The last rites of Swami Smaranananda, the 16th president of Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, were performed on Wednesday evening with monks and brahmacharis joining the funeral beside Swami Vivekananda’s temple at Belur Math.
Devotees, who had been queuing up at Samskriti Bhavan, on the Belur Math premises, since late on Tuesday to pay tributes to the president were asked to step aside around 8pm on Wednesday.
The body of Swami Smaranananda, who passed away on Tuesday evening, was then
carried to the Sri Ramakrishna temple amid Vedic chants by monks and brahmacharis.
After a brief stop, the president’s body was taken to the courtyard between Sri Ramakrishna’s shrine and the monastery building, where stands a mango tree, popularly known as Swami Vivekananda’s mango tree.
Swami Vivekananda used to remain seated on a canvas cot under the tree to write articles and letters.
The procession of monks and bramhacharis then proceeded to the Swami Brahmananda temple, which stands to the east of Sri Ramakrishna’s temple. Swami Brahmananda was the spiritual son of Sri Ramakrishna and the first president of the Ramakrishna order.
The Swami Brahmananda temple stands on the spot where his body was cremated. He passed away on April 10, 1922.
The third stop was the ghat on the Hooghly. The president’s body was bathed in the river water and adorned with a new set of robes. An arati was performed.
The body was next placed before the Holy Mother’s temple, where many monks paid their tributes to Swami Smaranananda.
The procession moved to Swami Vivekananda’s temple and to the quarters of the president of the order before reaching the cremation site, where the last rites were performed.
Towards the end, the monks and the brahmacharis laid a piece of sandalwood each on the pyre in keeping with the norm.
The gates of Belur Math were left open till the last rites were completed.
“A special meeting of the governing body of the Ramakrishna Mission and the board of trustees of the Ramakrishna Math will be convened to decide on the next president of the order,” said a senior monk.
“The president who will be selected will be an interim one till all senior monks of the Math and the Mission are informed and certain procedures are followed to choose a permanent president of the order.”
A special puja and remembrance of Swami Smaranananda has been scheduled for April 7 at Belur Math.
Belur Math said on its website that Ramakrishna Sangha does not prescribe special rites or vows for disciples after the “Mahasamadhi” of one’s guru.
“The Sangha’s emphasis is always on spiritual life — leading a pure life and turning the mind towards God through japa, meditation, prayer, chanting of hymns, etc. However, after the passing away of one’s Guru, the disciple may restrict his/her diet to havishyanna (simple boiled rice and vegetables with ghee and salt) and fruit for 13 days, or at least 3 days,” the website says.
Devotees and disciples who had queued up at Belur Math since Tuesday night said they would follow the advice on diet.
“The spiritual initiation by the maharaj transformed me and I became a quieter and calmer soul. Swami Smaranananda is my true Guru,” said Swapna Pal, a resident of Hooghly, who was among those in the queue.