Sri Chinmoy was many things to many people – a prolific writer, composer and musician, a painter of mystical art, an athlete who encouraged everyone around him to transcend themselves, or an ambassador of peace whose message inspired many of society’s leaders. Most of all, he was someone who never stopped dreaming of a better world, and spent his life showing how that dream could be carried on in all walks of human life.

But to his students – the people whose stories are featured on this website – Sri Chinmoy was first and foremost a teacher and a friend.

Born in 1931 in East Bengal (then part of British-occupied India), Sri Chinmoy grew up in an extremely spiritual family. Upon the passing away of both his parents, Chinmoy and his siblings moved to Southern India, where he lived from the age of 12 to 33 in a spiritual community. In this atmosphere, he quickly attained to very high states of meditation, and spent his adolescence and early twenties expanding upon these meditative states. Here, he would also do many hours of selfless service for others, as well as participate frequently in athletics – two aspects that in the future would became prominent features in the path he laid out for his students.

Responding to an inner message, Sri Chinmoy came to the United States in 1964 and settled in New York to share his inner knowledge and light with those interested in spirituality. Within two years, quite a few people had come to him looking for spiritual guidance, and the first two meditation centres were opened in New York and Puerto Rico in 1966. In 1970, at the request of then Secretary General U Thant, Sri Chinmoy began twice weekly meditations for the staff and delegates of the United Nations.

Sri Chinmoy sought to show that spirituality was a very practical subject, and could be brought into any sphere of life – artistic, athletic and cultural. He was a constant hive of creativity, and by the time his passing in 2007, he had notched up an enormous array of creative output – over 1,600 published books, over 120,000 published poems, over 200,000 paintings and over 21,000 composed songs.

Similarly, Sri Chinmoy encouraged his students to develop their talents and abilities. He saw that every person had a unique and special life-purpose, a way in which they could make the world a better place. Rather than withdraw from the world, Sri Chinmoy recommended that his students participate in society, where the peace and inner joy they gained from their meditations could be felt by all those they interacted with.

It is our hope that the stories here will give an insight into the relationship between spiritual Master and disciple. Over time, Sri Chinmoy developed an inner connection with each student, that he felt was much more important to the student’s inner growth and development than the outer relationship. This inner relationship was nourished through deep meditation, allowing the transmission of spiritual awakening on a soul-to-soul level. Indeed, Sri Chinmoy often said that some of his best students were people he had never met personally, but was still able to teach them most effectively on the inner plane. Sri Chinmoy may no longer be with his students physically, but this inner relationship and guidance remains, and we hope to share more stories of this inner guidance in time.