Romapada Swami
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| Religion | Gaudiya Vaishnavism |
| Senior posting | |
|---|---|
| Based in | USA |
| Title | Initiating Spiritual Master/ Diksa guru |
| Period in office | 1986 - current |
| Present post | Sannyasi Assistant GBC Temple president, |
| Website | Romapada Swami |
| Personal | |
| Date of birth | December 27, 1948 |
| Place of birth | New York |
Romapada Swami (born Brian Howard Rumbaugh, December 27, 1948, Utica, New York) is a sannyasi, a religious renunciate, traveling preacher and guru in the Gaudiya Math lineage of Vaishnavism, which is a sect of Hinduism.[1][2][3]
A scholar of Eastern and Western Philosophies, he has lectured at universities in the United States, India and Europe, including Cornell University, Yale, Stanford, Brown, Bard College, the Universities of Maryland, Delaware, Champagne/Urbana, IIT, Heidelberg, and UW Madison.[4]
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[edit] Early life
The youngest of five children, Romapada was raised in a Christian family in Utica, New York.[1] He attended the State University of New York in Buffalo, where he was a pre-med student. It was here, in 1969, that he met A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder-Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), an event that would change the course of his life.[2]
[edit] Role in ISKCON
Shortly after being accepted to Medical school, at age twenty-one, Romapada instead chose a life with ISKCON.[1] Romapada became an initiated disciple of Srila Prabhupada in July of 1971,[2] and accepted the renounced order of sannyasa in 1983 (whence he was given the title of "Swami").[5][6]
Since 1978, Romapada Swami has traveled worldwide, presenting the philosophy of Krishna Consciousness. Currently he is based in New York, and frequently travels to India and Asia on preaching missions. Since 1986, Romapada Swami has served as an ISKCON guru, with the power to initiate others into the lineage. He currently has a total of 90 initiated disciples.[2]
As a guest lecturer in academia, he has spoken to thousands of students across India, the US and Europe.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Biography on Romapada's website
- ^ a b c d Biography on ISKCON GBC site
- ^ Gaur Purnima celebrations at ISKCON India Post, 04.13.2008, Retrieved on 2008-05-06
- ^ a b Penn State Vedic Society
- ^ GBC resolutions 1983
- ^ List of Sannyasis in ISKCON April 2008 ISKCON Sannyasa Ministry, Retrieved on 2008-05-05
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Romapada Swami's official website
- Article critical of Romapada's management of devotees
- "How to go beyond seeing paradoxes?" - brief interview with Romapada
- Podcast - Romapada Swami's lecture on text 43 of the Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana), canto 7, chapter 8, entitled "Lord Nrsimha Slays The King Of The Demons"
- Models of Inspiration - more audio files
- Videos of ceremonies with Romapada Swami
- Video of Romapada Swami teaching class - Srimad Bhagavatam 7.4.22 and 23
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