Sri Chinmoy took up weightlifting in 1985, aged 54, for the next 22 years, Sri Chinmoy achieved many significant lifts showing the power of self-transcendence even in the evening of his life.
Recently, an event was held to commemorate Sri Chinmoy’s 25th anniversary of his weightlifting. It was attended by many dignitaries and figures from the weightlifting world, such as Bill Pearl who often acted as Master of Ceremonies for Sri Chinmoy’s weightlifting performances.
A statue of Sri Chinmoy holding the World Harmony Run Torch was dedicated in Finland on Sunday June 13, 2010. The statue is located in a park on the outskirts of the city of Vaasa on the west coast of Finland overlooking the Bothnian Bay. Vaasa is a bilingual city with street signs in Finnish and Swedish and about 1/4 of the city’s residents speak Swedish rather than Finnish. The Vaasa Sri Chinmoy Centre has a long affiliation with this park as there is a Sri Chinmoy Peace Mile with a plaque located in the park and the Centre’s Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team also holds 2 mile races in the park.
Sculpted by British artist Kaivalya Torpy, the life-size statue of World Harmony Run founder Sri Chinmoy is the second in the world to be dedicated in which the visionary is depicted holding a World Harmony Run Torch. The first such statue is located in Mazatlan Mexico.
The statue in the park in a photo at 11 pm. At this time of year truly the land of the Midnight Sun.
Local park officials, politicians and members of the Vaasa and Helsinki Sri Chinmoy Centres joined together for the dedication. Sri Chinmoy Centre members from other countries such as Norway, Sweden, Russia, Italy, Czech Republic, England, Estonia, Austria and the United States were also present at the statue unveiling in the park.
World Harmony Runners representing Russia ran into the park with the Torch and a musical group from the Czech republic sang a song composed by Sri Chinmoy about the country of Finland.
The large nature attraction, called Sand Bay Park in English, contains tall trees and winding paths through the woods for hiking and biking. A beach pavilion is nearby and there are benches interspersed throughout the park providing views out over the water. The statue is located close to a Villa and gazebo available for rental for group functions and meetings. Participants gathered after the ceremony to share a meal and cake in the Villa nearby the statue.
Later that evening, a Songs of the Soul Concert was held in a concert hall in dowtown Vaasa with performances by Sangit Desh and Agnikana’s Group.
Sri Chinmoy: My first poem in English runs thus: “A sea of peace and joy and light/Beyond my reach I know.” (1) Almost every aspirant feels at the dawn of his spiritual life that peace is beyond his reach. The mind is always bothering us. The mind is constantly taking us from one place to another, from one object to another in the inner world and in the outer world. But a day comes when we feel in our inner life that there can be nothing worth achieving but peace.
It is peace that operates in the inner world and the outer world in the life of an aspirant. Eventually a day comes when he cannot separate himself from peace. Now he is crying for peace. He does not have peace here, there or anywhere. But as the mounting flame of aspiration within him gets the opportunity to reach the highest, the inner peace starts functioning most intensely and most powerfully in him. Then one day he notices that he abides in the sea of peace; he can never be separated from peace. His existence, inner and outer, is flooded with peace. For that experience, what we need is aspiration. Aspiration is the key.
On April 14th, 2010, a near capacity audience enjoyed an evening of soulful music dedicated to the music of Sri Chinmoy at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center in Manhattan, NYC.
The international Gandharva Loka orchestra offer a rousing finale to the concert
Paree’s International singing group open the concert with a soulful peace song composed by Sri Chinmoy.
On April 13th, 1964, Sri Chinmoy, aged 32, arrived in New York from India. Sri Chinmoy came to the West to be of service to aspiring seekers interested in meditation and the spiritual life. During his life in the West, Sri Chinmoy travelled extensively offering concerts, lectures and founded Sri Chinmoy meditation centres in countries around the world.
Sri Chinmoy in the early 1970s in Jamaica, Queens, New York.
During his time in the West, Sri Chinmoy was prolific in many areas showing how ancient spirituality could be combined with a modern dynamism.
Sri Chinmoy founded many new initiatives from long distance running events, to a global harmony run. More aspects of Sri Chinmoy’s service in the West
The fulness of life
Lies in dreaming and manifesting
The impossible dreams.
Recently, the New York Sri Chinmoy Centre offered a week long programme of events as part of a meditation and spirituality festival.
Events in the week long programme included:
The Power Within: Spirit of a Runner – A talk by the only woman (Suprabha Beckjord) ever to finish the 3,100 mile race & “Guinness Record Breaker of the Decade” Ashrita Furman.
Recently, the World Harmony Run passed through Spain as part of the European year long relay run.
World harmony
Carries the message
Of world peace
– Sri Chinmoy (1)
The run has visited the beautiful Spanish countryside and has also visited many local schoolchildren and others who have come to support the ideals of the run.
As part of a meditation and spirituality festival, the New York Centre produced a play about the life of the Buddha – ‘Siddhartha Becomes The Buddha’
Siddhartha becomes The Buddha is a play written by Sri Chinmoy and depicts the key moments in the life of Lord Buddha. The play was directed by Ketan Goldman and performed at The Bleecker Street Theatre in Manhattan. The cast were drawn from members of the Sri Chinmoy Centre.
The Auckland Sri Chinmoy Centre is typical of many local Sri Chinmoy Centres; established in 1980, it offers weekly meditation meetings and a variety of activities from running races to concerts of soulful music.
This is part of the Centre where free meditation classes are offered.
Recently, an event was held to commemorate Sri Chinmoy’s 25th anniversary of his weightlifting. It was attended by many dignitaries and figures from the weightlifting world, such as Bill Pearl who often acted as Master of Ceremonies for Sri Chinmoy’s weightlifting performances.
