'Paramahamsa' Nithyananda Wanders in the Ramakrishna Mission for Five (5) Years

Marathon Champion, Sri Nithyananda, Runs the Breadth of India in Record Time (or in No Time at All)

Summary: 'Paramahamsa' Nithyananda claims to have been wandering 'the breadth of India' until his 'enlightenment' on January 1, 2000. Apparently, he forgot about all the years he was at the Ramakrishna Mission in Chennai (Madras) and for a brief time in Ramakrishna Math in Belur near Kolkata (Calcutta). It seems that these studies significantly cut into his wandering years if not completely overlapped them. Therefore, did any of Paramahamsa Nithyananda's stories, including his 'enlightenment' story actually happen? Read on...

Graphic Summary:
The graphic below nicely summarizes the inconsistencies in self-titled Paramahamsa Nithyananda's timeline:

(Click on Image to see the details of fraud)

Source: nithyatales.webs.com

Hi there, Sri Nithyananda. Before your became a self-declared Paramahamsa, how many years did you spend wandering? Oh, yes, we talked about this before in our post titled, "Backpedaling Keeper of Revised 'Truths', Nithyananda, Required to Embellish His Story (Again)".

You, Sri Nithyananda, now will say six (6) years of wandering, down from nine (9) years of wandering, and we figured out by using your dates within your stories that it is most likely just four and a half (4.5) years of wandering, or at most just four and three-quarters (4.75) years of wandering. OK, Sri Nithyananda, until you revise your story again, we'll have to agree to disagree over the number of years you did wandering.
Now, Sri Nithyananda, we would like to ask what do you consider 'wandering' as a sanyasi (ascetic monk)to be? Is that the time that you lived walking and traveling alone at their in the wilderness or holy cities without any ties at all and living only off the generous alms or donations of others? Or, does your wandering also include staying at a Math/Mutt (religious order) in some dormitory? "raaaaabhara?" Our gruntanese translator says that means "Why are you asking?" Oh, Sri Nithyananda, we're asking these questions because we want to know how much time you actually stayed in the Ramakrishna Mission during your wandering years.

In your books and website, it is really not very clear that you spent any time at all at the Ramakrishna Mission in Madras (Chenai) in Tamil Nadu, India.  For instance, on your website about the 'founder', Sri Nithyananda, there is no mention of ever being in the Ramakrishna Mission in Madras (Chenai).  It says that you started your sanyasi (renounced monk) wandering immediate from the get-go.  Let's take a look, on your website, www.dhyanapeetam.org, on this URL:

http://srianandeshwaratemple.dhyanapeetam.org/founder.html

(also available with an attractive wrapper at this URL:

http://srianandeshwaratemple.dhyanapeetam.org/

and then, click on 'founder' link to get the whole nested iframe experience)

we have this information:

During his teenage years, after a profound cognitive shift in his understanding through an encounter with a Siddha in Thiruvannamalai, the urge which he had since childhood, to leave home as a sannyasi (renounced monk), reached its peak. After completing his diploma in Mechanical Engineering at Gudiyattam, Nithyananda made the final resolve to set out on his spiritual journey as a wandering ascetic. He embarked on what was to be an arduous journey, stretching thousands of miles covered mostly by foot, over a period of 6 years, traversing the land of Bharat. From Tapovan in the Himalayas to Kanyakumari in the South, from Dwaraka in the West to Ganga Sagar in the East, Nithyananda wandered for several years in India and in Nepal, practicing intense austerities and studying with many sadhus.

Wow, Sri Nithyananda, that certainly is a brave new adventure.  We can see where your mother would be worried about her son being alone and wandering all those years without knowing where your next meal would come from.  Yes, we see that this information is consistent with your book, "His Name is Nithyananda" First Edition, November 2007 on pages 18 through 21.

Then again, in "Nithyananda Vol. 1" First Edition, December 2006 (remember this is the revised second first edition of the recalled "Glimpses of My Master Nithyananda", which was the original first first edition.) Anyway, on page 178 of the second first edition you wrote:

"Nithyananda told his parents that he wanted to leave in a week's time. Back then, he was clear that he would not come back to the South (South India in Tamil Nadu where Nithyananda originated) at all. His heart was set on spending his time in the Himalayan mountains."

and again, on page 177 of the same book, Sri Nithyananda, you wrote:

"They (Sri Nithyananda's parents) knew from the time of his birth when the family astrologer had predicted that he (Sri Nithyananda) would be a raja sanyasi (king of renunciants), that he would leave home sooner or later.  Their hope was that it would be later. They were concerned about how he would take care of himself, and where he would find shelter and where he would find food, since Nithyananda had rarely ventured out of Triuvannamalai."

and again on page 178 of the same book, it is written:

"Both parents did not know when they would see their son again or whether they would see him alive again at all."

and again on page 181:

"...she (Nithyananda's mother) was only worried about who would feed her son as he wandered in the wilderness."

And, here again, in your first big coffee table book, book, "The Formless in Form" first edition 2003 on pages 33:

"Two pieces of cloth to cover his body and a kamandalam (pitcher for water) were all that he possessed in the world.  Resolved not to touch money, not knowing where his next meal was to come from - if at all it was to come! - he lived a life of utter insecurity.

Wow, Sri Nithyananda, you were really prepared to rough it.  A very sincere and hardcore seeker, indeed. But, Sri Nithyananda, you never gave it a mention about being in the Ramakrishna Mission in Madras (Chennai).  You made it look you were just staying overnight in Madras (Chennai) at an uncle's house.  Here it is in your book we just referenced on pages 182-183:

"An uncle from Chennai (known as Madras earlier), his mother's brother, suggested that Nithyananda stay with him in Chennai for a while before he decided to leave, Nithyananda thought that was a good idea.  Intuitively, Nithyananda felt that this would help.  He wanted to go north to the Himalaya.  He knew that he had to start from Chennai by train to reach the Himalaya.  It was also a blessing, since he had already decided that he would not touch any money once he started his wandering.  In a train in India it is still possible to travel without a ticket whereas in a bus it is impossible, and to reach Chennai he had to travel by bus, for which he would have no money.  Things were indeed falling into place!"

OK, Sri Nithyananda, we get it.  According to this revised second first edition of your biography, you went to Chennai (Madras) and straight off, you headed to the Himalayas to do your nine, oops, we mean now six years of wandering.

But what are these pictures, Sri Nithyananda, in your book, "The Formless in Form" first edition 2003 on pages 35 and 36, there's these nice pictures of you in what looks like the Ramakrishna Mission in Madras (also known as Chennai) in Tamil Nadu, India. Shall we take a look?

picture source: Guruphiliac Forum

picture source: Guruphiliac Forum

picture source: Guruphiliac Forum

picture source: Guruphiliac Forum

Sri Nithyananda, we noticed that you were always in white and not in the saffron kavi (renunciant) cloth. Were you just a junior at this institution? Why Sri Nithyananda, with all of your experience at the graveyards in Tiruvannamalai and that 360 vision, etc., you should have been teaching them. Why there are no captions under these pictures in your book.  The only thing that even hints that you were at a Ramakrishna Math or Mission was the header on page 35:

"Swami in his 'student' days"

That's it.  Oh, yes, you mentioned that you received Sri Ramakrisha and Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi's divine darshan (Divine blessings) on page 34 of the same book, but that's it.  You, Sri Nithyananda, didn't mention where this divine darsha of Sri Ramakrishan and Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi occurred.  It was nicely glossed over.  On nicely glossed pages of your picture book.  Oh, how mysterious, Sri Nithyananda.  You are a man of mystery.

Let's take a look at the book that you recalled, "Glimpses of My Master Nithyananda", which was the original first first edition, first edition, December 2005, which you promptly recalled and later revised.  Here on pages 165-166:

"Chennai and Beyond
In Chennai (Madras), Nithyananda stayed with his uncle for a few days.  Each day he would go to his uncle's factory with a person who acted as a guide and security guard, so that he would not run away.  After a few days, Nithyananda suggested to this man that they should go (to) the Kapaliswarar (Siva) temple in Mylapore and the man readily agreed.  In the temple, Nithyananda gave the man the slip and melted away in the crowd. His real journey had started.

Nithyananda went straight to a spiritual institution nearby where they allowed him to stay for a few days, telling him that if he wished to stay longer, he would need to become an inmate of the institution, which the boy had no desire to do.  He did not wish to be part of an organization without a living master present.  When the masters are alive, then the organization around them breathes, lives, and flourishes as if it is a living organism.  Once the masters are no more the organism too dies and the dead matter becomes an organization that then flourishes in the hierarchy and bureaucracy.  Wise beyond his years, Nithyananda wanted no part of any such dead institution."

In the next couple of paragraphs, you, Sri Nithyananda, tell us about how someone spotted you at what you consider (but no one else considers) to be a 'dead' spiritual institution, and your parents went looking for you there.  You escaped this situation because that 'dead' (in your opinion) spiritual institution gave you a kavi (saffron rununciant) cloth.  Then, you, Sri Nithyananda, dressed yourself up in a three-piece kavi robe, carried a long walking stick, and a kamandalu (water pot) and off to the central railway station you went to head up to the Himalayas.

So, we are confused, Sri Nithyananda.  There's these pictures of you at some monastery that sure looks like the Ramakrishna Mission in Madras (Chennai), but you made no mention of it in your books, except for a few days at this 'dead' (in your opinion) spiritual institution in Madras (Chennai) that was rife (in your words) with hierarchy and bureaucracy.  If that was the Ramakrishna Math in Madras (Chennai), your words, Sri Nithyananda, doesn't sound very respectful to an organization that gave us a true Paramahamsa and several enlightened beings, non less, Swami Vivekananda and Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi. And you said that you received Paramahamsa Ramakrishna and Holy Mother Sarada Devi's darshan (Divine blessings)?  So, Sri Nithyananda, that 'dead' spiritual institution couldn't have been the Ramakrishna Mission in Chennai (Madras).  And, if that 'dead' institution gave you a saffron kavi (renunciant) cloth, that means that 'dead' intuition initiated you, Sri Nithyananda, into its Order.  It is our understanding, Sri Nithyananda, that this is not a light matter.  The Ramakrishna Mission usually waits up to ten years just to make sure that the aspiring monk they initiate into sanyasi (renunciate monk) initiation is a person of character.  They don't give this saffron kavi cloth out just so someone can escape from their parents.

But what is this here, Sri Nithyananda? In your pamphlet that you wrote sometime in 2003? It's called "Yet to be Discovered" What irony, Sri Nithyananda, we discovered your history called "Yet to be Discovered" on your website. We have to thank your web team for preserving such early digital treasures so we can see through an archeological perspective of how your 'divine' life story evolved. You, Sri Nithyananda, can refresh your memory by going to this URL:

http://www.dhyanapeetam.org/web/pdf/Yet%20to%20be%20discovered.pdf
(Don't worry, there, Sri Nithyananda.  We have a clean copy of "Yet to be Discovered' already to post on another website, so you don't need to remove this file.)

Sri Nithyananda, do you see in the middle of page 47 where it says:

"At the age of seventeen when he made this enormous decision to leave home & go out into the world, his mother wept inconsolably. His parent’s grief never resulted in refusal. According to the rules of the Ramakrishna Mutt at Chennai, both parent & child had to give in writing, that this boy would no more go back home, & that he had renounced all ties with the family. He studied the scriptures here at this Mutt."

That is interesting, Sri Nithyananda. Since it stated that 'at seventeen', that it was the Ramakrishna Mission (Math or Mutt) in Chennai (Madras) that you went to in the year of 1995. And, the fact that both parents and the child (we guess that the child means you, Sri Nithyananda) had to give your written word on the matter. Is this what your father did when he visited you at that 'dead' institution? But, you, Sri Nithyananda, clearly mentioned both parents. So, did your mother come there too, right before you escaped dressed as a sanyasi (renunciant monk)? Oh, Sri Nithyananda, this gets very confusing. Lucky thing that your mother lives with you in your kingdom, we mean ashram in Bidadi. Is she enjoying all of the fruits of your hard-earned fame and 'success'? Perhaps all of the ashramites, followers, and guests should ask her directly about your initial detour to the Ramakrishna Mission in Madras (Chennai) to get the clear picture. After all, Sri Nithyananda, you of all people, wouldn't want your very own mother to get bad karma for embellishing the Truth or telling lies just to protect her son's fame and wealth? That does not seem like something that a genuine self-declared Paramahamsa should do to his very own mother. So, Sri Nithyananda, let all the ashramites, followers, and guests ask her in private, and just let her answer honestly and without fear that you, Sri Nithyananda, will become upset or might even threaten to kick her out of your kingdom, we mean ashram. That would be the best policy, don't you think?

So, Sri Nithyananda, now that we discovered that you did start your wandering journey first at what you consdier to be a 'dead' institution, (oh, we prefer to say the Ramakrishna Mission in Chennai [Madras]), exactly how long did you stay there?... you know, before you started your real wandering journey, you know the stuff that legends are made out of... like receiving the darshan (divine blessings) of Mahavtar Babaji, encountering that old bear in the virgin forest of Omkareshwar, having that out-of-body-death meditation at Manikarnika Ghat in Benaras (Varanasi), healing your own broken back after breaking it on an army truck ride in Tapovan, hiding from a man-eating tiger while in an ashram, vibrating under a big meditation bell at a Buddhist monastery, witnessing bees swarming into a honeycomb that stretched from one mountain to another, a distance of almost 200 feet, walking across a raging river with your eyes closed while miraculously always having your feet on the bottom, and 'realized yourself' (became enlightened) in the forests of Omkareshwar, as Sankara did more than 1000 years earlier, on the banks of the river Narmada. Wow, that was a lot of adventures. And how many miles did you cover in this journey, Sri Nithyananda? Well, we do want to ask, because it is not clear. In that pdf brochure "Yet to be Discovered" it says on page 48:

"He (Nithyananda) has traveled the length & breadth of India, covering a distance of nearly 30,000 kilometers of which 2,000 kilometers was covered on foot."

Wow, 30,000 kilometers is 18,641 total miles and 1,243 miles by foot. That's a lot especially when you, Sri Nithyananda, consider those miles by foot were in the dense virgin jungle or on some very steep trail in the Himalayas. And we're sure that there were some days that there was snow, heavy rain, and even national holidays that made travel impossible. But, Sri Nithyananda, we're not certain if this is the correct number or not. You see, in your book, "Nithyananda Vo1. 1", second first edition, December 2006, in the middle of page 54, we can see that the same amount of kilometers, 30,000 is given. Fair enough. But, 143 pages later, to be exact page 197 or page one of the Appendix of your biography, third paragraph, you, Sri Nithyananda, wrote:

"His spiritual quest started seamlessly as a child. At the age of 12, he had his first deep spiritual experience. At 17, he left home on a journey of self-realization and wandered the length and breadth of India and Nepal. He studied Yoga, Tantra and other Eastern metaphysical Sciences and had many profound spiritual experiences. Of the 70,000 miles that he covered visiting great shrines and practicing intense meditation, many thousands of miles he covered by foot."

Sri Nithyananda, is this a misprint? In just 143 pages, you covered an additional 51,359 miles! (70,000 miles minus 18,641 [30,000 kilometers] = 51,359 miles.) That miracle must have taken a lot of energy! Your vague about the additional miles covered by foot, but rest assured that "many thousands of miles" is greater than just 1,243 miles. Maybe this difference was a 'divine' editor miracle that your sleep-deprived indentured laborers missed? But, wait, what's this? Two years later, in your book "His Name is Nithyananda" first edition, November 2007 on page 19:

"Covering over 70,000 miles, many thousands of miles, he covered by foot."

Wow, so that wasn't a misprint after all. You, a Truth-telling, genuine self-declared Paramahamsa actually went the additional revised distance. OK, Sri Nithyananda, we'll agree that you covered 70,000 miles during your journey of nine (9), oooops, we mean six (6) years, but most likely just four and a half (4.5) years. Minus that brief stint at the Ramakrishna Mission in Chennai (Madras), of course.

Wow, Sri Nithyananda, you really packed the miles and the stories in a very condensed time. So, how much time did you spend in the Ramakrishna Mission (which you, and you alone, consider to be a 'dead' institution)? It couldn't have been very long, in order to get all of these stories and miles in, correct?

Well, some of those very nice and sincere people who have given their whole lives to spread and preserve the teachings of Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda, the Vedanta Society, and the Truth wrote about you, Sri Nithyananda, and how long you were at the Ramakrishna Mission. Let's take a look:

Ramakrishna Witness no. 1:
"Swami Nithyananda was in our Organization as a novice, probably during 1996-2000."

Ramakrishna Witness no. 2:
"Fact:
He had joined the Ramakrishna Order at the Madras centre and then spent 3 yrs there, went to their headquarters and was thrown out after a year there (?? can't say for sure, some-time in 2000)."

Ramakrishna Witness no. 3:
"Before becoming the Paramahamsa Nithyananda he was a Brahmachari of Ramakrishna Order of India. He left the Order after 4 years of his joining."

Ramakrishna Witness no. 4:
"Before becoming the Paramahamsa Nithyananda he was a Brahmachari of Ramakrishna Order of India. He left the Order after 4 years of his joining."

Ramakrishna Witness no. 5:
"...he became a novice at the Ramakrishna Mission's monastery in Chennai (formerly Madras) in southern India. He stayed there for 4 years, and then after a few months at the monastic training center in Belur Math near Calcutta, he left the Order and started living independently."

Ramakrishna Witness no. 6:
"Paramahamsa Nithyananda joined as a novice (brahmachari) in our Organisation/Order. But he left the Order after 5 years."

Ramakrishna Witness no. 7:
"He (Nithyananda) was a young monk of our order for several years before he left to start his own group."

Ramakrishna Witness no. 8:
"Nithyananda probably joined the monastery in Madras (Chennai) in 1994 or 1995... He attended the monastic training college in Belur Math in 1999 (or 2000), and left the Order from there within a few months."

Wow, Sri Nithyananda. All those testimonials look pretty convincing to us. If in the 'best case scenario' (that is best case, for you, Sri Nithyananda), you left the Ramakrishna Mission on January 2, 1999, that allowed for you to travel "the breadth of India" in 364 days. No wonder you, Sri Nithyananda, call yourself the 'jet set swami'. Let's see. You said that you traveled 70,000 miles and several thousand of those miles were on foot.  If you remember, Sri Nithyananda, on your current website, you say that, "He (Nithyananda) embarked on what was to be an arduous journey, stretching thousands of miles covered mostly by foot..." So, we could set the distance on foot to 60,000 miles, which even applied to the revised six (6) years of wandering (down from nine [9] years of wandering) would be impossible. So, Sri Nithyananda, we'll give you a break. Let's set the distance for 'on foot' at a low number of just 3,000 miles. That's about the averaged distance between the West Coast and the East Coast of the continental United States. If we divide 364 days into these numbers, you averaged about 192 miles of travel per day of which 8.25 miles were from walking, but we really think that you must have put on some jogging shorts on and ran that distance. Still it is nothing short of a miracle!

Of course, after all of that traveling, you, Sri Nithyananda, then had to have time to have all of those experiences such as encountering Mahavtar Babaji, bumping into an old bear while camping out in the forest, having that out-of-body-death experience at a cremation center in Benaras (Varanasi), meditating under a big bell at a Buddhist monastery, hiding from a man-eating tiger in the Himalayas, breaking your back and then healing it with your own hands after back-breaking ride in the back of an army truck from Tapovan, seeing bees make a formation of a giant honeycomb that stretched across the mountains, a distance of almost 200 feet (which makes the mountains unbelievably close, but these are your words), walking across the roaring rapids of a deep river with your eyes shut while miraculously not falling, and becoming 'enlightened' at the banks of the Narmada River in Omkareshwar. Just amazing, Sri Nithyananda. Now, we all can believe that you really are divinity to be able to do all of these things in one year or less.

But, wait, Sri Nithyananda. Several of the witnesses from the Ramakrishna Mission said that you did not leave the Ramakrishna Mission until sometime in the year of 2000. That would mean, Sri Nithyananda, that on your 'enlightened' day of January 1, 2000, you actually were still in some dormitory being a 'junior' at the Ramakrishna Mission in either Madras (Chennai) or the Belur Math / Mutt. Does this mean that any of these wandering stories, including your 'enlightenment' actually happened? Does this mean all these stories that you tell to everyone to make sure that they come and pay your very expensive programs are still true? Does this mean that all of those volunteers, ashramites, Ananda Sevaks (fulltime indentured laborers), and Ananda Samajis (big donors) have been cheated? Does this still make you a 'Paramahamsa'? Paramahamsa, ah, if we may still call you a, ah, Paramahamsa, Paramahamsa Nithyananda, are you, Sri Nithyananda, still legitimate? Say it ain't so, Sri Nithyananda! Does this mean that we will not be able to get easy and pain-free 'enlightenment' from you and all of those pricey multi-level marketing (MLM) programs you offer! Our world is coming to an end!

Sri Nithyananda, we don't know who to believe. All of the senior people from the Ramakrishna Mission and probably most of the junior people at the Ramakrishna Mission are very honest. Sri Nithyananda, you were a junior at the Ramakrishna Mission, correct? So, you should know. After all, there's been few as pure and inspiring as Paramahamsa Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda, and Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi. They and their disciples live and breathe the Truth. And, you, Sri Nithyananda, you're a self-proclaimed 'Paramahamsa' that sometimes revises and embellishes your Truths, but the very fact that you identify as being a 'Paramahamsa' should count for something. And, you have all of those very enthusiastic followers, over 500 books published under your name, and almost 600 YouTube videos under the Life Bliss Foundation; why that makes you, Sri Nithyananda, also Truthful, correct?

Sri Nithyananda, what kind of strategy are you going to take to stop this idea that your wondering and 'enlightenment' stories are just that, stories? Wait, Sri Nithyananda, if you discredit all of these very earnest and sincere people from the Ramakrishna Mission and make a case that they are lying and therefore are liars, then you, Sri Nithyananda, might be able to keep your wandering stories, your 'enlightenment', your enthusiastic followers, your big donors, your indentured laborers, and all those cute room service ladies. Will you, Sri Nithyananda, say that these witnesses from the Ramakrishna Mission are jealous of you, because you are a living 'enlightened' master, and all these people at the Ramakrishna Mission have are just dead 'enlightened' masters? Well, those worldly people who identify with you as a physical being and have your picture on the malas (rosaries) that they have around their necks just might believe this. Will you, Sri Nithyananda, attack the Ramakrishna Mission and say that it is a 'dead' institution that is filled with hierarchy and bureaucracy just as you wrote in your book, "Glimpses of My Master Nithyananda", original first first edition, first edition, December 2005, on pages 165-166? Yes, Sri Nithyananda, this strategy is consistent to your previous badmouthing of the Ramakrishna Mission and other spiritual institutions that you lashed out in front of your ashramites while you were 'establishing' your supremacy. Yes, this would be a consistent path. To help you, Sri Nithyananda, remember all of those 'truthful' revelations that you said about the Ramakrishna Mission and other living masters, we'll dedicate a blog post just on that. Maybe, we'll make it a series, so it will be easy to email to the specific right people. Does that sound like a good idea there, Sri Nithyananda? Sri Nithyananda? Are you awake? Oh, drats. Sri Nithyananda, you went into samadhi again.

Comments Welcomed:
We welcome all comments, and would especially welcome comments from the good and devout souls from the Ramakrishna Mission, Vedanta Society, and Vivekananda Ashrams. To leave a comment on this post, Click Here, and then scroll down.

Related Posts:

• Backpedaling Keeper of Revised 'Truths', Nithyananda, Required to Embellish His Story (Again)
• Do the Math - Nithyananda's Enlightenment Timeline Doesn't Add Up
• Guinness World Book of Record Holder: Nithyananda as Youngest Polytechnic Student

Follow your dharma. Use your common sense. Listen to your inner-conscience, and follow the Truth. Come out of this trap, and escape from this fraudulent cult.

Day 36: Thirty-six days have passed since Sri Nithyananda's bloggers of the Parallel Universe of La-La Land have not answered our simple chronological questions. We'll keep on reminding them.

Day 57: Fifty-seven days have passed since Sri Nithyananda and his organizations have threatened a baseless lawsuit against us. We'll keep on counting.