Fort centring around Sri Haripada Mitra’s house in the year 2000. The remaining portion of the house was purchased in 2014 and the more than 140-year old building was successfully restored to its pristine condition. This restored house, renamed as Swami Vivekananda Memorial, was inaugurated on 1 February 2019 by Swami Suvirananda, the General Secretary of the Order. The Memorial has a permanent museum-exhibition depicting the life and teachings of Swami Vivekananda and his visit to Belagavi. As part of the

inauguration, a youth convention, a devotees’ convention and cultural programmes were held from 1 to 3 February in which 80 monks, 1200 youths and 600 devotees participated.

Vivekananda Navaratri in Chennai

Vivekananda Navaratri was celebrated by Chennai Math at Vivekanandar Illam, the erstwhile Ice House in commemoration of Swami Vivekananda’s nine-day stay there from 6 to 14 February 1897 after his triumphant return from the West. A 29 ft. ceramic tile mural of Swamiji was unveiled on the inaugural day by Sri Banwarilal Purohit, Hon’ble Governor of Tamilnadu in the presence of Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji, Padmasri Dr. Nalli Kuppuswamy Chetti and Sri Balasubramaniam and others. Discourses and cultural performances were presented by students from different schools and colleges. At the Valedictory Function Sri O. Panneerselvam, Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister of Tamilnadu was the Chief Guest and Dr. C. Vijaya Bhaskar, Hon’ble Minister for Health Education & Family Welfare was the Guest of Honour. New Ashrama at Bilaspur

The 3 rd branch centre of

Kumbh Mela

Ramakrishna Mission in the state of Chhattisgarh was started at Bilaspur. Around 500 people attended the formal inauguration programme held on 22 February.

125 th Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda ’s Historic Chicago Addresses

Cultural competitions and talks were held by Chennai Vidyapith (5000 students), Coimbatore Mission Vidyalaya (1424 students) and Kailashahar ashrama (500 students). Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji spoke at a seminar held in Hyderabad Math which was attended by about 1200 people. Conventions/Workshops for youth were conducted by Kailashahar (1800 students), Hatamuniguda (500 students) and Mysuru (359 students) centres. Devotees’ convention and spiritual retreats were organised by centres at Kailashahar (610 devotees), Guwahati (300 people), Swamiji’s Ancestral House (450 devotees) and Phoenix, South Africa (730 people).

Guests of Honour

Sushri Uma Bharti, Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation, Govt. of India visited Kanpur centre on 23 February.

Education Services A new residential quarters,

Chennai Math

Akhandananda Bhavan a t R K M V E R I , B e l u r M a t h for employees, faculty and research scholars was inaugurated on 27 February by Srimat Swami Prabhananda Ji in the presence of Swami Suvirananda and others. The students of Sanskrit Dept. of RKMVERI won 1 gold & 2 bronze medals in 13 th All India Sanskrit Students’ Talent Festival conducted by Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha, Tirupati. Shraddha Tyaga Nirbhaya Pavitrata Satya Ahimsa Jiva Seva Desha Bhakti

Taki Values Education and Youth Programmes

To counter the pre-examination stress faced by students, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai in association with Madras Management Association (MMA) conducted a one-day seminar for students of classes X and XII. More than 230 students participated. Mangaluru centre held three education conclaves— Prajna 19, Shraddha 19 and Medha 19—for college lecturers, postgraduate students and teacher trainees. In all, about 1300 people participated. The centre also conducted lectures in 10 colleges reaching about 2200 youths. Rajkot Ashrama held: A written quiz competition on

Swamiji from June 2018 to February 2019 in which 79,131 students from 994 schools in Gujarat took part; 13 value education programmes in which 2,200 students participated; and two seminars attended by 650 students. Some other programmes were held at Haripad (444 students), Jamshedpur (1200 youth), Nagpur (620 students) and Medinipur (about 5500 students and teachers). Pilgrim Services

On the occasion of Kumbha Mela, Prayagraj (earlier known as Allahabad) ashrama put up a camp on the Mela ground from 12 January to 20 February. In all, about 200 monks and 1500 pilgrims were provided board and lodging at the camp. Devotional songs and discourses were held daily at the shrinecum-satsang pandal, and an exhibition on Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Devi, and Swami Vivekananda was arranged in another pandal. About 32,000 patients were treated at the charitable dispensary in the camp. A commemorative volume was also brought out by the centre on the occasion. Cultural Services

On the initiative of Ramakrishna Mission Vidyamandira (EMRS), Jhargram a statue of Swami Vivekananda was installed in the town on 27 February. The renovated Gita Darshanam exhibition at Hyderabad Math, a museum of paintings on ideas from Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads, was inaugurated on 17 February by Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji. Agricultural Services

Kamarpukur Math held a training programme on organic farming for 61 farmers. Swachh Bharat Abhiyan

M a n g a l u r u A s h r a m a conducted the following activities in February: i) 4 cleanliness drives in Mangaluru involving 1650 volunteers; ii) cleanliness awareness campaigns for 22 days reaching out to nearly 1000 households in Mangaluru city; iii) 19 seminars in colleges, attended by 5240 youth; and iv) cleanliness drives in 150 villages of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts in which 19,750 people took part. Healthcare Services 103 Leprosy Cured but Deformed Persons (LCDPs) attended a programme held by Chennai Math and 25 of them received livelihood rehabilitation items. 1035 people were screened at a dental check-up camp held by Aalo centre. 104 patients received free medicines at a homeopathic camp held by Bagda Math. 213 people and 1448 students participated in blood donation camps held by Jamshedpur ashrama and Chennai Vidyapith respectively. Eye-camps were conducted in January and February by the centres at Bankura, Chennai Math, Halasuru, Jamshedpur, Khetri, Lucknow, Porbandar, Ranchi Morabadi, Salem and Seva Pratishthan in which 6034 patients were treated, 463 were given spectacles, and 996 underwent surgeries. Relief Services

Cyclone Relief: In the wake of the severe cyclonic storm Titli that hit Andhra Pradesh and Odisha on 11 October last year, Visakhapatnam ashrama helped in repairing 125 boats, and also distributed 1650 blankets among the victims in Srikakulam district. In response to the severe cyclonic storm Gaja that hit coastal areas of Tamil Nadu on 16 November, Chennai Students’ Home helped 221 families in Nagapattinam district and Kanchipuram centre helped 13 families in Tanjavur district

Winter Relief: 17830 blankets and 46581 jackets/sweaters/ sweatshirts etc., were distributed through 48 centres in 10 states. In Bangladesh 1105 blankets and 70 sweaters were distributed through 4 centres.

Distress Relief: 84606 shirts/ T-shirts/trousers etc., 1856 dhotis, 10645 saris, 5353 ladies’ garments, 364 mosquito-nets, 289 school bags were distributed through 32 centres in 10 states.

Economic Rehabilitation: Antpur ashram distributed 81 sets of weaving accessories, 25 sewing machines and 17 rickshaw vans. Taki ashrama gave 1 fishing boat and 2 fishing nets. Chandipur Math distributed 4 sewing machines.

Vol.106. No.4 The Vedanta Kesari (English Monthly) April 2019. Regd. with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under No.1084 / 1957. Postal registration number:TN / CH (C) /190 / 2018-2020. Licensed to Post without prepayment TN/PMG(CCR)/WPP-259 / 2018-2020. Date of Publication: 24 th of every month; Posted on 26 March 2019

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