Commemorating the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Swami Vivekananda, the Mylapore Academy organised the unveiling of the life size portrait of Swami Vivekananda here on Saturday. The portrait was unveiled by B S Raghavan, former civil servant.
Unveiling the portrait, Raghavan said, “Swami Vivekananda through his teachings brought quality into the lives of Indians. He made us believe the mantra ‘yes, we can’. He was a role model for India till his end. Through his communicative skills, he organised people. He was a tonic to the depressed and demoralised minds of Hindus”.
Former DGP V R Lakshminarayanan said, “It was through two persons, the whole world identified India on social and political platforms. One is Gandhiji and the other is Swami Vivekananda in the social field. People should follow his two teachings that talk about taking care of people and educating them.”
Noted columnist S Gurumurthy said, “The nation witnessed many saints but they are only for worship. It is Vivekananda who influenced the youth. He propagated the belief that all gods were sacred and no religion is superior to another. This thought came from the civilisation that was once perceived by the Western countries as doomed and failed. His famous Chicago speech had only 471 words, but it drew the attention of the Western countries towards India. He was born to rebuild India.”
During the event, prizes were distributed to the winners of oratorical competitions. Mylapore Academy presented a trophy to Sri Ramakrishna Math for its service to community.