Chinmaya Mission

The Chinmaya Mission is a Hindu religious and spiritual organization engaged in the dissemination of Vedanta, the science of the self as expounded in the Vedas, particularly the Upanishads, and other Hindu scriptures such as the Bhagavad Gita.[2][3] The Chinmaya Mission was established in India in 1953 by devotees of the renowned Vedanta teacher Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati from present-day Kerala, India.[4]

Chinmaya Mission
Chinmaya Mission Logo
MottoTo give maximum happiness to the maximum number for the maximum time
Formation1951
FounderSwami Chinmayananda Saraswati
TypeSpiritual organization[1]
Legal statusTrust
PurposeSpirituality, Vedanta
HeadquartersMumbai, Maharashtra, India
Location
  • 300 Centres
Area served
Worldwide
Headed By
Swami Swaroopananda
Main organ
Central Chinmaya Mission Trust
Websitewww.chinmayamission.com

Administered by the Central Chinmaya Mission Trust in Mumbai, India, the mission was later headed by Swami Tejomayananda and is now headed by Swami Swaroopananda. There are over 313 mission centres all over India and abroad. North America had more than 30 centres.[5] It is currently administered by Central Chinmaya Mission Trust (CCMT) in Mumbai, India, headed by Swami Swaroopananda.[6]

The motto of Chinmaya Mission is "to give maximum happiness to maximum people for maximum time." It does not seek to convert other religious practitioners.[6]

History

Foundation

Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati,[7][8] the founder of Chinmaya Mission, was born in the city of Ernakulam in present-day Kerala, India. He taught spirituality as the art of living. Through jnana yoga (the Vedantic path of spiritual knowledge), he emphasized the balance of head and heart, pointing out selfless work, study, and meditation as the cornerstones of spiritual practice.

Doubting the teachings of the sages in the Himalayas, Balakrishna Menon met Swami Sivananda (Divine Life Society), who initially guided him in spiritual studies and then placed him under the tutelage of Swami Tapovanam (Tapovan Maharaj), with whom he pursued spiritual studies for nine years. He eventually came to share this Vedantic knowledge with the masses, in the form of the dynamic teacher known as Swami Chinmayananda.

Swamiji is a teacher of Srimad Bhagavad Gita. He is often credited with the renaissance of spirituality and cultural values in India, and with the spreading of Advaita Vedanta, as expounded by Adi Shankaracharya, throughout the world.

After Chinmayananda

After Chinmayananda attained mahasamadhi in 1993, his disciple Swami Tejomayananda (known as Guruji) became the global head of Chinmaya Mission. Under Guruji, projects such as the Chinmaya International Foundation and the Chinmaya International Residential School were taken up.

In January 2017, Swami Tejomayananda assigned the headship of Chinmaya Mission Worldwide to Sri Swami Swaroopananda.[9][10]

Activities

The following activities are conducted at mission centers on a weekly basis:

Bala Vihar

Bala Vihar is a program in which children from age five to eighteen meet on a weekly basis to learn about Hindu culture, customs, and philosophy. Bala Vihar is a program that is conducted throughout the world, not just in India, from countries such as the United States, UK, and Australia.[11][12] Some centers also have a version called Sishu Vihar, which is meant for children aged 2 to 4.

Chinmaya Yuva Kendra

CHYK – Chinmaya Yuva Kendra, known as CHYK, is the global youth arm of Chinmaya Mission. It is meant for youth aged 18–30 and its motto is, "Harnessing Youth Potential through Dynamic Spirituality".[13] CHYK conducts many camps and sessions throughout the world. CHYK West is a similar organization that operates in the West (United States, UK, etc.).

Other activities
  • Study groups for adults
  • Chinmaya Vanprastha Sansthan for senior citizens (India and UK)

Medical facilities
  • Hospital – 1
  • Nurses Training Centre – 1
  • Diagnostic Centre – 14
  • Eye camp in the rural areas – 1
  • Adoption of villages for providing social and medical relief – 120
  • Senior Citizen Homes – 8
  • Income generating schemes for downtrodden women – 1
  • Children Welfare Centre – 1
  • Goshalas – 4
Pallavur Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Palakkad, Kerala

Educational field
  • Chinmaya Vishwavidyapeeth http://chinmayauniversity.ac.in/
  • Chinmaya College of Arts, Commerce and Science, Tripunithura
  • Schools (Regular) – 70
  • Chinmaya International Residential School – 1
  • Harihar Schools (Free education & vocational training for downtrodden children for self-sufficiency) – 3
  • Colleges – 4
  • Degree College – 1
  • Chinmaya Institute of Higher Learning – 1
  • Chinmaya Heritage Centre – 1
  • Value based Vision Programme for schools (Regularly conducted in various parts of India)
  • Institute of Management – 1
  • Chinmaya Academy for Civil Services - https://www.chinmayaias.com

Rural development
A meeting of CORD, at Siruvani, Coimbatore

Chinmaya Mission undertakes activities of Rural Development via its wing Chinmaya Organisation for Rural Development (CORD)

Chinmaya Mission, Sikkim Centre has established CHINMAYA SMRITI VANAM at Bulbuley, Gangtok, Sikkim, India in 1995 and have planted till now more than 10,000 ( ten thousand ) trees sapling most of which have grown now into full trees.

Studies in Indology

Cultural field

Imparting knowledge of Indian scriptures in English and regional languages (Free two years residential course, for college graduate students) – 6

Areas Served

The Chinmaya Mission has influence in whole of India as well as in many foreign communities in Australia, England, New Zealand, Nigeria,[14] South Africa, United States of America and other countries.

Ashrams

Sandeepany Sadhanalaya, Mumbai

Chinmaya Tapovan Trust, Sidhbari

Chinmaya Sandeepany, Karnataka

Chinmaya Sandeepany, Kolhapur, Maharashtra

Chinmaya Gardens, Coimbatore

Tapovan Kuti, Uttarkashi

Chinmaya Vibhooti, Kolwan, Pune

Chinmaya Krishnalaya, Piercy, CA, USA

SharadaSannidhi, Mangalore, Karnataka

Sydney, NSW, Australia

Chinmayaranyam, Andhra Pradesh

Chinmaya Mission, Sikkim Centre Ashram at Saramsa, Near Jalipool, near Gangtok, Sikkim, India

Chinmaya Mission at Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India

Paramdham Ashram at Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Chinmaya Mission Avantika. Ann Arbor, MI. USA

Chinmaya Vrindavan. Cranbury, NJ, USA.

CHINMAYA “OMKARA”- NW.INDIANA-USA www.chinmaya-nwindiana.org 8705 Merrillville Road. Merrillville Indiana-46410 USA

BADRI- YAMUNOTRI- GANGOTRI- Chinmaya Mission Chicago www.mychinmaya.org

Chinmaya Hamsa Vahini -Peoria-USA

Chinmaya Prabha -Houston- USA

Chinmaya Kashi - Los Angeles-USA

See also

References
  1. "Chinmaya Mission". Chinmaya Mission Of Los Angeles. Chinmaya Official Website. Archived from the original on 21 April 2017. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  2. "Chinmaya Mission | CMLA". chinmayala.org. Archived from the original on 21 April 2017. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  3. "History of Chinmaya Mission". cseweb.ucsd.edu. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  4. "Chinmaya". Chinmaya Mission. Archived from the original on 6 May 2017. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  5. today it has over 300 centres across the world.. Times of India, December 25, 2001.
  6. "The Mission". Chinmaya Mission Worldwide. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  7. "8 May 1916: Chinmayananda Saraswati, Indian spiritual leader, was born". www.mapsofindia.com. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  8. "His Holiness Sri Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati Maharaj". www.dlshq.org. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  9. "Official handover by Swami Tejomayananda on 19 January 2017 – watch the live streamChinmaya Mission UK". www.chinmayauk.org. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  10. "Pujya Guruji Swami Tejomayananda hands over the reins of Chinamaya Mission to Swami Swaroopnanada on January 19, 2017 | The Indian Down Under". www.indiandownunder.com.au. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  11. "Balvihar | Chinmaya Mission Worldwide". Chinmaya Mission Worldwide. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  12. "Training Teachers for a Fulfilling Bala Vihar at Chinmaya Mission | Indo American News". www.indoamerican-news.com. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  13. "Chinmaya Yuva Kendra | Chinmaya Mission Worldwide". Chinmaya Mission Worldwide. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  14. "Chinmaya Mission - Nigeria - Chinmaya Foundation Trust". lagosmart.net. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
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