Belur: To pay homage to the thought of religious harmony by saint Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Belur Math in West Bengal's Howrah district on Friday was illuminated to celebrate Christmas.
“Getting close to the almighty is the basis of all religions,” this philosophy of Ramakrishna Dev, who meditated 14 years to attain the aforementioned state of mind is said to be the basis of the celebrations.
On Friday, all the branches of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission globally celebrated the occasion chanting the hymns of Bible.
Cakes, fruits and coffee were offered before the statues of Jesus Christ.
Prayers were conducted in the evening. A statue of Jesus Christ was placed within the main Ramakrishna temple. The monks of Belur Math supervised the entire process. Later, after the prayers the life of Jesus Christ was narrated to the visitors.
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The monks informed that four months after the demise of Ramakrishna Dev, his followers, including Swami Vivekananda, adopted lives of monks and paid homage to the saint at Sreerampore in Hooghly district.
Later an ashram was set up in Antopur village. Since then the tradition of celebrating Christmas started.
Belur Math sources added that the monks went to the ancestral place of noted saint Baburam Maharaj and celebrated the day there, and it is here where it was originally decided that everyone will chant the hymns of the Bible in front of fire to mark Christmas.
They did accordingly and since then the tradition of celebrating Christmas at the Math started.
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There are several other stories relating to the celebration of Christmas in Ramakrishna Mission. Sources said that Ramakrishna Dev practiced the rituals of almost all religions at the famous Dakhineswar Kali temple. He even studied the Quran Sharif and Bible. He once asked one of his disciples about the religious practices of Christianity. That disciple read out the Bible in Bengali.
As per information, saint Ramakrishna used to regularly visit the ancestral home of Zamindar Jadu Mallik, and it is there that he saw the picture of Jesus Christ with Virgin Mary.
