Radhanath Swami

Radhanath Swami (born December 7, 1950) is a guide, community builder, activist, and acclaimed author. He has been a Bhakti Yoga practitioner and spiritual teacher for more than 40 years. He is the inspiration behind ISKCON's free midday meal for 1.2 million school kids across India, and he has been instrumental in founding the Bhaktivedanta Hospital in Mumbai. He works largely from Mumbai in India, and travels extensively throughout Europe and America. In the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), he serves as a member of the Governing Body Commission. Steven J. Rosen described Radhanath Swami as a "saintly person respected by the mass of ISKCON devotees today."

Biography

Born as Richard Slavin in a Jewish family, he studied a number of religious paths such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam. At the age of 19, he began traveling through Europe and the Middle-East, aiming for India and eventually settling for over a year in the Himalayas. He was living as a sannyasi (monk) in India when he first met with Krishna devotees near Delhi. Through contact with the devotees in Vrindavan, and after receiving the name Ratim Krishna from Swami Bon, Radhanath Swami began to focus exclusively on his spiritual path in Krishna Consciousness. In 1971, Radhanath Swami observed A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada during the Cross Maidan festival in Mumbai. After leaving India, Radhanath Swami returned to the United States, where he joined the New Vrindaban ISKCON farm community in West Virginia during July 1972. There he accepted initiation from Prabhupada in February 1973 receiving the name Radhanath das, later to receive the name Radhanath Swami, when he received sannyasa initiation from Kirtananda Swami in 1981.

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Swami

A swami (Sanskrit: स्वामी svāmī [sʋaːmiː]) sometimes abbreviated “sw.” is an ascetic or yogi who has been initiated into the religious monastic order founded by some religious teacher. It is believed to be originally used for the ones who were initiated into to the Advaita Vedanta movement started by Adi Shankara. The usage of this word is not just for a yogi but also used for a religious guru, with or without disciples.

The Oxford English Dictionary gives the etymology as

In the Bengali language, the word (pronounced [ˈʃami]), while carrying its original meaning, has a dual meaning of “husband”. The word also means “husband” in the Malay language, where it is spelled “Suami”. Swami also means husband in the Khmer language.

References

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Abhay Charanaravinda Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (Bengali: Abhoy Charonarobindo Bhoktibedanto Swamy Probhupad; অভয়চরণারবিন্দ ভক্তিবেদান্ত স্বামী প্রভুপাদ, Sanskrit: अभय चरणारविन्द भक्तिवेदान्त स्वामी प्रभुपाद, IAST: abhaya-caraṇāravinda bhakti-vedānta svāmī prabhupāda; 1 September 1896 – 14 November 1977) was a Gaudiya Vaishnava spiritual teacher (guru) and the founder preceptor (acharya) of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the "Hare Krishna Movement". His mission was to propagate Gaudiya Vaishnavism, a school of Vaishnavite Hinduism that had been taught to him by his guru, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, throughout the world. Born Abhay Charan De in Calcutta, he was educated at the prestigious local Scottish Church College. Before adopting the life of a pious renunciant (vanaprastha) in 1950, he was married with children and owned a small pharmaceutical business.

In 1959 he took a vow of renunciation (sannyasa) and started writing commentaries on Vaishnava scriptures. In his later years, as a traveling Vaishnava monk, he became an influential communicator of Gaudiya Vaishnava theology to India and specifically to the West through his leadership of ISKCON, founded in 1966. As the founder of ISKCON, he "emerged as a major figure of the Western counterculture, initiating thousands of young Americans." Despite attacks from anti-cult groups, he received a favorable welcome from many religious scholars, such as J. Stillson Judah, Harvey Cox, Larry Shinn and Thomas Hopkins, who praised Bhaktivedanta Swami's translations and defended the group against distorted media images and misinterpretations. In respect to his achievements, religious leaders from other Gaudiya Vaishnava movements have also given him credit.

Edison, New Jersey

Edison is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, Edison had a total population of 99,967, retaining its position as the fifth-most populous municipality in New Jersey. The 2010 population reflected an increase of 2,280 (+2.3%) from the 97,687 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 9,007 (+10.2%) from the 88,680 counted in 1990.

What is now Edison Township was originally incorporated as Raritan Township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1870, from portions of both Piscataway Township and Woodbridge Township. Portions of the township were taken to form Metuchen on March 20, 1900, and Highland Park on March 15, 1905. The name was officially changed to Edison Township on November 10, 1954, in honor of inventor Thomas Edison, who had his main laboratory in the Menlo Park section of the township.

Edison was ranked the 28th most-livable small city in the United States by CNN Money Magazine, and second in New Jersey in 2006 in Money Magazine's "Best Places To Live". In 2008, two years later, Money Magazine ranked the township 35th out of the top 100 places to live in the United States. In the 2006 survey of America's Safest Cities, the township was ranked 23rd, out of 371 cities included nationwide, in the 13th annual Morgan Quitno survey. In 2009, Edison was ranked as one of "America's 10 Best Places to Grow Up" by U.S. News and World Report. The rankings focused on low crime, strong schools, green spaces, and abundance of recreational activities.