Swami Chetanananda gives a lecture on Latu Maharaj, Swami Adbhutananda

Swami Chetanananda gives a lecture at his Laguna Beach cottage on Latu Maharaj, Swami Adbhutananda on 2/8/2022.

Swami Chetanananda is a monk of the Ramakrishna Order and is the Minister of Vedanta Society of St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri, USA. He has been associated with the order since 1950. He officially joined the Order as a monk in 1960. He was initiated by Swami Shankarananda, the seventh president of the Ramakrishna Order and the private secretary of Swami Brahmananda, a direct disciple of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.

Before coming to the United States in 1971, the Swami worked in the Publication and Editorial Departments of Advaita Ashrama at Mayavati, Himalayas, and its branch in Calcutta. He served as the Assistant Minister of the Vedanta Society of Southern California, Los Angeles, from 1971-78. In 1977-78, he served as vice-president of the Inter-Religious Council of Southern California, and at present is a cabinet member of Interfaith Partnership of St. Louis. He was transferred to St. Louis, Missouri in March 1978, and served as assistant minister of the Vedanta Society of St. Louis under Swami Satprakashananda. He became the Minister of the Society in January 1980, after the death of Swami Satprakashananda in November 1979. He is also the Minister of the Vedanta Society of Kansas City, Missouri, USA.

Swami Chetanananda traveled all six continents and lectured on Indian philosophies, specially Vedanta and Ramakrishna-Vivekananda. He also taught meditation and spiritual disciplines to sincere seekers in the west last 48 years. He gave so far nearly 1400 lectures and a couple of thousand classes on Vedanta scriptures and Ramakrishna-Vivekananda literature, which are all recorded.

Swami Adbhutananda
Pre-monastic name: Rakhturam, usually called Latu
Date of Birth: Not known
Place of Birth: Chapra in Bihar, India

Speaking about Latu Maharaj, Swami Vivekananda once said, “Latu is Sri Ramakrishna’s greatest miracle. Having absolutely no education, he has attained the highest wisdom simply by virtue of the Master’s touch”. Latu was the only disciple of Sri Ramakrishna who could not even read or write. He was born of very poor parents in a village in Bihar. He lost his parents in early boyhood. Poverty forced his uncle to take him to Kolkata where Latu was employed as a houseboy in the house of Ramachandra Datta, a close devotee of Sri Ramakrishna. The Master recognized the dormant spiritual potential in the boy and asked Ram to allow Latu to stay at Dakshineswar as an attendant. Under the guidance of the Master Latu practised intense sadhana, spending whole nights in meditation, a habit which he followed all through his life.

After Sri Ramakrishna’s passing, Latu joined Baranagar Math, and was ordained a sannyasin bearing the name Adbhutananda. He, however, spent most of his time in contemplation on the bank of the Ganga or in a room in Balaram Babu’s house.

Swami Vivekananda established Ramakrishna Mission on 1897 and Belur Math in 1898. Latu Maharaj with his deep absorption in contemplative life could neither take up the service activities of the Mission nor follow the discipline and routine of the monastery. So Swami Vivekananda permitted him to follow his own way of life. After some years Adbhutananda moved to Varanasi where he lived alone, but his needs were taken care of by the Ramakrishna Home of Service. At the end of a brief ailment he passed away in a meditative state on 24 April 1920.

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