A constellation of divine fathers of Bharat Sevashram Sangha
–  Grace Guyana and the Guyana Sevashram Sangha on Father’s Day
SEVERAL fathers of humanity, Swamis of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha, including the General-Secretary and Deputy Secretary of the Sangha; as well as His Holiness Swami Bhajanandaji Maharaj, son and divine father of Guyana and head of the Canadian branch of the Bharat Sangha, are all currently visiting Guyana and holding satsanghs in various parts of the country. On Father’s Day last Sunday, the Swamis, like a galaxy of divine fathers, delivered brief but stirring sermons to enrapture and delight devotees at the Guyana Sevashram Sangha (Cove and John Ashram) shortly after the fathers attending the satsangh had performed a special puja conducted by a student of the Hindu College and resident of the Ashram’s dormitory, Hatashan Bhimsain.
The Ashram’s Gurukul boys not only conducted the havan, unsupervised, they also played all the musical instruments throughout the satsangh.  As usual, present were students of the Hindu College – of all ethnic persuasions, who chose to attend these ceremonies with their principal and Sangha Board member, Ms Rajkumarie Singh.
And these children are the legacy of the vision of Acharya Srimat Swami Pranavanandaji Maharaj (1896 – 1941), who was founder of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha.
What makes a human being sacrifice all worldly pleasures and consecrate his entire life on earth to the Supreme Lord, serving in whatever capacity he is required – serving the Lord through bettering the lot of humankind?  Sevashram is a combination of two words – seva and ashram, which means service and sanctuary.
True to his calling, His Holiness Swami Bhajanandaji Maharaj, who is a revered monk in his own right at the Ashram, and who is considered the best literature teacher ever in the history of the Hindu College, but who was representing spiritual head of the Guyana Sangha, His Holiness Swami Vidyanandaji Maharaj, humbly submitted to the revered Swamis from India, urging the devotees to listen and absorb the “nectarian words” of the saints from the holy shrines of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha.
Speaking of the depredations being wrought in this age of Kalyug, Swami Bhajanandaji extolled the achievements of the visiting monks, each of whom he lauded as being “spiritually great” in his own right.
“Over the centuries”, related Swami Bhajanandaji, “the Hindu system has produced a galaxy of great and noble men who have given their lives in service to their fellow men.  I am fortunate to be in their presence and garner their blessings.”
Recalling his induction into the order as a penniless young man, the learned monk reminisced on the earlier and extremely difficult years, when even accessibility to the Ashram was difficult at the best of times, and impossible during bad weather; and he also expressed his appreciation to the Government of Guyana’s acknowledgement of the work of the Sangha in Guyana, which manifested in the conferral of a national award to Guruji by then President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo himself.
He said that it was unprecedented for so many divine souls to have graced the Ashram in Guyana at any one time as they are doing during this month of June, 2012.
In his introductory remarks, he acclaimed the General-Secretary of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha, Pujya Shrimat Swami Vividishanandaji Maharaj, for steering the Bharat Sevashram Sangha into an “international powerhouse”.  According to him, the General-Secretary, whom he described as a “powerhouse of energy”, holds one of the highest positions in the Bharat Sevashram Sangha.
As an example of such absolute self-sacrifice and self-immersion in service to God through serving mankind, which is in essence the work in progress of the Sangha, Swami Vividishanandaji spoke about the Founder of the Sangha and his propagation of the philosophies, teachings and traditions of Hinduism, especially through education; and explained the Acharya’s vision, and the goals encapsulated in this vision as follows.
From his early childhood Acharya Srimat Swami Pranavanandaji Maharaj, then Binode, had dedicated himself to meditation and service to the Lord and he struggled to overcome hurdles and establish the Sangha, an organisation through which he hoped to serve humanity worldwide, primarily in the area of education and through inculcating spiritual and moral values in the young people of the world, because as a young man of merely 20, the Acharya had already gained “everything”.
First Hindu monk from the West, Guruji Vidyanandaji Maharaj, described him thus:  “In some ways he stands most authentically for ancient Hindu values, which can easily be overlooked by modern commentators, scholars, and interpreters of religion.
“Perhaps he is one of the figures whom we ought to take seriously in estimating the power and value of the modern Hindu renaissance, stretching from ancient history to contemporary times. He was drawn to spiritual pursuits and a kind of ascetic athleticism.”
According to the Sangha’s General-Secretary, it was told of the then Binode that from his very early years his headmaster said that he would give the impression that he had attended school as part of a journey in transition to a higher calling.
Swamiji recalled that Swami Purnanandaji Maharaj wrote of the Acharya that he was consumed with a number of themes, which encapsulate the heart of one main form of Hindu ideal – Bramcharya (ascetic Hindu student) ideal.  He wrote, in conjunction with Ninian Smart: “As Hinduism serves, so to speak, as a window on the Acharya, so this life of the Acharya may serve as a window on Hinduism.
“First, if his dynamism has helped to create new consciousness within Hinduism, (which may have been the primary catalyst of The Lord’s manifestation), which can lead to religion, then this is something of vital moment to global civilisation, in which Hindu values must surely play a major role.  Second, his accent on austerity presents an ideal from which many outside India can learn.”
Learned and holy monk, Guruji Swami Vidyanandaji Maharaj had said that the attainment of education (in all its dimensions and ramifications) has its roots in absolute faith in the guru, because education is the manifestation of the entire gurukul system, which is grounded in subsuming the individual consciousness to better inculcate the values, mores and lessons being imparted by the guru.
This was reiterated by Swami Vividishanandaji, who elucidated to the effect that wisdom does not merely stem from academic knowledge, but encapsulates an entire spectrum of educational processes, wherein the Vyas is the person who compiled the vedas and all the shastras, including the Mahabharatta.  In the passage of time, the divinely prescribed way of the spiritual path was forgotten, but then, whenever such circumstances prevail Lord Shiva manifests himself to restore the sublime glory of dharmic principles, thus was the Acharya incarnated as the embodiment of the Lord.
The Sangha General-Secretary spoke of the many difficulties encountered by the Acharya on his path to self-realisation before he founded the Bharat Sevashram Sangha, with the stricture to his adherents to: “Go ye from one end of the world to another and gather all my children under the banner of the Sangha so that they can be saved.”
This direction taken by the Acharya in his seva was because, as he said: “I cannot bear to see the degradation of youths any longer”, and the precept of the Sangha is that, according to the Acharya, “An ideal system of education is that which is conducive to the harmonious growth of the body, the mind, the intellect, and the soul of the person who receives the education.”
And, as Swami Vividishanandaji expounded on the theme of seva within the construct of the Sangha, this was focal to the establishment of the Guyana Sevashram Sangha at Cove on John in the early 1950s, which was founded by Swami Purnanandaji Maharaji in obedience to the supreme Acharya on 20 acres of formerly undeveloped land and transformed into its current dynamic and dynamism by the “blood and sweat of the Swamis, Bramcharis, and selfless devotees” over the decades of its existence.
He adjured the devotees to follow ideal precepts which evolve in the perfection of life.  Elucidating on the precepts as expounded in the Gita, the Guru said that revering one’s parents and teachers, and respecting one’s fellowman in general are in effect paying obeisance to God.
“Mother is the teacher of society,” expounded the learned guru, “do not neglect mothers, and worship the goddesses. Sacrifice for the people who have been neglected in the society.  Swami Purnandaji went door-to-door to preach Hinduism. Do not forget your forefathers, for we are the song of the rishis and the saints of yesteryear. Recite the mantras and don’t forget you come from the Hindu community. You may be away from India but don’t forget your traditions and culture, while still respecting the other cultures of your fellowman.”
Last Sunday  Guyana and the local branch of the Sangha were richly blessed with a visit to this country by a treasure trove of spiritual leaders, all sublime in their own right, who made pilgrimage to the first branch of the Sangha established in the western hemisphere, divinely blessed by the Acharya through his holy disciples, His Holiness Swami Purnanadaji Maharaj and all the monks and bramcharis who have followed in his footsteps.
Speaking after Swami Vividishanandaji, joint Secretary, Shrimat Swami Sarsatanandaji Maharaj , explained the difference between the education imparted by the Sangha and other systems. According to the learned monk, the Sangha aspires to create the ideal – which is the perfect being, through an educational system that produces an ideal father/mother; an ideal son/daughter; an ideal citizen:  In effect, an ideal person who encapsulates spiritual, moral and academic perfection.  Physically, also, the Sangha promotes good health through healthy living and yogic exercises of body and mind.
According to Shrimat Swami Sarsatanandaji Maharaj, the education imparted by the Sangha system of tutelage is a holistic synchronisation of the academic, the spiritual, and the secular, with the intention to create the perfect human being.
Lauding the work of founder of the Guyana branch of the Sangha, His Holiness Swami Purnanadaji Maharaj, the Joint Secretary said that the establishment of each branch of the Sangha worldwide has its own uplifting story, but that the work of Swami Purnanandaji has to be glorified because the first branch of the Sangha in the western hemisphere, here in Guyana, was established under the most arduous circumstances, during the time of the British Raj when all other religions, except Christianity, were suppressed and education was subjective to that dynamic.
Swamiji said that the Sangha system of education is like a “song of amrit in the glorious eternal light.”
Indians who came to Guyana cannot be identified as indentured servants, professed the learned monks, because they are the song of the rishis and products of Shri Ramchandra and Lord Krishna.
He warned devotees against complacency and inertia, as negative traits lead to lack of achievement on this plane of existence; but to follow the path of the Sangha to revitalise their lives. The Sangha, said Swamiji, has re-vitalised the educational landscape of the world.
Guyana, through the gurukul system at the Guyana Sevashram Sangha, is the only country that has produced monks in the western hemisphere; among whom are His Holiness Swami Vidyanandaji Maharaj, who became spiritual head and administrator of the Sangha after the departure of Swami Purnanandaji Maharaj, and who now heads the New York an Guyana branches of the Sangha, Swami Bhajananandaji Maharaj of the Canadian Sangha, Swami Parameshanandaji Maharaj, the Sangha’s Permanent Representative in the United Nations, Swami Nirliptanandaji Maharaj of the London Sangha, Swami Shiveshranandaji Maharaji and Swami Amritanandaji Maharaj, both of the USA; and current spiritual and administrative head of the Guyana Sangha, former Bramchari Vidur and current (after ordination in India in January of 2010) Swami Shivashankaranandaji Maharaj.
The precepts of the Sangha are encompassed in a compilation named “Hindutwam”, of which a new and more comprehensive edition has been produced by Swami Bhajanandaji, who says that the production is already in the press and would be available in Guyana by year-end.
This publication, asserted the Guyanese Monk, has captured the “nectarian” philosophies and principles of Hinduism.
The decades in the service to the Sangha and mankind by the branmcharis and monks; as well as the secular devotees of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha in general, and the Guyana Sevashram Sangha in particular, has been a beacon of light to the many devotees and students who have evolved spiritually and academically at the Ashram during the decades of its existence.  The lives of  products of the spiritual tutelage of the  monks, such as former President of Guyana, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo; former Finance Minister of Guyana, Saisnarine Kowlessar, whose imprimatur is still on Guyana’s currency; world-class cricketer Shivnarine Chanderpaul, among many others in equal standing in their own right, have truly been a reflection of the quintessence of the teachings of the supreme teacher of mankind.
The Bharat Sevashram Sangha lays emphasis on spirituality, embracing devotion, knowledge, meditation and self-sacrifice.  Through spiritual harmony and social outreaches, the Sangha promotes values of tolerance and unity among all sects and faiths, promoting ideals that lead to peaceful co-existence among mankind.
The Sangha has received consultative status with the United Nations and is also a member of the steering committee of the United Nations Environment Protection Agency (UNEP).  The Mission has adopted the Millenium Development Goals of the UN to be achieved by year 2015 and works unstintingly, through its many arms worldwide, to achieve that objective.
The Sangha believes in educating and empowering girls and, apart from the work being done in its international branches, has two basic junior schools, 62 primary schools, seven higher secondary schools in India, and the only women’s college in Nagaland.  It also operates 40 students’ homes with 3881 students; 50 orphanages; 32 free reading libraries; 15 students’ book banks and four schools for the children of the slums in Kolkata.
The Pranav Chhrabas free students hostel houses students of Post Graduate Standards of Calcutta University, Jadavpur University, Ravindra Bharati University, among others.  These institutions and programmes are replicated throughout the world.  There are also computer and technology training centres, Body and Yoga training centres and shelters for students worldwide.
Scholarships have also been provided by the Sangha for meritorious students, with shelter being provided for students at various locations during examinations and job-seeking activities. The Indian Government has also approved six months of E.C.G. training and one year Physiotherapy training at Sangha centres in India.
Vocational and technical courses, such as driving and motor training, tailoring, among other areas of industry have also been factored into the Sangha’s educational system.
In Guyana, along with the original Swami Purnanandaji primary and secondary schools (Hindu College) and library, there have also been established various other training programmes, including literacy and computer science, with a techvoc centre soon to come on stream, which is propagating the work started by the supreme Guru Acharya when he first envisioned, then established the Bharat Sevashram Sangha, which today straddles the parameters of the abode of humankind.
Currently visiting the Ashram from Head Office in Kolkata and other locations are Pujya Shrimat Swami Vividishanandaji Maharaj; Shrimat Swami Sarsatanandaji Maharaj: Shrimat Swami Mahanandaji Maharaj; Shrimat Swami Sadhanandaji Maharaj; Shrimat Swami Bhajanandaji Maharaj; Shrimat Swami Atmajnananandaji Maharaj; Shrimat Swami Provanandaji Maharaj; and Shrimat Swami Parameshwaranandaji Maharaj.
An organisation of many firsts, the Bharat Sevashram Sangha established a sister arm, the first of its kind, the Pranavananda Matri Ashram, with the same ideals as the B.S.S., with branches in Canada and Kolkata, India. This organisation also produced the first Guyanese female Swami, Pujyaniya Sanyasini Shudabhodatma Nanadamayee, who is also currently visiting Guyana from her base in Kolkata, accompanied by Pujyaniya Sanyasini Shivanandamaya.
The Ashram will again be graced by the presence of the learned monks at another satsangh to be held today, Thursday, beginning 6.00 p.m.