Nithyananda

Nithyananda (also called Paramahamsa Nithyananda, born 13 March 1977 in Tiruvannamalai, India) is a self-styled spiritualist from Tamil Nadu and is the founder of a trust Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam, which has temples, gurukulas, and ashrams across many countries.[2][1]

Nithyananda
TitleSwami
Personal
Born
A. Rajasekaran

(1977-03-13) 13 March 1977[1]
Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu
ReligionHinduism
NationalityIndian
Founder ofNithyananda Dhyanapeetam
PhilosophyAdvaita Vedanta
Religious career
Literary worksLiving Enlightenment, Guaranteed Solutions, Bhagavad Gita Demystified
Websitenithyananda.org

Nithyananda has been subject to widespread negative reception, having broadcast a range of pseudoscientific claims over his spiritual sessions. In late 2019 he was reported to have fled India to avoid prosecution on charges of rape and child abuse.

Early life

Nithyananda was born A. Rajasekaran,[3][4] in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu to father Arunachalam and mother Lokanayaki.[4]

Sources conflict as to his birth date – a 2003 US visa gave a date of 13 March 1977, while a sworn affidavit as to a 2010 Karnataka High Court case mention 1 January 1978.[4]

Recognition and achievements

Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam, a religious organisation founded by Nithyananda, hosts cultural events in United States as well as India.[5] They hold two Guinness world records, one for the largest rope yoga class[6] and one for the largest pole yoga (mallakhamba) class.[7]

In February 2013, the title of Mahamandaleshwar was conferred on Nithyananda in a closed ceremony by the Panchayati Mahanirvani Akhara.[8][9]

Controversies

Alleged sexual activities

In 2010, Sun TV reported of video recordings that showed Nithyananda and two females, including actress Ranjitha (who was one of his followers), in a bedroom. The story became viral among news media in Tamil Nadu.[10] Nithyananda's ex-driver Lenin Karuppan admitted to filming them clandestinely;[11] he allegedly lost faith in his guru after seeing him sleeping around with other women.

Nithyananda and Ranjitha had claimed the video to be fabricated and accused Sun TV of extortion;[12] however, an investigation by the Forensic Sciences Laboratory in Bengaluru confirmed that Nithyananda and Ranjitha were the two people shown in the tape.[13]

Pseudoscience

Nithyananda's speeches have gathered widespread mixed reception in the Indian press, having broadcast a range of pseudoscientific claims, including claims of delaying Sun to rise for 40 minutes, his ability to make cows speak in Tamil and Sanskrit, and explaining Einstein's mass–energy equivalence wrong.[14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

He has claimed to have discovered over 400 esoteric powers expressible by humans and alleges having initiated his disciples into 60 such powers[21] including kundalini and third-eye awakening.[22][23][24] He has since asserted he would open the third eye, for anyone, free of charge by 2021.[25] He also claimed that person would be able to see through smog and walls.[25] Disciples of Nithyananda claim that he gave initiations through 'third eye' to a class of 82 blind children, thus curing them of blindness. Rationalist professor and activist Narendra Nayak had challenged Nithyananda to prove his initiation of third eye and subsequent benefits thereof.[26]

Nithyananda has also claimed he and his followers were able to perform paranormal phenomena like extrasensory perception,[27][28][29] materialisation, body scanning,[23] remote viewing, and ability to find lost objects.[30]

Alleged rape and child abuse

He has been accused of raping a disciple over a five-year period, during her stay in the ashram. In June 2018, a Karnataka trial court framed charges against Nithyananda. He faces trial under Sections 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural sex), 420 (cheating), 114 (criminal abetment), 201 (disappearance of evidence, giving false information), 120B (criminal conspiracy), and other charges under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Along with Nithyananda, several ashram associates are facing charges in this case. All of the accused pleaded not guilty except for one who was absent from court.[31][32]

Disappearance

On 20 November 2019, Gujarat Police claimed that Nithyananda fled India after choosing not to attend several court hearings.[33]

According to news reports published on December 4, 2019, Nithyananda, after fleeing India, went on to buy a private island near Trinidad and Tobago or Ecuador and founded a micronation he calls Kailaasa. Meanwhile, the Ahmedabad police alleged that he could be shuffling between Ecuador and Trinidad and Tobago, while news reports said that he may have gone to Ecuador because the country does not have an extradition treaty with India.[34]

In December 2019, the embassy of Ecuador said that it “categorically denies the statement wherever published that Nithyananda was given asylum by Ecuador or has been helped by the Government of Ecuador in purchasing any land or island in South America”[35] but has confirmed Nithyananda had reached Ecuador after he left India, but left soon after his request for international personal protection (refuge) was denied.

This Hindu Nation founded by him has been named Kailaasa, and claims to issue passports and other documents.[36]

References
  1. "ప్రైవేటు దీవిలో తేలిన నిత్యానంద!". Sakshi (in Telugu). 3 December 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  2. "Mahaniravani akhara takes out grandest peshwai of all". Free Press Journal. 19 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 June 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2017. Followers of Swami Nithyananda from more than 25 countries including Russia, USA, China, Mexico, Germany, France and Spain were the crowd pullers
  3. Raghunath, R. (22 November 2019). "All you want to know about Nithyananda". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
  4. "Nithyananda may have forged birth documents". Deccan Herald. 24 March 2018. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  5. Rohit, Parimal M. "Temples Come Together to Celebrate 'Kumbh Mela USA'". India West. San Leandro, California. Archived from the original on 17 July 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  6. "Search | rope yoga". GuinnessWorldRecords.com. Jim Pattison Group. 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2017. The largest rope yoga lesson is of 272 participants and was organized by H.H. Sri Nithyananda Swami (India) and Nithyananda University (USA) in Bengaluru, India, on 30 September 2017. Rope yoga involves completing postures on a rope suspended from the ceiling. It was performed by disciples of Swami Nithyananda at their ashram outside Bengaluru, India.
  7. "Search | pole yoga". GuinnessWorldRecords.com. Jim Pattison Group. 2017. Retrieved 11 November 2017. The largest mallakhamba lesson is of 263 participants and was achieved by H.H. Sri Nithyananda Swami (India) and Nithyananda University (USA) at Bengaluru, India, on 3 October 2017. Mallakhamba is a traditional Indian exercise form where yoga postures are done on a vertical wooden pole.
  8. Pandey, Sanjay (13 February 2013). "Nithyananda feted at Mahakumbh". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  9. "Nithyananda conferred 'Mahamandaleshwar' title". Press Trust of India (PTI). 14 February 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2017 – via Rediff.com.
  10. Rao, Shakuntala (9 January 2013). "Justice and Indian Journalism". In Ward, Stephen J. A. (ed.). Global Media Ethics: Problems and Perspectives. John Wiley & Sons. p. 241. ISBN 978-1-118-35982-2.
  11. "Bengaluru police whisk away whistleblower from court". Deccan Chronicle. 29 July 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  12. "Sex tape footage aired by Sun TV doctored: Nithyananda". NDTV.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  13. "Sex video and the Swami: Nithyananda and Ranjitha in 2010 tape, confirms forensic department". India Today. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  14. "Swami Nithyananda: I can make cows speak in Tamil and Sanskrit". India Today. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  15. "From universe following him to cows speaking in Sanskrit, Swami Nithyananda has planned it all". www.oneindia.com. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  16. Vembu, Venky. "Pseudo-science LOL: from Nithyananda to Sokal Squared". @businessline. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  17. Viegas, Vanessa (21 September 2018). "Nithyananda delivers a brain freeze". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
  18. Verma, Anurag (18 September 2018). "'E ≠ mc^2': Controversial 'Godman' Tries to Explain How Albert Einstein Got His Science Wrong, Fails". News18. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  19. "Controversial seer Nithyanada says he stopped sunrise for 40 minutes in Bidadi". Asianet News Network Pvt Ltd. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  20. "Cows Will Talk In Tamil, Sanskrit, Self-Styled Godman's Bizarre Claim". NDTV.com. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  21. Saxena, Lalit (2016). "नित्यानंद बोले ड्रग, डिप्रेशन और डेथ से बचाएगा डिवाइन पॉवर" [Nityananda to Save from Drugs, Depression and Death with Divine Power]. Rajasthan Patrika / Patrika Ujjain (in Hindi). Archived from the original on 13 June 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2018. मनुष्य में कोई 400 प्रकार की अद्भुत शक्तियां हैं। ध्यान, सिद्ध अद्वैत योग का अभ्यास उन शक्तियों को जाग्रत कर सकता है। यह वैदिक विज्ञान है। इसमें किसी तरह का जादू नहीं है। अभी हम यहां शिविर में 60 प्रकार की ऊर्जा के विकसित स्वरूप के दर्शन कर सकते हैं, शेष 340 भी कर सकते हैं [Humans have 400 extraordinary powers. By practice of Meditation (dhyan), Sidh Advaita Yoga these powers can be awakened. This is a vedic science. There is no kind of magic in this. Right now 60 kind of powers can be experienced here in an advanced stage, other 340 can also be experienced.]
  22. "नित्यानंद ने 70 लोगों को दी दीक्षा" [Nithyananda initiated 70 people]. Dainik Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 7 April 2018. कल्पतरु दर्शन शिविर में शनिवार को योगाभ्यास, सत्संग व कीर्तन के साथ 70 लोगों को स्वामी नित्यानंद ने गुरुमंत्र की दीक्षा दी। इस दौरान स्वामी नित्यानंद गुरुकुल के बटुकों द्वारा त्रिनेत्र शक्ति का प्रदर्शन किया गया। [During Kalpataru darshan on saturday along with yoga practise, satsang and devotional songs, 70 people were initiated into Gurumantra by Nithyananda. At the same time, children of Swami Nithyananda's gurukul school demonstrated third eye powers.]
  23. "कल्पतरु दर्शन शिविर में त्रिनेत्र शक्ति का प्रदर्शन" [Third Eye power demonstration during Kalpataru Darshan]. Dainik Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 7 April 2018. नित्यानंद गुरुकुल के बच्चों द्वारा त्रिनेत्र शक्ति के तहत आखों पर पट्टी बाधकर पढ़ने और शरीर को स्कैन कर बीमारियों के बारे में बताते देख लोग आश्चर्यचकित रह गए [The children of the Nithyananda Gurukul with the power of the third eye read blindfolded and scanned the bodies of people and told about their diseases, experiencing this people were amazed.]
  24. "Nithyananda will do Kundalini Awakening and Third Eye Awakening". Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam. 20 April 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2017 – via Rajasthan Patrika / Patrika Ujjain. Paramahamsa Nithyananda is believed to be accomplished in many extraordinary spiritual powers. Swami-ji is specialized in the science of kundalini awakening, and science of third eye awakening.
  25. "Swami Nithyananda will find you and open your third eye in 2021". India Today. Ist. Retrieved 21 August 2019.
  26. "Nityananda's disciple 'curses' Narendra Nayak". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 21 August 2019.
  27. "Girl, 9, reads, plays games blindfolded at Vedic Temple in Montclair". Daily Bulletin. 8 June 2015. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
  28. "Nine-year-old 'Reads' Blindfolded at Business Advocacy Summit". India West. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
  29. "Miracle or magic? Girl reads blind-folded". India Herald. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  30. "गुरु पुजा के बाद चला मुलाकात का दौर" [After Gurupuja there were meetings]. ePaper.Jagran.com. 3 April 2018. Archived from the original on 8 April 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2018. बेंगलुरु के स्वामी नित्यानंद आश्रम में अलौकिक शिक्षा ग्रहण करने वाले छात्र नित्य तत्वानंद व प्रेमाश्वरूपानंद अपने गुरु भाई विद्वेश्वरानंद व आत्मपूजानंदम के साथ सोमवार को गोरखनाथ मंदिर में मुख्यमंत्री योगी आदित्यनाथ से मिलने पहुंचे [Nithya Tatvananda and Premeshavrupananda who received extraordinary knowledge in Swami Nithyananda ashram in Bengaluru, along with their guru brother Vidveshvarananda and Aatmapujananda went to Gorakhnaath temple this Monday to meet with the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
  31. "Karnataka trial court frames charges against Nithyananda in rape case". The News Minute. 6 June 2018.
  32. "Setback for Nithyananda as SC dismisses discharge petition plea". India Today. 1 June 2018.
  33. "Nithyananda has fled India: Gujarat Police". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 21 November 2019. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 22 November 2019.CS1 maint: others (link)
  34. "Where Is Nithyananda Now? And What Is Kailaasa?". HuffPost India. 4 December 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  35. "Ecuador Says It Denied Nithyananda Asylum; MEA Says He Left India Without Passport". The Wire. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  36. "Fugitive rape-accused Nithyananda declares his own Hindu island nation 'Kailaasa' near Ecuador". www.businesstoday.in. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
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