Gondavalekar Maharaj

Brahmachaitanya (also popularly known as Gondavalekar Maharaj) (19 February 1845 – 22 December 1913) was an Indian Hindu saint and spiritual master. Brahmachaitanya was a devotee of the Hindu deity Rama and signed his name as "Brahmachaitanya Ramdasi". He was a disciple of Tukamai, and advocated for japa meditation with the (त्रयोदशाक्षरी मंत्र) of Rama to attain spiritual progress and liberation. The mantra is " (श्री राम जय राम जय जय राम)" which is also known by other names such as (lit. 'The Rama mantra for victory') and  (lit. 'The Rama mantra for Salvation').

Early life
Brahmachaitanya Maharaj was born on 19 February 1845 to Raoji and Gitabai Ghugardare (Kulkarni), a Deshastha Brahmin couple from Gondavale Budruk, a village in present-day Satara district, Maharashtra, India. His birth name was Ganpati Raoji Ghugardare (Kulkarni). His family were devotees to Lord Vitthala, a Hindu deity considered an incarnation of Krishna. His grandfather, Lingopant held the title of Kulkarni (rural record-keeper) of Gondavale during the Maratha Empire regime, which later also became the family name.

During childhood, Ganpati was said to have memorized the Hindu text Bhagavad Gita. He was bestowed the title of "Brahmachaitanya" by his master Tukamai. He is believed to have attained enlightenment at a very young age of 5.

Initiation
He arrived in Yehalegaon, a village near Nanded, and met Tukamai, who was considered a living synthesis of the three paths to self realization i.e., Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, and Karma Yoga. Ganpati stayed with Tukamai for nine months and would obediently follow the latter's instructions. On the occasion of Ram Navami, Tukamai initiated Ganapati with the mantra "Śrī Rām Jai Rām Jai Jai Rām" ("श्री राम जय राम जय जय राम"), and bestowed upon him the title of "Brahmachaitanya."

Brahmachaitanya later traveled across India to Ujjain, the Himalayan, Ayodhya, Kashi, Calcutta, Indore and Nasik. During March 1866, Brahmachaitanya returned to Gondavale and accepted gṛhasthi or a material lifestyle. His first wife Saraswati and his son passed away prematurely, and he remarried a daughter of the Deshpande (district record-keeper) of Atpadi. His second wife was blind from birth and later became known as Aaisaheb. After given up all their belongings, Brahmachaitanya took his mother, Gitabai, on a pilgrimage to Varanasi and then Ayodhya. Gitabai is believed to have died in Ayodhya

Return to Gondavale
During later years, Brahmachaitanya continued to expound spiritual methods revolving around devotion to Rama. Initially, he had a Rama temple built as an extension to his residence. With time, the number of his disciples and followers increased. To cater to an increasing number of devotees, he arranged for the construction of Rama, Dattatreya, and Shani temples with an accommodation facility at Gondavale. He also had Rama temples built in other rural regions of Maharashtra.

Final years
Brahmachaitanya breathed his last on 22 December 1913, in Gondavale.

Philosophy
Brahmachaitanya was a proponent of Bhakti Yoga. His teachings were aligned with that of Samarth Ramdas. The Ram Nam mantra, originally attributed to Ramdas, was adopted by Brahmachaitanya, and was central to his teachings. According to S. G. Tulpule, Brahmachaitanya, like saints Mirabai, Ramdas, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and Tulsidas, was a well-known practitioner of reciting the divine name as an incarnation of God.

Brahmachaitanya frequently used pravachan and bhajan to engage people along the path of devotion. He encouraged cow protection and food donation. He was also one of the key figures in the revival of Vedic ritualism (vaidik anuṣṭhān) in Maharashtra.

Teachings
Bramhachaitanya advised seekers that one can achieve God through spiritual practices. The two proven ways for the worldly people to be able to attain eternal bliss with the purity of heart are सत्संगती (company of saints) and नाम (chanting the name of God). Brahmachaitanya spent his lifetime teaching the importance of Naam Japa.

He advocated the continued remembrance of God through Naam Japa as a means to happiness, contentment and peace.

Brahmachaitanya's teachings are summarized in his subodh (sound advice), which is recited in Gondavale and by his followers across the world.

Subodh teachings include:


 * Chant the name of God and share the importance of chanting with everyone you meet.
 * Naam alone is the ultimate truth.
 * Naam is the means and the end.
 * Be soaked in the blissful chanting while enjoying worldly pleasures.
 * Be happy and stay away from laziness, fear, and hate.
 * Always be mindful of the divine presence in life.
 * Be polite and nice to people and perform bhakti with complete devotion.
 * Purity in thought and action is recommended and refrain from hypocrisy.
 * Consider Ram as your friend, guide and master and surrender to him wholeheartedly.
 * Give your 100% to everything you do and leave the results of your effort to Ram, thereby dropping the doer ship entirely.
 * Control your desires and be righteous in your behavior.
 * Ram is the giver of happiness, and one should consider performing worldly duties as a way to serve Him.
 * Sing and chant His name and always be content and at peace even if you lose all the worldly belongings.
 * Pride is the biggest enemy of a seeker, be alert and do not give in to your ego.
 * Ram resides in our hearts. He is the epitome of love and yearns for love from all his followers.

The daily discourses of Bramhachaitanya have been compiled into 'Pravachane' book of discourses.

Shri K. V. Belsare
Shri K. V. Belsare, affectionately known as "Baba" (father), was born in a highly educated family in Hyderabad in 1909. He mastered the scriptures such as the Bhagavad Gita, Dasbodh and Dnyaneshwari, at an early age and is believed to have memorized all of the 700 shlokas of the Bhagavad Gita in one week. He later became a professor of philosophy at Siddhartha college in Mumbai. His lectures were so popular that students from other disciplines used to line up and the classrooms were often overflowing due to his extraordinary clarity and ability to teach complex subjects in an easy-to-understand manner. He was initiated by Brahmachaitanya in 1931. On Brahmachaitanya's orders, Baba became the cornerstone of propagating Maharaj's teachings to a vast population over 60 years through many discourses on topics ranging from meditation to lectures on the Dnyaneshwari and Dasbodh. He authored more than 50 books in Marathi. His notable books include the biography of Brahmachaitanya, Upanishdacha Abhyas (studies on Upanishads) and Bhavarthgatha.

D.R. Bendre
D.R. Bendre (1896 – 1981) was a Kannada poet and recipient of the Jnanpith Award. Bendre credited Brahmachaitanya for bestowing on him the gift of poetry.

Temples
Brahmachaitanya and his followers built and consecrated many temples around India. There are also temples dedicated to Brahmachaitanya in Maharashtra as well as in other places in India such as Bangalore (Srinivasanagar), and Hebbali in Dharwad district. The Ram Nam Japa ritual is held on a daily basis in these temples.

In literature

 * Sri Brahmachaitanya Gondavalekar Maharaj – biography by K.V. Belsare