On October 9, 1939, an imposing property situated on the eastern bank of the sacred Ganga was purchased by Yogoda Satsanga Society of India with the blessing of our Gurudeva who was in USA at that time, Gurudeva was very happy that his dream of having an ashram on the bank of a river was at last fulfilled. Today, that property is the Yogoda Satsanga Math and Ashram in Dakshineswar which celebrated its Platinum Jubilee on October 9, 2014. To mark this auspicious event many spiritual, cultural, and charitable activities were conducted in September and October 2014.
To begin with, a medical camp was held on September 13, 2014, in which about 400 patients were treated. A week later, a Shishu Mela was held on September 22, in which students from eight nearby schools participated with great enthusiasm. The Shishu Mela included elocution on topics selected from Gurudeva’s teachings, recitation of Gurudeva’s poems, and group singing of Cosmic Chants. Forty teachers from local schools were also given special honour during this programme. The finale of this day-long event was a dance-drama in which the students enacted Tagore’s songs and stories from Gurudeva’s life through a spectacular performance of music and dance. The main programme of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations was a four-day event held from October 9 to 12, 2014, at YSS Dakshineswar ashram and Birla Sabhaghar, Kolkata.
The celebrations began with a sadhu bhandara in which 40 sadhus and sannyasis participated. Sri Sanjib Chattopadhyay, a renowned writer of West Bengal, was the Chief Guest of the inaugural programme. Other special guests were Srimat Kinkar Samananda, vice-president of Mahamilan Math, and Sri Deepak Koruri, grandson of noted merchant and philanthropist Late Sri N. L. Koruri. The property which is now our Dakshineswar ashram was a garden house of the Koruri family, and was acquired from them.
The morning of October 10 and 11 witnessed various programmes in the ashram (including a Prabhat Feri through the streets around the ashram on 11th morning). All the nine YSS schools of West Bengal and the three Children’s Sunday Satsanga groups of Dakshineswar, Serampore, and Telary participated in competitive events on this two days that included recitation, elocution, Cosmic Chant singing, and a cultural programme.
In the evening of October 10 and 11, public discourses on the Bhagavad Gita, entitled The Pandavas and Kauravas Within Me, by Swami Smaranananda Giri, General Secretary of YSS, were organized at Birla Sabhaghar in Kolkata. The lucid elucidations by Swamiji of the wisdom expound in the Gita were deeply appreciated.
During the programmes at Birla Sabhaghar on 10th and 11th evenings, and on the 12th morning, YSS publications were on display. Many newcomers showed keen interest in Gurudeva’s books. There was also a running display of spiritual and charitable activities of Dakshineswar Math.
Swami Suddhananda, the convenor of the programme, read out a special message from the Hon’ble Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamta Banerjee:
“I am happy to learn that Yogoda Satsanga Society of India will organize a special programme from 9th to 12th October, 2014 at Ballygunge, Kolkata to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of Yogoda Satsanga Math at Dakshineswar.
I am further happy to learn that the Society has taken up a programme to distribute scholarships to poor children on the aforesaid occasion.
I wish the charitable initiative all success and convey my heartiest greeting to all members and devotees of the organization on the eve of the auspicious occasion.”
The Platinum Jubilee celebrations witnessed a befitting finale on the evening of October 12 at the Dakshineswar Ashram premises. A splendid audio-visual and musical presentation of high professional standards, based on the life story of Gurudeva, was presented as a fitting tribute to the Premavatar.
