Launch of Gita in Tamil by Prime Minister

On 27 July 2025, Chinmaya Mission launched a momentous projec—the versification of the Bhagavad Gita in Tamil, in the august presence of Prime Minister of Bharat Shri Narendra Modi. This was launched during the Adi Thiruvathirai Festival, where the Government of India commemorated the 1000th anniversary of the beginning of the construction of the Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple and the maritime expedition of Rajendra Chola I, held in the historic city of Gangaikonda Cholapuram.This city is not only a site of historical importance, being the capital of the great Chola King Rajendra Chola I, but is also a standing testament of cultural oneness that is inherent in our civilisational identity. Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda got inspired by the ever-flowing and ever-giving nature of Mother Ganga to come down to the plains to spread the wisdom of the the Bhagavad Gita and other treasured Vedantic texts. It is only befitting that the Prime Minister of Bharat, elected as an MP from Varanasi, which is the land of another Ganga, graciously accepted to release the translated version of Bhagavad Gita in Gangaikonda Cholapuram, meaning ‘the city of the Chola who conquered Ganga’.Commending Chinmaya Mission for this visionary initiative, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said, ‘Through Chinmaya Mission, I had the opportunity to release the musical rendition of the Bhagavad Gita in Tamil, a gesture that strengthens our resolve to preserve our heritage. I convey my heartfelt appreciation to everyone involved in this initiative.’The seeds for this momentous project were sown in May 2023 during the C20 Vasudeva Kutumbakam final seminar held in Mahabalipuram, where Shri Ilaiyaraaja, the renowned music maestro, performed for the participants. We seized the opportunity to discuss with him the possibility of creating music for a Tamil version of the Bhagavad Gita, similar to his work on some Tamil books like Thiruvasagam. He initially expressed reservations, deeming it a challenging task, but suggested revisiting the idea after a year or so..Swami Mitrananda and Swami Sureshananda guided a team of six teachers, comprising three Sanskrit and three Tamil experts from Chinmaya Vidyalaya schools and translated the entire Bhagavad Gita into Tamil. The translation is in the anushthup and trishtup chandaha, exactly like in the original Sanskrit Bhagavad Gita. It took one whole year to translate all 18 chapter (700 shlokas). Post this, the team approached Shri Ilaiyaraaja once again and this time he agreed to work on the project after listening to our work.With select verses of the Bhagavad Gita in Tamil, a soulful album spanning 43 minutes has been composed by the Maestro. Notably, he did not charge any personal fees for this project, driven by his desire to spread the Gita's message in Tamil. Apart from this, a team of Chinmaya Yuva Kendra members worked tirelessly on the videography of this beautiful album, using Artificial Intelligence, bringing it to life and ensured that the essence of the Gita was captured in the visuals..Apart from the album created by Shri Ilaiyaraaja, Chinmaya Mission has also produced the traditional chanting of all 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Gita in Tamil and has published a book on the same. The traditional chanting of the 18 chapters and the musical composition made by Shri Ilaiyaraaja are also available in our app named ‘Geethai’ in both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. A project of this scale and vision would not have been possible without the kind patronage of culturally rooted sponsors such as the RAMCO Group.The Tamil versification of the Gita allows people to connect directly with the scripture without relying on interpreters. Our members were deeply moved by the chanting, and we realised that understanding the Gita in a familiar language brings a deeper connection. This project is a beautiful offering by Chinmaya Mission Chennai to celebrate its 75 years. The Prime Minister's release of the album marks the beginning of these celebrations. We hope to expand our reach and fulfil the vision of our beloved Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda.

Launch of Gita in Tamil by Prime Minister

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