BARANAGAR MATH 1

Restoration of the Old Baranagar Math is going on. Devotees are requested to contribute generously for this holy project. Remember, this is the site where the direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna had practised unprecedented austerities and enlivened the future Ramakrishna Movement after the passing away of the Master in 1886. Pay a visit to this holiest of Ramakrishna Ashramas and see for yourselves what ought to be a privilege for the eyes and a pilgrimage for the soul. The monastic members here are most cordial and will show you round the place heartily. Two ancient pillars still stand intact despite the rest of the original building having collapsed in the devastating earthquake of 1892 shortly after the evacuation of the building by the inmates. Renovated though, they yet bear testimony to the times gone by when in a sweeping current of spirituality Swamiji and his brother disciples had been drawn into the sanctum sanctorum of the soul where they discovered the meaning of life here on earth and the spirit transcending all vestige of earthly contamination. Swamiji had set out on his epic journey of the discovery of India from this monastery and this was where the nucleus of the Ramakrishna Order was forged into a cohesive unit bonded in fraternal love and devotion to the ideal manifested by Sri Ramakrishna in his super-divine life. Here the brothers had formally taken monastic vows after utterance of the sacred Presh Mantra during the performance of the Viraja Hom, the mystic formula having been learnt by Swami Abhedananda during his wanderjahre across India. Baranagar Math remains historically the first Math of the Ramakrishna Order where the nascent organization was housed between 1886 and 1892. Thereafter, a long lapse of time has eventually circuited the Ramakrishna Movement back to its source and since 2004 the Baranagar Math has been officially adopted as a branch centre of Belur Math with Swami Vamanananda (Bhuban Maharaj) as its President. Since then the Restoration Project has been going on full-swing owing to the untiring efforts of the monks and the selfless service of a group of dedicated devotees and the generosity of donors who pride themselves rightfully as being part of a historical project. What more shall I say than to exhort all of you again to visit this veritable nursery of the Ramakrishna Movement whence sprang forth a spiritual current whose destiny is to deluge the remotest corners of the world, parched and thirsty for the life-giving waters of India? Come, be a part of this movement and feel fulfilled.