Sri Bhagavan

Sri Bhagavan
Religion Hinduism
Philosophy Oneness of humanity
Personal
Nationality Indian
Born Vijay Kumar
(1949-03-07) 7 March 1949
Natham Village, Gudiyatham Town, Tamil Nadu, India

Sri Bhagavan[1] [2][3][4] (born 7 March 1949) is a spiritual teacher from India, and founder of Oneness University, a spiritual school located in South India.[5][6]

Early years (1949 - 1983)

Family background

Sri Bhagavan was born on 7 March 1949[1] as Vijay Kumar, in Natham Village, Gudiyatham Town, Vellore district, Tamil Nadu, to Smt. Vaidarbhi Amma and Sri Varadarajulu. Sri Bhagvan’s father was the head of the accounts department of Indian Railways [7] and his mother was a simple village woman. [1] In 1955, when Sri Bhagavan was 6 years of age, the family moved to Chennai.

Education

Sri Bhagavan attended Don Bosco School in Chennai.[7] Later, he graduated from DG Vaishnav College in Chennai, majoring in mathematics. [8] [9]

Marriage

Sri Bhagavan married Smt. Padmavathi on 9 June 1977. This was an arranged marriage following the prevalent customary practice in India for marriages decided by elders in the family.[7] Padmavathi, who is addressed as Amma by their students, is also a spiritual person and takes an active interest and participation in building the spiritual organization Oneness.[7]

Jeevashram School (1984 - 1994)

Jeevashram School located in Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh was founded by Sri Bhagavan, in July 1984 to provide an alternative form of education. The land for the school was taken on a lease, with the support provided by Mr. Hari Khoday, an Indian philanthropist. As director of the school, Sri Bhagavan's focus was to develop an environment for children to truly flower and discover themselves. The school had 180 residential students and 200 day students from nearby villages. [7] It was at this school that his spiritual work began. In the summer of 1989, one of the students reported a mystical experience of divine silence. Soon, many other students reported similar experiences, and they were also able to pass their experiences to one another. During these experiences, children had vision of various Gods and would converse with them. Sri Bhagavan explained that the children had got in touch with Antaryamin, the inner guide who dwells in your heart that guides all beings towards greater truth .[7] In 1991, Sri Bhagawan decided to close the school and start the spiritual work for the larger community. The school was closed a few years later in 1994, after the senior students had all graduated from high school and the remaining students were moved to other schools. [7]

Spiritual programs for public (1991 to present)

Once the decision was made to close Jeevashram School, work started in developing the spiritual programs for the public.[7] The principal of the Jeevashram School with a small group of teachers started the spiritual programs for public. The workshops were conducted as residential retreat programs conducted over 7 days or 21 days.

The workshop focused on helping the participant accept themselves as they are, [10] and connect with their own inner divine self the Antaryamin [11] To experience completely their fear, anxiety, etc., by staying with and not running away from these difficult feeling. In this very act of staying with, lies one's personal freedom.[12]

Students also reported various spiritual experiences including mystical visions of their own personal God riding a white horse, similar to the Kalki form of Vishnu from traditional Hindu beliefs.[5][13] Based on this shared spiritual experiences, the students and public would address Sri Bhagavan with the title "Kalki".[6][5]

A second campus was set up in 1992 near Chennai city a place called Somangalam. In 1994, the campus of Jeevashram School was renamed as Satyaloka. Advance retreat programs for public were conducted at this campus. By 1995, Sri Bhagavan's workshops were being conducted in all major cities in India, including the capital New Delhi. In 1995, the first major public event was held at Chennai city, drawing more than 100,000 students from across India. In 1999, the work on building the Oneness University[7] at Varadaiahpalem, Chittoor district Andhra Pradesh India started. Oneness University, located 70 km from Chennai, is accessible by the National Highway 5 and is on Tirupati Road leading to the ancient temple town of Kalahasthi. In 2000, the first campus was completed and Sri Bhagavan and his team of teachers moved to the campus. Over the next few years, various campuses, including the Oneness Temple in 2008[14] were built. In 2004, the first international program was started. [7]

Anna Hazare the Indian social reformer, states “All over India, oneness is the only University providing the values which have not been provided by any other University”.[15] [16]

Ervin Laszlo of the Budapest Club, avers that the 'Oneness experience' are as real as any human sense perceptions of light, colour and sound, but conveyed via different neural process within the brain [17]

In 2006, Tony Robbins, the well known American businessman and coach, discovered meditation through his visit to Oneness University, and has since incorporated teachings of Sri Bhagavan as part of his own programs [18]

In 2009, about 600 delegates from India and 36 foreign countries including a contingent of Mathadipathi, Peetadhipathi and sadhus from all over India, converged at Sri Bhagavan's Oneness University campus for the international convention of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad. This program was attended by VHP leaders including well-known figures, such as Ashok Singhal, Praveen Togadia, Giriraj Kishore, Omkar Bhave and Vendantam.[19][20]

Well-known visitors to Sri Bhagavan's Oneness University campus include Bollywood stars Shilpa Shetty,[21] Manisha Koirala,[22][23] Hrithik Roshan,[24] Rakesh Roshan[25] designer Donna Karan,[26] Deff Leppard musician Rick Allen,[26][27] NBA coach Pat Riley,[26] spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.[28]

In 2011 he was included in Watkins Mind Body Spirit list of influential spiritual leaders for that year.[29]

Oneness Movement

The movement started in the early 1980s and by 2008 was reported to have more than 14 million followers worldwide.[30] Its stated mission is to "create oneness for all for lasting spiritual transformation".[30] Its rites include the practice of deeksha.[5]

Sri Bhagavan's movement has various names,[5] such as Golden Age Foundation, Bhagavad Dharma, Kalki Dharma and the Oneness Organisation.[5]

The headquarters and main campus for the movement is in Varadaiahpalem, Andhra Pradesh, India.[5] Within the campus is the Oneness Temple.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Ardagh, Arjuna., 2008 & ISBN 1-59179-573-7.
  2. ↑ Nadkarni, Vithal. "Oneness to the rescue of a world in peril". Economic Times. says Sri Bhagavan, who along with his spouse, Sri Amma, started the global Oneness University initiative in a humble school in the Chittoor district of AP way back in 1980s.
  3. ↑ Sri Bhagavan was born on 7 March 1949, in Natham Village, Tamil Nadu, to Smt. Vaidarbhi Amma and Sri Varadarajulu, http://www.onenessuniversity.org/index.php/about-oneness/founders
  4. ↑ Varughese, Suma. "Sri Bhagawan Kalki - The School of Enlightenment". Life Positive. The Oneness University and oneoness movement, founded by Sri Bhagavan http://lifepositive.com/the-school-for-enlightenment/
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ramesh Avadhani: India: a visit to the Oneness Temple of Amma-Bhagwan. 13 July 2008.(Published by Religioscope)
  6. 1 2 https://www.lifepositive.com/bhagwan-kalki/
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Ardagh 2008.
  8. ↑ Ardagh, Arjuna, 2008 & ISBN 1-59179-573-7.
  9. ↑ Dr. Vasudha Narayanan:A "White Paper" on Kalki Bhagavan 29 Sep 2002. University of Florida, Gainesville
  10. ↑ Varughese, Suma. "Sri Bhagawan Kalki - The School of Enlightenment". Life Positive. The class revolves around the concept of acceptance. Sounding like J. Krishnamurti or Eckhart Tolle, she tells us to practice 'sweekariyat', beginning with acceptance of the self. We are urged to look within and acknowledge all that is. She points out the suffering inherent in rejecting aspects of ourselves we do not approve of and of the false self we construct. She emphasizes the importance of 'experiencing' the moment, instead of resisting it. Bhagavan says, "Seeing is the key thing in the dharma. Supposing jealousy is there, you must learn to see jealousy. To see is to be free." http://lifepositive.com/the-school-for-enlightenment/
  11. ↑ Varughese, Suma. "Sri Bhagawan Kalki - The School of Enlightenment". Life Positive. "Bhagavan says, 'The mind of man is like a wall which divides man from God. The deeksha is an electrical energy that makes a hole in this wall, which we call the mind. Once this happens, then God and man can come to relate to each other." .. A key concept is the importance of cultivating an intimate relationship with God, based not on fear or awe but friendship. "God is your supreme friend," Bhagavan is reported to have said, and we are urged to argue with God, fight with him and compel him to hear our prayer, as we would with a real friend. I find this concept of the friendly God very attractive, for too often we distance ourselves from divinity out of a sense of unworthiness. http://lifepositive.com/the-school-for-enlightenment/
  12. ↑ Spencer, Stephan. "The very thing that terrifies you is where your treasure lies". Huffington Post. I learned from the monks in India on a trip to Oneness University. The Oneness monk said, “Let the tiger devour you.” Whether you’re feeling fear, anxiety, pain, or some other uncomfortable feeling — instead of running from it, trying to dissipate it or repress it, let the tiger devour you. Just let the feeling engulf you. That’s where the freedom lies. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stephan-spencer/the-very-thing-that-terri_b_11869998.html
  13. ↑ Monier Monier-Williams: Sanskrit-English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages, 1889, reprinted 2003, Nataraj Books, Asian Educational Services, ISBN 81-206-0369-9
  14. ↑ Avadhani, Ramesh. "India: A visit to the Oneness Temple of Amma-Bhagawan". Religiscope. Constructed by the Oneness organisation in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, a new temple boasts of the largest pillar-less meditation hall in Asia--able to accommodate 8000 people. What is this building , and what is the Oneness movement, about which there are few studies? Indian journalist Ramesh Avadhani has recently visited the place. In the following document, he reports about his experience. http://english.religion.info/2008/07/13/india-a-visit-to-the-oneness-temple-of-amma-bhagwan/
  15. ↑ Sunday, August 21, 2011, Anna Hazare Visited Oneness University
  16. ↑ Anna Hazare Comments on Youth Course of Oneness University
  17. ↑ Nadkarni, Vithal. "Oneness to the rescue of a world in peril". Economic Times. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/oneness-to-the-rescue-of-a-world-in-peril/articleshow/2732690.cms
  18. ↑ http://fortune.com/2014/10/30/tony-robbins-best-advice-executive-coach/
  19. ↑ Correspondent, Special (2009-01-02). "world convention". The Hindu.
  20. ↑ VHP condemns terrorism (The Hindu)
  21. ↑ Shilpa Shetty in silent mode | The Hindu
  22. ↑ Varma, Lipika. "On her trip to Chennai, Manisha". Deccan Chronicle.Manisha Koirala states, "I go away to Oneness University in Chennai - this is a totally different company, where we all live differently and see life differently. And when I’m in their company, I get engrossed completely and get detached to the worldly affairs. Here we go for hiking, sit down in nature and enjoy meditation for hours together and discuss about the being of life and blah…blah. Getting attached spiritually, I get easily detached to the world – this detachment gives me a different satisfaction- gain a lot of peace. I gain clarity and get a sense of bliss, and for me it’s another dimension of life which I enjoy. So I’m looking ahead to be with all my Sadhvis ahead in the next month. I usually do this every six months in a year’s time." http://www.deccanchronicle.com/entertainment/bollywood/290517/on-her-trip-to-chennai-manisha-will-catch-up-with-kamal-haasan-and-mani-ratnam.html
  23. ↑ Manisha Koirala prays at Kalki Ashram | The Hindu
  24. ↑ Hrithik off to a wellness course with his family : Celebrities, News - India Today
  25. ↑ Hrithik & family get spiritual on dad’s b’day - Times Of India
  26. 1 2 3 TNN (2008-06-08). "So, who's spiritual". The Times of India. "The Oneness University in Chennai set up by the couple Amma and Bhagwan, which has attracted international celebs like designer Donna Karan, Def Leppard musician Rick Allen and NBA coach Pat Riley"
  27. ↑ ONENESS CHANT by Lauren Monroe Allen and Rick Allen
  28. ↑ Sri Sri Ravishankar meets Sri Bhagavan at the Oneness University
  29. ↑ Watkins Books. "100 Spiritual Power List by Watkins, 2011". Watkins Review: Mind Body Spirit 1893 UK London. Watkins Books (26).
  30. 1 2 TNN (2008-02-02). "Mumbai Inc learns about 'Oneness'". Economic Times.(economictimes.com)
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