AkhandanandaBholanath DidimaGurupriya Didi Paramananda
HaribabaBhaijiGopinath KavirajAtmananda
Swami SwarupanandaSwami ChinmayanandaSwami VirajanandaSwami Vijayananda
Swami BhaskaranandaSwami SivanandaSwami BhajananandaSwami Omkarananda
Br KamalakantaBr YogeshdaBr AtuldaBr Hari Harda
Br TanmayanandaPanudaSwami KeshavanandaSri AbhaydaNarayan-Swami
Swami Nirvanananda

Haribaba

Hari Babaji

In 1943, Ma attended a Bhagavata function at Dehradun at the request of Prubhudutt Brahmachari. This was the first presence of Ma in the association of sadhus. Hari Babaji Maharaj also met Ma for the first time.

Sri Haribabaji was not an ordinary sadhu. He was a saint of a very high order. He was born in Hoshiarpur on Phalgun Holika Purnamasi, the birthday of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Haribabaji was a great devotee of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and, with a group of disciples, used to perform kirtana regularly three times a day with intense fervour and concentration.

He was born in a respected highly educated Sikh family of Gandhabal village (District Hoshiarpur, Punjab) on the Holi Purnima of 1885. His passion from his childhood was meditation. He was studying in the Punjab Medical college when his family insisted that he get married. He straightaway came to Hoshiarpur and devoted his life and time in the service of his Guru, Swami Sachidanandaji. He stood for hours, fanning his Guru. His devotion to his Guru was praiseworthy. That quality was in evidence much later when he stood for hours during the Rasleelas and other leelas to fan the various idols. He never used to sit during these occasions. He said he saw neither Ram nor Krishna during the fanning, he saw only his Guru instead. Due to his stoicism, he wanted to take ‘Vidwat sannyasa’. He meditated hard for six years at Prayag before going to the Punjab frontier for Sadhana and Bhajan. After taking sannyas, he studied the Vedas and related scriptures in depth. Haribaba never wasted a moment in this life. He woke up at 2-3 o’clock, much before dawn. When he went for his morning walk, people used to set their watches. He had a good sense of humor.

(extract from Ch 8 of The Divine Mother Shri Shri Ma Anandamayee by Premlata Srivastava.)

Many years ago, he, without any government help, got a large dam about eighteen miles long, constructed in the district of Badaun, to protect the villages of that area from the ravages of the recurring devastating floods.

Sri Haribabaji himself would recite Rama Nama together with the villagers while he and everyone else carried baskets full of earth on their heads for building the dam. This extensive dam was thus constructed by shrama dana (offering of labour) through the whole-hearted efforts of this extraordinary saint. Sri Haribabaji had thousands of disciples both in the U.P. and Punjab. He never looked at the face of any woman. During the last twenty-five years of his life, (Sri Haribabaji took Mahasamadhi in January 1970 in Varanasi in Mataji’s presence) he spent much time in Mataji’s company, mostly in Vrindaban and Dehradun. Mataji often used to adjust Her programme to suit his convenience. His devotion and veneration for Mataji were quite outstanding. Although older than Mataji, he never hesitated to pay respectful homage to Her on every occasion. In December 1955, Sri Haribabaji was dangerously ill and was operated in Dr. Sen’s Nursing Home at New Delhi on the advice of Mataji. One day, when his condition was precarious, Mataji came to the Nursing Home. At the door of Sri Haribabaji’s room his Gurudeva appeared to Her and requested Her to save his life. Mataji then entered Sri Haribabaji’s room. By Mataji’s grace he passed the crisis.

Haribaba spent his last 25 years mainly in Vrindavan or Kalyanvan, Dehradun – mostly in touch with Ma. He left his mortal coil in the presence of Ma at Kashi ashram on 3 January 1970.



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