Vivekanandar Illam

Vivekanandar Illam

Vivekanandar Illam (Tamil: விவேகானந்தர் இல்லம்) or Vivekananda House[1] (Tamil: விவேகானந்தர் வீடு), earlier known as Ice House or Castle Kernan at Chennai, India is an important place for the Ramakrishna Movement in South India. It is remembered as the place where Swami Vivekananda stayed for nine days when he visited Chennai in 1897. Vivekananda House now houses a Permanent Exhibition on Indian Culture and Swamiji’s Life, maintained by the Chennai branch of the Ramakrishna Math and is a source of inspiration to thousands of people who visit it every year.

History

Vivekanandar Illam (Tamil: விவேகானந்தர் இல்லம்) (or Vivekananda House, also called Ice House (Tamil: ஐஸ் ஹவுஸ்), Castle Kernan, etc.) is a structure at Chennai, India, used by the British to store ice brought from North America for about 30 years.

Ice King Frederic Tudor built an ice house at Madras facing the Bay of Bengal in 1842 as part of his ice business. Around 1880, the business collapsed and the building was sold to Biligiri Iyengar of Madras. Biligiri Iyengar was a famous advocate in the Madras High Court and was fairly well-to-do in those times. He remodelled the house, renamed it Castle Kernan after his friend, Justice Kernan in the Madras High Court and used it as a residence.[2]

When Swami Vivekananda visited Madras in 1897 after his return from the West, Iyengar, being a disciple of Swami Vivekananda, made him stay at the Ice House. Vivekananda stayed at the Ice House between 6 February 1897 to 14 February 1897. During his nine-day stay, he shook India’s national consciousness through his fiery lectures at Chennai. When Vivekananda was about to depart, he agreed to his disciples' request to set up a permanent centre at the Ice House.

Later, Ramakrishna Math (Monastery) Chennai was founded by Swami Ramakrishnananda, a brother disciple of Swami Vivekananda. The mission activities continued till 1906. The Math functioned from here during its first 10 years (1897–1906) until it got moved to the current location at Mylapore, Chennai and the property came up for mortgage and was purchased by a zamindar.

In 1914, Ice House was acquired by the Government of Madras as part of their social welfare scheme to function as the hostel and training school for the child widow's home run by Sister R. S. Subbalakshmi, a social reformer and educationist.

In 1963, during the Birth Centenary of Swami Vivekananda, the Government of Tamil Nadu renamed the Castle Kernan as Vivekanandar Illam (Illam means house in Tamil) or 'Vivekananda House'. In 1997, on the eve of the Centenary of Swamiji’s return to India (and his stay at House), the Government of Tamil Nadu at the request of the Ramakrishna Math, leased out the Vivekananda House and it’s valid up to 2020.

Swami Vivekananda (on the chair, third from left) and Biligiri Iyengar (on the floor, second from left) at the Ice House in 1897

Exhibition

Vivekananda 3D[3]

National Youth Day Celebrations

National Youth Day – Swami Vivekananda's birthday (12 January) and the National Youth Day, is celebrated at Vivekananda House in a befitting manner every year. As part of this, recitation competitions for students, a procession and public meeting are held. Eminent persons are invited to address the gathering of students. A procession of students is also held on this occasion. India's first "Stereoscopic 3D Animated Short Movie" on Swami Vivekananda was also launched on the same day.[4]

See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ "Vivekananda House".
  2. ↑ Nair, Sashi (2003). "Ice House through the years". The Hindu. Retrieved 2014-05-25.
  3. ↑ Swaminathan, Atul (25 March 2012). "India's first 3D stereoscopic movie on Vivekananda". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  4. ↑ "Vivekananda now on YouTube". Deccan Herald. Chennai: Deccan Herald. 13 January 2012. Retrieved 13 Jan 2012.

Sources

Coordinates: 13°02′57″N 80°16′49″E / 13.04917°N 80.28028°E / 13.04917; 80.28028

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