Swami Vivekananda's great spech on Sept.11 for religious harmony

[Guest guest]

Amma spoken at the world religios meet at Chikago where Swami spoke on this day.

 

Let us express our feelings towards the sufferers of the tragedy on September

11, 2001, at New York and share with all some of the feelings of millions of

educated on "Terrorism" and about the difference it has made in our lives,

individual and collective.

 

The recent terrorist attack in Russia has also crossed all the humane limits and

it is to be noted that women and children are the most affected.

 

 

 

 

Let us also recollect the other great historical event that occurred on the soil

of United states Of America a superpower on the same date viz. 11th September.

Coincidently the appearance of Swami Vivekananda on the platform of the

Parliament of Religions of Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago is also on

September 11th in 1893 and preached the importance of love among all religions.

Strangely the great Swami, in his very first lecture, spoke mainly on tolerance

and Universal Acceptance. He said, `we believe not only in Universal tolerance

but we accept all religions as true'. He quoted from a famous hymn to God Siva

written by Pushpadanta several centuries ago, which stated, `As the different

streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in to

the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take through different

tendencies, various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee'.

 

He then concluded with the following wonderful words, which appear most

appropriate to be quoted before: `Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible

descendent, fanaticism have long possessed this beautiful earth. They have

filled the earth with violence, drenched it often and often with human blood,

destroyed civilization and sent whole nations to despair Ö let us sincerely hope

that the actions taken during the last one year may be the death knell of all

fanaticism, of all persecutions with the weapon or with the pen and of all

uncharitable feelings between persons wending their way to the same goal'

 

Though we are yet to find out what all ideas worked behind that tragedy of

September 11, 2001, we can be sure that an extreme fanatic ideology that

considered all other ideologies as worth nothing and itself as the only worth

living ideology was behind the dastardly act. The further events have revealed

that this fanatic ideology was inculcated into receptive minds of the youth who

become the instruments of terror that revealed itself at the W.T.O. and other

important places,in America. Fanaticism drives away all reason and thus persons

with fanatic ideas act like robots, rather, like animals. Fanaticism is the fuel

by which the machine of terrorism works.

 

Fanaticism has been there in human life whenever people have been deprived of

their spiritual food. What is this spiritual food? The disciplines or values of

life that lead persons to realize their oneness with the Universe and with God

and thus come to love humanity and God resulting into peace evrywhere.

 

The Vedas, the oldest available scriptures to humanity,The Holy Bible, The Holy

Koran and all other religious scriptures say that all this creation is God alone

and should love each other -. It implies that this Divinity is in every creature

as its fundamental, inalienable nature. That is why Swami Vivekananda proclaimed

the `Divinity of man' in his many lectures in America. He thundered, `Ye, the

divinities on earth, sinners? It is a libel to call a man so'.

 

When this idea of the Divinity of man is widely taught, not only in our schools

and colleges but also in all churches, mosques, pagodas, Tabenacles and Temples

where most innocent minds throng in millions, then only people will get their

highest respect and regard, irrespective of their gender, wealth, intelligence,

power etc. Then only the very idea of harming anyone, be it for any cause, would

appear abhorring. Then alone can violence be radically uprooted from society.

 

In spite of the utmost technical and science education that people are getting

now a days, the love and respect for fellowmen as a brother in God is lacking.

This is what has made our scientists and politicians prepare nuclear weapons,

biological bombs, ultimately killing all the fellow-feelings in the hearts of

people. Is there any wonder if such people indulge in wholesale destruction of

their fellow-beings as in the `program of Hitler' or `the tragedy of September

11 of 2001' in New York? This is the mental impact that Terrorism of September

11 has made on the thinking men like us.

 

The difference it has made in our life is that it has awakened a sense of

urgency to educate people against falling a prey to the `brain-washing'

ideologies masked under various garbs . In killing innocents, there can be no

religion except Demon's dance.

 

Men who join such fanatic's training camps are generally the poor and the

deprived. They are `brainwashed' to think that by killing others not of their

fold, will confer on them the gift of `Heaven and its unending joys' as a reward

for their religious and pious act!

 

This is made possible in general where people don't have basic freedoms of

democratic rule, but are lead by nose as it were by selfish politicians. We

have to stop all help to such non-democracies and pseudo-democracies. We have to

push on with meaningful education supplemented with scientific skills and

spiritual `values' that will make our men and women not only efficient but also

good. Goodness can be summarized as truthfulness, a feeling of brotherhood of

whole humanity, a sympathy to serve the needy and a firm conviction that

humanity is one Divine family and to hurt anyone would mean bringing unhappiness

on ourselves. Let us make a simple prayer thus: `Oh God, please bless us all

with the will to spread these ideas of love and brotherhood to all our brothers

from wherever irrespective of cast, creed and religion.

 

We remember the thousands who's lives were taken on September 11, 2001 by

servants of darkness and agents of terror, and the families of those victims

left behind. May God give them, and all of us, strength to endure the onslaught

of evil and malice.