SWAMI AKHILANANDA 

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Swami Akhilananda (1894–1962) was born Nirode Chandra Sanyal at Netrakona in East Bengal (now Bangla Desh). His first visit to Belur Math occurred in 1911 and he was initiated by Ramakrishna’s disciple Swami Brahmananda in 1916. Formally joining the Order in 1919 at the Bhubaneswar monastery, he received sannyāsa from his guru two years later, in 1921.

Akhilananda came to US in 1926 and, after assisting Swami Paramananda in Boston for a while, founded the Vedanta Society of Providence in 1928. After Paramananda’s passing in 1941, the responsibility of managing the Order’s work in Boston also fell upon his shoulders.

He made many friends in religious, academic and professional circles and was welcomed among all denominations as a lecturer and religious teacher. He had a warm personality, friendly, gentle and unusually modest. At the same time, he was firm and poised. His teaching represented an effort at sharing the wealth of spiritual experiences he had gained at the feet of Sri Ramakrishna’s great disciples in India.

His books emphasize the necessity of harmony and spirituality, and offer a deep insight into the fundamental truths not only in Vedanta but in religion as a whole.

Books by Swami Akhilananda

  • Hindu Psychology

  • Hindu View of Christ