ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA, SHRI RAM NATH KOVIND ON THE OCCASION OF INAUGURATION OF THE NEW GLOBAL HEADQUARTERS ‘KANHA SHANTI VANAM’ OF SHRI RAM CHANDRA MISSION
Rangareddy : 02.02.2020
1. I am very happy to be here on the auspicious occasion of the birth anniversary of venerated Lalaji Maharaj, Adi Guru of Shri Ram Chandra Mission. This is also a joyous occasion to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the founding of Shri Ram Chandra Mission. I am glad to note that the Mission has become a strong spiritual force with presence in more than 150 countries across the globe.
2. I remember to have read in a book dedicated to Chariji’s birth anniversary that when respected Chariji joined the Mission in 1964, the participation of Abhyasis in the Basant celebrations was only about 40. Today the number of Abhyasis runs into millions. I have been told that nearly one lakh sixty thousand visitors, mostly Abhyasis, came to this campus from many parts of the world last year alone.
3. Spirituality is India’s most precious gift to the world. From the teachings of Vedanta, Teerthankar Mahavir and Gautam Buddha to the messages of Nanak and Kabir, there is a grand flow of eternal spiritual wisdom which was transmitted to the modern world by Swami Vivekananda, Mahatma Gandhi and many other exemplars of India’s spiritual force. Today, Gandhiji is reveredall over the world for his message of truth, compassion and nonviolence. Gandhiji was essentially a seeker of spiritual truth. He had once said and I quote,"I am striving for the Kingdom of Heaven, which is spiritual deliverance. For me, the road to salvation lies through incessant toil in the service of my country and my humanity.” [Unquote]. I am glad to see that Shri Ram Chandra Mission has been promoting both individual change and social change. The Mission is promoting the great ancient tradition of Rajyog meditation in the modern world.
Sisters and brothers,
4. This campus, Kanha Shanti Vanam, presents a model of holistic living. This expansive campus has lush green surroundings populated by five lakh trees. This world class meditation centre is a great place for spiritual rejuvenation. The activities carried out here for the benefit of women, farmers, artisans and small entrepreneurs, and the steps being taken to conserve and nurture the environment and biodiversity are praise worthy. I convey my appreciation to Daaji and all members of Shri Ram Chandra Mission for this new Global Headquarters which has been developed so beautifully.
5. I compliment the efforts for universal well-being taken by the Mission. The noble objectives, simple methods, concern for everybody’s well-being promoted by the Mission enables an ordinary person to achieve extraordinary levels of consciousness and also equips him to make exceptional contribution to the society around him.
6. As we all know, Shri Ram Chandra Ji Maharaj from Fatehgarh of Uttar Pradesh, fondly remembered as Lalaji, started this spiritual order. It was taken forward by Shri Ram Chandra Ji of Shahjahanpur, whom we respectfully remember as Babuji Maharaj.
7. After Lalaji and Babuji Maharaj, the great responsibility of nurturing and spreading the message of the Mission was shouldered by Shri Parthasarathi Rajagopalachari Ji,or Chariji Maharaj whom I always called ‘Master’. Chariji passed on the Master’s mantle to Shri Kamlesh Patel Ji, whom we all know as Daaji.
8. My deep and intimate association with Shri Ram Chandra Mission goes back nearly two decades. I happened to know Shri Amarjeet Singh Janasevakwho was also from my native place, Kanpur and a Minister in UP Government. In the year 2001, he took me to Chariji Maharaj in the beautiful natural surroundings of the Satkhol Ashram located in Nainital, Uttarakhand. Chariji gave me my first sitting in that Ashram. Later, I had the privilege of receiving many personal sittings from him.
9. I often met Chariji Maharaj at Satkhol and in some other places too. Whenever I met him, he would affectionately ask me to sit close to him. In Master’s presence, I would always feel that he was working on my spiritual advancement, even as we were engaged in routine activities like dining together. That is how great Masters are. They take care of you without even appearing to be doing it.
10. In the year 2002, I had the opportunity of going to the United Nations to address the General Assembly in New York. I interacted with Charijibefore my journey to the US. He asked me to meet Mr. Kamlesh Patel, the current Master, in the US. That is where I first met Daaji. It was a warm family get together as I was accompanied by my wife during that visit. Happy recollections of my visits to his house in America are still fresh in my memory.
11. Once, Master Chariji wanted me to go to Shahjahanpur and visit the residence and the Ashram of Babuji Maharaj. I visited those sacred sites. Thus, in a very special way Master Chariji linked me with his predecessor Shri Babuji Maharaj and also Daaji, his successor.
Sisters and brothers,
12. In the Indian spiritual tradition, paramaarth and paropakaar are interlinked. Seeking ultimate truthis linked to serving fellow human beings. Besides personal evolution, the Indian tradition of spirituality also focusses on the ideals of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah. For us, the entire world is but one large well-knit family. We seek happiness for everyone on the planet. This message of universal happiness of the global family is the message of the Masters of Shri Ram Chandra Mission also.
13. In his illuminating book, "Designing Destiny: The Heartfulness Way”, Daaji refers to a letter written by Babuji Maharaj addressed to the United Nations in 1957. That letter was on the subject of world peace. In that letter Babuji Maharaj had highlighted the method for bringing about the upliftment of the entire universe. Babuji Maharaj had suggested that everyone should sit daily with the thought of all people of the world growing peace-loving and pious.
14. Babuji Maharaj laid emphasis on the virtues of moderation and simplicity. Here, I would like to quote Babuji Maharaj. I quote, "One of the essentials in the making of a man engaged in spiritual pursuit is moderation. It is a very wide term and covers every phase of human activity. It means balance in all senses and faculties, nothing more or less than what is naturally required at the time for any specific purpose.” [Unquote] Sahaj Marg is the natural path of moderation and balance.
15. Simplicity is an important aspect of moderation - simplicity to the point of living life with minimum expectations, minimum needs and minimum impact on the environment. Babuji had said, "Be simple, live simply, think simply.”
16. On the theme of simplicity, I am reminded of Chariji’s reference to the good social work done by some NGOs active around his Satkhol Ashram. He had specially appreciated some very rich people in those NGOs who adopted very simple lifestyles. Chariji wrote and I quote, "And there were very big people, rich people, now with a vision. And that vision demands that they are like Gandhi- with minimum clothes, minimum food, minimum housing. Is this a rule that to produce the maximum, you must be the minimum? I suppose it must be.” [Unquote]
17. Daaji has continued the great tradition of the previous three Masters and it is so heartening for the Shri Ram Chandra Mission family to see him spreading the great message of the Mission farther and wider. He always adheres to the same principles of global well-being which the earlier Masters espoused. In fact, Daaji has written with great clarity on the idea of upliftment in individual consciousness as a key driver of global betterment.
18. In a world full of anxieties, uncertainties, insecurities and hostilities, the responsibilities of organizations like Shri Ram Chandra Mission have increased manifold. They can provide the reassuring touch of a healer. In order to effectively play the role of a healer, every Abhyasi has to continuously work for his own improvement.
19. Here I must refer to one of the five principles of ‘Designing Destiny’ explained so clearly by Daaji. He says that, "To design the destiny of humanity, we start with ourselves first and then expand our radius to include others. A day will surely come when, together, we are capable of changing the direction humanity is taking.”
Sisters and brothers,
20. In order to change the direction of humanity, we need to take on board larger and larger number of young persons and engage them in the endeavours of building a better world.
21. I am confident that the number of people visiting this new Headquarters of Shri Ram Chandra Mission will keep growing. Here, they will be able to fulfill their urge to make themselves better individuals. I am also sure that the global community of the Mission will contribute towards making the planet Earth a better place and transforming humanity into a better community, full of positive energy and happiness.