Swami Dayananda Saraswati (15 August 1930 – 23 September 2015) was a renunciate of the Hindu order of

sannyasa ''Sannyasa'' (Sanskrit: संन्यास; IAST: ), sometimes spelled Sanyasa (सन्न्यास) or Sanyasi (for the person), is life of renunciation and the fourth stage within the Hindu system of four life stages known as '' A ...

, a renowned traditional teacher of

Advaita Vedanta ''Advaita Vedanta'' (; sa, अद्वैत वेदान्त, ) is a Hindu sādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience, and the oldest extant tradition of the orthodox Hindu school Vedānta. The term ''Advaita'' ...

, and founder of the

Arsha Vidya Gurukulam Arsha Vidya Gurukulam is a set of Vedic teaching institutions founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati Dayanand Saraswati () (born Mool Shankar Tiwari; 2 February 1824 – 30 October 1883) also known as Maharshi Dayanand is an Indian philosophe ...

and AIM For Seva.

Biography

Early life

Swami Dayananda Saraswati was born as Natarajan in Manjakudi –

Thiruvarur Thiruvarur () also spelt as Tiruvarur is a town and municipality in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Thiruvarur district and Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing and m ...

district of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

on 15 August 1930Dialogues with Swami Dayananda, Sri Gangadhareswar Trust, 1988 to Shri.Gopala Iyer and Smt.Valambal. He was the eldest of four sons. His early schooling was done in the District Board School at Kodavasal. His father's death when he was eight, meant Natarajan had to shoulder a significant portion of family responsibility along with his education. After the completion of his education, Natarajan came to Chennai (erstwhile Madras) for earning a livelihood. Natarajan worked as a journalist for the weekly magazine ''Dharmika Hindu'' (run by T. K. Jagannathacharya) and also for erstwhile Volkart Brothers (now Voltas Limited) for sometime. He also decided to be a fighter pilot at one point and joined the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct ...

, but left after six months as he felt suffocated by the regimentation there. In his absence his younger brother MG. Srinivasan took charge of the agricultural fields of the family household and made sure that the family had the income to survive and live peacefully off the income.

Involvement with Chinmaya Mission

Vedānta is a major school of Hinduism that literally refers to the end section of the

Vedas upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute th ...

, in particular, the

Upanishad The Upanishads (; sa, उपनिषद् ) are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.Wendy Doniger (1990), ''Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism'', 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, , ...

s. In 1952, he met

Swami Chinmayananda Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati (born Balakrishna Menon; 8 May 1916 – 3 August 1993) was a Hindu spiritual leader and a teacher. In 1951, he founded Chinmaya Mission, a worldwide nonprofit organisation, in order to spread the knowledge of Advaita ...

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

. Natarajan became interested in

Vedanta ''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, ...

after listening to his public talks in the year 1953. He became actively involved with the then newly formed

Chinmaya Mission The Chinmaya Mission is a Hindu religious and spiritual organization engaged in the dissemination of Vedanta, the science of the self as expounded in the Vedas, particularly the Upanishads, and other Hindu scriptures such as the Bhagavad G ...

in various roles and he was made its ''Secretary'' within the first year of its inception. He attended the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

classes of P.S. Subramania Iyer, a retired Professor of English. He introduced the mode of chanting the Gita verses that is still followed in the Mission. Swami Chinmayananda instructed Natarajan to set up Chinmaya Mission's Madurai branch, which he was able to fulfill. In 1955 Natarajan accompanied Swami Chinmayananda to Uttarakashi and helped him in the preparation of a Gita manuscript for publication. In Uttarakashi, he met Chinmayananda's guru,

Tapovan Maharaj Tapovan Maharaj (1889–1957) was a Hindu sage and Vedanta scholar. Life Swami Tapovan Maharaj is one of the most renowned saints of the 20th century. He was a contemporary of Swami Sivananda Maharaj who was the Guru of Swami Chinmayananda ...

, who advised him, 'You have a duty to yourself which is also important. Stay here. Do ''japa'', meditate and study.' Natarajan could not take up that offer at that point in time. However, he promised Swami Tapovan Maharaj that he would be able to come after one year and he did. Natarajan returned to Madras and took up the editorship of 'Tyagi,' a fortnightly magazine of Chinmaya Mission. Upon the advice of Swami Chinmayananda, Natarajan shifted to

Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

(erstwhile

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

) in 1956 and continued to edit Tyagi which was also moved to Bengaluru (erstwhile

). During his stay there, Natarajan joined the Sanskrit College in Chamrajpet and had the privilege of studying one on one with Prof. Veeraraghavachariar. Oftentimes, before Swami Chinmayananda gave public talks, Natarajan would open with discourses expounding messages from the Bhagavad Gita. Some of these talks have been transcribed and later published by the

Sannyasa

In 1961, with the permission of Swami Chinmayananda, Natarajan went to study under Swami Pranavananda at

Gudivada Gudivada is a city in Krishna district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the headquarters of Gudivada mandal in Gudivada revenue division. It is one of the cities in the state to be a part of Andhra Pradesh Capital ...

(near

Vijayawada Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises N ...

) to clarify many of his doubts on

and

self-enquiry Self-enquiry, also spelled self-inquiry (Sanskrit '' vichara'', also called '' jnana-vichara'' or '), is the constant attention to the inner awareness of "I" or "I am" recommended by Ramana Maharshi as the most efficient and direct way of disco ...

. The stay with Swami Pranavananda helped Natarajan learn one thing clearly – that Vedanta is a ''

pramana ''Pramana'' (Sanskrit: प्रमाण, ) literally means "proof" and "means of knowledge".sāstra with Sankara's commentaries. On śivarātri day, 4 March 1962, he was given

Sanyasa ''Sannyasa'' (Sanskrit: संन्यास; IAST: ), sometimes spelled Sanyasa (सन्न्यास) or Sanyasi (for the person), is life of renunciation and the fourth stage within the Hindu system of four life stages known as '' As ...

by Swami Chinmayananda and was given the name Swami Dayananda Saraswati.Glimpses of Swami Dayananda Saraswati's life. Arsha Adhyayan Kendra, Bhuj, Gujarat, INDIA. In 1963 he went to Mumbai, (erstwhile Bombay) to the newly inaugurated Sandeepany Sadhanalaya of Chinmaya Mission, where he undertook the responsibility of editing the magazine of the mission ''Tapovan Prasad''. In addition, Swami Dayananda taught chanting of the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads to the students of Sandeepany. In November 1963 Swami Dayananda undertook a study-pilgrimage to Rishikesh and stayed in a grass hut in Purani Jhadi now known as Dayananda Nagar. He spent three years there, studying BrahmaSutras under Swami Tarananda Giri at the Kailash Ashram.

Further involvement with, and split, from the Mission

Around 1967, due to the ill health of Swami Chinmayananda, the Mission approached Swami Dayananda to give public talks and lectures. Accordingly, between 1967 and 1970, Swami Dayananda traveled to different towns and cities in India spreading the knowledge of Gita and the Upanishads. In 1971, Swami Dayananda agreed to conduct a long-term teaching program at Sandeepany Sadhanalaya, Powai, Mumbai and formulated a curriculum that would systematically unfold the vision of Vedanta. Between 1972 and 1979, Swami Dayananda conducted two 2 1/2 – year residential Vedanta courses in Mumbai. In his words, 'At Sandeepany the teaching is traditional and rigorous. What would take a ''Sadhu'' in the Himalayas nine years to learn, the students at Sandeepany learned in two-and-half years.' At the request of students in the United States, in 1979 Swami Dayananda established and taught a three-year Vedanta course for the Chinmaya Mission at Sandeepany West in Piercy, California. In July 1982, Swami Dayananda decided to leave Chinmaya Mission. He felt a strong incompatibility between his growing role in, essentially, management of a multinational spiritual organization, and his desires to live a simpler spiritual life as an itinerant monk. The split had been a long time in the making, having been a topic of discussion between Swami Dayananda and Swami Chinmayananda for some time. The timing of Swami Dayananda's departure created problems for the Mission. He had just graduated nearly 60 Vedanta teachers from Sandeepany West two weeks before his departure, nearly all of whom left Chinmaya Mission to follow Swami Dayananda once he left. Swami Dayananda's departure, wrote a journalist in October 1983, ''Hinduism Today'', "created a tidal wave of shock that washed across the international Chinmaya Mission shores, and has only recently weakened enough to not be an emotion-charged topic of the international Mission's monthly magazine's letters to the editor." In an interview shortly after his departure, Swami Dayananda did not comment on Chinmaya Mission but emphasized that he was "a simple teacher spreading the universal truths of Vedantic self-knowledge."

Arsha Vidya Gurukulam

After leaving Chinmaya Mission in 1982, Swami Dayananda returned to India. He continued to spread the message of Advaita Vedanta through public talks and lectures and formally established a centre of learning at Rishikesh called Arsha Vidya Pitham which is also called the Swami Dayananda Ashram. He explained that "Arsha" means "from the rishis", "vidya" means "knowledge" and "pitham", "a centre of learning". Further he explained that "arsha vidya, the knowledge that has come from the rishis, is not a mystic tradition. It is not a set of beliefs sustained by an organisation. The knowledge has survived without organisation and without hierarchical structure, through an unbroken line of teacher to student". Responding to the request of students and disciples, Swami Dayananda established the

at Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania, USA in 1986 wherein a three-year residential course was completed in 1990. In 1990, he established another ''Arsha Vidya Gurukulam'' at Anaikatti, near Coimbatore, back in his home state of

in India. Swami Dayananda along with his students have taught ten long term Vedanta Courses (eight in India and two in the United States). More than 200 of his students from these programs are now teaching Vedanta, Sanskrit and Paninian grammar in India and around the world. In 2014, '' Gurukulam: One Without a Second'', an

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretica ...

documentary featuring residents and teachers of the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam at Anaikatti in Tamil Nadu, India had a limited release.

Shishyas (students)

The most well-known student of Swami Dayananda Saraswati is

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

, prime minister of India. Other students include

Anantanand Rambachan Anantanand Rambachan is a professor of religion at St. Olaf College. Education Rambachan completed his undergraduate studies at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad. He received his M.A. (Distinction) and Ph.D. degrees fr ...

, a professor of religion at

St. Olaf College St. Olaf College is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. It was founded in 1874 by a group of Norwegian-American pastors and farmers led by Pastor Bernt Julius Muus. The college is named after the King and the Patron Saint Olaf ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

(USA), and Vasudevacharya, previously Dr. Michael Comans, former faculty member in the Department of Indian Studies at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

. A number of his shishyas (i.e., students) are from a

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

background. Atma Chaitanya, otherwise known as Ira Schepetin, was the first of these. Radha (Carol Whitfield, PhD) an early student of Swami Dayananda who was instrumental in establishing Sandeepany West and Arsha Vidya Gurukulam at Saylorsburg USA, has established Arsha Kulam in California, a centre dedicated to the traditional teaching of Advaita Vedanta. The

sannyasi ''Sannyasa'' (Sanskrit: संन्यास; IAST: ), sometimes spelled Sanyasa (सन्न्यास) or Sanyasi (for the person), is life of renunciation and the fourth stage within the Hindu system of four life stages known as '' As ...

disciples of Swami Dayananda are many in number. Suddhananda Saraswati heads the Dayananda Asram at Rishikesh. Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati heads the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam at Saylorsburg. Swami Nijananda, Swami Tadrupananda, Swami Paramarthananda, Swami Tattvavidananda, Swami Suddhabodhananda, Swami Pratyagbodhananda, Swami Brahmatmananda, Swami Paramatmananda, Swami Sakshatkrtananda, Swamini Brahmapraksananda, Swamiini Brahmalinananda, Swamini Svatmavidyananda, Swami Sadatmanada, Swami Shankarananda and Swami Santatmananda are some of the senior disciples of Swami Dayananda.

Other organizations

All India Movement for Seva

In 2000, All India Movement for Seva (AIM for Seva) an NGO focused on making education and healthcare available to children in rural areas of India.

Millenium Peace Summit

In 2000, under the provisions of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

, the Millenium World Peace Summit a global summit of two thousand of the world's leading religious figures convened. As chairman of the AIM For Seva movement, Swami Dayananda served as one of the ten board members. The summit had several outcomes. Among these were the formation of the World Council of Religious Leaders, and inclusion of religious leaders of the world in the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...

. A year later, in November 2001, a global three-day congress would convene on the Preservation of Religious Diversity. Swami Dayananda led this congress which resulted in a number of unanimous resolutions on the preservation of religious diversity.

Acharya Sabha

In 2003, Dayananda Saraswati brought various monks and matathipatis across India under one umbrella called Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha, otherwise known as HDAS or simply Acharya Sabha to represent sanatana dharma. The Sabha is an conclave of sanyasins belonging to various '' sampradayas'' (i.e. traditions) and is composed of the major

matha A ''matha'' (; sa, मठ, ), also written as ''math'', ''muth'', ''mutth'', ''mutt'', or ''mut'', is a Sanskrit word that means 'institute or college', and it also refers to a monastery in Hinduism.

of India. The Acarya Sabha was recognized as the first time Sanyasis were united under one organization. By its fourth congregation in 2010, the Sabha had as many as 100 Dharmacharyas from various traditions participating. In the same year, Swami Dayananda wrote a statement on the behalf of the Sabha openly condemning the

caste system Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultural ...

as a means of unfair discrimination against human beings based on birth. As of 2021, the Sabha remains active and continues to seek protections for Sanatana Dharma and places of worship. Presently the chairman of Acharya Sabha is Swami Avdheshanand Giri Ji Maharaj, Acharya Mahamandleshwar of Juna

Akhara Akhara or Akhada ( Sanskrit and Hindi: अखाड़ा, shortened to ''khara'' Hindi: खाड़ा) is an Indian word for a place of practice with facilities for boarding, lodging and training, both in the context of Indian martial artist ...

Swami Dayananda Educational Trust

In 2003, Swami Dayananda established the Swami Dayananda Educational Trust (SDET). SDET has been actively promoting the development of his hometown of Manjakkudi in Tiruvarur District, Tamil Nadu and surrounding villages through educational initiatives, employment opportunities and community development programs. The educational trust manages the Swami Dayananda College of Arts & Science of Manjakkudi which was established in 2001. Affiliated with Bharathidasan University, the college has a student body coming from an agricultural background and rural areas. The trust also manages two higher secondary schools and a Vedic pathasala. In 2016, the Swami Dayananda Memorial Centre was inaugurated. The Memorial has state-of-the art lecture hall with good audio-video facilities, acoustics and ambience. The Memorial houses the Swami Dayananda Archives, which conserves the teachings in print and digital formats. Students of Vedanta can use the facility for serious study. The Memorial has come to full scale operation where regular residential study programs are conducted by the disciples of Swami Dayananda Saraswati. On 3 August 2018, a

murti In the Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' ( sa, मूर्ति, mūrti, ) is a devotional image such as a statue, or "idol" (a common and non-pejorative term in Indian English), of a deity or saint. In Hindu temples, it is a symbolic icon. T ...

of Swami Dayananda was installed at the centre.

Interfaith dialogue

Swami Dayananda has promoted several

interfaith dialogue Interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive, and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions (i.e. "faiths") and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels. It is ...

s. He has participated in Hindu-Jewish conferences facilitated by the World Council of Religious Leaders under that organizations "Religion One on One" initiative. In 2007, Swami Dayananda along with his ''Acarya Shaba'' invited Yona Metzger, rabbi and former Chief Rabbinate of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

to Delhi. In 2008, they reconvened in Jerusalem. He has also participated in two Hindu-Buddhist summits. The first one organized by the Global Peace Initiative of Women, was held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in 2009 and the second one was organized in Colombo, Sri Lanka in 2010.

Restoration of temple practices and worship

In 1999, Swami Dayananda founded the Dharma Rakshana Samiti, a body to protect the

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute th ...

heritage, to preserve the native spiritual culture of India inherited from the

rishi ''Rishi'' () is a term for an accomplished and enlightened person. They find mentions in various Vedic texts. Rishis are believed to have composed hymns of the Vedas. The Post-Vedic tradition of Hinduism regards the rishis as "great yogis" o ...

s by continuing the parampara and to raise awareness among Hindus of their Vedic heritage. Swami Dayananda has promoted the preservation of ancient cultures and religious and spiritual practices of India that have survived several millennia, yet struggle in modern times due to lack of support. He has started several

Veda upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...

''Pathashalas'' (Centers of learning of Vedas) for the preservation of Vedas and Agamas to prevent their rapid extinction due to a lack of infrastructure for learning. Swami Dayananda had appointed 35 oduvars in ancient Siva temples and paid them monthly allowance to sing the Panniru Tirumurai, songs explaining

Saiva Siddhanta Shaiva Siddhanta () (Tamil: சைவ சித்தாந்தம் "Caiva cittāntam") is a form of Shaivism that propounds a dualistic philosophy where the ultimate and ideal goal of a being is to become an enlightened soul through Shiv ...

philosophy. Swami Dayananda was instrumental in building five

chariots A chariot is a type of cart driven by a charioteer, usually using horses to provide rapid motive power. The oldest known chariots have been found in burials of the Sintashta culture in modern-day Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, dated to c. 2000&nbs ...

for the Mahalingaswamy Temple at Tiruvidaimarudur near Kumbakonam in 2010.

Litigation

In 2012, Swami Dayananda filed Writ Petition 476 challenging the Constitutional validity of various provisions of the Hindu Religious Endowments and Institutions Acts in the two states of Tamil Nadu and

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

, and the city of

Pondicherry Pondicherry (), now known as Puducherry ( French: Pondichéry ʊdʊˈtʃɛɹi(listen), on-dicherry, is the capital and the most populous city of the Union Territory of Puducherry in India. The city is in the Puducherry district on the sout ...

. The case is continuously being deferred at the

Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...

, and an outcome remains to be seen as of 2019. Dr.

Subramanian Swamy Subramanian Swamy (born 15 September 1939) is an Indian politician, economist and statistician. Before joining politics, he was a professor of Mathematical Economics at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. He is known for his Hindu n ...

was impleaded in the case for the Podu Dīkṣitars of the Chidambaram Temple. When the matter was dismissed at the

Madras High Court The Madras High Court is a High Court in India. It has appellate jurisdiction over the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. It is located in Chennai, and is the third oldest high court of India after the Calcutta High C ...

in 2009, Dr. Subramanian and the represented appealed to the final court. About 5 years later, on 6 January in 2014, the high court's ruling was overturned at the Supreme Court of India, which resulted in the release of government control over the affairs of the temple. Dr. Subramanian is also litigating the defense and protection of Ram Sethu at the behest of Swami Dayananda, who on 20 April 2008 organized for the release of Subramanian's book, ''Ram Setu: a Symbol of National Unity''. In 2020, the Supreme Court of India motioned to consider designating the so-called

Adam's Bridge Adam's Bridge, '; ta, ஆதாம் பாலம் ' also known as Rama's Bridge or ''Rama Setu'', '; ta, ராமர் பாலம் '; sa, रामसेतु ' is a chain of natural limestone shoals, between Pamban Island, ...

as a national heritage site. In 2021, a former

vice chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, the chancellor ...

from

Alagappa University Alagappa University is a public university located in Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu, India. Originated from Alagappa Arts College, founded by Alagappa Chettiar in 1947, it was established in 1985 by an Act of the Tamil Nadu government. It was conve ...

motioned to the court that the Ram Sethu does not meet the requirements of an

ancient monument In British law, an ancient monument is an early historical structure or monument (e.g. an archaeological site) worthy of preservation and study due to archaeological or heritage interest. The ''Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 ...

under the law, and the top court has no power to declare it a

national monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spe ...

, on the basis of the claim that the Adam's Bridge is not a permanent structure, and that its geological features are subject to change. However, in his original statement, Swami Dayananda argued that the bridge is a natural formation, and as such it should be preserved as a

natural monument A natural monument is a natural or natural/cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities or cultural significance. Under World Commission on Protected Areas guidelines, na ...

Publications

Arsha Vidya Research and Publication Trust

A registered non-profit charitable organization in India since 21 February 2005, the Arsha Vidya Research and Publication Trust (AVRPT) is the single-source for editing and publishing Swami Dayananda's writings, granted in writing by himself. The AVRPT office is located at the Srinidhi Apartments in

Mylapore Mylapore, also spelt Mayilapur, is a neighbourhood in the central part of the city of Chennai, India. It is one of the oldest residential parts of the city. It is also called Tirumayilai. The locality is claimed to be the birthplace of the cel ...

, Chennai. The trust publishes Swami Dayananda's works in multiple formats. A variety of Swami Dayananda Saraswati's lectures, talks and discourses have been published in the form of printed books, audio, video, e-book and USB card drives. ''Teachings of Swami Dayananda'', available for Android and iOS devices provides access to some free books and lectures and a marketplace to purchase the publications for digital access. Prior to 2005, Swami Dayananda has used other publishers, namely the ''Sri Gangadhareswar Trust'' of the Arsha Vidya Pitham, and ''Vision Books''. Additionally, the ''Arsha Avinash Foundation'' was established in 2014 with the blessing of the Swami, to publish books on Indian culture, Sanskrit and other topics.

Biographies

Several biographies of the Swami's life have been written in multiple languages including English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Sanskrit and Kannada. Two biographies are published by AVRPT. The first, ''Teacher of Teachers'' was published in 1990 to commemorate the Swami's 60th birthday. The second, ''Contributions and Writings'' (2011), was written by Sheela Balaji, who serves as a managing trustee for the publication trust.

Bhagavad Gita

As a proponent of Advaita Vedanta, Swami Dayananda wrote several books and essays on the topic of the

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; sa, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, lit=The Song by God, translit=śrīmadbhagavadgītā;), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700- verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic ''Mahabharata'' ( ...

. The largest of these publications is the Bhagavad Gītā Home Study course, in which the teaching of Bhagavad Gita is unfolded. His many talks on the Bhagavad Gita have been compiled into over 3,000 pages in its fourth edition, with the editorial assistance from his numerous Sanskrit scholars and students. A corresponding Bhagavad Gita Home Study program goes on year-round, with participation from groups in many countries such as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and the United Kingdom. Swami Dayananda also published Śrīmad Bhagavad Gītā in 2007, a verse-by-verse translation of the Bhagavad Gita in Sanskrit and English. Self-described as a "ready reference," this translation was last updated in 2014 for its fourth edition and is under 300 pages. A list of Swami Dayananda's works on the Bhagavad Gita follows. * Bhagavad Gita Home Study * Eight Significant Verses of Bhagavad Gītā * Moments with Krishna (Essays: 7) * Śrīmad Bhagavad Gītā * Talks on Meditation * The Bhagavad Gita in Nineteen Talks * The Teaching of the Bhagavad Gita * The Value of Values * Vision of Gita: Ten Essential Verses of Bhagavad Gita

Vedanta

A number of bhashya (i.e., commentaries) on the topic of Vedanta itself have been consolidated. Three of these have been designated as prakaraṇa ( or

treatise A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject and its conclusions." Tre ...

) that expound on the tradition of Vedanta.: * Tattvabodhaḥ * Sādhana-pañcakam *

Vivekachudamani The ''Vivekachudamani'' (; IAST: ) is an introductory treatise within the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Hinduism, traditionally attributed to Adi Shankara of the eighth century, though this attribution has been questioned and mostly rejected by ...

Swami Dayananda has published translations of three

upanishads The Upanishads (; sa, उपनिषद् ) are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.Wendy Doniger (1990), ''Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism'', 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, , ...

in 2 volumes each: * Kenopaniṣad * Mundakopaniṣad * Taittirīya Upaniṣad The rest are as follows: * Brahmasūtram (Catussūtrī) * Exploring Vedanta: An Inquiry into the Significant Sentence ( Śraddhā

Bhakti ''Bhakti'' ( sa, भक्ति) literally means "attachment, participation, fondness for, homage, faith, love, devotion, worship, purity".See Monier-Williams, ''Sanskrit Dictionary'', 1899. It was originally used in Hinduism, referring to d ...

Dhyāna Yogād Avaihi" and "Ātmānaṁ Cet Vijānīyāt) * In the Vision of Vedanta: Talks by Swami Dayananda Saraswati * Introduction to Vedanta – Understanding The Fundamental Problem * Mahāvākya Vichara * Sādhana & Sādhya: An Overview of Vedanta (Public Talks Book 7) * Talks on Vivekachudamani (108 Selected Verses) * Teaching Tradition of Advaita Vedanta * Vedanta 24 x 7

Ishvara

Swami Dayananda has given talks on the topic of God, called

Ishvara ''Ishvara'' () is a concept in Hinduism, with a wide range of meanings that depend on the era and the school of Hinduism. Monier Monier Williams, Sanskrit-English dictionarySearch for Izvara University of Cologne, Germany In ancient texts of ...

in Sanskrit. He has said that time and space is not separate to Ishvara and that Ishvara is both the maker and the material of all that exists just as a spider creates a web and can take back the web. Hence the world and the environment should not be destroyed but revered as being Ishvara. The environment is not something to be conquered.

Music

Swami Dayananda had an interest in music, and published a number of original compositions as ''Compositions of Swami Dayananda'' in 2010. He has provided commentaries and translations of the following hymns. * Sri Dakshinamurti Stotram * Śrī Rudram In 1980, Swami Dayananda wrote ''Bhosambho Sivasambho'', his most well known composition. More commonly known as ''Bho Shambo'', this most renowned revati rāga to Shiva is used by people from many different traditions. Additionally, ''Salutations to Rudra'' was written by Sheela Balaji in 2008, based on Swami Dayananda's expositions.

Prayer

A number of works have been published on prayer,

bhakti ''Bhakti'' ( sa, भक्ति) literally means "attachment, participation, fondness for, homage, faith, love, devotion, worship, purity".See Monier-Williams, ''Sanskrit Dictionary'', 1899. It was originally used in Hinduism, referring to d ...

and specific

mantra A mantra ( Pali: ''manta'') or mantram (मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit, Pali and other languages believed by practitioners to have religious, ...

s. * Dīpārādhanā * Morning Meditation Prayers * Japa *

Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya ''Om'' (or ''Aum'') (; sa, ॐ, ओम्, Ōṃ, translit-std=IAST) is a sacred sound, syllable, mantra, or an invocation in Hinduism. ''Om'' is the prime symbol of Hinduism.Krishna Sivaraman (2008), ''Hindu Spirituality Vedas Through Ved ...

* Prayer Guide * Purnamadah Purnamidam * The Purpose of Prayer

Miscellanea

A non-exhaustive list of various books, transcriptions of given talks and essays by Swami Dayananda follows, in alphabetical order. * Action and Reaction * Can We? (Essays: 6) *

Conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

Is Violence * Crisis Management *

Dāna Dāna (Devanagari: दान, IAST: Dānam) is a Sanskrit and Pali word that connotes the virtue of generosity, charity or giving of alms in Indian philosophies. In Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, dāna is the practice of cu ...

m (Essays: 4) * Dialogues With Swami Dayananda * Discourses on Certain Important Topics * Do all Religions have the same goal? (Essays: 1) * Examples Come Alive * Freedom * Freedom from Fear * Freedom from Helplessness * Freedom from Sadness * Freedom from Stress * Freedom in Relationship * Friendship (The Essence of Vedic Marriage) * The Fundamental Problem * Gurupurnima (Essays: 3) * Hinduism ...its uniqueness * Insights * Knowledge and Action – The Two Fold Commitment * Living Versus Getting On * Need for Cognitive Change * The Need for Personal Reorganisation * Personal Re-engineering in Management * Personnel Management * The Problem Is You, The Solution Is You * Public Talks 1: Living Intelligently * Public Talks 2: Discovering Love & Successful Living *

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages ...

Satya ''Satya'' (Sanskrit: सत्य; IAST: ''satya)'' is a Sanskrit word loosely translated as truth, essence. A. A. Macdonell, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Asian Educational Services, , pp. 330–331 It also refers to a virtue in Indian relig ...

m and

Mithya ''Mithya'' ( en, Illusion) is a 2008 Indian Hindi-language film co-written and directed by Rajat Kapoor and produced by Planman Motion Pictures. It stars Ranvir Shorey, Neha Dhupia, Naseeruddin Shah, and Vinay Pathak in pivotal roles. The sc ...

* Self-Knowledge * Stress-free Living * Surrender and Freedom * Talk on emotional maturity * Talks and Essays (Vol.I) * Talks and Essays (Vol.II) * Talks and Essays ( Vol. III) * Talks on "Who Am I ?" * Understanding Between Parents and Children * The True Teacher * Vedic View and Way of Life * Viṣṇusahasranāma * Wedding Ceremony Based on Hindu Concepts * What is Meditation? Meditation Series: 2 * What You Love Is The Pleased Self * Yoga of Objectivity * You Are the Whole

Notes

References

External links

Arsha Vidya Research and Publication Trust

Swami Dayananda Educational Trust (SDET)

Arsha Avinash Foundation: free books and resources on Swami Dayananda, Sanskrit, Vedanta and Hindu philosophy

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saraswati, Dayananda 20th-century Hindu religious leaders 21st-century Hindu religious leaders 1930 births 2015 deaths Advaitin philosophers Indian founders Indian male writers Indian Hindu monks Indian religious writers Indian spiritual teachers Indian spiritual writers Indian Hindu saints People from Thiruvarur Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in other fields Translators of the Bhagavad Gita