Biography of Sri Chinmoy
Introduction and Early Life
What a wonderful thing is the life story of a spiritual Master. The great sages and luminaries who have walked this earth over the centuries – pathfinders like the Christ, Buddha, Krishna and so many others – come to awaken in us a sense of our divinity, to bring a touch of the sacred to our everyday lives and to point the way to a higher, more fulfilling life.
From them we come to understand that we are spiritual beings on a journey of awakening – and having made the journey before us, they illumine every step of the way with their wisdom, love and guidance. They remind us of what is best in us and that our spirituality is the greatest force for good on earth. From them we come to understand the true purpose and meaning of our lives. Sri Chinmoy is one such being.
In Brief
Sri Chinmoy (pronounced Shree Chin-moy) was born on August 27, 1931 as Chinmoy Kumar Ghose in the village of Shakpura, Chittagong, in East Bengal (now Bangladesh). He is a spiritual teacher well known for his prolific legacy of published writings, musical compositions, art and poetry and for his lifelong commitment to world harmony.
During the past four decades Sri Chinmoy has inspired a worldwide organisation that seeks to encourage and foster a brighter future for humanity through initiatives in sports, music, the teaching of meditation and humanitarian aid. His vast body of creative works and diverse activities are unified by this single purpose. Sri Chinmoy has lived in New York city since 1964.
Early Life
Seventy-four year-old Sri Chinmoy was the youngest of seven children, the son of Shashi Kumar Ghose, a railway inspector and later founder of a small Chittagong bank, and Yogamaya Ghose. During his childhood Sri Chinmoy was known by the affectionate Bengali nickname Madal, meaning ‘kettledrum’, a reference to his noisiness and liveliness. Prophetically, Yogamaya said of her son, “My Madal is destined to be played on by the gods and goddesses in the skies!”.
When Sri Chinmoy was 11 his father died – a year later his mother Yogamaya also passed away and the young Madal left Bengal permanently to join several of his family members in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in South India. Sri Chinmoy spent the next two decades immersing himself in the dynamic culture of a large and active ashram. He was a talented athlete and excelled as a sprinter and decathlete; wrote and published frequent articles and poems, the beginnings of a prolific literary career; and developed a profound love for meditation which he would often practise for up to fourteen hours a day.
On April 13th, 1964, at the age of 32, Sri Chinmoy moved to the West to share, like Vivekananda and other Indian sages before him, the teachings of India and to serve the goal of world harmony. (More: Life of Sri Chinmoy)
Religion
Sri Chinmoy was born into a Hindu family but is best known for his deep respect for all religions and spiritual paths and his own deep love for God.
In his own words: “True religion has a universal quality. It does not find fault with other religions. Forgiveness, compassion, tolerance, brotherhood and the feeling of oneness are the signs of a true religion”.
“Spirituality is not hospitality to the other’s faith in God. It is the absolute recognition of the other’s faith in God as one’s own.”
In a significant tribute, in both 1993 and 2004 Sri Chinmoy was invited to offer the opening meditation at the Plenary session of the Parliament of the World’s Religions, which forms the largest gathering of spiritual and religious leaders and organisations in history. Sri Chinmoy has promoted many interfaith activities to encourage religious unity and goodwill – often at the United Nations where he shares silent non-denominational meditations with UN leaders, staff members and diplomats each week.
Sri Chinmoy was a close personal friend of the late Mother Teresa and has met with many religious leaders to discuss religious harmony. Sri Chinmoy, however, describes his own teachings and guidelines as a spiritual path, not a religion, thus focusing on inner development and personal practice rather than a framework of formal beliefs.
Goals
Since his departure from India in 1964, Sri Chinmoy has endeavoured to foster a new groundswell for global harmony through an extensive anthology of published writings; through works of art and poetry; in over seven hundred global concerts of his own compositions; through dialogue with world leaders; through sports, athletics and multiple unique initiatives that have involved countless people at a grassroots level.
Underlying all of Sri Chinmoy’s efforts and initiatives is his recurring theme message that humanity belongs to one world family, and that world harmony is both the birthright and final destiny of mankind which each human being can help to create.
He sees the spiritual awakening in each individual – a widening capacity for love and compassion, an empathy and oneness with others, inner peace, a love for both God the creator and God in creation itself – as the great challenge facing mankind and essential in achieving a harmonious world.
“My ultimate goal is for the whole world to walk together in peace and oneness… This ultimate goal requires a transformation of human nature. There must be a great synthesis between the inner life and the outer life. The inner life wants love, and the outer life wants power. Now we are all exercising the love of power. But a day will come when this world will be inundated with the power that loves. Only the power that loves can change the world. My ultimate goal is for the power of love to replace the love of power within each individual. At that time, world peace can be achieved, revealed, offered and manifested on earth”.
With their universal appeal and relevance and their complete acceptance of other cultural and religious beliefs, Sri Chinmoy’s views lend themselves to a wide audience. He has become well known for his inspirational message of optimism and hope, his unswerving belief in the unlimited potential and innate goodness of the human spirit, and his belief in the oneness of all humankind.
The Sri Chinmoy Centre
In the four decades that Sri Chinmoy has resided in the West, Sri Chinmoy Centres have been established in some 400 cities in over 70 countries. Their activities share a common goal of fostering world harmony through athletic, cultural and musical initiatives that have a popular community following. The Sri Chinmoy Centre does not have a dogma or require any particular belief system of its adherents – rather it espouses a spiritual approach to life based upon a belief in the essential goodness and divinity of the human soul.
Sri Chinmoy encourages the practise of meditation as a powerful method of cultivating this spiritual awakening, and sees the inner peace in each individual as a necessary pre-condition to any lasting harmony in the world. In his words, “Each individual has to become the pathfinder of a new world.” To this end, the Sri Chinmoy Centre offers courses in meditation as one of its principal activities – at Sri Chinmoy’s request these courses are available to the public for free.
Centre Membership
As with many spiritual organisations, Sri Chinmoy has established guidelines and standards for his meditation centres. He requests those who follow his path to be vegetarian and to refrain from alcohol, drugs and smoking. His students are encouraged to meditate regularly and to meet once or twice each week to meditate together. This is a cornerstone of his spiritual path.
Exercise, particularly running, is also encouraged, reflecting his belief in the importance of physical well-being and excellence as a complement to spiritual progress. Body, mind, heart, soul – each of these inseparable aspects of our humanity can be perfected. Sri Chinmoy encourages his students to offer something of their talents or capacities to the community as well, believing that by sharing their inspiration and concern for others they can, in various ways, serve the goal of world harmony.
Sri Chinmoy takes a personal interest in the development of his disciples worldwide and has travelled to many countries to meet his followers and to encourage the growth of the centres. As a loving parent will try to bring forward the very best in his or her child, so too, through these principles of right living, the role of the spiritual teacher is to encourage the rapid blossoming of the student’s potential and spirit.
