The Order on the March News & Notes from Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission
February 2019
Celebrations in the Order
The Vedanta Kesari
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The 166 th Jayanti of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi was celebrated in great joy with special worship, bhajans, and spiritual discourses on Friday, 28 December 2018 at Belur Math and in the branch centres. At Belur Math, thousands of devotees attended the celebration and cooked prasad was served to about 33,000 devotees. Christmas-Eve was observed on 24 December 2018 in our centres.
Conclusion of Centenary Celebration of Karimganj Ashrama, Assam Inspired by Swami Premeshananda, a disciple of Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, Belur Math
a group of local devotees started in 1917 a Seva Samiti in Karimganj, Assam of erstwhile East Bengal. In 1929 the Samiti was affiliated to Belur Math as a branch centre of Sylhet ashrama, now in Bangladesh. Following the partition of India, Karimganj became a remote corner in Assam; yet the centre continued its services and became an independent branch centre on 1 October 1947. The centre rendered tremendous relief services during Burma Evacuation at the times of World War II, East Pakistan Exodus in 1950, and Bangladesh Evacuation in 1971. Requested by the Govt. of India, the centre befittingly handled Karimganj
for many years the settlement of lakhs of Hindu refugees from East Pakistan. With a students’ home, library, coaching centre, charitable dispensary and mobile medical unit, the centre now houses a beautiful temple of Sri Ramakrishna, consecrated in 1992 by Swami Bhuteshananda, the 12th President of the Order. The centre concluded its yearlong centenary celebration, which began on 10 May 2017, from 1 — 5 December 2018 with public meetings, a procession of 7000 odd people, naranarayana seva and cultural programmes. On this occasion a life-size bronze statue of Swamiji was unveiled and a souvenir was released by Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji, one of Nivedita 150