| Pandurang Shastri Athavale | |
.jpg) Pandurang Shastri Athavale
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| Born | October 19, 1920 Roha, Maharashtra, India |
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| Died | October 25, 2003 (aged 83) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India |
| Other names | Dadaji [1] |
| Occupation | philosopher, orator |
| Spouse(s) | Nirmala Tai |
| Children | Jayshree Talwalkar (adopted) |
| Parents | Vaijnath Shastri |
Pandurang Shastri Vaijnath Athavale (Gujarati: પાંડુરંગ શાસ્ત્રી આઠવલે, Marathi: पांडुरंग शास्त्री आठवले) (October 19, 1920–October 25, 2003), also known as Dada-ji (Gujarati: દાદા, Marathi: दादा), which literally translates as elder brother in Marathi, was a Indian philosopher, spiritual leader, social reformer [2] and Hinduism reformist, who founded the Swadhyay Movement and the Swadhyay Parivar organization (Swadhyay Family) in 1954 [3], a self-knowledge movement based on the Bhagavad Gita, which has spread across nearly 100,000 villages in India [4][5], with over 5 million members [6]. He was also noted for his discourses or "pravachans" on Srimad Bhagawad Gita and Upanishads.
He was awarded the 'Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion' in 1997 [7] and the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership and India's second highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan in 1999 [8].
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Early life
Pandurang Shastri Vaijnath Athavale was born on October 19, 1920 in the village of Roha near Mumbai. He was one of five children of Sanskrit teacher Vaijanath Athavale and Parvati Athavale [9].
When Athavale was twelve years old, his grandfather set up an independent course of study for the young boy with individual tuition. Thus, Athavale was taught in a system very similar to that of the Tapovan system of ancient India. In 1942, he started to give discourses at the Srimad Bhagavad Gita Pathshala, a centre set up by his father in 1920 [9].
In 1954, he attended the Second World Philosophers Conference, held in Japan. There, Athavale presented the concepts of Vedic ideals and the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita. However, many people rejected his ideas and wanted evidence of such ideals being put into practice in towns across India. A Dr. Wilson Compton was impressed with Athavale's ideas and offered him a post in the US, where he could spread his ideas. Athavale politely declined [9], saying that he had work to accomplish if he wanted to show the world a model community peacefully practicing and spreading the divine Vedic thoughts and the message of the Bhagavad Gita.
Swadhyay Pariwar
Swadhyay Movement is a philosophy found all over the world. "Swadhyayees", as the divine family members of the Swadhyay Pariwar are called, is made up of people from both the lower or poor classes and the upper classes. Many Swadhyayees who continue Athavale's work in spreading his ideas throughout India and to other parts of the world are known as "krutisheels" or people of action. Over the years, his followers (Swadhyayees), have taken his message of love for God and God's love for all to people across caste, social and economic lines to about 100,000 Indian villages, and started various cooperative farming, fishing and tree-planting projects [10].
In 1991, noted film director, Shyam Benegal, directed a film, Antarnaad (The Inner Voice), based on the Swadhyay Movement of the Swadhyay Parivar, with Shabana Azmi and Kulbhushan Kharbanda in lead roles [11]. In 2004, director, Abir Bazaz made a documentary, Swadhyaya, on the life and works of Pandurang Shastri Athavale [12][13].
His Passing
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Athavale died at 12:30 pm on October 25, 2003, in at Khetwadi in south Mumbai, India[14]. He was 83 years old and was cremated on the evening of October 26 at Tatvadnyaan Vidyapeeth, Ghodbunder in Thane district, where around 10,000 people were present [15]. Subsequently his ashes were immersed at Ujjain, Pushkar, Haridwar, Kurukshetra, Gaya, Jagannath Puri, and lastly at Rameswaram[16].
Awards
Some of the awards given to Athavale were
- Ramon Magsaysay Award, in Community Leadership, in year 1996 [17]
- Templeton Prize in year 1997 [18].
- Padma Vibhushan in 1999 in recognition of his efforts toward social reform.
- Recognized as one of the Top Ten Most Important Indian People of the 20th Century [19]
Legacy
Tatvagnyaan Vidhyapeeth is an institution in which Athavale, himself, often gave discourses to the many youths that studied there. The youths study a broad variety of religious and spiritual subjects and live as they would have done in a "tapovan" thousands of years ago.
Works
- The Systems: The Way and the Work (Swadhyaya: The Unique Philosophy of Life), by Rev. Shri Pandurang Vaijnath Athava Shastri (Rev. Dada). Vallabhdas J. Jhaveri, Bombay, 1992.
Further reading
- Vital Connections: Self, Society, God : Perspectives on Swadhyaya, by Raj Krishan Srivastava. 1998; Weatherhill, ISBN 0834804085.
- Self-Development and Social Transformations?: The Vision and Practice of the Self-Study Mobilization of Swadhyaya, by Ananta Kumar Giri. Lexington Books. 2008. ISBN 0739111981.
- Role of the swadhyaya parivar in socioeconomic changes among the tribals of Khedasan: A case study, by Vimal P Shah. Gujarat Institute of Development Research, 1998. ISBN 8185820538.
- Swadhyay Movement Living Religions: An Encyclopaedia of the World's Faiths, by Mary Pat Fisher. Published by I.B.Tauris, 1996. ISBN 1860641482, Page 109.
- Swadhyaya: A Movement Experience in India - August 2003 Visions of Development: Faith-based Initiatives, by Wendy Tyndale. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2006. ISBN 0754656233. Page 1.
References
- ^ Followers of Param Pujya Dadaji.. The Hindu, June 13, 2006.
- ^ Tributes paid to founder of Swadhyaya movement Times of India, Nov 12, 2003.
- ^ Pandurang Shastri Athavale - Obituary
- ^ Spiritualist from India is honored with religion's Templeton Prize The Seattle Times, March 5, 1997.
- ^ Contemporary Hinduism: Ritual, Culture, and Practice, by Robin Rinehart. Published by ABC-CLIO, 2004. ISBN 1576079058. Page 375
- ^ Year in Review - 2003 - Passages The Seattle Times, December 29, 2003.
- ^ Indian Spiritualist Honored New York Times, March 6, 1997.
- ^ Padma Vibhushan Official listings Govt. of India website.
- ^ a b c Biography Ramon Magsaysay Award website.
- ^ Leader of Spiritual Movement Wins $1.2 Million Religion Prize New York Times, March 6, 1997.
- ^ Antarnaad at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ A week-long festival of documentaries in New Delhi The Tribune, September 5, 2004.
- ^ Documentary about Swadhyaya
- ^ Social reformer Pandurang Shastri Athavale dead Rediff, October 25, 2003
- ^ Pandurang Sahstri Athavale cremated Times of India, Oct 26, 2003.
- ^ Self-respect as key to universal brotherhood The Hindu, Jun 29, 2006.
- ^ 1996 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership - Rev. Pandurang Shastri Athavale
- ^ Templeton Prize for Progress Toward Research or Discoveries about Spiritual Realities
- ^ Top Ten Most Important Indian People of the 20th Century by WatchMojo.com
External links
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Pandurang Shastri Athavale |
- The Official web portal of Pandurang Shastri Athavale : www.dadaji.net
- The Official web portal of the Swadhyay Parivar : www.swadhyay.org
- Ramon magsaysay site introduction of Pandurang Shastri Athavale
- Templeton award web-site referencing Pandurang Shastri Athavale's work
- Templeton award web-site referencing News of Award to Pandurang Shastri Athavale
- Pandurang Shastri Athavale on factbites.com
- An article by a well known writer Suma Varughese
- By WAVENEY ANN MOORE, Times Staff Writer © St. Petersburg Times, published June 29, 2002
- In rural India, quiet introspection has outward effects By Chhavi Sachdev in Science & Theology News, July 2004
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