Birth :- Reverend Chidatmanji Maharaj was born on 17th day of July 1956. It was Tuesday shukla Ekadashi (the 11th day of lunar month) of vikram samvat (year) 2013 at the wee hours. He was geographically born at Rudrapur village of Bachwara Block in Begusarai district of Bihar. His native place is ornamented with a unique garland of the Ganga from three different sides. His father, Bharadwaj Gotra (clan) Brahmin, Pandit Sri Anirudra Jha and Mother, Smt. Janaki Devi Nurtured him properly. At the time of his birth, his mother was at Sunderpur village of Darbhanga District of Bihar, staying with her parents. After his birth he was named Vishambhar Jha. It was predicted that swami ji would do wonders as his eyes, forehead, countenance had unique charming. They predicted that the boy had born to accomplish the unfinished task that he left in his previous life. Those words also appeared to be true to the words today. |
Congenital uncommonness:- Swamiji’s childhood seems to be a unique and challenging life. He was brought to his native village Rudauli from Sunderpur. Where his proper care continued. When he was barely of two years he started imitating his father in the same way as his father used to worship Goddess Kali in the near by Temple. He always kept himself near religious affairs that his father used to perform. Even in the plays, Swamiji concentrated on God as the theme of his plays. The mundane ceremony (tonsure) took place when Swamiji was three years. He was sent to the middle school at five. His hard work, delicate nature, politeness, sharp memory endeared him among teachers and students. Swamiji was very generous by heart since his childhood. He used to share his notebook, pen, pencil, lunch etc. in the school. In the leisure hour Swamiji invariably used to talk about God and His various manifestations. During lunch hour unlike other children he used to go to reclusive corner or under the shade of Pipal Tree (Banyan tree) in the school premises to study and to meditate. In this way his personality spread out like mellifluous fragrance of concentration, intellect, tolerance, politeness and universal outlook in the school. His yoga interest, loneliness, emotional heart, kind nature, his love for worshiping almighty, self meditation made him altogether different from other students in the school.
Family Background : -
Swamiji has two elder sisters named Late Gautam Devi & Rukmini Devi and two younger brothers named Pitamber & Ravindra followed by the youngest sister Late Manju Devi. Everyone in his family was given special education of Darmshastra as there parents were religious by nature. This is perhaps the reason which has made everyone to be courteous and satvick (virtuous). It is noticeable that the younger brother Ravindra ji has been in Swamiji’s company with a great devotion and dedication.
Detached life with family:- The ceremonial joy enriched undistinguishable charming in the nine years old personality of Swamiji when he was granted sacred thread on a very special day. There after he got admission in the middle school. Unfortunately an incident took place which brought a crucial turn in the life of Swamiji, since his father passed away. By that time Swamiji was hardly ten years old yet he didn’t feel aggrieved or wept bitterly like other members of family. Being the eldest he was made to put fire to his father’s pyre. The moment he put fire to the pyre he got lost and kept silent. When he returned from the cremation-ground he found his mother weeping bitterly. He consoled his mother in a philosophical tone, “why do you weep? This is the law of the universe, why to weep. One day we all have to leave this mundane world like him. Mother, death is the truth therefore chala chale cha sansare dharm eko hi nischalah. It means good deeds or service to others is the only real religion of one’s life. Therefore we all should do good work.” After listening to these words of Swamiji, even wise old people in the locality became stunned. It came out a matter of general talk among the villagers and intellectual classes. They thought how could a small boy like Vishambhar speak such words with an extra-ordinary confidence. In the mean when the last funeral rites completed with a sense of detachment in the heart of Swamiji. At this juncture the eldest sister Gautam Devi took him to her father-in-laws house. There she motivated him for further studies and enrolled him in a high school. But Swamiji was not impelled by any incident or efforts made to him for common worldly life. He always continued self meditation and sudden shift in the resolution during his studies and attending religious ceremonies viz. a religious sacrifices and soiree in temples after his school, reciting Holy Scriptures like the Gita, the Ramayana and also about life affairs of universal souls. It was his daily routine.
Ardent desire of Shakti Sadhna:- In this way Swamiji spent twelve years of his life. One day, suddenly, he left for Maa Kamakhya in early morning without acknowledging anyone without eating or drinking any thing he reached in the premises of Maa Kamakhya temple. There he met a dynamic eerie who had a horrible face clad in black, big eyes, matted hair and terrible eyebrows feeding a fiercing black dog. The moment he entered in the temple premises, the saint said to Swamiji, “Oh, small child where have you come? Go back to Vindhyachal. Be quick, someone is waiting for you there. Hurry up, go back.” Swamiji took those words as the words of Maa Kamakhya. Having listened it he boarded a train to Vindhyachal. Swamiji became so spell-bound in the memory of MAA that he forgot to get down. The train reached Allahabad and there he caught a bus to the bank of Mandakini. There he found a huge Vatbriksha (Banyan Tree) which was the place of Duttatre jee Maharaj. He had been without taking food and water for several days. Eventually, he met a great saint whose benign countenance and delicate nature appeared to be highly attractive to Swamiji. As, he stepped forwards to touch the lotus feet of the saint his soft hand was caught in a softer hand and he listened, “Son, you have been hungry for several days. Why have you come here? You should go to Vindhyachal. If you have come here it is ok. The saint fetched out a piece of herb, giving it to Swami, he said, “Take it, your hunger and thirst will go away. Then we will talk.” Swamiji ate the piece of herb and lost in meditation for three days under the same umbrageous tree. After three days Gurudiksha was given to Swamiji and he was advised to go to the eight-handed Vindhyavashini Maa. |
