The Silence Lesson film by Brazilian director Celso Fontão was shown in the assembly hall of Lviv Polytechnic main building. The movie is about Bohdan Viitenko, the graduate of Lviv Polytechnic, teacher of the leading world universities and an active participant of the liberation movement. The event was organized by the International Institute of Education, Culture and Diaspora Relations and the Institute of the Humanities and Social Sciences of the University.
Today, Bohdan Viitenko, a man thanks to whom the world learned about Ukraine, has returned to his alma mater due to the penetrating documentary filmed by the Brazilian director Celso Fontão. This was discussed during a warm and friendly conversation between the director of the film, First Vice-Rector of the University, Professor Volodymyr Pavlysh and Director of the International Institute of Education, Culture and Diaspora Relations Iryna Kliuchkovska.
Bohdan Viitenko lived in the tragic years of Holodomor of 1932–1933, during World War II went to labour camps in occupied Poland, then got to a refugee camp in Germany. There he got a happy chance to get acquainted with the president of the Ukrainian Free University, Ukrainian philosopher Volodymyr Shaian. This acquaintance opened the door to philosophy for the chemist Bohdan Viitenko. Subsequently, he moved to distant Brazil, which became his second home.
In this largest Latin American country, Professor Bohdan Viitenko is known primarily as the initiator of the transcendental meditation practice in secondary schools. He studied philosophy of Hinduism and Sanskrit, knew 14 foreign languages, taught at leading universities in Brazil, Germany and the United Kingdom, fought for the independence of Ukraine, and also signed an important historical document – I Blame Stalin manifesto which was sent to the International Court of Justice of UN.
The film is a very interesting documentary about the great Ukrainian patriot Bohdan Viitenko.
