THE FORGOTTEN APOSTLE OF RAMAKRISHNA

 

THE FORGOTTEN APOSTLE OF RAMAKRISHNA 

The 17 direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna. Remember, 17 and not 16 as is being propagated by the Ramakrishna Mission today for some unmentioned reason of the Order. Swami Nirmalananda (Tulsi Maharaj) is the disciple deliberately left out of the count. And devotees acquiesce to such an untruth being peddled. 

Read the life and message of this 17th disciple of Thakur, the one who was mighty close to Swami Vijnanananda and persuaded him to join the Order eventually when he was living as celibate lay devotee in his Allahabad residence. 

Nirmalanandaji was a sterling monk in the masculine mould, the type Swamiji vouched for and exhorted his countrymen to adopt, albeit in general householder terms. He had established 26 Ramakrishna ashramas in all, if my memory serves right, was effectual architect of the Bangalore Ashrama whose ownership led to litigation problems between him and the Mission and which sullied the pure waters flowing from the Paramahamsa's feet for the while. 

Perhaps, this court case has prompted the Ramakrishna Mission to draw a pious veil over this unseemly event and induced them to eliminate Swami Nirmalananda's name from the list of Sri Ramakrishna's direct monastic male disciples which is, though, unfortunate as it is historically untrue, and the Avatar of the Age cannot be worshipped but in truth for he was literally the embodiment of truth during his life. 

Hope this aberration will be duly rectified soon to the health and well-being of the Mission and its countless devotees and to the perennial peace of those who have struggled thus far in vain for the restoration of the due status of this most seminal of monks in the history of modern India whose absence from the pantheon of the direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna is weakening the Mission's propagation work for sure. History demands justice. 

Written by Sugata Bose