Personalia
Revered President Maharaj is in Salem and is scheduled to return to Belur Math on 2 September. Thereafter, he will visit Sohra, Shillong and Guwahati from 12 to 19 September.
Swami Suhitanandaji will visit Shyampukur Bati on 6 September, and Mangaluru, Ponnampet, Mysuru and Bengaluru from 13 to 21 September.
Swami Bhajananandaji is at Belur Math.
Swami Girishanandaji is in Somsar. He will return to Belur Math on 15 September after visiting Bardhaman and Katwa (West Bengal). Subsequently, he will visit Narendrapur from 22 to 24 September.
Swami Divyanandaji is scheduled to visit Contai and Chandipur from 1 to 6 September, Barasat from 11 to 15 September, Barisha and Batanagar (West Bengal) from 16 to 20 September, Gadadhar Ashrama on 23 September, and Kamarpukur and Jayrambati from 27 September to 2 October.
Swami Vimalatmanandaji will be visiting Balaram Mandir on 5 and 6 September, and Siliguri and Cooch Behar from 12 to 19 September.
All of them are keeping well.
New Mission Centre
A new Mission centre has been started at Borjhar, Assam, following the takeover of Sri Ramakrishna Sevashram, Borjhar, in July. In this connection, a programme comprising special worship and a public meeting was held on the morning of 10 August.
The centre’s address is
Ramakrishna Mission,
Near Guwahati Airport,
Borjhar, Guwahati, Assam 781015
Phone number: 91014 72741
Email Id: borjhar@rkmm.org
The Sevashram was founded in 1975.
News of Branch Centres Outside India
The new campus of the Vedanta Society of Kansas City, USA, (a sub-centre of the Vedanta Society of St. Louis) was formally inaugurated on 16 August, the sacred Krishna Janmashtami, with special worship, homa, a cultural programme, a public meeting and release of a commemorative volume. Several monks and 200 devotees attended the event.
The address of the new campus is
Vedanta Society of Kansas City,
10808 Wornall Road,
Kansas City, Missouri 64114, USA.
News of Branch Centres in India
Revered President Maharaj inaugurated the newly built dining hall at Kasundia centre, Howrah, on 27 July.
Revered President Maharaj dedicated the Vivekananda Institute of Human Excellence at Pune centre on 9 August, the birthday of Swami Niranjananandaji Maharaj. The three-day programme, held in this connection from 8 to 10 August, included bhajans, public meetings and a youths’ convention.
Swami Divyanandaji opened the newly built monks’ quarters and book showroom at Dhaleswar centre, Agartala, on 9 August.
On 19 August, Swami Suhitanandaji dedicated the second floor of the main building at Ujjain centre, which will serve as the monks’ quarters.
Sri Lakshman Prasad Acharya, Governor of Assam, visited Silchar centre on 24 August.
Swami Vimalatmanandaji inaugurated the new kitchen-cum-dining hall, named Ma Sarada Bhavan, at Lalgarh centre on 25 August.
Our Seva Pratishthan hospital, Kolkata, was conferred the Ananda Swasthya Shrestha Samman award by ABP Ananda, a Bengali TV news channel. The hospital received a certificate and a trophy at a function held in Kolkata on 2 August.
Swaraj Sansthan Sanchalanalaya, Department of Culture, Government of Madhya Pradesh, conferred the Maharaja Agrasen Rashtriya Samman on our Vrindavan hospital in recognition of its contribution to society by providing excellent medical facilities at charitable rates. Dr Mohan Yadav, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, presented the award, comprising a citation and a sum of two lakh rupees, at a programme held in Bhopal on 15 August.
On the sacred occasion of Jagannath Ratha Yatra in Puri, Puri Mission Ashrama served lemonade to altogether 7500 pilgrims on 27 June and 5 July.
On 5 August, Mamata Banerjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal, virtually laid the foundation stones for a guest house and a parking facility at Kamarpukur centre while attending an event in a nearby place.
Swami Bhajananandaji inaugurated and participated in the Samskrit Saptah (Sanskrit Week), conducted by RKMVERI at Belur Math from 6 to 12 August.
Students of our Blind Boys’ Academy at Narendrapur Ashrama bagged the following prizes at the West Bengal Para State Games conducted by the Bengal Paralympic Association in Kolkata from 28 to 30 June: (i) 4 gold, 3 silver and 3 bronze medals in Para Blind Judo, and (ii) 5 gold, 6 silver and 2 bronze medals in Para Swimming.
Students of our Jhargram school won 1 silver and 3 bronze medals at the International Karate Championship held in Kolkata on 27 July. The event, conducted by Global Seishinkai Shitoryu Karate do Federation, saw the participation of about 1000 candidates from 12 countries.
Coimbatore Mission centre held state-level tournaments in adapted football, sitting volleyball, kabaddi and volleyball on 19 and 20 August. A total of 33 teams consisting of 282 people with disabilities from 25 districts of Tamil Nadu participated in the tournaments.
Two students of our Thrissur school were selected for the Indian national football team (junior category) by the All India Football Federation.
Communication Addresses
Phone Numbers:
Sribhumi (Karimganj) centre has discontinued its previous landline number 38432 62272. It has a new phone number: 87618 32861.
Rajamahendravaram centre has discontinued its previous landline number 88324 99000. It has a new phone number: 94901 86208.
Websites: Gurap centre has changed its website address from <www.rkmgurap.org> to www.guraprkm.org.
Values Education and Youth Programmes
The following centres held programmes mentioned against their names:
Adipur: Two values education programmes at two nearby schools on 31 July, in which a total of 95 students were in attendance.
Basavanagudi, Bengaluru: A lecture for youths on 17 August, in which 100 youths took part.
Coimbatore Mission: Four values education programmes from 28 July to 19 August, in which a total of 363 students were in attendance.
Cuttack: A youths’ convention on 27 July, in which 170 students from various educational institutions took part.
Dakshineshwar, Kolkata: (i) A retreat for youths on 15 August, in which altogether 24 youths participated. (ii) A values education programme at a local school on 26 August, in which 14 students were in attendance.
Garbeta: Values education classes from 24 to 26 August, in which 68 youths were in attendance.
Gurugram: (i) Nineteen online values education programmes for teachers from 26 July to 23 August, in which a total of 1374 teachers were in attendance. (ii) Sixteen values education programmes for teachers in different parts of the country from 26 July to 23 August, in which altogether 657 teachers took part. (iii) A values education session at IIM Lucknow from 22 to 24 August, in which 600 students participated.
Haripad: A values education programme on 14 August, in which 228 students were present.
Jalpaiguri: A youths’ camp on 3 August, in which 34 youths participated.
Kanpur: A talk for students in association with another organization at IIT Kanpur, on 23 August, which was attended by 60 students, research scholars and teachers.
Raipur: A personality development camp at a school in Gariaband district on 14 August, attended by 450 students and 20 teachers.
Rajamahendravaram: Two values education programmes at two educational institutions in Kakinada on 4 August, in which a total of 320 students were in attendance.
Rajkot: Thirty values education programmes from 21 July to 21 August, in which altogether 1533 students participated.
Sribhumi (Karimganj): A youths’ convention on 23 August, in which 250 students and 45 teachers took part.
Tirupati: Two youths’ conventions on 4 and 5 August, in which a total of 200 youths participated.
Viveknagar, Agartala: A day-long seminar on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Teaching and Learning Systems on 30 July, in which 103 people were in attendance.
Yadadri Bhuvanagiri: A residential youths’ retreat from 22 to 25 August, in which 40 youths took part.
Eye Camps and other Healthcare Services
The following centres conducted medical camps. A summary of the services provided by them is given below.
India:
Adipur: (i) An eye camp on 3 July, in which 97 patients were checked and 52 were given spectacles. (ii) Three homeopathy camps at nearby places from 3 to 27 July, in which a total of 249 patients were treated.
Chennai Math: A medical camp, in association with a medical college, at the centre’s rural development unit in Meyyur village on 27 July, in which 604 people from 15 nearby villages benefitted.
Coimbatore Mission: Eleven medical camps (1 dental, 1 ENT, 1 orthopaedic and 8 general camps) in and around Coimbatore from 27 July to 24 August, in which a total of 553 patients were treated.
Contai: A medical camp at the Egra block of Purba Medinipur district, on 15 August, in which 214 patients were treated.
Cooch Behar: A cleft lip and palate camp on 24 August, in which 64 patients were treated.
Digboi: Four medical camps from 6 July to 17 August: Altogether 55 patients were treated.
Gurap: An eye camp on 12 August, in which 40 patients were checked; later, 11 of them underwent cataract surgery at an eye hospital in Howrah.
Kalyani: A blood donation camp on 17 August in association with a local hospital, in which 56 people donated blood.
Kanpur: A medical camp at a nearby place on 27 July, in which 133 patients were treated.
Khetri: An eye camp on 24 August, in which 55 patients were checked; later, 15 of them underwent cataract surgery at an eye hospital in Jaipur.
Konampatti: (i) Four medical camps from 3 to 24 August, in which a total of 204 patients were checked. (ii) An eye camp in association with an eye hospital on 24 August, where 70 patients were screened; later on, 17 underwent cataract surgery in the hospital, and 16 were given spectacles.
Lucknow: Eye camps in July: 3436 patients were examined, 91 of them underwent surgery and received spectacles.
Madurai: (i) An eye camp on 17 August: 145 patients were screened; subsequently, 39 were operated on for cataract in an eye hospital, and 40 were given spectacles. (ii) A diabetes check-up camp on 17 August, where 144 patients were checked.
Manasadwip: (i) Conducted two eye camps in June and July, in which altogether 303 patients were treated. (ii) Arranged cataract surgery at an eye hospital for a total of 34 patients in June and July.
Naora: (i) Six ayurvedic medical camps, with the help of Narendrapur centre, from 6 June to 22 August, in which a total of 445 patients were treated. (ii) Six health awareness camps from 12 June to 19 August, in which altogether 747 patients were treated. (iii) Seven eye camps from 13 June to 23 August: altogether 311 patients were checked, and 116 were operated on.
Nattarampalli: An eye camp on 17 August: 158 patients were checked; subsequently, 55 underwent cataract surgery in an eye hospital, and 38 were given spectacles.
Patna: An eye camp at Rajgir, in association with another organization, on 5 August, where 80 patients were checked; later on, 5 were operated on for cataract at the ashrama’s eye clinic.
Porbandar: An eye camp on 8 August, where 61 patients were checked; later on, 54 were operated on for cataract in an eye hospital.
Rahara, Kolkata: A medical camp at Bongaon block, North 24 Parganas district, on 20 July, in which 655 patients were treated.
Sikra Kulingram: A health awareness camp on 11 August, in which 38 people benefitted.
Silchar: A dental camp at a nearby village, Silcoorie, on 3 August, in which 184 patients were treated.
Viveknagar, Agartala: (i) Three medical camps at Gomati and West Tripura districts from 10 to 24 August, in which, altogether 151 patients were treated. (ii) An eye camp in association with two other organizations on 22 August, in which 796 patients were checked.
Outside India:
Durban, South Africa: (i) A medical camp in Ladysmith on 22 June, in which 823 patients were treated. (ii) A blood donation drive on 22 June, where 16 pints of blood were collected.
Obituary
We record with sorrow the passing away of two of our brother monks.
Swami Jitamanasananda (Vijayakumar of Thanjavur centre), aged 69 years, passed away at Chennai Math, on 10 August at 8.42 pm. Initiated by Swami Vireshwaranandaji Maharaj, he joined the order in 1982 at Advaita Ashrama, Kolkata, and received sannyasa diksha from Swami Bhuteshanandaji Maharaj in 1992. He served at Advaita Ashrama, Chennai Students’ Home, Kochi, Singapore, Mumbai, Yelagiri and Thanjavur centres. The swami was gentle and affable.
Swami Nandishwaranandaji (Vamshi Maharaj of Varanasi Advaita Ashrama), aged 84 years, breathed his last at our Varanasi hospital on 14 August at 3.55 pm. An initiated disciple of Swami Vireshwaranandaji Maharaj, he joined the order in 1969 at Kamarpukur centre and received sannyasa diksha from his guru in 1978. He served at Belur Math (at the Thakur Bhandar of Sri Ramakrishna Temple, and as the pujari of Swami Brahmananda Temple) and at Kamarpukur, Chennai Math, Rajkot, Kanpur and Varanasi Advaita Ashrama centres. The swami was amiable by nature.