Guru
Leadership — About Gurudev
The life, spiritual journey and teachings of Sadguru Swami Debananda Maharaj.
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Swami Debananda Maharaj, the President of Swami Debananda Ashram and Mission Trust and its revered spiritual head, has dedicated his life to guiding both monastic and lay devotees towards the path of devotion illumined by knowledge. Gurudev, being an embodiment of Love, Renunciation, Respect and Joy, has ignited millions of hearts with the zeal of selfless service to humanity as the philosophy of His life rests on the timeless Truth reiterated by seers down the ages, that Vasudeva or the Supreme Lord dwells in every living being. Swami Debananda Mission, founded on this ideal, has since long been engaged in serving human society through multifarious charitable activities ideated by Sadguru Swami Debananda Maharaj.
The Journey of Renunciation – Guru Parampara
Born on 8 May 1958 in Entally, Kolkata, to Pushparani Das and Kanailal Das, young Dibakar (later Swami Debananda Maharaj) was an ascetic from childhood. He was initiated at a very tender age by Swami Gyanananda Maharaj, disciple of Swami Kapilananda Maharaj of Samkhya-Yoga Ashram, Bhandartikuri, Purba Bardhaman, West Bengal. At the age of 17 He left home, having decided to renounce the material world, and not let His life be confined to a few people. Manas Giri, a revered Naga Sadhu initiated Him into the order of the Naga sanyasis, a branch of the Dashnami Sanyasi tradition founded by Adi Shankara, and thereby He received the new name of Dayal Giri. For more than a decade, He wandered across India as an itinerant Naga sanyasi with matted locks and naked body smeared in sacred ash (bibhuti) from the dhuni (sacred fire).
Return to Society and Founding the Ashram
At the age of 32 (1988), Gurudev returned from his wandering days to society, settling for a short while at Gowalpara in the Hooghly district of West Bengal. He began sharing His Atma Jnana through discourses with the people who gathered around Him. His radiant presence and message of love, renunciation and selfless service attracted hundreds of devotees, laying the foundation for Swami Debananda Ashram and Mission. In 1989, Gurudev established the first ashram at Paba, Hooghly, West Bengal. This centre became the seed for a growing network of Ashrams across India, which over time, evolved into a spiritual space showing mankind the path to eternal bliss through spiritual evolution and service.
His Philosophy
To behold the Lord in all beings.
Sadguru Swami Debananda Maharaj says God is not an external entity residing outside of you and me. He is everywhere, in every object that we behold. He abides within us and pervades all that is around us. It is the purpose of human life to know this Truth. When one attains the knowledge of one’s true self, he/she attains the knowledge of God; and this knowledge liberates a human being from his worldly bondage.
His path
The path of devotion blended with knowledge
Gurudev says that mere devotion is not enough. Devotion should be guided by knowledge. By knowledge He means realization of Truth – that the Paramatma pervades this universe. Nothing present in this universe is devoid of Him. So, devotion to God should not limit oneself to the prayer room or the worship of a particular deity. True devotion, which is guided by knowledge, leads one to the service of mankind. A self-enlightened person serves his fellow being with utmost sincerity because he perceives God in him.
Messages from Sadguru
Make your heart such that it touches all other hearts.
A narrow mind cannot conceive of the great.
The most difficult work in the world is to be simple.
He is a true server who considers the opportunity to serve as a great reward.
Ahamkara (pride) is a baseless, irrational, sick state of mind.
There is no paucity of food in this world. There is only a lack of the spirit of sharing with others.
The urge to renounce takes man beyond the barriers of narrow petty thoughts.
He, who can keep his poise in all adversities, is the man of real strength.
I have not come here to enable man to see God. Rather, I have come to turn man into God.
Only spiritual evolvement through a life-long cultivation of the ideals of ‘Renunciation’, ‘Respect’, ‘Love’ and ‘Joy’ can help man reach his destination.