HOMENEW 5

Brief Biography of Swami Vishadananda ( Disciple of Swami Nirmalananda – Tulasi Maharaj)

                Swami Vishadananda was born in December, 1906 at Aranmula in the erstwhile Travancore state of (southern) Kerala.  He was born as the third son of Shri Kanjilikkattu Govinda Pillai, who was a ‘Pravarthyar’ (village officer) and Shrimathykkutty Amma.  Govinda Pillai embraced sanyasa in his later life.  The pre-monastic name of Swamiji was Raghavan PIllai.

At the tender age of 12, he happened to see a picture of Sri Ramakrishna in a house.  The picture cast a “magic spell” on him and he at once declared to himself that this was his God and everything.  He didnt know even whose picture it was!

PRE-MONASTIC LIFE
After completing his school, he joined a survey school near Changanassery for a 3 –year course in civil engineering. After passing this, he got an employment as a Surveyor in government service. For the pious nature, he was nicknamed ‘Swami’.  He was soon promoted as Sub Engineer.  He met Mahatma Gandhi at the venue of the famous ‘Vaikom Satyagraham’ and got blessings from Shri Narayana Guru, the famous saint and social reformer of Kerala.

It was at the Haripad SRK Ashrama, the first SRK Centre in Kerala, that he came to know of Shri Ramakrishna and the movement.  He also heard of his future guru and decided to take the vow of renunciation.  He soon left his job and went to Ottappalam Ashrama to meet his guru.  Swami Nirmalananda was then at the SRK Math, Bangalore.  He was, hence sent to Bangalore.  After one and a half years, in September 1928, he was initiated into sanyasa along with three others (Swami Vishalananda, Nirvrutananda and Agamananda).

SWAMI NIRMALANANDA
His Guru Swami Nirmalananda (known also as Tulsi Maharaj) traveled to the south of India and spread the message of Sri Ramakrishna there.  He established many maths and centres. In Kerala, he started the maths / centres at Ottappalam, Calicut (Kozhikode),Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram), Quilandy, Pudukkad, Muvattupuzha, Alleppey (Alappuzha), Haripad, Muttom, Kayamkulam, Thiruvalla, Kulathur, Palai, Aroor, Neyyar and Adoor.  He attained Mahasamadhi at Ottappalm on 26 April 1938.  There is a small kutir by the side of the river Nila (Bharatha puzha) at the place of cremation.

EARLY LIFE AS A SANYASI
The Swami had the opportunity to live with his Guru for ten years. His life in the Bangalore Ashrama for about ten years was a period of intense training. He was soon the poojari and the manager of the Ashrama and his guru’s personal secretary. Once he traveled the length and breadth of India as a ‘parivrajaka’ (wandering monk).  In Calcutta, he met Master Mahashay (the recorder of ‘the Gospel of Shri Ramakrishna’).

AS A WANDERING MONK
In 1935, Swami Nirmalananda left Bangalore Math for Trivandrum for a short while.  Then he settled at Ottappalam and took up the task of training young disciples. Swami Vishadananda accompanied his guru to Ottappalam. Swami Nirmalananda attained Mahasamadhi there in 1938.

Following the tradition and to fulfill his heart’s desire to practice sadhana, he set out as a ‘parivrajaka’ again.  He reached the holy place Rishikesh and started practicing vows.  There he met Swami Shivananda, founder of the Divine Life Society and soon the two became friends. He continued his pilgrimage, often as “suramandirataru moola nivasa”, as described by Shri Sankara, spending his night at temples and forests.  He had unique spiritual experiences while he dwelt at the Shimoga Hills of south India. He then traveled to Rajasthan desert.

RETURN TO OTTAPPALAM
He returned to Ottappalam, heeding the request of many devotees and constructed the temple in memoriam to his late Guru.  The temple was consecrated by Swami Saswatanandaji, President of  SRK Math, Madras (now Chennai) in  1939.

AT TRIVANDRUM
He was transferred to the Trivandrum Math, where he worked for the ‘Prabuddha Keralam’, the Malayalam magazine of the SRK Mission started by Swami Nirmalananda.  He worked in the SRK Mission Hospital in the city along with Swami Tapasyananda and their combined effort helped the development of the small dispensary into the huge Hospital complex. Like a true karma yogi, he took active part in the Malaria relief work in the city and adjoining areas.

GURU’S BIOGRAPHY
Answering the call by fellow devotees, he returned to Ottappalam to write a biography of his guru.  For this, in 1942, he had to travel to the Mission Head Quarters in Calcutta, where he was received well by the Swamis of the Mission.  He met Shri Mahendranath Dutta and Shri Bhupendranath Dutta, younger brothers of Swami Vivekananda.  He had divine experiences in the Dakshineshwar temple complex.

Swami Vishadananda took up the position of the President of the Ottappalam Ashrama, a position that he occupied for about 46 years. Swamiji started a new publication ‘Shri Ramakrishna Tulasi Sugandham’.  Many articles were published on the Holy Trinity and Vedanta by him and by Ottur Subrahmanyan Nampoothiripad.  Swamiji shared many of his profound spiritual experiences with the readers through the columns of this magazine.

SCHOOLS
Following a direct command from Shri Ramakrishna in a vision, he took up the task of providing education to the children of poor villagers nearby.  The schools ‘Niranjan Vidyalaya’ for boys and ‘Sarada Vidyalaya’ for girls provided food also to the pupils.  Upon the successful completion of school, needy students were sent to other cities for higher degrees, all expenses met by the Ashrama.

DISCIPLES
He started initiating many aspirants at this time.  Some of his early sanyasin disciples were Swamis Shantananda, Anandananda, Vallabhananda, Prakashananda, Sampoornananda and Chinmayananda.

CHOLERA RELIEF WORK
The Swami actively took up the cholera relief work of 1943-4, risking even his life, with the limited facilities available at that time. The affected areas were Valluvanadu of Malabar and some districts of the then Cochin State.

SHARADA ASHRAMA
In 1947, the Swami founded the Sarada Ashrama, which was the first convent for Hindu nuns in modern times.  This was before the establishment of the Shri Sarada Math of Dakshineshwar and was in response to the need of such a facility at that time.  Many Nampoothiri ladies, most of them devotees of Swami Nirmalananda, wanted to lead monastic life.  In 1953, he initiated 7 ladies to sanyasa: They were: Swamis Chidananda (Bhuvaneswari), Divyananda (Sarada), Sadananda (Sarojini), Bodhananda (Chandramani), Atmananda (Mani), Paavanananda (Kamalam) and Paraananda (Bhuvaneswari’s mother).  Swami Chidananda became the first President of the Sarada Ashrama. Soon, six more also joined this group.  They were: Swamis Bhaswarananda (mother of Sarada and Sarojini), Shuddhananda, Paramananda, Prasannananda and Ambikananda.

SPIRITUAL REALIZATION
It was in 1964 the Swami experienced the full force of spiritual powers flowing to him.  Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras explain the matter.  He had the vision of Bhagavan Shri Ramakrishna, the Holy Mother, Swami Vivekananda and Shri Krishna.  His mind was sometimes in constant communion with them.  The highest spiritual state, which he experienced, cannot be easily narrated.  The Swami attained the unique state of Nirvikalpa Samadhi also.  Swami Tapasyananda of the SRK Mission came to investigate the truth of all this and went back convinced.

WORKS
The Swami, though not endowed with any literary or poetic talent, compiled a number of literary and poetic works for the benefit of seekers.  This was a special blessing to him by Bhagavan.  He wrote ‘Shri Ramakrishna Bhagavatham’, a simple, easy-to-read poetical work on the life of Bhagavan Shri Ramakrishna in Malayalam. This was as requested by Sankaravelil Parameswaran Pillai, an ardent devotee.

‘Conversations on Spirit Divine’, a question and answer type exposition on spiritual matters, is another wonderful work.  The ‘spirit divine’ dictated this to him.  The similar work in Malayalam was titled ‘Divya Vani’. He wrote a number of bhajan songs and hymns on the Holy trinity Shri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda. Upon the request from a devotee, an Ottan Thullal (a kind of dance-song of Kerala) ‘Vivekananda Vijayam’ on the life of Swami Vivekananda was composed by him for public performances.

PUBLICITY
The Swami was contented in the Self and did not desire any publicity.  He didn’t even allow taking photographs.  His only photograph was (in meditation) taken by an elderly couple from Holland, who became his lifelong devotees.  (A few older photographs, mostly in groups, exist, though).

Some of the sanyasin disciples initiated at this time were: Swamis Nishkamananda, Pranavananda, Amruthananda and Saswatananda.

SEVENTIES
More devotees flocked at Ottappalam.  During 1976 to 1985, some more were initiated to sanyasa.  They were: Swamis Jyotirmayananda, Nirupamananda SRK Math, (Mattakkara), Pavithrananda (SRK Ashrama, Alappuzha), Yogeeswarananda (passed away), Chidrupananda (Sri Lanka), Nischalananda, Kaivalyananda (President, SRK Math, Kayamkulam), Anaswarananda (President, SRK Kutiram, Calicut), Dheerananda (present President at Ottappalam). He had initiated about 1000 disciples, sanyasins and householders. Shri Ramamoorthy was a devotee of Swamiji who used to visit him from Madras along with a number of friends like Shri Ramachandran, Shri Subrahmanyan, etc.
Some students of the nearby Palghat Engineering College were attracted to him and became his disciples.  Palaniyappan and Prakash among them, even attempted an unsuccessful sanyasa life.  Suresh, Murali, E.K Gopi, and many others came. Swamiji loved them all.

At the old age, ill health developed in Swamiji.  In 1976, symptoms of trouble with the prostrate gland developed.  Enlargement of the heart also occurred.  After an ordeal of pain, he was treated at the SRK Mission hospital in Trivandrum.  Swami Antaratmananda of the SRK Mission offered all possible help.  He had to be operated without sedation because of the heart’s condition! The Swami bore all the pain. 

MAHASAMADHI
Foreseeing his time to depart, he transferred the responsibilities of the Ashrama to the next generation.  During the first week of January 1985, he was admitted to the Government Hospital for various complications.  He entered the Mahasamadhi at 3 am on 23 January, 1985.  It was the Thithi puja day of Swami Brahmananda (a disciple of Shri Ramakrishna) and he had insisted on the usual ceremonies at the Ashrama.