Sadguru Nithyananda has proclaimed in his “Chidakasha Geetha” that there is no greater living creature than “Avadhoota“. ’There is no higher human status than an “Avadhoota”.
Sadguru Nithyananda, one of the greatest Yogis of modern times, belongs to the sacred tradition of Avadhoota Dattatreya Guru. Our Puranas proclaim that Guru Dattatreya was the combination of the Trinity-Brahma, Vishnu and Mahjeshwara . Guru Dattatreya, as the shining light of ‘Parabrahma’ is superior to all Gods. His divine incarnation and teachings have brought forward other Avadhoota ‘Gurus’.
Avadhoota Guru is one who is unaware of his physical body and its needs and other physical attributes, finds bliss of the ultimate by delving deep into the state called ‘Sat-Chit-Ananda’. “Avadhoota” is the highest state of spiritual attainment by aspirant of eternal bliss. In an “Avadhoota Guru” the power of Jnana Siddi is complete. He is the man of perfection. Sadaguru Nithyananda, the Avadhoota, emerged as the saviour of the dejected, depressed and the down trodden.
No one knows the birth and early life of Sadguru Nithyananda. Once some ardent devotees of Sadguru Nithyananda asked him about his parentage and his place of birth. His reply was ”People go and bathe in the Ganga to purify themselves. They feel happy when they bathe in the Ganga, the holy river.
They don’t bother to find out the origin of the river and even if they know about it, it is of no special significance to them.” On very rare occasions, a very few of his true devotees have had the privilege of listening to Sadguru Nithyananda mentioning bits of his early life.
One Chathu Nair and his wife Ummamma were working under a well-known lawyer Shri T.R. Ishwar Iyer at Quilandy. Once early morning Ummamma found a beautiful baby boy in nearby Ayyappa Temple. She brought the baby to her house and as per the instructions of Shri Ishwar Iyer, the boy was named ‘Rama’. After the death of Ummamma, Ishwar Iyer looked after ‘Rama’.
Shri Ishwar Iyer wanted to go on a pilgrimage to Varanasi. He took his favourite Rama with him. They had a holy dip in Triveni the Sangam. Rama expressed his inclination to visit other holy places. Therefore, Ishwar Iyer returned alone to Quilandy with a promise that he would meet him at the appropriate time. Rama visited Gaya, Akshavathi, Saranath, Budhagaya, Kedarnath, Badrinath and Amarnath. He performed intense tapas deep inside the Himalayan caves and found abundant peace-Sat-Chit-Anand State.
Rama came back to Shri Iyers house as Shri Iyer wished Rama’s presence on the occasion of his daughter’s marriage. After the marriage, Shri Iyer realized that his end was near and he expressed his desire to see the Sun-God(Surya Narayana) in all his splendour. Soon he had a glorious visit of Lord Surya Narayana and his life’s ambition was fulfilled. The old man, in a state of supreme happiness said. “Rama,Rama, you have accorded to me the supreme state of bliss- Ananda- the divine happiness to my very soul and I feel I am one with the Almighty – SAT CHIT ANAND. You are Nithyananda, my own Nithyananda, and may be Nithyananda to all.” And from then onwards, Rama became Nithyananda.
Sadguru Nithyananda left once again for holy Kashi-Varanasi, Tilabhandeshwara and Vandekashi. He had also visited Sri Lanka and Burma. He came back to Quilandy and stayed there for sometime. From there he went to Trichur, Kanyakumari, Thiruvananthapuram, Calicut, Kanhangad, Kasargod and Kumbla. He built a Mandir at Kumbla. From Kumbla, he went to Manjeshwara, Mangalore, Mulki Udupi, Padubidri, Kollur and Bantwal.
When Sadguru Nithyananda was wandering as an Avadhoota at these places, he performed many miracles. It is well known that great Avathara Purushas, including Sri Rama and Sri Krishna performed miracles beyond the limits of belief. The only reason they performed such miracles was to inculcate the basic and unshakable faith in God, in the glory of the Atman and in the Dharmic way of life. One cannot find any vestige of selfish gain or arrogance or even the attitude of the theatrical magician in the miracles performed by the great Avathara Purushas. They believed only in universal good and service to the needy. Sadguru Nithyananda attributed these miracles to God and the faith of devotees. He used to call the miracles he performed by the name “Sthana Mahima”- “Glory of the State”. Sri Krishna Bhagavan had to say these lines about such grandeur, “Know that what ever being there is, full of grandeur, beauty or strength, it has originated from a spark of my splendour.
Sadguru Nithyananda at Kanhangad:
After visiting manhy places. Sadguru Nithyananda finally reached Kanhangad. For the next two and a half decades and more Kanhangad was to witness the divine leela of this great Avadhoota Kanhangad was fortunate in having been selected as the seat of his first Ashram. Kanhangad had a very special place in his mind and heart because, in later years while at Ganeshpuri, he used to refer to Kanhangad in the fondest terms. He once referred to the Ashram at Kanhangad as a university of spirituality where every aspirant had to spend some days before graduating in spirituality. At one stage, he had even thought of taking samadhi at Kanhangad.
Guruvan: Before coming to Kanhangad town, Sadguru Nithyananda was in Guruvan for several years, doing tapas, (sitting in a cave) for long intervals. This sacred place is situated five Kilometres east of Kanhangad town. He made a cave there. There was no water available on the rocking hills. One day, Sadguru Nithyananda struck at the dry rock with his divine hand, and water stated gushing out of the barren hills; the water has been flowing ever since. He called it ‘Papanashini Ganga. No wonder Sadguru Nithyananda was none other than Lord Shiva, and where Shiva is, there will be Ganga also. A dip in the holy water of Papanashini Ganga is believed to cleanse the body and mind of the bather. Sadguru Nithyananda also created a circle with eight stones signifying “Ashta Sidhis”. Sadguru Nithyananda explained that many Sidhas had lived and attained Samadhi at that place in the past. Bhagawan Vishnu did penance(Tapas)there. It is ‘Hari vas’. Guruvan is therefore rightly considered a ‘Thapobhumi’.
Swami Janananda, Sadguru Nithyananda’s spiritual heir, developed Guruvanam into a beautiful garden. He built a rest house and, in later years, a temple of Sadguru Nithyananda. Nestling among hills on three sides, this Thapobhumi with its serene and tranquil surroundings, offers an ideal place for meditation and prayer. This sprawling garden has a variety of herbs and medical plants. In the proposed new projects of Shree Nithyananda Vidyakendra, the establishment of an Ayurvedic Medical College at Guruvana is included. People come here in large numbers to experience the unique fusion of nature and spirituality.
Kushal Nagar: There is another place very close to the Kanhangad Ashram, which Sadguru Nithyananda called Kushalnagar. Here during the historic Round Table Conference in London, Sadguru got a Cement structure constructed, round in shape, resembling a round table. When the Conference was in progress in London, Sadguru used to tell the people assembled there the details of the talks taking place at the conference.
Kanhangad Ashram and Holy Caves:
The Holy Caves, which are the main attraction at Kanhangad Ashram, were constructed by Sadguru Nithyananda in the 20 S of the last century. Having forty four room-like structures, carved out of a rocky hill, without any technical assistance, the caves stand as an engineering marvel. They are a standing marvel to Sadguru Nithyananda’s divine inspiration and glory.
Sadguru Nithyananda used to call these Caves “Sunrise-Sunset Caves”. There is day light in them all through the day. There are six entrances into the caves, three of them facing the east and three facing the west. Most of the caves were large enough for one to sit and meditate. It is warm inside the cave during winter and cool during summer. Gurudev once predicted that some day, great saints will live in those caves and inspire the birth of another Golden Era of Santhana Dharma. On the top of the caves, a very beautiful temple that has the exterior aspects of the famous temple of Somanath has been built. In the temple is the most remarkable statue of Sadguru Nithyananda made of ‘Panchaloha. The statue shows Nithyananda with his right hand indicating his famous “Abhayamudra”.
After completing the construction of all the caves in Kanhangad in 1931, Sadguru Nithyananda once again began his journey northwards and visited many holy places in the country. Sadguru Nithyananda could go to places with the speed of thought. He came to Akroli near Vajreshwari in 1934 and to Ganeshpuri in 1936. That was to be his permanent residence and centre of pilgrimage as well as worship to his devotees. It would be wrong to conclude that only devotees of Sadguru found solace and received divine aid from him. Hundreds and thousands who heard of his divine powers used to flock together at Ganeshpuri.
Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation met Sadguru at Ganeshpuri. Gandhiji was said to have described him, “a very extraordinary man” and Sadguru inspired him, to make the historic announcement of ‘Quit India’ in August 1942. From 1936 to 1961, Sadguru Nithyanand carried out a very great mission to reform people morally or at least inculcated in them a spiritual attitude by life. Just a few days before Samadhi, he made the un-equivocal declaration that he was ‘Nithyatatva’, the eternal Entity-ever available for the rescue of the devotees who surrenderered themselves to him in full faith.”As long as the world exists, devotees will be cared for and looked after.” On Tusday, the 8th of August 1961 at 10.43 am, the Saviour of many lakhs of devotees, Sadguru Nithyananda Bhagawan entered Mahasamadhi in the upper hall of Shree Lakshmansa Khoday’s building. Sadguru Nithyananda’s mortal remains were interred in Vaikuntha where he had spent twenty years of his life when he came to settle down at Ganeshpuri.
After the Mahasamadhi of Sadguru Nithyananda, many Mandirs- temples have been built both in India and abroad as his memorials and statues of Sadguru Nithyananda installed in them.
Let us hope that through the worship of Sadguru Nithyananda Bhagavan all devotees will attain peace, happiness and enlightenment. Let us also hope and pray that the immortal soul of Sadguru Nithyananda. Bhaghwan. the Nithyatatva who came down to the earth for the benefit of all humanity will for ever guide us and protect us. Our humble salutations to that great Yogeshwar, Sat-chit-Ananda-Nithyananda. Our humble prostrations to that Nithyatatva Nithyatma for ever and for ever.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sadguru Nithyananda – His Philosophy:
Sadguru Nithyananda said in his Chidakasha Geetha,”Man is the crown and culmination of God’s creation. Human birth is indeed rare. When we acquired it, we should make efforts to reach the goal of life”. Man is called man because he has ‘Manas’ (Thinking power or faculty). We must make the best use of our thinking faculty and use it to attain Peace and become one with OMKAR. When SAT(existence) unites with CHIT(Knowledge), when jeeva unites with Shiva, Anand (Bliss)is the result. That alone is true religion.
Sadguru Nithyananda is Mahathma and he wants everyone to become Mahathma by the realisation of God. A man who is realized the ATMAN is the greatest of men. According to him,” there is no distinction between male and female. Male and Female are physical distinctions only. Shiva-Shakthi is the same in the male and female.
Real goal of man is right thinking. Thinking about God is the right thinking. Real Heart is one which is seen by the spiritual eye. Real Knowledge is that which has come to our experience. Knowledge from the head or from experience(Masthaka Jnana) is the real knowledge. Bhakthi is the universal love. Therefore, he insisted upon everyone to deeply immerse in Bhajan and Meditation.
According to Sadguru Nithyananda, “All children are the gifts of Almightily God and they have to be treated like that”. That is why he made elaborate arrangements for feeding children everyday and that continues to this day. He himself started a school at Ganeshpuri and inspired others to start schools and colleges in other places. He opened hospital at Ganeshpuri for the benefit of children.
Swami Jananandaji
Swami Jananandaji, Sadguru Nithyananda’s ‘spiritual heir,’ was a great yogi, having performed intense. Thapas for a number of years. Variously described by Sadguru as a ‘real sanyasi’, ‘Sarva Sanga Parithyagi’, ‘Karmayogi’, etc., Swami Jananandaji headed Kanhangad Ashram for 5 decades till his Samadhi in 1982.
Swami Jananandaji was born in small village, Hejamadi in coastal Karnataka in the last decade of 19th century. Seena, as he was named, met Sadguru Nithyanda in his early age and he dedicated himself to him. After visiting several holy places Seena Maharaj came to Kanhangad in 20S of 20th century. At that time Sadguru Nithyananda was truly engaged in constructing the new famous holy caves. Seena Maharaja joined his Guru Sadguru Nithyananda in the caves’ work. As per the instructions of Sadguru visited Manasa Sarovara and many sacred places. Afterwards, he proceeded to Ganeshpuri where Sadguru Nithyananda was staying at that time and presented himself before his guru. Sadguru was very happy to see him and blessed him properly. Sadguru gave him the name “Janananda”, Seena Maharaja came to be known as Janananda from that day.
Sadguru Nithyananda advised Janananda to go to Kanhangad and look after the Ashram and Guruvan. After the Samadhi of Sadguru Nithyananda, Janananda Swami got constructed a temple of Nithyananda in the top of Holy caves. In the year 1966, he started a Polytechnic and built Nithyananda Temple in Guruvan in 1966.
On 29th of April 1982 his ardent devotees celebrated Swamijis Navathi or Sahasra Poorna Chandra Darshan with Pomp and Glory in the Ashram. Towards the end of 1982, his health started deteriorating and he took Samadhi on 27th of December 1982. A Samadhi Mandir was built where his physical body was laid.
To know more about Sadguru Nithyananda and Swami Janananda please refer to:
1. ‘Nithyananda’ - By Sri Y.G.Krishna Murthi.
2. ‘ Sadguru Nithyananda Bhagavan’- The Eternal Entity”.
- By P.V. Ravindran
3. ‘Jewels of Spiritual Wisdom’ - By Prof.K.S. Kamath.
4. Parama Poojya Sadguru Shree Janananda Swamiji
- By Dr. Sharmistadevi Sanjiva Rao.
5. ‘Chidaksha Geetha’. - By Tulasi Amma.
6. Bhagawan Nithyananda’ - By H. Laxmana.
