Says Swami Vivekananda, “I do not expect anything from the rich people of India. It is best to work among the youth in whom lies our hope – patiently, steadily, and without noise.” In order to work out Swami Vivekananda’s ideas & message for youth who are living in a fast, fierce & competitive world, a two days Youth Convention was organized on 21st & 22nd August 2010, addressed by Swami Nilakanthananda of Ramakrishna Mission Sevashrama, Varanasi and Swami Sarvasthananda of Ramakrishna Ashrama, Rajkot. Around 170 young college students and professionals attended the two days youth convention having interactive sessions interlaced with presentations, Q&A and some puzzle games.
Swami Suvijneyananda felicitated the speakers and welcomed the audience in his inaugural speech, explaining the objective of the convention. On both days the convention began with meditation in the calm & serene atmosphere of the math, under the guidance of Swami Nilakanthananda. He further explained the techniques of meditation in order to draw the outgoing mind inward & thereby improving the power of concentration of mind. Swami Sarvasthananda, in his lecture on ‘Self Development through Work’, explained that action carried out by pondering over the task with right attitude, will certainly bring out the quality & perfection in the work leading to success and self development.
Swami Nilakanthananda in his lecture on ‘True Education’ stressed the importance of experiential knowledge than having only knowledge from books and further explained that true knowledge reveals the purpose of life. Session by Swami Sarvasthananda on ‘Youth and Social Responsibility’ was very well received by all the participants. Some of the participants enthusiastically shared their ideas on various developments in rural and urban areas. The Swami encouraged the participants to initiate various activities for the social cause and put forth his views and gave guidance on the same. Some more sessions were addressed such as ‘Swami Vivekananda’s Gospel of Strength and Fearlessness’, ‘Stress Management’ and ‘True Education’. Lot of questions were raised by the participants which were satisfactorily answered by both the Swamis. The convention was concluded by opinions of some of the participants expressing the convention was very positive and a good learning experience – the lessons of life, which was followed by vote of thanks. A small booklet on Swami Vivekananda’s thoughts was distributed at the hands of both the Swamis.
Later many youths, being inspired, contacted the resident Swamis of the Math, wishing to get involved in various activities of the Math.
Tea, snacks and lunch were provided to participants during both days of the convention. The whole programme went off smoothly befitting the serenity and disciplinary atmosphere of the Math.
The convention, of course, had driven home the Swami Vivekananda’s message of fearlessness and the strength & courage to face the life by beginning the fresh ways of thinking!
Sri Guru Pournima (also known as Vyas Pournima) was celebrated at our Math with great fervour and devotion. In spite of heavy rains continuing on Monday, 26th July 2010, Math premises were seen scattered with devotees eager to take Sri Gurumaharaj’s (Sri Ramakrishna’s) darshan. The whole program went off well as per the schedule. Celebrations started with Mangalarati early in the morning at 5 am, Bhajans at 9 o’clock followed by havan at 10.30 and arati at 11.55 am. In the noon, special cooked prasad was served to all devotees. A lecture was delivered in the evening, by Swami Suvijneyanandaji, emphasizing on the need and importance of a Guru in Sadhaka’s life. Temple prayer hall was packed during arati at 7.15 pm after which large number of devotees took Prasad. The Math atmosphere, throughout the celebrations, was vibrating with devotional feelings towards Gurumaharaj.
Reading from Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna was organized for one month from
26 June - 25 July 2009. In the evening, daily devotees would gather in the prayer hall and read the gospel for about one hour. The reading was concluded on the eve of Sri Guru Pournima.
Annual Celebrations 2010 in connection with Birthday Celebrations of Holy Trio
Benediction: Swami Atmasthanandaji
On the holy Ramanavami, 24 March 2010, a Public Meeting was held to commemorate the Temple Consecration Anniversary Day as a part of the ongoing Annual Celebrations 2010. Most Rev. Srimat Swami Atmasthanandaji Maharaj, President, Ramakrishna Math & Ramakrishna Mission, presided over the public meeting. In his benedictory speech he urged people on how they should perform their daily duties by citing an example that "just as a small boy holding to a post or pillar whirls about it without any fear of falling, in the same way we should do our worldly duties by holding the lotus feet of God firmly, so that we would never be on the wrong path."
Annual Souvenir 2010
Rev. Swami Atmasthanandaji also released the Annual Souvenir of Pune Math and a small booklet in marathi on "Sadhana" by Swami Yogatmanandaji, Head of Vedanta Society, Providence, USA. After a while, Swami Harshanandaji, Head of Bangalore Math, delivered a lecture on "Ramakrishna Monasticism in the background of traditional monasticism" while Dr. Mrs. Suruchi Pande delivered a lecture on "Vedanta and Life of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi" in Marathi. Swami Suvijneyananda compered the whole programme and delivered the Vote of Thanks.
In addition to this, on 23rd, 25th, 26th and 27th evenings the following programmes were conducted respectively:
1) A Solo performance on the Life & Message of Swami Vivekananda, performed by Shri Damodar Ramdasi,
2) A Bhajan Sandhya in which Swami Tadyuktananda, Belgaum Ashrama, sang Bhajans in his melodious voice,
3) A special Solo show on Hasya (Laughter) Yoga, performed by Shri. Makarand Tillu, the founder of Hasayadan Foundation and the organiser of Laghter Clubs in Pune and
4) Harikirtan by Hari Bhakta Parayan Shri. Charudatta Aphale.
From 25th to 28th, Morning satsanga was conducted by Swami Harshanandaji which was attended by large number of devotees throughout the four days. Around 500 devotees attended all these programmes. The celebrations are being conducted in a serene and a spiritually vibrant peaceful atmosphere of the math. (More Photos >>)
Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda's photos shifted to Garbha Mandira (Sanctum Sanctorum)
On the auspicious morning of Ramnavami, the daily worshipped photos of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda were shifted to inner shrine, the Garbha Mandira (Sanctum Sanctorum). (More Photos >>)
Annual Celebrations 2010
Annual celebrations will be held from 23 March - 11 April 2010 in connection with birthday celebrations of Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi
and Swami Vivekananda. See Forthcoming Events for more details.
Public Meeting, Souvenir
release and Benediction by Most Rev. Srimat Swami Atmasthanandaji Maharaj, President Ramakrishna Order. Programme Schedule.
175thBirthday Celebration of Sri Ramakrishna
Sri Ramakrishna's 175th birthday was celebrated on 16th February 2010. The celebration began with Mangalarati and chanting at 5 am. A special puja along with chandi path was performed followed by melodious bhajans by Swami Rameshwarananda accompanied with devotees. Cooked prasad was served in the afternoon to around 1500 devotees. In the evening in Narayan Seva (serving God - Narayana - in the form of poor people), cooked prasad was served to around 1600 people.
Youth Convention January 2010
"You are the creator of your own destiny", says Swami Vivekananda. And "Let the man raise himself by his own self", says Bhagavad Gita.
These quotes though very much relevant, their importance & implementation in day to day life is not apprehensible by today's youth.
To guide them in this direction, a two day Youth Convention on the theme "Shaping Your Personality" was organised on 16 & 17 Jan. 2010.
Swami Suvijneyananda welcomed the audience in his inaugural speech explaining the objective of the Youth Convention. Both days the morning session began with guided meditation by Swami Atmashraddhananda in the serene atmosphere of the math. Swami Atmashraddhananda in his lucid language explained the secret behind the right activity and thereby further elaborated on how an individual can live a life in a joyous way, in his “Secret of Right Activity” & “Joy of Living” sessions. While Dr. K. Subramanyam delivered a talk on “Self Management” and “Emotional Stability”. A small booklet “Swami Vivekananda – His call to the Nation” was distributed and a short film “Karma & Reincarnation” was projected followed by a group discussion.
About 250 young students & professionals attended the convention. All the participants were served with tea, snacks & lunch. (More photos...) You can listen / download a brief introduction to meditation conducted by Swami Atmashraddhananda :
To listen / purchase a mp3 CD of all lectures of Youth Convention, please contact at our Library department between office hours.
Swami Vivekananda's birthday was celebrated on 6th January 2010. Around 1000 devotees attended the celebration. Cooked prasad was served to all.
On the occasion of National Youth Day various competitions like Chorus Singing, Sanskrit Recitation, Elocution, Solo Acting, etc. were organized for School Children on 2nd & 3rd January 2010. Nearly 80 schools from Pune participated in these competitions. Around 1200 students took part in individual competitions. The main objective behind this was to introduce students to the inspiring lives of Swami Vivekananda along with other Saints and great personalities of our country.
The prize distribution ceremony will be held at Math on 12th January 2010, the National Youth Day and the birthday of Swami Vivekananda. Attractive prizes will be given to those excelling in the competitions. (More photos...)
Kalpataru Day was celebrated on 1st January 2010. We celebrate this day, commemorating Sri Ramakrishna’s grace on his devotees at Kashipur Udyan Bati on 1st January 1886. On that day, Sri Ramakrishna as it were became a Kalpataru and bestowed his grace on all those present by awakening their spiritual consciousness and blessing them for spiritual illumination.
On this occasion all those seeking spiritual awakening gathered together in the prayer hall at 3:00 pm and attended with devotion the Bhajans and a short discourse by Swami Suvijneyananda. All were served with Prasad and the program concluded joyfully. Whole evening there was a huge rush of devotees from all over Pune seeking the Darshan of Sri Ramakrishna and thousands of books on the lives of the Holy Trio were purchased by the visitors.
On the Christmas Eve, 24th December 2009, the Ramakrishna Math Pune celebrated the birthday of Lord Jesus Christ by decorating the picture of Mother Mary and Baby Jesus in the shrine and lighting the candles around the Lord as well as all over the sanctum sanctorum. There were Carols sung in chorus after the evening Aratrikam at the Temple. All the devotees present heartily joined the celebrations and also listened to the discourse on the life and teachings of the Jesus Christ with rapt attention. In this discourse in English by Br. Pradeep, the universal teachings of the Lord were highlighted and some wonderful anecdotes and parables were narrated depicting the simple practical ways of living religious life. (More Photos....)
Holy Mother's birthday was celebrated on 8 Dec 2009. Around 1000 devotees attended the celebration. Cooked prasad was served to all.
A two day Youth Convention was organized on 1st & 2nd August 2009, in which more than 200 students participated. Swami Bodhamayananda from Chennai Ashrama & Prof. K. R. Rao from Bangalore conducted the convention on various topics, concerned to today's youth like 'Developing Inner Strength', 'Mind, Attitude & Human Relationships', 'Ancient & Modern Leadership Lessons' and 'The Art of Growing (Learning)'. Swami Suvijneyananda welcome the audience & speakers in his inaugural speech. Both days the convention began with the Meditation session in the serene atmosphere of math in morning at 8:30, under the guidance of Swami Bodhamayananda. The sessions being interactive and some management games were played with group discussions & e-learning (multimedia) sessions, students enjoyed it and learn the lessons in developing an all round personality, more enthusiastically. (More Photos....)
On 31st July, Swami Bodhamayananda conducted
seminars for Symbiosis College Students in which around 700 students participated.
Seminars on Personality Development were also conducted in some Educational Institutes in & around Pune by Swami Bodhamayananda & Prof. K.R. Rao.
Guru Purnima was celebrated on 7 July 2009 - Ashadha Purnima, begining with Mangal Arati at 5 am. Havan was performed followed by bhajans & chantings. In the noon coocked prasad was served to all devotees. (More photos...)
Reading from Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna was organized for one month from
6 June - 7 July 2009. Daily devotees would come together in the evening and read a part from the gospel. Each devotee would read from the gospel for about 10 minutes. The reading was conducted everyday one hour and was concluded on the eve of Guru Purnima.
The annual celebration in connection with temple consecration and birthdays of the Holy Trio and the concluding ceremony of the year long Silver Jubilee Celebrations, were held during 1st April - 7th April 2009. Swami Smarananandaji, Vice-President, Ramakrishna Order, Belur Math released the Souvenir of Pune math titled "Roupya Mahotsav Sevavratacha". Prof. Shivajirao Bhosale, the well-known academic, delivered a lecture as a chief guest. (More photos...) In connection with the Silver Jubilee celebrations, a small function on the devotee's memories about association with Ramakrishna Math, Pune, was held on 7th April 2009. Many devotees, volutnteers and monks expressed their feelings and expericence about how the association with math helped them in their upliftment in social as well as spiritual life. (More photos...)
On 2nd and 3rd Feb '09 Swami Jitatmananda, President, Swami Vivekananda's Ancestoral House & Cultural Centre, Kolkata, West Bengal, delivered guest lectures at Symbiosis College of Arts & Commerce. Addressing the entire administrative staff of Symbiosis Society on 2nd Feb, he spoke on
'Work for Fulfilment in Life' explaining the importance of the attitude towards job which helps one in practicing work & worship simultaneously for fulfillment in life. The Principal of Symbiosis College of Arts & Commerce Dr. Hrishikesh Soman and Vice Principal Mrs. Dr. Sunayini Parchure were on the stage. On 3rd Feb, Swamiji addressed 350 students of Symbiosis commerce college on 'Spirituality a must for global leaders', including a session on meditation and a Q & A session. All these sessions helped students to understand the spiritual dimensions of leadership and motivated them to be a better leaders of tomorrow.
A Mega Youth Convention was organized on 14th & 15th January 2009 as a part of Silver Jubilee Celebrations. The theme of the convention was "Man Making Education" for which more than 1300 youth and 100 guests attended the two day youth convention. The convention was inaugurated by the Vice- Chancellor of Pune University, Dr. Narendra Jadhav. He spoke on "Cultivating Self Confidence for Harnessing Youth Potentials" in english as well as in his mother tongue which was widely applauded by the youth.
Other eminent personalities spoke on various topics like, "Human Excellence", "Nurturing Emotional Stability", "Secret of Concentration", "Be a Leader", and "Fulfilling our Dreams".
Swami Nikhileshwarananda, Secretary, Ramakrishna Mission, Vadodara, Swami Bodhamayananda, Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Chennai, Prof. K.R. Rao, HR Trainer, Bangalore, Padmashree Dr. Anil Gupta, IIM Ahmedabad and Food King Shri Sarath Babu, Chennai interacted with the youth in this two day youth convention which was concluded with the session on “Man Making Education” by Former President, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
Dr. Kalam recalled the inspiring quote of Swami Vivekananda: "The world is ready to give up its secrets if we only know how to knock,
how to give it the necessary blow. The strength and force of the blow come through concentration. There is no limit to the power of the human mind.
The more concentrated it is the more power is brought to bear on one point. That is the secret."
Dr. Kalam said that all great people like C.V. Raman, Albert Einstien use this power of concentration of mind and by this power of concentration
youth of today also can definitely achieve whatever they want. "This thought has indeed influenced my conscience" he added suggesting that today's
education system must develop this faith among the youth and the youth to practice this faith in all their actions.
Dr. Kalam asserted that no youth today need to fear about future and
urged that each youth should contribute in nation building which will lead India to 'Vision 2020'. (More photos...)
Swami Atmashraddhananda, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai compered the two day youth convention while Swami Suvijneyananda, Ramakrishna Math, Pune delivered the Vote of Thanks.
Former President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam awarded the prizes to the winners of the Nationwide Essay Challenge conducted by Ramakrishna Math, Pune. First prize was of Rs. 20,000/- while the second & third prizes were of Rs. 15,000 & 10,000 respectively. All consolation prizes were given of Rs. 2,000 along with a Certificate. (More photos...) (see List of all winners)
Swami Vivekananda's birthday (tithi puja) was celebrated at Pune math on 17th January 2009. Cooked prasad was served to the devotees. After evening vespers shivnamsankirtan was sung.
As a part of Silver Jubilee Celebrations an All-Maharashtra Devotees’ convention and an All -Maharashtra Bhavadhara Centre's convention was held on 20th & 21st and 22nd & 23rd December 2008 respectively. Swami Brahmeshananda & Swami Nilkanthananda conducted the conventions. Musical program were also organized in the evenings. (More photos...)
Following Medical Camps were conducted at RKM Pune Polyclinic center.
Annual Souvenir 2010
You can listen / download a brief introduction to meditation conducted by Swami Atmashraddhananda : 
