Back from the Himalayas..Reverand Swami Kripamayananda returns from Mount Kailash

In the August of 2013  a much loved and popular monk ..who is the head of the Vedanta Society of Toronto Revered Swami Kripamayananda visited  Mount Kailash and the Lake Manosaravar in the Himalayas. This is one of the holiest pilgrimages for the followers  of many Faiths from the East to the West.. on Sunday night Swami returned to the centre in Toronto Canada .

On Monday a small group of devotees including I were able to meet him and get a tiny glimpse of his pilgrimage..

Wikipedia described Mount Kailash and Lake Monosaravar  as" a peak in the Kailas Range , which are part of the Transhimalaya in Tibet. This place is considered a sacred place in four religions: Bön, Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism. The mountain lies near Lake Manasarowar and Lake Rakshastal in Tibet." Untill recently it was considered one of the most difficult terrains to cross and took several months and almost an year to visit and many never returned to tell the story..

In the huge hall upstairs at the Vedanta society of Toronto, there is a framed picture  of Mount Kailash, the Lake Manosaravar and another of Swami Vivekananda.

When reverend Swami Kripamayananda Maharaj showed us the pictures of Mt Kailash and the Lake Manosaravar  which he himself clicked on his IPhone just a few weeks ago..it was kind of uncanny. A reinforced feeling of " being able to reach whatever  heights you strive for"..

"When you look at the Mount Kailash from so close up..you feel that you can almost embrace it.." he told us..The Swami talked about the breath taking view from Nepal across the China border to Tibet and the beautifully simple and open hearted people..He showed us pictures of the Pony rides he and the 29 other pilgrims took over the hills and mountains and the still and clear waters of Lake Manosarowar the highest fresh water lake in the world. On August 6th the night of the new moon, the Swami and his group reached Mt Kailash. He had once explained how the new moon is the time when " Sadhakas" ( serious aspirants) practise their Sadhana ( penances ) .You feel God so `clearly' in the beauty of nature " he has said in many of his talks..and  in the pictures of  Manosarawar and Kailash  we see that the Divine Artist was on a `special mission' of endowing Lake Manosaravar and Kailash with unearthly beauty,....
 


Maya Sheshgiri and husband Dr Jitin our friends from Toronto were some of the lucky ones who were part of the group on this once in a life time experience. Maya spoke of  how her heart was filled with peace and happiness which could not be described . " Travelling in the company of those who like Shiva have renounced everything in the world is the greatest of all experiences " she recalled.."We learnt and experienced much just by being in the presence of a true Holy Man"..

Tired but happy our beloved Swami shared his spiritual experience more in his presence than by just words. He brought back the  peaceful and holy vibrations of the sacred Mountains in the Himalayas and of Belur in Kolkatta and also Kathmandu in Nepal which was the main stop over..

 The `Rudraksha Beeds' from Nepal and holy Water from Lake Manosarawaar  were mementos of his affection and sacred `Prasad'.to the believers.

Swami Kripamayananda spoke about his trip to Kailash in  a lecture delivered at the Vedanta society of Toronto in early November 2013. The videa recording of the talk in his own words can be viewed on the Vedanta society website.
 ( http://newsite.vedantatoronto.ca/media.shtml)

Last year  in the summer of 2012 Reverend Swami Kripamayananda Maharaj made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, Jordan and all the holy sites of Christianity in Europe and returned with the same joy and peace which he felt at Mt Kailash. We too felt the same when he spoke with true admiration and enthusiasm about the " Holy Land" and the greatness of  true followers of the Christ..and of Judaism.

Its difficult to explain this view to some of the fanatical `followers' of any faith whether it be Islam, or Hindusim or  of Christianity . Fanatics  spend their time and energy in deriding and hating people of other faiths.They are unable to just follow their own paths in peace and tranquility and respectfully experience everything beautiful there is to know.in each. but..."To each his own."

 
Religious Fanaticism which is another face of Racism is a huge  billion dollar industry. Under the guise of `spirituality' covert and not so covert messages of ' hate and distrust and " our way is right and everyone else is wrong" is planted into the minds and hearts of the unsuspecting..it has become the `Brain washing methodology" of mankind..
TV evangelism that spreads more divisiveness and fanaticism in every faith..whether it be Hinduism, Christianity, Islam or more..has become a huge industry by itself..

Many of these  so called  Religious `Leaders'..go to great lengths in their sermons to prove that  their path alone is right and everyone else's path is wrong and how the world is `out to get them' .So the only purpose of life for the faithful  is to fight the unfaithful..
There is no spiritual message of how to deal with their own lives and find the answers they seek. There is no talk about how man can communicate with God in meditation, and prayer , in the beauty of nature and in service to mankind.. .and sadly  many of their followers actually feel uplifted and `renewed' after listening to their `war cries' made in the name of their God..
My question is..why do we seek spirituality and what it is we are looking for..when we start our journey and search into the spiritual unknown.?

I remember more than 20 years ago when I was a young  student .. my beloved Father was diagnosed with terminal cancer..it was also the time I was facing the pangs and heart break of being a very young woman growing up...my world was falling to pieces all around me..

I ran to temples and Holy men and  then by and by a found the  path and spiritual practices that brought peace to my mind and soul and gave me the strength and inner faith to withstand everything...That path was the one of Vedanta which is a harmony and respect and love for all that is truly spiritual and great in religion..and so a Vedantist can be free wherever he goes..because he is not bound by any one `religion' ..but can see the same God in all..




Was I looking for rhetoric..? Was I looking for speeches and war cries against others ..No..I was searching for a healing balm for my broken soul...I found that in the search for a god that heals and loves and not in `fanaticism' and hate..which is preached by the bigots in every path..the spiritual methods of meditation and contemplation are the basis of this most ancient and peace giving religion ..that comes from the Vedas..( the oldest known scipiritual scriptures of the world) and has worked for me and for millions through the ages.It teaches each individual to communicate and meditate on their God in the deepest receses of their heart and soul alone...
...
But You  can see the Bigots dressed as priests in some of the temples, churches and mosques of Canada ..In some temples they justify the system of caste and rights of men over women..
You hear them in the pulpits of ` extremist churches' singing and shouting aloud  " our God is the best God.the ONLY God. He is better than  any other" ???  sorry guys.you lost me there .
As you say if he  is the ONLY God of everybody..( and your book is the only one )... where does the " ours  and yours and we and they " come in..? That is divisive politics to divide people of different faiths and keep the congregation from opening their minds and hearts..and flying out..in fact a lot of religions is more about politics than the personal journey of each soul towards the " Peace that surpasses all understanding"....
You hear it in the messages of hate coming from the blood soaked deserts of the Middle East." all non believers should be killed" "  
The same demonic message ..coming through different garbs in different religions..from men and women who have never ever really known or understood their true spiritual nature..." One wonders what gives any individual the right to take this high road of
" Holier than thou"?"Everyone else except us follows us  a false religion..Says who???
isn't hate and divisiveness the greatest show of atheism.
I am personally a very great fan of Joel Osteen the Christian Evangelist from Lakewood church USA. Ever since Brian introduced me to his books and talks..I am one of the millions who considers him a man with a positive message not only for Christians but for all who need some positive direction in their lives. Though I find the style and message of many of the Christian evangelists divisive  and political I think Vedantists would consider Joel Osteen as one of their own..so universal and wide is his message and reach.

 More than a hundred years ago an intensely spiritual man named Ramakrishna who loved his God with an intense passion lived his life in Dakshineswar India..

This humble man devoted his life to practicing the path of every faith and experienced the same light and intense peace which each path promises. He declared.."Joto Math..Totho Path" Every path when it is of of peace and divinity ..is true as the other".." They ( the Prophets )were all right and lead us to the same Truth"..and each one of you can experience it too..anyway you like.."
and like him  those who have actually reached that ocean of light and truth..all say that every path leading to that ocean is as true as the other.. some may be easier for you and the other easier for others..but we are all headed there ...

Vedanta and the path of Ramakrishna Paramahansa which Vedantist follow describes every incarnation from Krishna to Jesus , from Buddha to Mohammed as true and sacred and so a true Vedantist feels as much as joy and enthusiasm in a church as in a temple..in Jerusalem as much as in Manosaravar or Bodh Gaya. The Vedanta centre temples over N America celebrate Christmas with as much as reverence as they celebrate Janmashtami and the pictures of Jesus finds as much a place of respect as those of  Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda and  Ma Sarada Devi on the alter.To readers of Dale Carnegie it would be something like " Im OK you too are OK " in the spiritual realm.And you can see these qualities in great men and women of every religion.


Today slowly but surely thousands in India , a few hundred in Canada and many more over the world live their life by the clear message of Vedanta." I will follow the path that works for me..but I totally respect and trust that the path you have chosen is true too". ( as long as it is one of peace and tolerance and not of hate and violancel).and yet those that live with this outlook are too few in number...
 

In an age where religious fanaticism and hate rule many aspects of life in the world..maybe the message and presence of these peace bringers like the gentle and peace giving Monks of Vedanta such as our own  Swami Kripamayananda who can experience the divine bliss in both Jerusalem and Mt Kailash in the same breath..need to heard above that of all else....

Posted by Lipi Mukherji.

Remembering both 9/11 and August 14th- 2003... when The Lights went out in many ways.....

10 years ago on August 14th 2003 there was a massive electric grid failure in NE America from New York in USA  to Toronto in Canada. Most people remember where they were and what happened on that day.For me it was also the day the mortal remains of Swami Pramathananda Maharaj the first president of the Vedanta Society of Toronto was consigned to the sacred fires. He was a beloved Monk and spiritual light to many in Toronto Canada ..He was my spiritual and emotional anchor when I came alone as an immigrant to this country.It was  he who had assisted me in my trip across the border to New York  as a journalist during the night of 9/11. On the 10th anniversary of our last goodbye to our beloved Swami Pramathananda Maharaj the first president of the Vedanta society of Toronto Canada.I recall those two tragic days when the lights went out for hundreds of people not only in Toronto and New York.....but in many ways around the world..

I was amongst the hundreds of mourners at the Sanctuary cemetery on Lawrence West on August 14th 2003.. We were there to pay our last respects to Swami Pramathananda the minister and spiritual leader of the Vedanta society of Toronto. The elderly monk had given so much to the people of US , India and Canada that people had traveled hundreds of miles and over several continents to say their last goodbye that day August 14th 2003.

 He was the first person who had given me a warm welcome , encouragement and solace when I had arrived alone as a landed immigrant to Canada with just my dreams and two bags in June 2001.Since Vedanta society is affiliated with the spiritual organisations and temples which my family was associated with in India  I had heard about the Swami long before I landed in Canada.

He was a living legend even in his life time..Though a tiny man..his courage and spirit were legendry. He was the monk who was posted to difficult frontiers like the Ramakrishna mission School in Purulia  ( N E India )where he would build up a centre for educating tribal youth in the scorpion infested wilderness and tame both unruly school boys and militants alike. He was a direct disciple of Swami Virajananda Maharaj who was a direct disciple of the legendry Swami Vivekananda ..the first Indian Monk to bring the glory of India and her spiritual heritage to the west..

In the last two decades of his life Swami Pramathananda Maharaj was stationed first in the USA and then in Canada where he officially established the first Vedanta society in Canada. In Canada he gave many people of all ages and from all walks of life. A spiritual and a practical dimension to their life's goals and aspirations. It was touching and awe inspiring to see him deal with so many different personalities from various cultural and ethnic backgrounds and faiths..

Whether it was an American woman who wanted to become a Buddhist Nun or a Canadian youth who was looking for direction in his life..the Swami was able to give them the right answers and the peace that they were seeking,. He helped many individuals in many different ways..In Toronto, Swami single handedly ran the first Vedanta society in Canada and faced many challenges seen and unseen ..but he steered his ship with vision and courage. As the Chaplain for Vedanta at the University of Toronto  he helped many youth seeking spiritual guidance by the universal message of Vedanta. He also traveled and lectured extensively throughout Canada and the United Statest  trying to  help make  the life's journey of spiritual seekers one of peace and of a noble purpose...


It was he who had given my Mother hope and comfort that I would make it alone..when she visited me that Fall of 2001.That was  the  first and last time that they ever met..but she has never forgotten this introspective monk who had a fatherly attitude and a spiritual insight and aura that was so rare..Almost after the first few meetings she said to me " we are in the company of a very spiritual and true Monk.."
I owed much to Swami Pramathananda Maharaj ..he was my emotional and spiritual anchor in the first few years of life here as a young immigrant alone in Toronto..
He encouraged me to continue to be a writer..when I first arrived here . Leaving behind a wonderful and promising career as a full fledged journalist a crime reporter and columnist for a Pioneering English Language News paper in India..I learnt the harsh reality that freelancing cannot pay the bills in Canada.
On the night of 9/11 it was Swami Pramathananda who encouraged me to go to New York and cover the aftermath of the devastation there as a news reporter. It was my `dharma' ( duty) he said.  It was he who called his contacts in New York and arranged for me to have a place to stay and someone to go back to when my work was done. 

Looking back being able to cover the aftermath of that 9/11 and the breaking story  of the handful of Indians who were lost in that carnage was a life changing experience for me.
I am sure that like me anyone who was trying to cross the border between Canada and US that night..will never forget what it was like..
Armed Police, Paramilitary..sniffer dogs ..chaos and fear.and also a shared shock and sadness...
This was my fist ever trip to USA and what a way and what a day ( or night) to visit this great land of freedom and dreams..!


The experience of being alone in New York just hours after the attack was like being part of something too huge for an ordinary human being like me to comprehend . The aftermath of 9/11 as a journalist truly humbled me. It was once more that I realized that as reporters we are never greater than our stories or the people we write about. They make us humble..and... It is they..that are truly great.. The day we stop feeling the pain and the..heart throbs of our brethren that day my friend..we have truly died within ourselves.  Walking in the open grave of ground zero on September 12th, there was an eerie feeling of  loss and heart break not only for America but for all mankind . To me it seemed like this was just the beginning of things to come..We feel the vibrations and thoughts of people ..we have never met and yet who we are bound to..Ground Zero was so powerfully painful and heart breaking..that to this day..I often awaken suddenly and feel the sadness of standing across the skeleton structure of the fallen towers ..the huge gaping crater that was ground zero and..I felt as if I were alone in a foresaken world and that day I cried out for God and truth and the return of warmth and love of normal human existance again in this land which has given hope and freedom to so many millions.

I spent many hours alone walking along and around the zone and everything seemed so unreal that it was almost impossible to comprehend . Late that evening I went to my Hotel and then the next day to the Vedanta society of New York where I found peace and comfort in the company of the senior Monk and the very friendly and affectionate American disciples and devotees of the temple there.

( The feature story  of  my journey through the ruins was carried in the Sunday Spectrum  Maharashtra Herald 21st September 2001) .
I also remember the warm hospitality and affection with which reverend Swami Tathagathananda , President of the New York Vedanta Society received me. It was Swami Tathagathananda who personally arranged an interview with the Indian High Commissioner in the US for me and I was able to learn first hand about the people of Indian origin who were feared lost in the attack and what the Indian Government was doing. to assist their families and support the US in its darkest hour..Swami Tathagathananda Maharaj said something which I never forget..." Remember the towers that have been broken will be rebuilt again.oneday...but human character. and morality and conscience once lost cannot be easily rebuilt ever again "
Returning to Toronto and Canada also made me realise how blessed we are to be in such a beautiful and safe country where public trust and decency is still a way of life.

I remember the fatherly love , affection and concern with which this wonderful Monk Swami Pramathananda Maharaj had not only for me but all those who were blessed to know him closely.. He was a keen observer of human nature and character and also a very good teacher. Firm in his disapproval when necessary and warm in his approval when delighted. While he encouraged me in my writing career , He never failed to remind all of us of the higher meaning of life that goes beyond the search for name, fame, power and possessions.  He was a true living example of every spiritual truth he believed in....That is what I remember most..

In the months that followed Vedanta Society Toronto the temple and monastery was the home I could come back to every weekend just to meet this beloved fatherly monk.
 
How delighted he was when I got my first job and how he heard my prayers and dreams and listened not just with his ears but from his heart..He also on very rare occasion revealed a side of  himself which was a part of a divinity that is immortal. On many occasion while in the middle of conversation he would ask me to wait..then go into his chambers and return in a few minutes..he would then quietly tell me something about myself which only I or my Mother knew..an incident or a characteristic. He once wrote down a message on a yellow sticky paper and gave it to me..It is a very sacred and special message which he has asked me to verify in my future and as the years go by..I know that what he said is perfectly true..and his words cannot be proved wrong.. 
Those happy days..turned to weeks and then months and two years were gone..



...and then one day this beautiful association was all suddenly over. We began to notice that Swami was less and less at the centre ..
  
In early 2003, Swami Pramathananda was diagnosed with terminal pacreatic cancer..It was as if by instinct that I and many of the people whose lives he had touched knew that our time with our Swami was suddenly over..

Some unseen force pulled us to the centre in the summer of 2003 and we heard the shattering news shared with us in silence..
. During the progress of the disease, he remained alert and focused on the work of the center and the well being of the congregation. he showed no fera or remorse and scolded us if we shed tears in his presence.
As an educationist himself..  Swami Pramathananda was  deeply interested in education. He wanted to be able to provide education that included moral and spiritual values. Towards his end, in June 2003, the Vedanta Society began the "Vedanta Vidya Mandir" - a children's school that teaches  music, vedic chanting, Indian history, and moral and spiritual values through stories. The detailed plans for this school were written by the Swami himself during one of his last visits to the hospital. He worked unceasingly..

 Swami Pramathananda's last public lecture was aptly titled "Spiritual Journey" and was given on Sunday, July 20, 2003 during the Annual Summer Retreat.The hall was filled with hundreds of people..there was a deeply sombre yet spiritual atmosphere in the room as he spoke..he looked around and blessed every one present there that day and even grown men and women..could not contain their sobs..as they realised that he was saying his last goodbyes to us..

 A few days later, he lost his voice and communicated through handwritten notes. On July 27, 2003, he coordinated and was present at the welcome reception for Swami Kripamayananda  the present head of the Vedanta Society of Toronto.

Swami Pramathananda's address was read out to the congregation.

I remember how In the last few months of the Summer of 2003 we would gather at the temple in the evenings..sing and pray and gather around him in the room where he lay ..sometimes he smiled at us and blessed us..sometimes he seemed asleep, sometimes he gave us candy like we were children ...Swami's physical condition deteriorated rapidly in the following weeks. During this time, physicians, nurses and attendants were astonished at the degree of Swami's self-control, mental alertness and concern for others. ..and then just like the flickering light on a beautiful candle he passed away at 8.25 a.m. EST on Tuesday, August 12, 2003 at the age of 83. The final moments were peaceful.


August 14th 2003..after an entire morning of visitations and prayer at the Temple on 120 Emette Ave Toronto..The mortal remains of our Swami were  taken to the cemetery on Royal York and Lawrence West. 
The convoy drove along the tree lined Emette Ave  following our beloved Swami in his last journey down the very paths where he used to walk and pray in solitude every day in the last 12 years of his life. Hundreds of mourners..young and old alike walked behind the convoy that day....
...
It was late afternoon  by the time the new Monk in Charge  of Vedanta Society
Reverend  Swami Kripamayananda Maharaj ( The present head of the Vedanta society of Toronto) recited the last prayers and Vedic chants in the little chapel  at the cemetery .

Then he and two of the devotees who had served Swami Pramathananda Maharj until his last breath -Harmesh Chander and Prof Kumar Murty ( UofT) stepped into the doorway of the electric crematorium to consign the coffin of Swami Pramathananda to the Fires ..The atmosphere was charged with spirituality and a sad peace...  We all returned to the Vedanta society temple on Emmette ave  and the lights suddenly went out at around 4 pm. Someone  checked the fuses and the wires and we sat around until we heard of The Eastern Grid failure that stretched from N.Y ,USA to Canada..outisde the world seemed to screech to a stand still .  There seemed to be  a lot of chaos and excitement out on the streets ... 


But for us we spent that night in prayer and sharing stories of how a single life could touch so many.. .. 10 years have passed away since that beautiful life. left us ..the life.of a beloved Monk.. who was to us a father and grand father and holy man and  friend all rolled into one.. Seems like  so much has vanished. I console my self knowing that he has .returned to that eternal  light ..a light which never fails nor goes out....the light to which we will all return one day....
...more

Lipi  K Mukherji

· Edit · Delete · Flag · Like · Share · Reply