August 21
The Sri Chinmoy Centre holds its Olympic-style international Sports Day in New Paltz, NY, USA. Sri Chinmoy himself participates in several of the track and field events.
Sri Chinmoy writes a collection of 39 poems on the bus returning from Sports Day in New Paltz, NY, to Jamaica, Queens, NY, USA. They are later published in his book, My California Redwoods.
Sri Chinmoy offers a 7-hour public meditation at All Angel’s Church in New York, NY, USA.
One of Sri Chinmoy’s aphorisms, from his book ‘Meditations: Food For The Soul’, appears in the August 21 issue of Forbes magazine, USA.
Sri Chinmoy’s students hold a parade in New York, NY, USA, in honour of their teachrr’s upcoming birthday (27 August). The parade route is seven miles, and the marchers and floats spread out over 700 metres. Sri Chinmoy runs one mile and waits for the parade to go by. Then again, he runs one mile and watches the parade.
Sri Chinmoy offers an evening musical concert (7 pm), with special guest performers, at the Riverside Church in Manhattan, New York, NY, USA.
Sri Chinmoy achieves a 320½-lb. right-arm lift (double his body weight) in Jamaica, NY, USA.
Sri Chinmoy offers a public meditation at India’s Independence Day Celebration in New York, NY, USA.
Sri Chinmoy is presented with Honorary Membership of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, India’s foremost cultural organisation in New York, NY, USA.
Sri Chinmoy achieves a javelin throw of 29.83 metres, his best throw in twelve years, in the Sri Chinmoy Sports Day at Victory Field in Forest Hills, NY, USA.
South Africa is declared a Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossom-Nation.
Albania and Cook Islands are declared Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossom-Nations.
Rwanda is declared a Sri Chinmoy Peace-Blossom-Nation.
Sri Chinmoy performs 74 pushups; throws 74 continuous basketball shots, making 22 baskets; throws 74 frisbee passes; tries on 74 different hats from around the world; and creates 122 Soul-Bird drawings in 74 seconds for his 74th birthday at Madal Circus at York College in Jamaica, NY, USA.
About On This Day
January 1st, 2011, saw the launch of a special feature on the front page of Sri Chinmoy Reflections — On This Day — a day-by-day account of Sri Chinmoy’s achievements. The accompanying pages expand the theme further by linking specific dates and events to video, audio and literary resources from this and many other related websites, enabling the reader to explore, in a systematic way, the vast catalogue of information about Sri Chinmoy’s life.
Many years ago at Aspiration-Ground, there was a large blackboard that displayed the scores of tennis matches Sri Chinmoy had played. Each morning, before Sri Chinmoy arrived at the court, the board would be cleaned and the date of the new day would be written in chalk at the top. Then, in yearly order, a list of different activities Sri Chinmoy had accomplished or had participated in would follow. Every day a new list would appear, and very rarely would there be a day without something to report.
Just before starting play of his usual round of morning tennis, Sri Chinmoy could be seen walking slowly across towards the blackboard to carefully study the list, and many times he would comment on what had been written. No doubt it brought back many fond memories for him.
Since his arrival in the West in 1964, many disparate lists have been compiled – running times and athletic highlights; poems written and songs composed; concerts performed and lectures delivered; weights hoisted and people lifted; paintings completed and drawings sketched; meditations, meetings, peace initiatives and prayers – viewed altogether, they represent an impressive chronology of achievement that reads more like the combined biographies of several highly talented people rather than one individual.
It is by the dedicated efforts of many who have meticulously recorded these events, which form the narrative of Sri Chinmoy’s remarkable life, that we are able to look back across the decades to take in this grand overview. We are grateful to all those who have collected and preserved this information over the years.
It is hoped that this section will, in some small way, carry on this inspirational tradition.
— Animesh Harrington
The information in the following pages has been compiled from many sources – Sri Chinmoy Library, Sri Chinmoy Songs, Sri Chinmoy TV and Radio Sri Chinmoy; Sri Chinmoy Centre newsletters, magazines, periodicals1; and informational booklets2; newspaper and magazine articles, radio and TV interviews; yearly calendars and index cards; as well as analog and digital recordings.
Bibliography:
1 AUM (monthly magazine)
Jharna-Kala (art quarterly magazine)
Meditation at the United Nations (monthly bulletin)
Anahata Nada (monthly newsletter)
2 A Galaxy of Luminaries, Agni Press, New York, 1978
Sri Chinmoy: The Student of Peace (second edition), Aum Publications, New York
Sri Chinmoy: Emissary of Oneness-Peace
Sri Chinmoy A Global Man of Peace
Sri Chinmoy Dreamer of World Peace, Agni Press, New York, 1998 & 2000
Sri Chinmoy A Oneness-World-Dreamer
Oneness-World Peace-Blossoms, Sri Chinmoy: The Peace Meditation at the United Nations, 25th Anniversary
500 Compassion-Blessing-Blossoms