Monastic Order
After the passing away of their Master Sri Ramakrishna in 1886 the young disciples organized themselves into a new monastic order. The original monastery at Baranagar known as Baranagar Math was subsequently moved to Alambazar area nearby in 1892, then to Nilambar Mukherjee's Garden House, south of the present Belur Math in 1898 before finally being shifted in January 1899 to a newly acquired plot of land at Belur in Howrah district by Swami Vivekananda. This monastery, known as Belur Math, serves as the Mother House for all the monks of Ramakrishna Order who live in the various branch centres of Ramakrishna Math and/or Ramakrishna Mission in different parts of India and the world.
All members of the Order undergo training and ordination (Sannyasa) at Belur Math.
- A candidate for monastic life is treated as a pre-probationer during the first year of his stay at any centre, and as a probationer during the next four years.
- At the end of this period he is ordained into celibacy (Brahmacharya) and is given certain vows (Pratijna), the most important of which are chastity, renunciation and service.
- After a further period of four years, if found fit, he is ordained into (Sannyasa) and given the ocher (gerua) clothes to wear.
Read more about this topic: Ramakrishna Mission
Famous quotes containing the words monastic and/or order:
“I like a church; I like a cowl;
I love a prophet of the soul;
And on my heart monastic aisles
Fall like sweet strains, or pensive smiles;
Yet not for all his faith can see
Would I that cowled churchman be.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“The first sentence of every novel should be: “Trust me, this will take time but there is order here, very faint, very human.” Meander if you want to get to town.”
—Michael Ondaatje (b. 1943)