The Typhoon Arrives in America!



Amidst the dense city of Chicago, his face was glowing like an Eastern Sun, he was swift as a leopard, his roaring authoritative voice could silence even the  brilliant of brilliants! Tall and Masculine, whose body was no less than a wrestler! The look of his fiery eyes was intense enough to pierce his nemesis. Hailing from the East, he was not ready to accept that the Westerners were superior than his countrymen. The ideas of Nationalism and Self-esteem were running through his blood and veins. Being a 'Messenger' of the 'Sanathana Dharma' he was rock-ribbed to upheld his religion over the dominating creed during the 19th century. He believed that it was time to expose those who tormented the weak for centuries. He was a dynamite who was about to explode at the World Parliament of Religions. He was a 'Warrior' more than a monk! Wearing a red robe and a saffron turban, Swami Vivekananda was geared up to fascinate the world with his phenomenal three minute speech!


'The Art Institute' in Michigan Avenue took the honor of hosting this historical event on 11th September 1893.
'9/11' is a remarkable date in India's history, the day when the entire world bowed down to India's ancient teachings of Vedanta and Upanishads.
The Auditorium was kick packed with audience around 10 in the morning. It is said that more than eight thousand  spectators were fortunate enough to witness this event. Delegates of various religions, communities, societies, leagues took part at the Religious Conference. James Cardinal Gibbons who was an American prelate of the Catholic Church was also present. 'The Freedom Bell' marked the inauguration of the morning session. The opening day of the conference was reserved for introduction and welcome speeches. Eight delegates spoke in the morning session. Pratap Chandra of 'Brahmo Samaj' and Dharmapal who was the president of the  Lankan Buddhist Community received a great appreciation from the crowd. Swami Vivekananda who was seated at the dias was silently watching the proceedings. Even a professional orator who was well experienced would have felt a tremor in his heart by having a glimpse of the jammed chairs and gallery! Except for a few small public gatherings, Swamiji never expatiated in front of such a huge mass.  He contemplated that every speaker had prepared an extensive list of points to mention in his speech. Swamiji blamed himself for not preparing his speech for such a prestigious occasion.
Why? Why would anyone come unprepared to talk about their religion on a global platform? The answer is simple. Swami Vivekananda was not eligible to participate in the conference because he did not have the required credentials to be a part of the event. Then what's the point of preparing a comprehensive speech when you are not allowed to speak? But Swami Vivekananda was not a man who would give up  so easily. He was a born fighter. His 'Kshatriya' nature never allowed him to run away from the troubles. As a result Professor John Henry Wright of the Greek Department in Harvard University recognising his genius wrote the credential letter stating, "To ask you, Swami, for your credentials is like asking the sun to state its right to shine!".


 He continued by referring to his friend, Dr. Barrows, the Chairman of the Committee on the selection of delegates saying, "Here is a man who is more learned than all our learned professors put together. He further fetched him a ticket to Chicago, and gave him letters of introduction to the committee. But in the hall numerous of thoughts surrounded Swamiji's minds. For a moment he asked himself "Do I really have what it takes? Can I really make my countrymen proud? What shall I speak about my nation which is being pestered by the white men for more than two centuries?". But no one anticipated that Swami Vivekananda would create wonders in a few moment! Probably he himself was unaware of the fact that he would be conquering the world by his tremendous intellectual powers! 
In the afternoon session, it was Swamiji's turn to address. Mr. Charles Bonney announced "Ladies and gentlemen, I would now request Swami Vivekananda from India to address us". But Swamiji replied "Ah, Well, I can't speak right now, I'll speak later". When asked gain Swamiji repeatedly said "Later!"  When the chairman lost his patience and urged him that he must speak now or never, Swamiji had to accept to the Chairman. 


The Bengal Tiger stood up. His eyes were shining like a lightning. He took a quick glance of the spectators who were at the edge of their seats to listen to the 'Broad Chested Sanyasi'! The pains and miseries he suffered all these years were ready to explode like a volcano! The eight thousand onlookers for a moment forgot to breathe and looked into the eyes of the 'Hindu Monk'. There was a pin drop silence in the conference hall. Swami Vivekananda closed his eyes, remembered his Master 'Sri Ramakrishna' and prayed Goddess Saraswati. He opened his eyes, walked towards the podium, took a deep breath and uttered "Sisters and Brothers of America!" 
What a miracle! He only spoke those five magical words. Every soul sitting there experienced an electric current flowing through their bodies! Thousands of people gave a standing ovation! There were handkerchiefs, hats in the air, raised hands, loud shouts saying "Incredible man!". Swami Vivekananda tried to continue but the audience were not ready for his next words! He was already accepted! The organisers of the show tried to bring the situation in control but they failed. There were no limits to the spectators' excitement. The havoc continued for atleast two minutes! When everyone came back to their nerves Swami Vivekananda continued "I am Proud to belong to a religion which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance. We belive not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true. I am proud to belong to a nation which has sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all nations of the earth". He further highlighted the long tradition of acceptance and harmony of thoughts in Hindutva. He quoted the Gita saying, "Whosoever comes to me, through whatsoever form, I reach them ; all men are struggling through paths which in the end lead to me". By quoting this Sanskrit verse Swamiji concluded his speech. The Americans were spellbound listening to the Great Swami Vivekananda! He recieved a standing ovation once more from the audience. The Americans had to change their mindsets towards Hinduism who believed that the Indian Subcontinent is a land of superstitions, ignorance for the women, uncivilized people, naked sages and so on. But Swami Vivekananda toppled all their false beliefs. He re-presented the Hindutva to the world. He sent a message to the Christian Missionaries saying "India has the potency to rule the world spiritually even when it is being ruled!" 
Swami Vivekananda's influential speech is the only speech which has a 50,100,125 years anniversary celebration! 
The 'Wandering Monk of India' is now World Famous Swami Vivekananda! The Typhoon has now arrived in America! No one expected it, but now the World is talking about it!

Comments

  1. V Good Suraj. keep Going. The Sprit shall never see the end

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  2. Akhileshkumar patil11 September 2020 at 15:56

    Supper blogs suparaj bhai

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  3. Kudos supraj....... Very informative

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    1. Thank you! 😊 Don't forget to share and subscribe!

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  4. Very well written Supraj!!Keep going..

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  5. That's a really good content Supraj... Go on... 👍

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    1. Thanks a lot! Subscribe for more interesting content! 😊

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  6. very nice article supraj , keep going

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    1. Glad to hear that you like it! Don't forget to share and subscribe! 🙂

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  7. Nice article supraj!! keep doing.

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