Ghanananda Saraswati (born Kewsi Essel; 12 September 1937 – 18 January 2016), commonly known as Swami Ghanananda, was a prominent

swami Swami ( ; sometimes abbreviated sw.) in Hinduism is an honorific title given to a male or female ascetic who has chosen the path of renunciation (''sanyāsa''), or has been initiated into a religious monastic order of Vaishnavas. It is used eit ...

(''

sannyasi ''Sannyasa'' (Sanskrit: संन्यास; IAST: ), sometimes spelled Sanyasa (सन्न्यास) or Sanyasi (for the person), is life of renunciation and the fourth stage within the Hindu system of four life stages known as '' As ...

'') of the indigenous Hindu community in Ghana, and the first Hindu swami of African ancestry. He was initiated as a swami by the late

Swami Krishnananda Swami Krishnananda Saraswati (25 April 1922 – 23 November 2001) was a disciple of Sivananda Saraswati and served as the General Secretary of the Divine Life Society in Rishikesh, India from 1958 until 2001. Author of more than 40 texts, a ...

of India in 1975, and was head of the

Hindu Monastery of Africa Hindu Monastery of Africa located at Odorkor in Greater Accra Region of Ghana. It is the first African hindu monastery and was established in 1975 by Swami Ghanananda. A branch of the Hindu Monastery of Africa has been established in Togo. ...

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

, Ghana.

Biography

Early life

Swami Ghanananda was born as Kwesi Essel on September 12, 1937 in

Senya Beraku Senya Beraku is a residential area in the Awutu Senya District of the Central Region of Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Oce ...

, a village in the Central Region of Ghana. His family practiced a native Ghanaian faith, but his parents later converted to Christianity. From a very early age Swami Ghanananda was interested in the mysteries of the universe and read various religious texts.

Journey to India

After reading some books on Hinduism, Ghanananda travelled to

Rishikesh Rishikesh, also spelt as Hrishikesh, is a city near Dehradun in Dehradun district of the Indian state Uttarakhand. It is situated on the right bank of the Ganges River and is a pilgrimage town for Hindus, with ancient sages and saints meditat ...

in the

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, with a total of 36 entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into districts and smaller administrative divisions. History Pre-indepen ...

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...

, in northern India. He spent some time there with a spiritual guru who suggested him to open the monastery in Accra.

First meeting with Swami Krishnananda

In 1962, Swami Ghanananda moved to Accra and on 24 November, he formed the Divine Mystic Path Society. He then started correspondence courses on the Hindu way of life ( Sanatana Dharma) with the Divine Life Society of Rishikesh, located in the foothills of the

Himalaya The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...

s in northern India, where he first met

of India and became his śishya (disciple), and then in 1975 Swami Krishnananda initiated Swami Ghanananda as a

References

External links

Ghana's unique African-Hindu temple
at

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadc ...

1937 births 2016 deaths Ghanananda, Swami Ghanananda, Swami Hindu missionaries Hinduism in Ghana Ghanaian Hindus Ghanaian monks Ghanaian missionaries {{Africa-reli-bio-stub