VIVEKANANDA VEDANTA SOCIETY, CHICAGO,

PURCHASES LAND IN SUBURBS

TO BUILD

CHICAGO, IL (Wednesday, July 2, 2003) -- The Vivekananda Vedanta Society, Chicago, has completed its purchase of 15 acres in the suburbs, where it will build the first Sri Ramakrishna Universal Temple in North America, Swami Chidananda, President of the society, announced today.

"We are very pleased to share this historic news," Swami Chidananda said. "The greatest activity of the Vedanta Society is to disseminate spiritual education, which leads to spiritual illumination. The purpose of the temple is to disseminate spiritual knowledge."

            Earlier this month, the Village Council of Homer Glen unanimously decided to annex the land at Lemont Road and 147^th Street from an unincorporated area of Will County. The Council also changed the zoning on the property from Agricultural to Residential with a Special Use Permit to build the Sri Ramakrishna Universal Temple.

            The Vedanta Society sought the annexation from Homer Glen because the village, with its philosophy of "Community and Nature in Harmony," best fits its own philosophy for building the temple, said Mithilesh Mishra, society treasurer.

            "Natural beauty gives us a sense of the sacred and provides the best setting for devotion," said Mr. Mishra. "One-third of the land is wooded with old oaks, which the society plans to preserve. The property also is surrounded by low density development."

            The Vivekananda Vedanta Society, Chicago, now plans to raise $3 million for the first phase of construction. The construction is scheduled to begin in May 2004. The total cost estimate for the new temple is $6.5 million and the estimated completion date is December 2005, when the Vivekananda Vedanta Society, Chicago, has its 75^th Diamond Jubilee anniversary.

            The Ramakrishna Order has 13 centers in North America and several other satellite monasteries and retreats. This proposed temple in the village of Homer Glen would be the first Sri Ramakrishna Universal Temple in America. The temple will have a chapel where non-denominational classes will be offered on meditation and philosophy.  It also includes a shrine, Sunday school, yoga center, library, and bookstore.

            The architect for the project is Ramu Ramachandran, A.I.A., a renowned professional in Chicago.

            Devotees and friends of the Vivekananda Vedanta Society, Chicago, are looking forward to the new temple in Homer Glen.

            "I was a student of Vivekananda College in Madras, India, so when I came to this country, I was very happy to see an organization started by Swami Vivekananda flourishing well in the United States of America," said Dr. B. Srinivasan, of Chicago, a long-time devotee of the society. "Swami Vivekananda had visualized a Temple Universal in the United States. This vision is now being accomplished by Swami Chidananda, President of the Society".

Sri Ramakrishna, Spiritual Guru of Swami Vivekananda, practiced the major religions and experienced the same reality in all of them. He then proclaimed the most important message to the world: "As many faiths, so many paths."  (All lead to the same truth).

             Swami Vivekananda carried this universal message to the West: "Our watchword, then, will be acceptance, and not exclusion. Not only toleration, for so-called toleration is often blasphemy, and I do not believe in it. I believe in acceptance."

The Vivekananda Vedanta Society propagates the teachings of the Upanishads and other scriptures, as well as of Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda.

Swami Vivekananda electrified the West with the universal message of Vedanta: "Oneness Of Existence and Unity in Diversity" during his address at the Parliament of World Religions at the Art Institute Of Chicago in 1893 and formally introduced Hinduism to the West for the first time. He received a standing ovation after his first few words,   “Sisters and brothers of America. . .”