The Vedanta Society of Providence recently completed the construction of a new shrine-chapel at its location in Providence, R.I. From April 20 through April 22, the Vedanta Society will host a series of events to mark and celebrate the inauguration of the new shrine-chapel and also the 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, who was the founder of the parent organization of the Vedanta Society of Providence.

The Vedanta Society, which has existed uninterruptedly in Providence since 1928, is dedicated to spreading the universal message of "Vedanta," which means "Spiritual Wisdom" — a wisdom not confined to any particular scripture, but rather includes all the spiritual teachings of the saints of all ages and places. It is a federation of faiths and a commonwealth of spiritual concepts.  Vedanta thus accepts and respects all the religions of the world as true paths to the same goal.

On Friday, April 20, there will be devotional readings, music, and Indian classical dance from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., which will be followed by a dinner.

On Saturday, April 21, events will begin at 7:30 a.m. and continue until 9 p.m. They include a workshop, symposium on the Message of Swami Vivekananda, honoring of the construction team, dinner and an Indian classical music concert featuring noted artists from India: vocalist Debapriya Adhikary, sitarist Samanwaya Sarkar, and tabla exponent Nitin Mitta.

On Sunday, April 22, events will begin at 9:30 a.m. and continue until 7:30 p.m. They include a symposium on "East Meets West," Interfaith Prayer and Music Meeting, dinner and a music concert by the Boston-based group Garuda performing Indian, jazz and fusion music.

Admission to all the events is free and open to the public.  Additional information can be found by visiting the www.vedantaprov.org or by calling Sharad Bhatia at (401) 486-9016.