Tributes
1. RAMANA MAHARSHI
Sree Narayana Guru had not much to talk to me. For he was the “Mahatma” of high intellectual supremacy. Sree Narayana Guru is a Perfect Mahatma. Circumstances made him to be engaged in action. He is a omniscient perfectionist.
2. RABINDRANATH TAGORE
“I have been touring different parts of the world. During these travels, I have had the good fortune to come into contact with several saints and Maharshis (great saints). But I have frankly to admit that I have never come across one who is spiritually greater than Swami Sree Narayana Guru of Malayalam-nay a person who is on a par with his spiritual attainments. I am sure, I shall never forget radiant face, illumined by the self-effulgent light of divine glory and those yogic eyes fixing their gaze on a remote point in the distant horizon.”
3. DEENA BANDHU
C.F. ANDREWS “I have seen God in person. That is none other than Sree Narayana Guruswami who lived in the southernmost part of India”.
4. MAHARAJA OF TRAVANCORE
The Maharaja of Travancore has honoured him by exempting him from appearing in Courts of Law.
5. C.RAJAGOPALACHARI
The first and last Indian Governor General. Sivigiri Mutt – 1925 March – 13 It is natural that Kerala expresses its gratitude for the great service rendered by Sree Narayana Guru in the cause of religion and education and social uplift of the handicapped communities of Kerala. I was deeply impressed by Him when I had the privilage of paying my respects to Him in his Ashram at Sivagiri Mutt in Varkala.
6. ACHARYA VINOBA BHAVE
“Sree Narayana Guru is considered one of the five or ten Avatars that have appeared in India during the last hundred years. I had an opportunity of meeting Him in the year 1925 when I had been to Kerala for Vaikkom Satyagraha. In those days He was residing at Varkala. There I had talking to Him for an hour or two. My humble respects to the memory of this great sage”.
7. JAGAJEEVAN RAM
– Sivagiri Mutt 31-12-1938 I deem it a great privilege to be present here on this occasion to pay my humble tribute ti the greate soul who preached the Gospel of Universal religion. At no time his tenets were so essential as at present, when the world stands at the proximity of annihiliation of the human civilization. LEt us rededicate ourselves to the ideal that the Guru placed before us..
8. JAWAHARLAL NEHRU
– First Prime Minister Of India, Sivagiri Muttu 1958 “I feel very happy to have come to place where a great man lived and gave his message to the people. Where great men have lived, that place becomes a holy ground, something like temple, because of their thoughts and prayers that lie enshrined there. Sree Narayan Guru lived here and from here radiated his message – the messages of no caste, no division and he wanted to build up a caste less and classless society. That message is still very much needed in these days. In order to get a caste less, classless society what are we to do? Many things have to be done. Bit the general approach which I presume is Sree Narayana Guru’s approach, the approach through the mind and heart and not of compulsion and coercion. Where there is not this turning of the heart and mind, all other changes are likely to be superficial. I am most happy to have come to this place to pay my tribute to this great man who lived here and spread his message from here.
9. SWAMY SIVANANDA
– Rishikesh, Himalaya University of outlook constitute the striking the feature of the great life and thoughts of Sree Narayana Guru. Serene, kind and humorous, Sree Narayana Guru possessed a keen intelligence of Vedanta. His entire life’s work formed one splendid story that illustrated powerfully the applicability of the principles of Vedanata to daily life. May Kerala, India and all the world draw from his life yet greater inspiration and seek to propagate on a wider scale his brilliant teaching, his lofty principles and his gosped of unity. INDIRA GANDHI – New Delhi-1967 Sree Narayana Guru, the Great Social reformer and philosopher who gave the message “one caste, one religion and one God for man ” is the common property of the whole India, not Kerala alone.
10. SWAMI THAPOVANAM
I paid a visit to Adwaithashrama to have a darshan of Sree Narayana Guru, the great Philosopher of Universal esteem. To my misfortune, I could not see him.
11. SWAMI CHINMAYANADA
Can India rediscover Her Heart? Can Religion, the Philosophy of the Upanishads help us in meeting the challanges of nour Nation? Can they rediscover our moral balance? All these burning questions are answered in living life by the Sivagiri Ashram. My humble and devoted prostrations to Sree Narayana Gurudev.May his blessing be upon all of us, Gurudev was the personification of love as Jesus Chist and Lord Budha.
12. Dr.B.R.AMBEDKAR
Dr.B.R. Ambedkar while criticizing the caste system, stated that “Hundreds of Leaders have come and gone. They could raise the dust but could not raise the level of the untouchables in India. This is where Sree Narayana Guru succeeded”.
13. KUMARI MAYAVATI
– Honorable Chief Minister of U.P You people should know that the revolutionary change initiated by Sree Narayana Guru is not limited to Kerala alone. The impact of it is on the entire nation because his endeavour was for the eradication of Caste, for annihilation of unsociety, which is all around us.
14. Dr.KARAN SINGH
Sree narayana Guru excels as the most outstanding prophet who en-kindled the light of wisdom and obliterated the darkness of ignorance and obscurantism. I was astonished when I heard about the remarkable achievement of Sree Narayan Guru during the four decades of his life. A reading of his pragmatic philosophical works enthralled me. It is great privilege to adore my deity the Godess Sharada of Kashmir, at Sivagiri, consecrated by Sree Narayana Guru.
15. MORAJI DESAI
– Prime Minister of India In India, we have had the benefit of many saints and sages who at different times in our long history gave on different occasions sustenance to the mind and spirit of man. One of them was Sree Narayana Guru who was respected as a great religious and social reformer in the South.
16. Sir.C.P.RAMASWAMY IYER.
Sree Narayana Guru was the first “Mahatma” who proclaimed the slogan of Universal Brotherhood, long before Mahatma Gandhi championed the cause
17. KUMARY MAYAVATHY
– Hon’ble Chief Minister of U.P You people should know that the revolutionary change initiated by Sree Narayana Guru is not limited to Kerala alone. The impact of it is on the entire nation because his endeavour was for the eradication of Caste, for the annihilation of unsociability, which is all around us.
18. Dr.RADHAKRISHNAN
– President of India, 1967 December A great Social Reformer, a staunch Promoter of Hindu Religion, and a true Philosopher Sree Narayana Guru was a revolutionary Yogi of Kerala, Chopping of heads, and creation of chaos and confusion are not the necessary ingredients of revolution. Any sincere effort to transmission the image of civilized life is revolution.
19. Dr.ZAKIR HUSSAIN
– Sivagiri Mutt – 1967 Dec 19, President of India Sree Narayana Guru who felt the presence of God in all the living beings of the Universe, is the Philosopher of Adwaitha Vedantha of 20-th century. It is said that sanyasins by virtue of their indomitable spiritual fervor and power of meditation project the World to sustain itself. Sree Narayana Guru has proved the veracity of the above statement beyond suspicion. Viewing from the above perspective, Sree narayana Guru is none other that the true reflection of the term “divinity”. His sublime philosophy has enlightened the humanity beyond the frontiers of India. The message of Sree Natayana Guru is all the more important in the present world than anything else.
20. V.V.GIRI,
President of India, 1967 December Among the galaxy of erudite Saints who ennobled and enriched India’s cultural heritage, Sree Narayana Guru occupies a pride of place. By sheer dint of his lofty ideals, unflinching loyalty ro the canons of humanity, justice, truthfulness, “Bhakti” and his utter selflessness, transparent sincerity, humility, total renunciation of mundane desires and a commanding grip over spiritual knowledge, Sree Narayana Guru acquired a halo of His own and endeared himself to all strata of his devotees. Nothing gave him greater joy than to witness the amelioration of the deplorable plight of the “have nots” and the underdogs of human society. He was peerless in compassion for the poorer sections of the community. A purely materialistic existence divorced from the ethical and spiritual elevation if the individual is inimical to the development of a harmoniously balanced, integrated human society. The spiritual leader like Sree Narayana Guru have made valiant efforts towards focusing the attention of our people on these vital facts of deriving spiriual solace and blissful joy.
21. M.ROMAIN ROLLAND
– in The Life of Ramakrishna Mr. Glasnapp does not say anything regarding the new religious manifestation in South India which are not negligible, such for eg., is the great Guru Sree Narayana whose beneficent spiritual activity has been exercising its influence during the past 40 years in the State of Travancore on nearly two millions of his followers (he passed away in 1928) .His teaching permeated with the philosophy of Sankara shows evidence of a striking difference of temperament compared with the mysticism of Bengal, of which effusions of love (Bhakti) inspire in Him a certain mistrust. He was, one might say, a Jnanin of action, a grand religious intellectual, who had a keen living sense of the people and of social necessities. He has contributed greatly to the elevation of the oppressed classes in South India and his work has been associated at certain times with that of Gandhi.
22. MAHATMA GANDHI
– 1925 March 13. “I feel it the greatest privilege in my life to have visited the beautiful state of Travancore and to have darshan of venerable sage Sree Narayana Guru. I had the fortune to stay for one day in his holy Ashram. Her Excellency the Regent Empress also spoke to me about the greatness of Guruswamy. I fervently hope that you would enforce his lofty ideals.” THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY – 1928 September.. During recent centuries no one in India has enjoyed so such reverence as Sree Narayana Gurudev commanded, a reverence so glorious so enduring, so comprehensive, so universal and so pure. Like the sun, by mere presence, he spread his light and love … His life or renunciation has shown to numerous people the secret of the path of dedicated service or Karma Yoga. Rishi Narayana who has awakened Kerala was Patanjali in Yoga, Sankara in wisdom, Manu in the art of Governance, Budha in renunciation, Muhammad in strength of spirit and Christ in humanity. after 73 years spent in the drama of human life he has gone to whence he came… For the future generations he will be one of the divine personalities among the incarnations of God and the superhuman beings of India’s religious lore?