| Swami Rama | |
|---|---|
| Born | Northern India |
| Birth name | Brij Kishore Dhasmana |
| Titles/honours | Shankaracharya of Karvirpitham |
| Guru | Bengali Baba |
| Quotation | "Be happy and fearless. Remember that you are a child of Divinity. Loss and gain cannot even touch your shadow." |
Swāmī Rāma (1925–1996) was born Brij Kiśore Dhasmana or Brij Kiśore Kumar,[1] to a northern Indian Brahmin family in a small village called Toli in the Garhwal Himalayas. He became the lineage holder of the Sankya Yoga tradition of the Himalayan Masters. From an early age he was raised in the Himalayas by his master Bengali Baba and, under the guidance of his master, traveled from temple to temple and studied with a variety of Himalayan saints and sages, including his grandmaster, who was living in a remote region of Tibet. From 1949 to 1952 he held the prestigious position of Shankaracharya of Karvirpitham (also Karveer Peeth or Karweer Peeth) in South India. After returning to his master in 1952 and practising further for many years in the Himalayan caves, Swami Rama was encouraged by his teacher to go to the West, where he spent a considerable portion of his life teaching, specifically in the United States and Europe.[2]
He is especially notable as one of the first yogis to allow himself to be studied by Western scientists. In the 1960s he allowed himself to be examined by scientists at the Menninger Clinic who studied his ability to voluntarily control bodily processes (such as heartbeat, blood pressure, body temperature, etc.) that are normally considered to be non-voluntary (autonomic).
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After leaving the post of Shankaracharya and going back to the master, he afterwards travelled to Nepal in the Himalayas barefoot with nothing but a kamandalu and tiger mat. It was here he created his first ashram. It is at the outskirts of Kathmandu on the way to Dulikhel on the mountain of Janagal. He later granted it to Swami Vishuddha Dev. The ashram is known as Hansada Yoga Ashram. Now it is the headquarters of the Characterlogy movement. However, other programs are also conducted there.[3]
He was the founder of the Himalayan Institute of Yoga Science and Philosophy, which has its headquarters in Honesdale, PA, and branches in the USA, Europe, and India. Swami Rama also founded other teaching and service organizations, some of which are linked below. One of his significant achievements is the establishment of a large medical facility in the northeastern part of India (Dehradun) to serve millions of poor people in the nearby mountains. Until about 15 years ago the rural poor in this region did not have access to health care, water, sanitation, and education. Dedicated disciples of Swami Rama have contributed to make his dream of a region free of poverty come true. Stories of his leadership style and the way he achieved his goals are documented in several books about Swami Rama.[4]
Swami Rama demonstrated the impact of holistic health approaches on the Dehradun campus. On that campus he also established a medical university with his most senior disciple Swami Veda Bharati (holding a Ph.D. from The Netherlands)[5] being the Chancellor, Vijay Dhasmana as the Vice-Chancellor, and one of his most development-oriented disciples—Ms. B. Maithili (Director of the Rural Development Institute)—as the Registrar.
Swami Rama authored several books in which he describes the path he took to becoming a yogi and lays out the philosophy and benefits behind practices such as meditation. One of the common themes expressed in such books as Enlightenment Without God and Living with the Himalayan Masters is the ability of any person to achieve peace without the need for a structured religion. He was critical of the tendency for yogis to use supernatural feats to demonstrate their enlightenment, arguing that these only demonstrated the ability to perform a feat.
Swami Rama is reportedly survived by one daughter and two sons. Two of these children have been acknowledged in "At the Eleventh Hour," a biography of Swami Rama written by the current spiritual leader of the Himalayan Institute of the USA, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait (see also Tigunait's 2001 interview with Yoga Chicago).[6] These children are his son, Mohit Kumar (or Mohit Dhasmana),[7] and daughter, Devyani Mungali,[8] by his former wife in India, Lilu Kumar, whom he married after leaving the post of Shankaracharya. Lilu and Mohit Kumar have been involved in several lawsuits in India (notably Original Suit No. 865 of 1997 filed in The Court of the Civil Judge, Senior Division, Dehradun), challenging the current leaders of the Himalayan Institute Hospital Trust, founded by Swami Rama.
Robert Walter, an American registered securities broker, claims to be the younger son of Swami Rama. He and his mother, Shirley Walter, plan to publish a double memoir of their relationships with Swami Rama and their involvement with the Himalayan Institute, "Son of a Swami: A Life of Lies." [9] Shirley Walter was a founding director of the Himalayan Institute USA, according to the original incorporation papers filed with the Illinois Secretary of State. Her yoga center became Swami Rama's first base of operations in the United States (also described in "At the Eleventh Hour" by Tigunait).
Another woman, Miranda Marbaniang of Shillong, claims she is Swami Rama's oldest daughter.
Swami Rama's followers have not acknowledged either Robert Walter or Miranda Marbaniang as the guru's children, as he was supposed to have taken vows of celibacy.
On September 4, 1997 in the United District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania a jury returned an award against the defendant Himalayan International Institute of Yoga Science and Philosophy of the U.S.A. (“Himalayan Institute”) in the amount of $275,000 in compensatory damages and $1.6 million in punitive damages for the sexual misconduct of the Himalayan Institute's former “spiritual leader,” Brijkishor Kumar, popularly known as the “Swami Rama.” Answering special verdict questions, the jury found that Swami Rama (a) had engaged in sexual relations with the plaintiff who was 19 years old at the time of the sexual abuse; (b) had abused his position as the plaintiff's guru to secure her consent to the sexual relations; ( c) had breached the standard of care and fiduciary duties inherent in the relationship between him and the plaintiff; (d) had intentionally inflicted emotional distress on the plaintiff; (e) had acted maliciously and with conscious disregard for the welfare of the plaintiff; (f) and was acting within the scope of his agency relationship with the Himalayan Institute when engaging in sexual relations with Patel. In addition to holding the Himalayan Institute liable for compensatory and punitive damages on a respondent superior theory, the jury also imposed direct liability on the Institute, finding that (a) it had been negligent in allowing Swami Rama to be a sexual predator for a number of years; (b) the actions and inactions of Himalayan Institute constituted the intentional infliction of emotional distress; and (c) the Himalayan Institute had acted maliciously and with conscious disregard for the welfare of the plaintiff.[10]
Swami Rama, in relation to accusations made against him while alive, said "As a swami , I have taken a vow not to defend myself, Those saying negative things are my students, my spiritual children...I promised my sages that I would serve these students until they reach their final goal. And now for such a trival reason, I should abandon them? ...My master's mission will be crippled and I will be responsible for that...Divine will supersedes all human plans and endeavors..." [11]
Books by Swami Rama
Biographies
Other works
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