Ramakrishna

Ramakrishna Paramahansa (; , 18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886), also spelled Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, born Gadadhar Chattopadhay or Chatterjee was an Indian Hindu mystic and spiritual leader. After adhering to various religious practices from the Hindu traditions of Vaishnavism, Tantra, and Advaita Vedanta, as well as from Islam and Christianity, Ramakrishna proclaimed the world's various religions as "so many paths to reach one and the same goal", thus validating the essential unity of religions. His parable-based teachings espoused the ultimate unity of various religions as a means to enable the realization of the same God. He is regarded by his followers as an avatar or divine incarnation of God. Ramakrishna experienced spiritual ecstasies from a young age and started his spiritual journey as a priest at the Dakshineshwar Kali Temple built by Rani Rashmoni. Soon the mystical temperament of Ramakrishna gained him widespread acclaim amongst the general public as a Guru, attracting to him various religious teachers, social leaders, Bengali elites, and common people alike. Although initially reluctant to consider himself a guru, he eventually taught his disciples, who later formed the monastic Ramakrishna Order. Ramakrishna died due to throat cancer at the night of 15 August 1886. After his demise, his chief disciple Swami Vivekananda popularized his ideas and founded the Ramakrishna Math which provides spiritual training for monastics and householder devotees, and the Ramakrishna Mission which provides charity, social work and education. Early life