{"id":6081,"date":"2017-11-06T09:00:26","date_gmt":"2017-11-06T08:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/?p=6081"},"modified":"2020-06-15T11:59:18","modified_gmt":"2020-06-15T10:59:18","slug":"shree-krishna-pranam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/?p=6081","title":{"rendered":"Shree Krishna Pranam"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article is inspired by the beliefs and traditions in my family. The summer of 2017 allowed me to experience some remarkable places in India, giving me the opportunity to discover more about my country and <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i>. One week into my trip, I was taken to the south of Gujarat to visit Shri Krishna Pranami mandir. Here I was told that my grandfather and his family used to worship Shri Krishna at this mandir, and that since then Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> has been followed in the family. I was really fascinated by the way prayers were done at this temple and wondered where Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> developed from. <\/span><\/p>\n

The basis of this <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> is \u2018Prem Lakshana Bhakti\u2019 or \u2018devotion in the spirit of a lover\u2019. Devotion represents the love and trust in the Supreme Soul. It is through this <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> that the Pranamis believe they will ascend to the home of <\/span>aksharatil<\/span><\/i> \u2013 the Paramdham.  The scriptures of Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> are popularly known as Swasam Veda, Kulzam Swarup and Injeel which have 18,758 verses arranged in 14 books.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> has over five million adherents who are known to respect each other as friends with Pranam. The followers of this <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> worship and bow to the Supreme Lord, in the form of Shri Krishna. Followers greet each other by saying \u2018Pranam\u2019, recognising the divinity in each person. In Sanskrit, <\/span>namah+te<\/span><\/i> = <\/span>namaste. <\/span><\/i>It means \u2018I bow to you\u2019 \u2013 my greeting to you.  Pranam, which means \u2018I bow to the Lord Supreme in you\u2019 is indicated by folded palms placed in front the chest. The bowing of the head is a gracious form of extending friendship in love and humility. The foundation for this <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> was laid by Shri Devchandra Maharaj, who was born in 1581 in Marwad in Umarkot village (now in Sindh, Pakistan) in a Kayasth family.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shri Devchandraji was very curious and contemplative since childhood: he would always ask questions such as, \u201cwho am I? What is the world? Who is its creator?\u201d. At the age of sixteen, Shri Devchandra Maharaj renounced the world and left in search of <\/span>Brahma Gyana<\/span><\/i> which is also known as \u2018divine knowledge\u2019 from Kutch to Jamnagar.  Shri Devchandraji found and formed a new sect called the Nijanand Sampradaya (self-religion). He made Jamnagar his major centre of operation, where he explained the Vedas, Vedantic knowledge and Bhagwatam in simple language, and taught Tartam Mantra.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> reached its present heights of popularity mainly due to the influence of Prannath, who was born in Jamnagar, Saurashtra, in September 1618. Shri Prannath is the most important leader of Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i>, who carried the word and practice to many places. His efforts and dedication historically have made a distinct mark on Hindu <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> and civilization. He was the fourth son of Keshav Thakur, a Dewan under the Jama ruler of Shri Satta, and belonged to the <\/span>Kshatriya<\/span><\/i> varna<\/span><\/i>. The Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> began to spread in the Darjeeling-Sikkim Himalayas 125 years ago. <\/span><\/p>\n

It is believed that there are 12 commandments to follow in the Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. To believe that Shri Krishna, The Supreme Lord Akshratit is the object of worship and the path is that of total love for him.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. To recite the sacred Tartam along with the name of the eternal couple, Raj Shyama.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. To accept Nijanand Satguru Shri Devchandra and Mahamati Prannath as true guides and to follow their teachings.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. To accept Shri Tartamvani – Kulzam Swaroop as the book of Reverence.<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. To believe that Akshratit Dham, the Eternal Abode, which is beyond the Kshar and the Akshar is the only aim of the Soul to be achieved.<\/span><\/li>\n
  6. To accept Shrimad Bhagwat Gita, Bhagwat, The Vedas, The Upanishads, and all the other sacred books as testimony for spiritual matters.<\/span><\/li>\n
  7. To give equal respect to all religions, sects, prophets, and their teachings.<\/span><\/li>\n
  8. To keep away from the difference of high and low, caste, colour, or creed.<\/span><\/li>\n
  9. To follow the path of non-violence and feel compassion for the living beings.<\/span><\/li>\n
  10. To make an honest living, avoid intoxicants, carnal desires, and eat vegetarian diet.<\/span><\/li>\n
  11. To accept Navtanpuri – Jamnagar, Mangalpuri – Surat, Padmavatipuri – Panna as the chief centers of pilgrimage.<\/span><\/li>\n
  12. To greet each other with Pranam.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    There are 4 places of pilgrimage. <\/span><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Navtanpuri Dham: this mandir is located in Jamnagar, the main pilgrimage centre of Shri Krishna Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i>. Believers say that once Shri Devchandra Maharaj planted two toothpicks in the ground after cleaning his teeth, which now have grown into trees. Today, even after 400 years, the trees are still there and called Khijada trees.<\/span><\/li>\n
    2. Maha Mangalpuri Dham: this mandir is located in Surat. Here, Prannath spent 17 months preaching and spreading the holy message to individuals. During his time at Maha Mangalpuri Dham, Prannath was offered the throne of leadership and the title of Mahamati Swami Prannathji. <\/span><\/li>\n
    3. Padmavatipuri Dham: this mandir is located in Panna. It is particularly known for the land of diamonds which Prannathji produced while living in Panna for eleven years. King Chhatrasal gifted Prannathji a Jalpukar (sword) which was used by the King to defeat the Mughal army in Mhow. <\/span><\/li>\n
    4. Darjeeling:  this mandir is located in West Bengal, Kalimpong. It is named after Guru Mangaldas for his contribution to propagating the sect. Guru Mangaldas preached to his followers to live a purely vegetarian and simple life. On 1<\/span>st<\/span> May 1985, Guruji attained the Lotus feet of Shri Krishna.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Finally, reading about Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> has built a strong foundation for my knowledge on this topic. This article only outlines a few ideas out of the many different insights about this <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i>. What marks it out is the pluralist significance given to all other religions by the various gurus, particularly Prannath. In the future, I would love to visit one of the holy Shri Krishna Pranami mandirs in Jamnagar to expand my understanding of Pranami <\/span>dharma<\/span><\/i> and its history.<\/span><\/p>\n

      Jai Shri Krishna Pranaam <\/span><\/p>\n

      — Janki Rohitkumar Patel<\/strong><\/em>, <\/span>Events Team Member<\/span><\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      This article is inspired by the beliefs and traditions in my family. The summer of 2017 allowed me to experience some remarkable places in India, giving me the opportunity to discover more about my country and dharma. One week into my trip, I was taken to the south of Gujarat to visit Shri Krishna Pranami […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":6078,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[740],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6081","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hum-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6081"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6081\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6078"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nhsf.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}