AkhandanandaBholanath DidimaGurupriya Didi Paramananda
HaribabaBhaijiGopinath KavirajAtmananda
Swami SwarupanandaSwami ChinmayanandaSri Virajananda MaharajSwami Vijayananda
Swami BhaskaranandaSwami SivanandaSwami BhajananandaSwami Omkarananda
Br KamalakantaBr YogeshdaBr AtuldaBr Hari HardaSri Abhayda
Br TanmayanandaPanudaSwami KeshavanandaNarayan-Swami
Swami Nirvanananda

vijaya

Sri Virajananda Maharaj

The senior-most sadhu of the “Shree Shree Anandamayee Sangha”, Sri Virajanandaji Maharaj expired on 1st August 2005 at 6.25 PM at Ma Anandamayee Ashram, Kankhal. At the time of his demise his age was nearly 102.

Before joining the Ashram, Virajanandaji Maharaj was known as Shri Kamal Bhattacharya. He belonged to a place named Vikrampur within the district of Dhaka in Bangladesh. He was an engineer in the Tata Industries. For the first time he came in contact with Shree Shree Ma in 1925 at Dhaka and since then he was maintaining regular contact with Ma. He left his home and joined the Ashram of Shree Shree Ma in 1942.

See Sri Virajananda Maharaj on Video

See Sri Virajananda Maharaj in Hindi on Video

His aged mother came to Ma at Varanasi in order to take back her son from the Ashram. Shree Shree Ma allowed her to do so, but Virajanandaji did not like that proposal and prayed to Ma to retain him in the Ashram. One day his aged mother unfortunately injured an infant mouse while sweeping the floor and ultimately that mouse died. The simple lady was very much shocked due to that incident. She felt it necessary to show repentance to the Al­mighty so that she need not loose her own son Kamal (Virajananda) and accordingly she took her son to Kashi Vishwanath Temple and offered him at the lotus feet of Baba Vishwanath forever. In this way, Virajanandaji Maharaj need not return back home and he could continue in the ashram. However, Shree Shree Ma did not dishearten the aged mother and She retained her in the Ashram so that she may get the company of her son. The pious old lady passed away after a few years at Kashi Ashram itself.

After establishment of the Shree Shree Anandmayee Sangha in 1950, Virajanandaji was offered an important portfolio for the management of the Sangha considering his extra-ordinary working capabilities. His working was very much appreciated for the success of the functions at Varanasi Ashram, like the elaborate Gayatri Mahayajna and the Diamond Jubilee celebration of Shree Shree Ma there. After serving the Sangha for more than eight years he requested Shree Shree Ma to relieve him from the work. Ma accepted his prayer and helped him to gain reli­gious knowledge and perform meditation at suitable places for his spiritual advancement. Accordingly, he practiced meditation for a long time at Rajgir and at other important meditation places on the bank of the sacred river Narmada in Gujarat.

Once he was proceeding along the bank of the river Narmada towards the confluence of the river and the Arabian Sea. At a very lonely place, sud­denly a lady appeared at a distance and she pointed out to him the existence of a dangerous sandy swamp in front of him and signalled him to keep away from that place. Thus he was saved from getting lost within that sandy swamp. Later on, Shree Shree Ma indicated that Ma Narmada herself came in di­guise to save his life in this way.

While residing at Rajgir, Virajanandaji used to go almost everyday to meditate at the place on the hilltop where Gautam Buddha used to meditate. One day he became late returning and he was on the way even after sunset. When he reached a curve in the hilly road, suddenly he found a big tiger in front of him. He stopped immediately and prayed to Ma. When the tiger was about to attack him, right at that moment suddenly a truck arrived at that spot with its headlights on. Hurriedly Virajanandaji boarded the truck and saved himself from that tiger. After about a year, Ma came to Rajgir. One day while She was going with Virajanandaji by car and reached that spot, She asked the driver to stop the car there and enquired from Virajanandaji whether that was the spot where he had had to face the tiger. Virajanandaji was very much surprised and could realise that nothing could be unknown to Shree Shree Ma. He could also realise that he was saved from the attack of the tiger on that day by the grace ofMa only. Virajanandaji had many such experiences in his spiritual life.

After joining Ma’s Ashram, he regularly used to note down the spiritual talks of Shree Shree Ma in his diary. In this way he was collecting Ma’s ‘Vani’ (spiritual talks) for a long time. During discussion on certain religious matters with the renowned learned philosopher and saint, Mahamahopadhaya Pd. Gopi Nath Kaviraj he gave him one of his diaries for his reference. Kavirajji was very much impressed and got attracted by the words of Shree Shree Ma, seeing uncommon nobility in Her words. He showed his eagerness to publish those spiritual talks of Ma and he himself wrote the explanations of those parts, which were difficult to understand for any common person. Thus, the words ofMa along with explanations given by Kavirajji were regularly published in sequence in the quarterly journal ‘Ananda Varta,’ which used to be published by the Sangha at that time. Later on, Sri Virajanandaji compiled all such articles and published the book ‘Amar Vani’ which was very much appreciated every where.

Afterwards receiving inspiration from Shree Shree Ma, he published the most valuable book ‘Swakriya Swarasamrita’ in six volumes in Bengali language. Those books were published as per kheyal of Shree Shree Ma and She called them as ‘Parama Bhagawat’. Shree Shree Ma Herself dictated contents of every topic of that book. Thus it was Ma’s self-creation in self oriented language with Her fluent flow of words. When Virajanandaji was told that the words of Shree Sbree Ma were not easily graspable, he said that the capability to understand Ma’s words would depend on advancement in sadhana. As a person would gain more and more spiritual ad­vancement, inherent divine meaning in Ma’s language would be revealed to him accordingly. Virajanandaji also said that Shree Shree Ma disclosed many secret aspects of divinity in that book, which would not be seen in other religious books, or at most those aspects were just touched on. Some of the volumes have also been published in Hindi and English languages.

While writing the book Swakriya Swarasamrita, he regularly got the opportunity to get company of Shree Shree Ma in seclusion for long peri­ods. He said that Sbree Shree Ma Herself was the vital root of all spirituality in this world. She had a complete divine experience of all those religions which were created in the past since eternity or those which are presently being followed and also those religions which would be created in future. We never heard about such unique experiences attained by anyone in the past. Virajanandaji also translated precisely each volume of ‘Swakriya Swarasamrita’ into English. Translation of the sixth volume was his last work, which is under publication.

Virajanandaji was extremely faithful to religious norms and he used to cook his meals himself all throughout his life. However, he could not continue it during the last few years of his life when he became almost blind. At that time he surrendered himself completely to Ma and always used to feel the pres­ence of Shree Shree Ma. His unflinching faith and commitment to the ideals and teachings of Ma have left a great lesson for others to follow. Although Virajanandaji Maharaj is no more with us he will always be remem­bered through his publications, ‘Amar Vani’ and ‘Swakriya Swarasamrita.’

 

Sri S.C. Banerjee

Amrita Varta October 2005.