While most students were settling back into new courses and a new semester at Elizabethtown College after winter break, Dr. Jeffery Long, professor of religion and Asian studies, traveled to India to speak in front of an audience of 15,000 people.

Long spent two weeks in India and gave two speeches at different cultural events, both focusing on Swami Vivekananda, born Narendra Nath Datta, the first man to come to the United States to spread Hindu philosophy.  In 1893, Vivekananda was invited to speak at the first Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago, where he shared his message of peace and harmony among all people.

Vivekananda taught about peace and harmony, which Long focused on in his speeches. Long stated this is a topic “the world still desperately needs today.” The speeches also noted the influence Vivekananda had on the United States, which Long said is much more extensive than many people realize.

The first speech occurred at the Belur Math temple in modern day Kolkata, what was formerly Calcutta. Long presented before the Ramakrishna Order, the order of Monks established who followed the teachings of Vivekananda. This was the largest group Long had ever spoken in front of, and he said “15,000 is quite a bit larger than the average conference, or the average Etown class for that matter!” Long’s second speech was held at the Ramakrishna Mission in Mumbai, formerly Bombay, and was on a much smaller scale – only about 400 people attended this event.

The speeches carried special significance in India because Vivekananda stands as a cultural and religious hero. This year marks the 150th anniversary celebration of Vivekananda’s birth. Long’s presentations were a part of wrapping up the celebration. Long said he had presented at many other events in India, however, these speeches were far larger and occurred in conjunction with events as part of a huge celebration in India.

Long also stated that although other people have covered Vivekananda’s themes of peace and harmony before, he has gone into greater depth than most. These themes can be applied to all of humanity because of their strong focus on acceptance of all religions. It emphasizes a selfless service to humanity, which relates greatly to the College’s motto of “Educate for Service” and also to the practice of meditation.

Vivekananda’s teachings were instrumental in the Indian freedom movement as well. “Vivekananda taught that we should see different religions as complementary rather than contradictory. This is something that could benefit everyone, everywhere, including America,” Long stated.

Long first became interested in this topic at the age of 13. At this age, he began to study Hindu teachings and the idea of harmony among all people attracted him to the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. He explained that Vivekananda greatly influenced Gandhi’s teachings, illustrating how pervasive Vivekananda’s teachings have been historically. However, Long said he did not discover Vivekananda and his master Sri Ramakrishna for another year or two, as he continued to study the Hindu teachings and traditions.

“I felt that this was a far superior way to look at religious diversity than the belief that people who follow religions other than one’s own are going to hell or are condemned for all eternity. I think that in this way, Hinduism is closer to the teaching of Jesus than are many forms of Christianity,” Long stated. In addition to his lectures on the topic, Long is also currently working on a book on the topic of Vivekananda’s teachings of universal peace and harmony between religions.