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CHENNAI, INDIA, September 11, 2002: On the occasion of the commemoration of the 9/11 attacks on America, Swami Gautamananda, president of the Ramakrishna Mission in Chennai was requested to address the gathering. His remarks read in part, “Though we are yet to find out what all ideas worked behind that tragedy of September 11, 2001, we can be sure that an extreme fanatic ideology that considered all other ideologies as worth nothing and itself as the only worth living ideology was behind the dastardly act. The further events have revealed that this fanatic ideology was inculcated into receptive minds of the youth who become the instruments of terror that revealed itself at New York. Fanaticism drives away all reason and thus persons with fanatic ideas act like robots, rather, like animals. Fanaticism is the fuel by which the machine of terrorism works. Fanaticism has been there in human life whenever people have been deprived of their spiritual food. What is this spiritual food? The disciplines or values of life that lead persons to realize their oneness with the Universe and with God and thus come to love humanity and God. The Sages of the Vedas, the oldest available scriptures to humanity, say that all this creation is God alone – ‘Sarvam Kalvidham Brahma.’ It implies that this Divinity is in every creature as its fundamental, inalienable nature. … When this idea of the Divinity of man is widely taught, not only in our schools and colleges but also in all churches, mosques, pagodas, tabernacles and temples where most innocent minds throng in millions, then only people will get their highest respect and regard, irrespective of their gender, wealth, intelligence, power etc. Then only the very idea of harming anyone, be it for any cause, would appear abhorring. Then alone can violence be radically uprooted from society.” For the complete text, click “source” above.

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