Premanand Govind Sharan | |
|---|---|
| Personal life | |
| Born | Aniruddha Kumar Pandey 30 March 1969 [1] [2] |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Sect | Radha Vallabha Sampradaya |
| Religious career | |
| Teacher | Gaurangi Sharan [3] |
Premanand Govind Sharan (born Aniruddh Kumar Pandey, 30 March 1969), known to his followers as Premanand Maharaj is an Indian Hindu ascetic & guru from the Radha Vallabh Sampradaya sect. [4]
Aniruddh Kumar Pandey was born in 1969 in the Akhri village, Sarsaul Block, Uttar Pradesh to Rama Devi and Shambhu Pandey. At the age of 13, he left his home to become a sannyasi. [5] [6] [7]
Upon entering the path of a sanyasi, he was given the name Anandswaroop Brahmachari. After accepting the life as a sanyasi and the Mahavakya, he was named Swami Anandashram. [8] [6]
He lived most of his early life as a spiritual seeker on the banks of the Ganga in Varanasi. While in Varanasi meditating beneath a peepal tree, a saint name Pandit Swami Shri Ram Sharma requested him repeatedly to watch raas leela the next day, which Premanand accepted reluctantly as god's will. [2] [9] [10]
A Radha Vallabh Sampradaya Goswami initiated Premanand into the Radha Vallabh Sampradaya through the "Sharanagati Mantra." A few days later, at Goswami's insistence, Premanand met his guru, Gaurangi Sharan. [10] Sharan gave him the "Nij Mantra," which is the initiation of "Sahachari Bhava" and "Nitya Vihar Rasa." Thus, Premanand entered the order of rasik saints. [2] [1]
The Shri Hit Radha Keli Kunj Trust Vrindavan is a non-profit organization founded in 2016. [11]
From an early phase, he started to oppose the hierarchical life of the ashram. He discussed that spirituality is the essence of life, existence, and truth [1] and emphasised that the guru has great importance in everyone's life. [3] Spiritual power maintains harmony in personal and social relationships. A negative character can be very dangerous; don't spoil your character. [12] Preserve the invaluable asset of celibacy (brahmacharya), which greatly assists in leading a healthy, balanced, and spiritually oriented life. [13]
