Sanatan Sanstha
Encyclopedia
The Sanatan Sanstha is a non-profit organization
registered in India. It was founded in 1990 by Jayant Balaji Athavale with the blessings of Bhaktaraj Maharaj
and is based on the study of spirituality
. as a science. The stated main aim of the organization is to present spirituality
in a scientific language for the curious (Jidnyasu) and to guide seekers. The Sanstha has a chain of centre in different parts of India and abroad.
Athavale has worked in the field of spirituality
to share with humanity the findings of his research into the deeper understanding of the spiritual dimension using a scientific approach. In order to achieve this end, he has published more than 1.6 million copies of spiritual books in Hindi
, Marathi
, Kannada, Gujarati
, English
and six other languages since 2002. News Today columnist V. Sundaram describes Athavale as a "rare spirit who brings to ordinary men a realization of their own divinity and makes spiritual life seem adventurous and attractive, so that they may go forth into the world with a new interest and a new joy at heart." He claims that Athavale's work has been recognized by Hindu saints
and sages belonging to all denominations.
Under Athavale’s leadership, Sanatan Sanstha has created mass awareness among the Hindus of India, through the following focused activities conducted in an organised manner in several parts of India:
Athavale was by profession a consultant clinical hypnotherapist from Mumbai. He undertook extensive research on clinical hypnosis both in India and overseas and practiced in Great Britain from 1971 to 1978. However, after practicing as a hypnotherapist for twenty years, he realized that nearly 30 per cent of his patients did not recover with the usual treatment regimens. On the contrary, many of those patients recovered fully after having gone on a pilgrimage, or having followed the spiritual advice of a Saint.
Although Athavale was an atheist at that time, this phenomenon intrigued him and prompted him to take steps to study reasons behind these cures.
He visited saints from different spiritual paths all over India. He asked them questions about the theory as well as the practice of the science of Spirituality and carefully recorded the answers. Slowly, He began to realise that medical sciences are limited theto the physical and to some extent the psychological aspects of the patient, but it leaves out the entire spiritual dimension. Thus Athavale came to the inescapable conclusion that there is another science far superior to physical and psychological medicine, and that was the "science of spirituality" rooted in Sanatana Dharma. The Saints told him that spirituality is not a science which can be learnt just from books, but one needs to practice it, so he started intense spiritual practice under their direction. As a result of his efforts, Bhaktaraj Maharaj
came into his life as a spiritual guru to guide him further.
Realizing the importance of what he called the science of Spirituality, Athavale started advising his patients to follow some spiritual practice. To his great joy and satisfaction, he found that the cure rate among his patients increased substantially by following this new path of guided spirituality. Ploughing deeper and deeper into the field of the theory and practice of spirituality, he wrote 21 volumes on this subject with the objective of educating and guiding humanity at large about their need to take to the sublime path and enter the field of spirituality rooted in Sanatana Dharma. In 1988, Athavale started conducting free of charge workshops on spirituality in the city of Mumbai. In 1990, with the blessings of his sadguru, Bhaktaraj Maharaj of Indore, he founded the Sanatan Bharatiya Sanskruti Sanstha so as to facilitate the spread of Spirituality. Taking note of its immediate tremendous growth, keeping the larger aspect of the smooth running of the organization in view, he renamed it as Sanatan Sanstha on 24 March 1999.
, the Jagadguru
Shankaracharya
of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, made the above statement during his visit to the Panvel ashram of Sanatan Sanstha on 10 June 2009, and blessed Sanatan Sanstha saying that its mission would spread throughout the entire country. Saraswathi attended the 117th Hindu Dharmajagruthi Sabha organised by HJS in Chennai on the 19 April 2009 and guided the masses.
), service unto the absolute truth (satseva), sacrifice for the absolute truth and spiritual love without expectations (Priti).
In the organization, the members of different religious groups are encouraged to use the name of their individual God. According to Sharon Clarke Sequeira, the 1985 Miss India
contestant who represented India at the Miss World contest in London and a former model of prestigious campaigns like Lakme, Bombay Dyeing etc., chanting Hail Mary
for two years yielded her dramatic dividends. Today, few events or people upset her: anger seldom arises, and she has transcended her extended love affair with food that sent her weight soaring from 58 kg during her modeling days, to 95 kg. She is now down to 68 kg. Her threshold to bear grief and pain has risen. Even her pulse rate is an incredibly low 46.
), protecting "seekers" and destroying "evildoers" (Kshatradharma).
, Upanishads, Brahma Sutras
, Bhagawad Gita and other Hindu scriptures. As of April 2009, 117 such conferences had been conducted by HJS in the states of Maharashtra
, Karnataka
, Goa
, Gujarat, Rajasthan
, Haryana
, Uttar Pradesh
, Jharkhand
, Kerala
and Andhra Pradesh
. Thousands of Hindus were said to have participated in these "Hindu Awakening" conferences with commitment, conviction, gusto and enthusiasm.
One of the men from the media who attended the Hindu Dharmajagruti Sabha at Barshi wrote: "HJS has been organizing 'Hindu Dharmajagruti Sabhas' in various places in the State for creating awareness among Hindus about the importance of 'Dharma-shikshan' and 'Dharmacharan', for uniting Hindus and re-establishing the supremacy of Hindu Dharma. Today’s meeting, which was a unification of 'kshatra-teja' and 'Brahma-teja', was a memorable experience for people from Barshi".
Jayendra Saraswathi
of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham on 21 December 2008. The Governor of Karnataka, Rameshwar Thakur
was the chief guest at the function. During this function Saraswati blessed the mission of Sanatan and felicitated Pruthviraj Hazare, the group editor of Sanatan Prabhat periodicals.
, Maharashtra
has honored Athavale with a Shanaishwar Krutadnyata Dharma Award on 24 May 2009. It was presented by Taponidhi Nandgiri Maharaj. As stated by Maharaj the award was presented to Athavale for giving people a treasure-trove of spiritual knowledge presenting a scientific viewpoint on various religious acts performed by Hindus and has taken thousands of seekers to the pinnacle of spiritual progress.
Sanatan's seeker, Chandrahas Changdev Gavand from Vasheni, Uran
District, was presented the 21st Century Role-Model Award 2009 by Samaj Vikas Academy in Colombo, at the hands of the Vice-President of the Academy, Shri Tilak on 28 May 2009.
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
registered in India. It was founded in 1990 by Jayant Balaji Athavale with the blessings of Bhaktaraj Maharaj
Bhaktaraj Maharaj
Bhaktarāj Maharaj of Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India was a Hindu saint in the tradition of Bhakti. He spread the message of Bhakti through his Bhajans and by remembering the name of Almighty or Guru . He was a devotee of Sai Baba of Shirdi who came to him in the name and form of Anantananda...
and is based on the study of spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
. as a science. The stated main aim of the organization is to present spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
in a scientific language for the curious (Jidnyasu) and to guide seekers. The Sanstha has a chain of centre in different parts of India and abroad.
Athavale has worked in the field of spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
to share with humanity the findings of his research into the deeper understanding of the spiritual dimension using a scientific approach. In order to achieve this end, he has published more than 1.6 million copies of spiritual books in Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
, Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
, Kannada, Gujarati
Gujarati language
Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. It is derived from a language called Old Gujarati which is the ancestor language of the modern Gujarati and Rajasthani languages...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and six other languages since 2002. News Today columnist V. Sundaram describes Athavale as a "rare spirit who brings to ordinary men a realization of their own divinity and makes spiritual life seem adventurous and attractive, so that they may go forth into the world with a new interest and a new joy at heart." He claims that Athavale's work has been recognized by Hindu saints
Hindu saints
Saints are recognized in Hinduism although it does not require canonization or similar formal process to acknowledge a person as one. Generally a holy or saintly person is referred to as a mahatma, paramahamsa, or swami, or given the prefix Sri or Srila before their name.The term "Sant" is derived...
and sages belonging to all denominations.
Under Athavale’s leadership, Sanatan Sanstha has created mass awareness among the Hindus of India, through the following focused activities conducted in an organised manner in several parts of India:
- Discourses on various topics in spirituality
- Weekly spiritual meetings (satsangs)
- Child guidance classes (Balsankarvarg)
- Workshops on spirituality/Spiritual practice (SadhanaSadhanaSādhanā literally "a means of accomplishing something" is ego-transcending spiritual practice. It includes a variety of disciplines in Hindu, Sikh , Buddhist and Muslim traditions that are followed in order to achieve various spiritual or ritual objectives.The historian N...
) - Workshops on stress management
- Rallies
- Training in self-defense
- Relief measures in calamities, training in first aid and fire fighting
- Campaigns to create awareness of Righteousness (DharmaDharmaDharma means Law or Natural Law and is a concept of central importance in Indian philosophy and religion. In the context of Hinduism, it refers to one's personal obligations, calling and duties, and a Hindu's dharma is affected by the person's age, caste, class, occupation, and gender...
)
Founder
Although Athavale was an atheist at that time, this phenomenon intrigued him and prompted him to take steps to study reasons behind these cures.
He visited saints from different spiritual paths all over India. He asked them questions about the theory as well as the practice of the science of Spirituality and carefully recorded the answers. Slowly, He began to realise that medical sciences are limited theto the physical and to some extent the psychological aspects of the patient, but it leaves out the entire spiritual dimension. Thus Athavale came to the inescapable conclusion that there is another science far superior to physical and psychological medicine, and that was the "science of spirituality" rooted in Sanatana Dharma. The Saints told him that spirituality is not a science which can be learnt just from books, but one needs to practice it, so he started intense spiritual practice under their direction. As a result of his efforts, Bhaktaraj Maharaj
Bhaktaraj Maharaj
Bhaktarāj Maharaj of Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India was a Hindu saint in the tradition of Bhakti. He spread the message of Bhakti through his Bhajans and by remembering the name of Almighty or Guru . He was a devotee of Sai Baba of Shirdi who came to him in the name and form of Anantananda...
came into his life as a spiritual guru to guide him further.
Realizing the importance of what he called the science of Spirituality, Athavale started advising his patients to follow some spiritual practice. To his great joy and satisfaction, he found that the cure rate among his patients increased substantially by following this new path of guided spirituality. Ploughing deeper and deeper into the field of the theory and practice of spirituality, he wrote 21 volumes on this subject with the objective of educating and guiding humanity at large about their need to take to the sublime path and enter the field of spirituality rooted in Sanatana Dharma. In 1988, Athavale started conducting free of charge workshops on spirituality in the city of Mumbai. In 1990, with the blessings of his sadguru, Bhaktaraj Maharaj of Indore, he founded the Sanatan Bharatiya Sanskruti Sanstha so as to facilitate the spread of Spirituality. Taking note of its immediate tremendous growth, keeping the larger aspect of the smooth running of the organization in view, he renamed it as Sanatan Sanstha on 24 March 1999.
Blessings
Jayendra Saraswathi of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham
"Dharma has no birth and death. Intermittently when it is ruined then it marks the beginning of development. Sanatan Sanstha too has been promoting Dharma by imbibing its importance of Dharmacharan (Righteous conduct), on the society with great efforts." According to the HJS website, Jayendra SaraswathiJayendra Saraswathi
Sri Jayendra Saraswathi Swamigal is the 69th Shankaracharya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham....
, the Jagadguru
Jagadguru
Jagadguru , literally meaning the Guru of the world, is a title used in Sanatana Dharma. Traditionally, it has been bestowed upon or used for acharyas belonging to the Vedānta school who have written Sanskrit commentaries on the Prasthānatrayī - the Brahma Sutra Jagadguru (Sanskrit जगद्गुरु),...
Shankaracharya
Shankaracharya
Shankaracharya, is a commonly used title of heads of mathas in the Advaita Vedanta tradition. The title derives from Adi Shankara, a 9th century CE reformer of Hinduism. He is honored as Jagadguru, a title that was used earlier only to Lord Krishna...
of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, made the above statement during his visit to the Panvel ashram of Sanatan Sanstha on 10 June 2009, and blessed Sanatan Sanstha saying that its mission would spread throughout the entire country. Saraswathi attended the 117th Hindu Dharmajagruthi Sabha organised by HJS in Chennai on the 19 April 2009 and guided the masses.
Taponidhi Nandgiri Maharaj
On 24 May 2009 Taponidhi Nandgiri Maharaj from Shanaishwar Devasthan in Solashi blessed Sanatan Sanstha, saying that Athavale's "mission of the establishment of Righteousness is being undertaken throughout the entire Universe!"Path of the Guru's grace (Gurukrupayoga)
Individual spiritual practice
Individual practice is said to include chanting the Lord's name, attending spiritual meetings (SatsangSatsang
Satsang in Indian philosophy means the company of the "highest truth," the company of a guru, or company with an assembly of persons who listen to, talk about, and assimilate the truth...
), service unto the absolute truth (satseva), sacrifice for the absolute truth and spiritual love without expectations (Priti).
In the organization, the members of different religious groups are encouraged to use the name of their individual God. According to Sharon Clarke Sequeira, the 1985 Miss India
Miss India
Miss India or Femina Miss India is a national beauty pageant in India, one of the most recognized contests to produce international beauty queens in the 90s, which annually selects three winners to compete globally. It is organized by Femina, a women's magazine published by Bennett, Coleman & Co...
contestant who represented India at the Miss World contest in London and a former model of prestigious campaigns like Lakme, Bombay Dyeing etc., chanting Hail Mary
Hail Mary
The Angelic Salutation, Hail Mary, or Ave Maria is a traditional biblical Catholic prayer asking for the intercession of the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Hail Mary is used within the Catholic Church, and it forms the basis of the Rosary...
for two years yielded her dramatic dividends. Today, few events or people upset her: anger seldom arises, and she has transcended her extended love affair with food that sent her weight soaring from 58 kg during her modeling days, to 95 kg. She is now down to 68 kg. Her threshold to bear grief and pain has risen. Even her pulse rate is an incredibly low 46.
Spiritual practice for the sake of society
According to the Sanatan Sanstha organization, the spiritual practice for the sake of society includes propagating spirituality, undertaking the mission of "social upliftment", national security, rekinding righteousness (dharmaDharma
Dharma means Law or Natural Law and is a concept of central importance in Indian philosophy and religion. In the context of Hinduism, it refers to one's personal obligations, calling and duties, and a Hindu's dharma is affected by the person's age, caste, class, occupation, and gender...
), protecting "seekers" and destroying "evildoers" (Kshatradharma).
"Hindu Awakening" conferences (Dharma Jagruti Sabha)
According to promoters, the main objective of these conferences is to create a feeling of unity and fraternal solidarity amongst all Hindus, cutting across different sects and sub-sects and to create a new sense of awareness of the relevance, greatness and significance of Sanatan Dharma. In order to achieve this objective, the focus will be on specially designed programmes to raise the levels of public enlightenment relating to the VedasVedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....
, Upanishads, Brahma Sutras
Brahma Sutras
The Brahma sūtras , also known as Vedānta Sūtras , are one of the three canonical texts of the Vedānta school of Hindu philosophy. A thorough study of Vedānta requires a close examination of these three texts, known in Sanskrit as the Prasthanatrayi, or the three starting points...
, Bhagawad Gita and other Hindu scriptures. As of April 2009, 117 such conferences had been conducted by HJS in the states of Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
, Gujarat, Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
, Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
, Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, Jharkhand
Jharkhand
Jharkhand is a state in eastern India. It was carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of Bihar to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the west, Orissa to the south, and West Bengal to the east...
, Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
and Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
. Thousands of Hindus were said to have participated in these "Hindu Awakening" conferences with commitment, conviction, gusto and enthusiasm.
One of the men from the media who attended the Hindu Dharmajagruti Sabha at Barshi wrote: "HJS has been organizing 'Hindu Dharmajagruti Sabhas' in various places in the State for creating awareness among Hindus about the importance of 'Dharma-shikshan' and 'Dharmacharan', for uniting Hindus and re-establishing the supremacy of Hindu Dharma. Today’s meeting, which was a unification of 'kshatra-teja' and 'Brahma-teja', was a memorable experience for people from Barshi".
Spiritual television channel (Sree Sankara)
From 15 December 2008, the Dharmasatsang and Dharmashikshanvarga (educating people in the society regarding Dharma) presented by the Sanatan Sanstha and the HJS started being telecast 5 days a week on the spiritual television channel Sree Sankara. This channel was inaugurated at the auspicious hands of ShankaracharyaShankaracharya
Shankaracharya, is a commonly used title of heads of mathas in the Advaita Vedanta tradition. The title derives from Adi Shankara, a 9th century CE reformer of Hinduism. He is honored as Jagadguru, a title that was used earlier only to Lord Krishna...
Jayendra Saraswathi
Jayendra Saraswathi
Sri Jayendra Saraswathi Swamigal is the 69th Shankaracharya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham....
of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham on 21 December 2008. The Governor of Karnataka, Rameshwar Thakur
Rameshwar Thakur
Shri Rameshwar Thakur , a senior Indian National Congress politician and former union minister of India, is the former Governor of Madhya Pradesh from 2009 to 2011 and a former Governor of Orissa from 2004 to 2006, Andhra Pradesh from 2006 to 2007 and Karnataka from 2007 to 2009. He is a chartered...
was the chief guest at the function. During this function Saraswati blessed the mission of Sanatan and felicitated Pruthviraj Hazare, the group editor of Sanatan Prabhat periodicals.
Awards
Shanaishwar Devasthan, Solashi, Satara DistrictSatara district
Satara District is a district of Maharashtra state in western India with an area of 10,480 km² and a population of 2,808,994 of which 14.17% were urban . Satara is the capital of the district and other major towns include Wai, Karad, Koregaon, Koyananagar, Rahimatpur, Phaltan, Mahabaleshwar...
, Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
has honored Athavale with a Shanaishwar Krutadnyata Dharma Award on 24 May 2009. It was presented by Taponidhi Nandgiri Maharaj. As stated by Maharaj the award was presented to Athavale for giving people a treasure-trove of spiritual knowledge presenting a scientific viewpoint on various religious acts performed by Hindus and has taken thousands of seekers to the pinnacle of spiritual progress.
Sanatan's seeker, Chandrahas Changdev Gavand from Vasheni, Uran
Uran
Uran is part of the Navi Mumbai city township lying in the Raigad district near Panvel and Karjat. It is situated east of Mumbai across the Dharamtar Creek, and is primarily a fishing village, which has developed into a special economy zone. Even famous for its salt pans later after the revolt by...
District, was presented the 21st Century Role-Model Award 2009 by Samaj Vikas Academy in Colombo, at the hands of the Vice-President of the Academy, Shri Tilak on 28 May 2009.