CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, MAY 8, 2009: On May 3, Swami Sarvagatananda, a senior monk of the Ramakrishna Vedanta Society and long-time head of the Vedanta Society in Boston, died at the age of 96.
Born in 1912, Swami Sarvagatananda joined the Ramakrishna Order in 1935, received mantra-diksha from Revered Swami Akhandananda Maharaj in 1936, and sannyasa (renunciation vows) from Revered Swami Virajananda Maharaj in 1944. He came to the United States in 1954 to assist Swami Akhilananda Maharaj. He became the head of the centers in Providence and Boston in 1962, and continued in that position until 2001 (Providence) and 2002 (Boston). Even after his formal retirement from active work, he continued to meet with devotees and to guide them. His untiring service to the Vedanta work in Boston and Providence, his unbounded love for devotees and, above all, his sterling spiritual life have been, and will continue to be, a source of inspiration to all.”
A 1996 volume that was published in Swami’s honor, “The Lamplighter: Swami Sarvagatananda in the West,” contains about 50 reminiscences from friends and disciples who knew Swami over the years: testimonies to his wisdom, love, sense of humor, his great joy and perennial hope for the spiritual advancement of the human race in its quest to realize God.