Swami Atmasthanandaji Maharaj passes away, PM says personal loss

Kolkata: Swami Atmasthanandaji Maharaj, president of Ramakrishna Math and Ramkrishna Mission, Belur Math, breathed his last on Sunday. His condition had deteriorated since Saturday night and he was put on ventilatory support.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee who had paid a visit at the  Ramkrishna Mission Seva Pratisthan hospital in the afternoon expressed her sadness at the passing away of Swami Atmasthanandaji Maharaj. “I paid my last visit to him this afternoon. A life of outstanding social & religious service. This is an irreparable loss to mankind,” reacted the chief minister in her twitter page.

Soon after receiving the news that Swamiji  is critical and has been put on ventilatory support, Ms Banerjee  visited the Maharaj. Hospital sources informed that the nonagenarian had been undergoing treatment since February 2015 and was down with old age ailments. He was also undergoing dialysis.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi considers Maharaj as his guru. In his youth, Mr Modi had  wanted to become a monk. However, it is said that Atmasthanandaji  advised him otherwise and declined his proposal. Thus Mr Modi entered politics. During his last visit to the city in April last year the PM had met the ailing  Maharaj. Referring. To his death as personal loss, the PM wrote on his Twitter page, “The demise is my personal loss. I lived with him during a very important period of my life. Generations will remember his exemplary personality.”

Born on May 10, 1919 at Sabajpur, near Dhaka. the monk had received spiritual initiation (mantra diksha) in 1938 from Vijnanananda (a monastic disciple of Ramakrishna). He joined the Ramakrishna Order at Belur Math on 3 January 1941 at the age of 22 years.He  was elected as the 15th President of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission on December 3, 2007.