Bruce Mars (born October 23, 1935), also known as Brother Paramananda, is a

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

of the

Self-Realization Fellowship Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) is a worldwide spiritual organization founded by Paramahansa Yogananda in 1920 and legally incorporated as a non-profit religious organization in 1935, to serve as Yogananda's instrument for the preservation ...

in Los Angeles, California, and a former actor.

Acting career

After working on some

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

productions in New York City, Mars moved to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career. He gained a guest role on '' Rawhide'', where he met casting director Joe D'Agosta. Mars later contacted D'Agosta after the casting director moved on to work on ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'', and was brought in to audition for the role of Junior Navigations Officer Dave Bailey in episode "

The Corbomite Maneuver "The Corbomite Maneuver" is the tenth episode of the first season of the American science fiction television series '' Star Trek''. Written by Jerry Sohl and directed by Joseph Sargent, it first aired on November 10, 1966. In the episode, the ' ...

", alongside five other actors. Anthony Call was cast instead, but Mars also appeared in the background as Crewman #1. D'Agosta kept Mars in mind for a bigger part, and when casting was underway for "

Shore Leave Shore leave is the Leave (military), leave that professional sailors get to spend on dry land. It is also known as "liberty" within the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps. During the Age of ...

", he suggested to Mars that he should come in for a further audition for the part of Finnegan. Mars later said he felt like he had "nailed this baby" and was offered the role in person. Based on the success of this, he was brought back for a third occasion to play a 20th-century police officer in the episode " Assignment: Earth". Outside of ''Star Trek'', he appeared in the ''

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' is a 1961 American science fiction disaster film, produced and directed by Irwin Allen, and starring Walter Pidgeon and Robert Sterling. The supporting cast includes Peter Lorre, Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, M ...

'' episodes "Killers of the Deep" and "The Abominable Snowman".

Religious career

Mars quit the acting profession to become a

with the

in Los Angeles and eventually took the name Brother Paramananda. He said in an interview with the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' in 2004 about his spiritual awakening, "The words 'karma' and 'reincarnation' are being thrown around everywhere, even in sports - at some TV basketball game, a guy tried a shot and couldn't make it, and the radio announcer said it was his karma. I went the whole hog and became a monk and walked away. Nowadays people don't have to run away to meditate. There are doctors, lawyers, a mother with three children - anyone can do it. There's more acceptance." During his time at the Fellowship, he conversed with

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

on several occasions, who on one occasion said to Paramananda, "Man, you made the right choice. People don't know my life or that I sometimes cry myself to sleep because I don't know God."

Filmography

Notes

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mars, Bruce 1935 births 20th-century American male actors 20th-century monks American monks American yogis Devotees of Paramahansa Yogananda Kriya yogis Living people