News Bulletin 01 September 2017

Personalia

Most Revered  Swami Smarananandaji Maharaj, President, Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, is keeping well.

Revered Swami Vagishanandaji Maharaj, Vice-President, is scheduled to visit Kamarpukur, Bankura and Purulia from 15 to 22 September. He is keeping well at Cossipore Math.

Revered Swami Gautamanandaji Maharaj, Vice-President, will be visiting Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Kothar, Puri, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Rajamahendravaram and Vijayawada from 5 to 24 September. He is in good health.

Revered Swami Prabhanandaji Maharaj, Vice-President, is keeping well at Belur Math.

Revered Swami Shivamayanandaji Maharaj, Vice-President, is scheduled to return to Kankurgachhi Math on 19 September after his visit to Assam. He will be visiting Barisha from 22 to 24 September. He is keeping well.

Revered Swami Suhitanandaji Maharaj, Vice-President, is scheduled to return to Belur Math on 8 September after his visit to Gurap and Bardhaman. He will be visiting Rajarhat Bishnupur from the 15 to 19 September, and Baghbazar from 20 to 24 September. He is in good health.

Headquarters

Shri Krishna Janmashtami was celebrated at Belur Math on 14 August 2017. Photos.

On 15 August morning,  the wooden structure (kathamo) for Sri Sri Ma Durga was worshipped. Photos.

New Mission Centres

(1) Jhargram   

A new branch centre of Ramakrishna Mission has been started on the premises of Ekalavya Model Residential School (EMRS) and an adjacent plot of land at Jhargram in West Bengal leased out by the Government of West Bengal. The government had been running this school before handing over its management to Ramakrishna Mission. The school has been renamed “Ramakrishna Mission Vidyamandira (EMRS)”.

The address of the centre is :

Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama,

Satyaban Pally,

Jhargram,

West Bengal 721507

Phone No. : 94325 61721

Email Id : jhargram@rkmm.org

(2) Lumdung  

Another branch centre of Ramakrishna Mission has been started on the thirty-six acres of land at Lumdung village in East Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh received as a gift from Nanghee Natung Moya Tacha Welfare Society and the people of Lumdung. Construction of the buildings of the centre will start shortly.

The address of the centre is :

Ramakrishna Mission,

Lumdung,

PO. Seppa,

Dist. East Kameng,

Arunachal Pradesh 790102

Phone No. : 94368 87828

Email Id : lumdung@rkmm.org

(3) New Town, Kolkata

One more branch centre of Ramakrishna Mission has been started on the five acres of land at New Town in Kolkata leased out by the Government of West Bengal on a perpetual basis. Construction of buildings of the centre is in progress.

The address of the centre is :

Ramakrishna Mission Centre for Human Excellence and Social Sciences,

Near Eco Park car-parking area,

New Town, Kolkata 700156

Phone No. : 94333 10079

Email Id : kolkata.newtown@rkmm.org

Celebration of the 150th Birth Anniversary of Sister Nivedita

Coimbatore Mission Vidyalaya conducted quiz competitions and lectures at three villages near Coimbatore on 2 and 16 August. In all, 302 people, mainly students, took part in the programmes. Report and Photos.

Antpur Math conducted a youths’ convention on 30 July in which 153 youths participated.

Chennai Math held a convention for students at Chengam in Thiruvannamalai district on 11 August; it was attended by about 200 students from 3 colleges and 3 schools.

Lalgarh Math held a procession, cultural competitions and a public meeting on 25 and 26 April; a good number of people participated in the programmes.

Salem Ashrama held programmes for students at six schools in and around Salem from 13 July to 8 August. In all, 1472 boys and girls attended the programmes. The centre also conducted a youths’ convention on 28 August in which 900 students from 12 colleges took part.

Saradapitha conducted seminars in two girls’ schools at Belur and Rahara on 17 and 18 August respectively. In all, about 500 students and 50 teachers took part in the seminars.

Sarisha Ashrama held a teachers’ seminar on 1 July in which 65 teachers from different schools participated.

Swamiji’s Ancestral House held four lectures between 28 July and 9 August at the centre; they were attended altogether by 1410 people. During the same period three discourses were conducted, on the centre’s initiative, in and around Kolkata; in all, they were attended by about 1000 people.

Varanasi Home of Service conducted a devotional music programme on 27 August.

Communication Address

Phone numbers:

Gwalior centre has discontinued both of its previous telephone connections. It has now only one telephone connection with number 0751-4040350.

News of Branch Centres (in India)

Chennai Math, in association with another religious organization based in Chennai, celebrated the 1000th birth year of Sri Ramanujacharya on 10 August. About 500 devotees attended the programme. More Photos.

Deoghar centre served lemonade to about 5000 pilgrims during the Shravani Mela from 9 July to 7 August.

Prof. Kaptan Singh Solanki, Governor of Haryana, visited Gwalior centre on 2 August and took part in the sapling plantation programme conducted there. Detailed Report.

Chandipur Math conducted a medical check-up camp for cleft-lip patients on 21 August in which 25 patients were examined. Photos.

Kanpur centre held a national seminar on Creative Education and Teachers’ Training on 19 August, in which 350 professors, teachers and teacher trainees took part.

Medinipur centre conducted a free medical camp on the premises of a school in a backward tribal area in Paschim Medinipur district on 15 August. Nine doctors, including two paediatricians, a gynaecologist and a dentist, treated 1093 patients.

Mysuru centre held a teachers’ workshop on 18 August in which about 100 teachers from 20 higher secondary schools took part.

Sri P B Acharya, Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, visited Narottam Nagar centre on 30 August.

Narottam Nagar centre held a medical camp on 19 August in which 219 patients were treated by two specialists.

Swami Vagishanandaji inaugurated the extended and renovated ‘Sri Ramakrishna Smriti Bhavan’ at Sinthi (Beni Pal Udyan) centre on 20 August, the sacred birthday of Swami Advaitanandaji
Maharaj. Report and Photos.

Our Tirupati centre celebrated it’s second anniversary from 5 to 8 August 2017 by organizing, Teachers’ Convention, Spiritual Retreat and Youth Convention. Report and Photos.

Our Visakhapatnam centre organized 6 months Tailoring Training Programmes for tribal women in two villages (Galipadu and Kunchi Mandala) of Viskhapatnam district. It was concluded on 31 July 2017. Total 42 tribal women was trained, and all the trainees were provided with tailoring machines. Report and Photos.

The following centres conducted free eye camps:

Values Education and Youth Programmes

Delhi centre held 16 values education workshops from 2 to 30 August which were attended by 990 teachers and 70 principals. The workshops were held in 8 states apart from Chandigarh and
Delhi.

Swachchha Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Campaign)

Mysuru Ashrama conducted three cleaning drives on 6, 20 and 27 August in which a number of volunteers cleaned different parts of the city. Besides cleaning, volunteers campaigned to spread awareness about cleanliness by visiting homes and commercial establishments. Report and Photos.

Bankura centre held a cleanliness drive on 13 August in which the campus of a hospital was cleaned.

Coimbatore Mission Vidyalaya conducted four cleaning drives between 1 and 12 August in which the Vidyalaya students cleaned some public places including a temple.

News of Branch Centres (Outside India)

On Swamiji’s historic return from the West in January 1897, he had been given a grand reception at Thambyah Mudaliyar Chathiram, a pilgrims’ resting place, in Colombo (Sri Lanka). Later on, some more monastic disciples of Sri Ramakrishna had visited that place on different occasions. A memorial shrine dedicated to the Holy Trio was recently constructed there by our Colombo centre. Swami Gautamanandaji inaugurated the memorial on 7 August. Report and Photos.

The new altar at the shrine of Portland (USA) centre was consecrated on 14 August.

Obituary 

We are sorry to announce the passing away of Swami Nikhilatmanandaji (Devendra Maharaj) at Varanasi Sevashrama hospital on 22 August at 6.45 pm owing to renal failure. He was 81 and had been suffering from diabetes, hypertension and cardiac problems for some years. Initiated by Swami Vishuddhanandaji Maharaj, he joined the Order in 1971 at Raipur centre and had Sannyasa from Swami Vireshwaranandaji Maharaj in 1980. Besides his joining centre, he served at Rahara and Deoghar centres as an assistant and Allahabad, Narainpur and Jaipur centres as the head. He had been living a retired life mainly at Varanasi Advaita Ashrama for the last three years. The Swami was a good singer and an impressive speaker. His discourses on Rama-charita-manas were well appreciated. He was also a good writer and has several articles to his credit. Amiable by nature, he endeared himself to all those who came in contact with him.