Views of Swami Vivekananda on Ram Setu

 ॐ वीरेश्वराय विद्महे विवेकानन्दाय धीमहि । तन्नो वीर: प्रचोदयात् ।

Almost all major freedom fighters of India like Subhash Chandra Bose, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Mahatma Gandhi, Annie Besant, Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru , Rabinder Nath Tagore etc. took powerful inspiration from the life and teachings of Swami Vivekananda. World philosophers like Noble Leaurate Romain Rolland (French), Leo Tolstoy (Russia), Max Mulllar ( Germany) and historians like Arnold Toyanbee (British), Will Durant (American) considered him as a great soul on whose teachings rest the peace and salvation of the world. About Swamji's success in the Parliament of Religions held at Chicago (America) in September 1893, the New York Herald wrote, "He is undoubtedly the greatest figure in the Parliament of Religions. After hearing  him we feel how foolish it is to send missionaries to this learned nation. " Presently, the nation is celebrating the 150^th Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.

              

Swami ji delivered a  talk at California, America on 31 January 1900 on Ramayan. About Ram Setu in brief, he said, " Learning everything about Sita from Hanuman Rama collected an army and with it marched towards the southern-most point of India. There Rama's monkeys built a huge bridge, called Setu-Bandha, connecting India with Ceylon. In very low water even now it is possible to cross from India to Ceylon”

          

Swamiji's one of the greatest disciples was Bhaskar Setupati, Raja of Ramnad. It is he who finally convinced Swami ji to go to the Parliament of Religions. Setupati means the lord of the Bridge (i.e. Ram Setu).  After the grand success of Swamiji in America and Europe when he landed at Rameshwaram, this Raja himself pulled the state-carriage through the town with Swamiji seated on it, after unharnessing the horses. Earlier, Swamiji had concluded his All India travelling (Parivrajaka) at Rameshwaram, one of the four Dhamas (sacred pleces of Hindus) before planning to leave for America. While returning back from Lanka on the Vimana, Rama shows to Sita the place where he worshiped Shiva before constructing the bridge (now Rameshwaram) and the bridge itself saying that it shall become famous by the name Setubandh to be worshiped by the three lokas (Valmiki Ramayan Sarg 123 sloka 19 and 20 respectively). Valmiki Ramayan is the only authentic Ramayan because Valmiki was an author as well as a character of Ramayana, Where is the question of Ram Setu not being part of Hinduism ?

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Join the year long 150th Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda : sv150.org  Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari