Cover Story II Swami Vivekananda’s Samadhi Mandir, Belur Math

                 Cover Story

                       
Swami Vivekananda’s Life records: ‘Three days before his passing away, as the Swami was walking up and down on the spacious lawn of the monastery [Belur Math] in the afternoon with Swami Premananda, he pointed to a particular spot on the bank of the Ganga, and said to his brother-monk gravely, “When I give up the body, cremate it there!” [He passed away on 4 July 1902.] On that very spot stands today a temple in his honor.’ In this majestic two-storeyed edifice, there are two shrines: the first-floor shrine has a marble image of Om in Bengali and in the ground floor, a marble-relief of Swamiji in meditation. The marble-relief of Swamiji was done through the efforts of Sister Nivedita, a disciple of Swamiji, and with the financial contribution from Mrs. Leggett, an associate of Swamiji. Through the efforts of Miss MacLeod, the stairs to the first floor were fashioned after the Villa d’ Este in Italy, famous for its sweeping and curly stairs. On the spot of the original Vilva tree, under which Swamiji used to sit, is located a Vilva tree planted later
  Swami Vivekananda’s Samadhi Mandir, Belur Math