Swami Nikhilananda (1895–1973), born Dinesh Chandra Das Gupta was a direct disciple of Sri Sarada Devi. In 1933, he founded the

Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center The Ramakrishna Vivekananda Center of New York is a branch of the Ramakrishna Order of India, founded in 1933 by Swami Nikhilananda. After Nikhilananda's death in 1973, the center was headed by Swami Adiswarananda until the latter's death in 200 ...

of New York, a branch of

Ramakrishna Mission Ramakrishna Mission (RKM) is a Hindu religious and spiritual organisation which forms the core of a worldwide spiritual movement known as the ''Ramakrishna Movement'' or the ''Vedanta Movement''. The mission is named after and inspired by th ...

, and remained its head until his death in 1973. An accomplished writer and thinker, Nikhilananda's greatest contribution was the translation of '' Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita'' from

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

into English, published under the title ''

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna ''The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna'' is an English translation of the Bengali religious text '' Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita'' by Swami Nikhilananda. The text records conversations of Ramakrishna with his disciples, devotees and visitors, record ...

'' (1942).

Biography

Swami Nikhilananda was born in 1895 in Durgapur village, Sylhet district, in present-day Bangladesh (British India), and had his education in the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate State university (India), state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered ...

. As a graduate, he chose the profession of journalism. He then joined the

Indian freedom movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged from Bengal. ...

and was incarcerated for a period in a British prison camp. As a boy, through his pious parents, he became acquainted with the teachings of

Ramakrishna Ramakrishna Paramahansa ( bn, রামকৃষ্ণ পরমহংস, Ramôkṛṣṇo Pôromohôṅso; , 18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886),——— — also spelled Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, born Gadadhar Chattopadhyaya,, was an In ...

and

Swami Vivekananda Swami Vivekananda (; ; 12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta (), was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the intro ...

. These teachings made an indelible impression on his young mind and brought him in touch with the direct disciples of Ramakrishna. He was initiated by Holy Mother. He also met the direct disciples of Ramakrishna, Swamis Brahmananda,

Saradananda Saradananda (23 December 1865 – 19 August 1927), also known as Swami Saradananda, was born as Sarat Chandra Chakravarty in 1865, and was one of the direct monastic disciples of Ramakrishna. He was the first Secretary of the Ramakrishna M ...

Shivananda Swami Shivananda (1854–1934), born Tarak Nath Ghosal, was a Hindu spiritual leader and a direct disciple of Ramakrishna, who became the second president of the Ramakrishna Mission. His devotees refer to him as Mahapurush Maharaj (Great So ...

Turiyananda Swami Turiyananda or "Hari Maharaj" as he was popularly known as, was a direct monastic disciple of Ramakrishna, the 19th-century Hindu mystic from Bengal. He was one of the earliest missionary to be sent by his leader and brother disciple Sw ...

, Premananda,

Akhandananda Swami Akhandananda (1864–1937) was a swami and direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, a 19th-century mystic. He was the third president of the Ramakrishna Mission. Early life Initial Years Akhandananda was born as Gangadhar Ghatak (Gan ...

Abhedananda Swami Abhedananda (2 October 1866 – 8 September 1939), born Kaliprasad Chandra, was a direct disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of Ramakrishna Vedanta Math. Swami Vivekananda sent him to the West to ...

as well as

Mahendranath Gupta Mahendranath Gupta ( bn, মহেন্দ্রনাথ গুপ্ত) (14 July 1854 – 4 June 1932), (also famously known as শ্রীম, Master Mahashay, and M.), was a disciple of Ramakrishna (a great 19th-century Hindu mystic) and ...

, the recorder of ''

Kathamrita ''Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita'' ( bn, শ্রীশ্রীরামকৃষ্ণ-কথামৃত, , ''The Nectar of Sri Ramakrishna's Words'') is a Bengali five-volume work by Mahendranath Gupta (1854–1932) which recounts conve ...

'' among others. After coming into their influence, he abandoned his role as a freedom fighter and renounced the world to join the

Ramakrishna Order The Ramakrishna Order (Bengali: রামকৃষ্ণ সংঘ) is the monastic lineage that was founded by Sri Ramakrishna, when he gave the ochre cloth of renunciation to twelve of his close disciples, in January 1886 at the Cossipore Hous ...

. As a ''Brahmachari'', for many years he devoted himself to the study of the

scriptures Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual prac ...

under eminent teachers, practised spiritual disciplines, and served the Order in various capacities, until, in 1931, he was deputed by the Order to come to

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

as one of its representatives. In 1933, he founded the

in New York. Nikhilananda was considered a brilliant speaker and was invited to lecture at different universities, churches, and synagogues, and to participate in inter-religious conferences East and West. He served at the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center till his death in 1973. Nikhilananda made important contributions to the literature of Ramakrishna movement. He also attracted distinguished disciples, including author

JD Salinger Jerome David Salinger (; January 1, 1919 January 27, 2010) was an American author best known for his 1951 novel ''The Catcher in the Rye''. Salinger got his start in 1940, before serving in World War II, by publishing several short stories in ''S ...

,The Slate
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Margaret Woodrow Wilson Margaret Woodrow Wilson (April 16, 1886 – February 12, 1944) was the eldest child of President Woodrow Wilson and Ellen Louise Axson. Her two siblings were Jessie and Eleanor. After her mother's death in 1914, Margaret served her father as the ...

, daughter of the president

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

, the comparative mythologist Professor

Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...

, and

Chester Carlson Chester Floyd Carlson (February 8, 1906 – September 19, 1968) was an American physicist, inventor, and patent attorney born in Seattle, Washington. Carlson invented electrophotography, the process used by millions of photocopiers worldwide. Ca ...

, inventor of

xerographic Xerography is a dry photocopying technique. Originally called electrophotography, it was renamed xerography—from the roots el, ξηρός, label=none ''xeros'', meaning "dry" and -γραφία ''-graphia'', meaning "writing"—to emphasize ...

process. Philosopher

Lex Hixon Lex Hixon (1941–1995) (born Alexander Paul Hixon Junior, also known as Nur al-Anwar al-Jerrahi in the Sufi community) was an American Sufi author, poet, and spiritual teacher. He practiced and held membership in several religious traditions. H ...

was Nikhilananda's disciple.

Literary works

His most important works include translations of ''The

Upanishads The Upanishads (; sa, उपनिषद् ) are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.Wendy Doniger (1990), ''Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism'', 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, , ...

'', ''The

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; sa, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, lit=The Song by God, translit=śrīmadbhagavadgītā;), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700- verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic ''Mahabharata'' (c ...

'', biographies of Holy Mother and

, his compilation of the works of Swami Vivekananda under the title of ''Vivekananda: The Yogas and Other Works'', his two books, ''Hinduism, Its Meaning for the Liberation of the Spirit'', and ''Man in Search of Immortality'', and his many articles written for various journals. His most notable literary work is his translation from original Bengali into English of ''

'', published under the title of ''

''. Many of the works of Swami Nikhilananda have already been translated into various European and Indian languages and are recognised as authoritative texts on the interpretations of the teachings of

Vedanta ''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, t ...

. In 1944, ''

Time Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Mar ...

'' called Swami Nikhilananda's translations of ''The Bhagavad Gita'', "The first really readable, authoritative English translation of one of the world's greatest religious classics." and referred to ''The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna'' as "translation of one of the world's most extraordinary religious documents." The Gospel was voted as one of the ''"100 Most Important Spiritual Books of the 20th Century"'' by the American

scholars A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher ...

convened by

Philip Zaleski Philip Zaleski is the author and editor of several books on religion and spirituality, including ''The Recollected Heart,'' ''The Benedictines of Petersham,'' and ''Gifts of the Spirit.'' In addition, he is coauthor with his wife Carol Zaleski of ' ...

and

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Cor ...

publishers,

Bibliography

* Bhagavad Gita – Swami Nikhilananda * Hinduism : Its Meaning for the Liberation of the Spirit – Swami Nikhilananda * Holy Mother : life of Holy mother Sri Sarada Devi – Swami Nikhilananda * Vivekananda: A Biography – Swami Nikhilananda * The Principal Upanishads – Swami Nikhilananda * Man in Search of Immortality: Testimonials from the Hindu Scriptures – Swami Nikhilananda * Self-Knowledge: Sankara's "Atmabodha" – Swami Nikhilananda * The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna – Swami Nikhilananda

Translations

* Gupta, Mahendranath. ''

'' (1942) (translation from

by Swami Nikhilananda; Ed.

and Margaret Woodrow Wilson, translation assistants – see preface; foreword by

Aldous Huxley Aldous Leonard Huxley (26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. He wrote nearly 50 books, both novels and non-fiction works, as well as wide-ranging essays, narratives, and poems. Born into the prominent Huxley ...

)

Notes

External links

Swami Nikhilananda

at

, New York
Approaches to the Upaniṣads: Swami Nikhilananda's "The Upanishads"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nikhilananda, Swami 20th-century Hindu religious leaders Hindu writers Monks of the Ramakrishna Mission 1895 births 1973 deaths 20th-century Indian translators Indian religious writers University of Calcutta alumni Bengali Hindus 20th-century Indian non-fiction writers Indian emigrants to the United States Missionary linguists