Smaranananda a pioneer of spiritual consciousness
Amidst the hustle and bustle of the grand festival of the Lok Sabha elections, the news of the demise of Srimat Swami Smaranananda Maharaj brought my mind to a standstill for a few moments. Smaranananda Maharaj was a pioneer of India’s spiritual consciousness and his demise is like a personal loss. A few years ago, the demise of Swami Atmasthananda and now the departure of Swami Smaranananda on his eternal journey has left many people bereaved.
My heart, like that of crores of devotees, saints and followers of the
Ramakrishna Math and Mission, is deeply saddened.
During my visit to Kolkata earlier this month, I had gone to the hospital to enquire about Swami Smarananandaji’s health. Just like Swami Atmasthananda, Swami Smaranananda too dedicated his entire life to spreading the ideas of Acharya Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Mata Sharada Devi and Swami Vivekananda across the world. While writing this article, the memories of meetings and conversations with him are getting refreshed in my mind.
In January 2020, during my stay at the Belur Math, I meditated in the room of Swami Vivekananda. During that visit, I had a long conversation about Swami Atmasthananda with Swami Smaranananda.
It is widely known that I had a close relationship with the Ramakrishna Mission and the Belur Math. As a seeker of spirituality, I have met different saints and mahatmas and been to many places over the period of more than five decades. Even in the Ramakrishna Math, I got to know about the saints who dedicated their lives to spirituality, among whom personalities like Swami Atmasthananda and Swami Smaranananda were prominent. Their sacred thoughts and knowledge provided contentment to my mind. In the most important period of my life, such saints taught me the true principle of Jan Seva hi Prabhu Seva.
The lives of Swami Atmasthananda
and Swami Smaranananda are an indelible example of the motto of the Ramakrishna Mission “Atmano Mokshaartham Jagaddhitaaya Cha”.
We all are inspired by the work being done by the Ramakrishna Mission for the promotion of education and rural development.
The Ramakrishna
Mission is working on India’s spiritual enlightenment, educational empowerment and humanitarian service. In 1978, when the disastrous flood struck Bengal, the Ramakrishna Mission won the hearts of everyone with its selfless service. I remember, when an earthquake ravaged Kutch in 2001, Swami Atmasthananda was among the first people to call me and offer all possible assistance for disaster management on behalf of the Ramakrishna Mission. Under his direction,
The Ramakrishna Mission helped many people who were affected by the earthquake.
Over the past years, while holding various positions, Swami Atmasthananda and Swami Smaranananda laid great emphasis on social empowerment. Those who know the lives of these great personalities will definitely remember how serious these saints were towards modern education, skilling and women empowerment.
Among his many inspiring traits, one thing that impressed me the most was Swami Atmasthananda’s love and respect for every culture and every tradition. The reason for this was that he used to travel continuously and had spent a long time in different parts of
India. He learned to speak Gujarati while living in Gujarat. He used to even speak with me in the language and I loved listening to his Gujarati!
At different points in India’s development journey, our motherland has been blessed by many saints and seers like Swami Atmasthananda and Swami Smaranananda, who have ignited the spark of societal change. They have motivated us to work with a collective spirit and address all the challenges our society faces.
These principles are eternal and will act as our source of strength as we embark on developing a Viksit Bharat during the Amrit Kaal. Once again, on behalf of the entire nation, I pay homage to such saintly souls. I am confident that all the people associated with the Ramakrishna Mission will further move ahead on the path shown by them.