Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s tribute to Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa on his birth anniversary triggered a fresh political debate after he prefixed “Swami” to the 19th-century spiritual icon, prompting Mamata Banerjee to criticise the Prime Minister’s “cultural insensitivity” towards Bengal’s great figures.
“Shocked again! Yet again, our Prime Minister aggressively displays his cultural insensitivity to great figures of Bengal. Today is the janmatithi of Yugavatara (God’s incarnation in our age) Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva. While trying to hail the great saint on this occasion, our PM added an unprecedented and improper prefix to the great saint’s name, “Swami”!,” Mamata wrote on his X handle marking Modi’s social media post.
A source in the Trinamool Congress said that by saying “shocked again”, Mamata reminded Modi of his earlier gaffe when he referred to Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay as “Bankim Da” on the floor of Parliament on December 8.
Modi on Thursday morning used his social media handle to pay his tribute in Hindi to Sri Ramakrishna on his birth anniversary, where he used the prefix “Swami” before Sri Ramakrishna.
Modi wrote: “Respectful tributes to Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa on his birth anniversary. The way he established spirituality and spiritual practice as a life force will continue to benefit humanity in every age. His noble thoughts and messages will forever remain a source of inspiration.”
Though the post contained no political remarks, the use of “Swami” before Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa’s name — which is usually not used in Bengal — became a political issue in poll-bound Bengal. Mamata did not delay in taking up the issue to highlight the distance between the PM, the BJP, and the culture of Bengal.
Mamata explained in her long post why Sri Ramakrishna is not referred to as Swami.
“As is well known, Sri Ramakrishna was widely revered as Thakur (literally, God). While his ascetic disciples constituted the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission after their Master’s demise, and those monks were then called “Swami” as per Indian traditions, the Master, the Acharya, himself continued to be referred to as Thakur. The prefix “Swami” was meant for his disciples in the Ramakrishna Order, but the holy trinity of the Order remained Thakur–Ma–Swamiji. Thakur is Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsadeva, Ma is Ma Sarada, and Swamiji is Swami Vivekananda,” Mamata wrote.
Mamata also did not miss the opportunity to advise the Prime Minister, saying: “I urge the Prime Minister kindly not to discover new prefixes and suffixes for the great Renaissance figures of Bengal who shaped modern India.”
Many Trinamool leaders came forward to take up the matter, claiming Modi’s insensitivity towards Sri Ramakrishna.
Multiple BJP leaders claimed that there was nothing wrong in using “Swami” before Sri Ramakrishna, arguing that it is a common all-India practice to refer to mystics as Swami, and accused Mamata of politicising a non-issue.
“We are also shocked at your ignorance!” BJP IT cell head and Bengal minder Amit Malviya wrote on his social media. “Prime Minister referred to Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa Deva, also called Sri Ramakrishna and ‘Thakur’ by his disciples, as Swami Ramakrishna Paramahansa Ji while paying tribute to the universally respected great seer and saint of India on his birth anniversary,” he wrote, posting a small video clip of Mamata saying “Sri Krishna Paramhamsa”.
“The use of the prefix ‘Swami’ is not a reference to the title used by monks of the Ramakrishna Mission Order, who dedicate their lives to spreading the message and teachings of the greatest ‘swami’ of all time. There is a larger metaphorical and metaphysical concept of spirituality, known as ‘Advaita Vedanta’, the nondualism of the individual and God, which is practised and propagated by the Ramakrishna Mission. It forms the core of Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa’s experiential, mystical, and universalist vision,” Malviya wrote. “In this context, ‘Swami’ refers to the Great Master, whose kathamrit remains as overwhelming, awe-inspiring, and mind-absorbing today as it was when he walked this world of mere mortals.”
Contacted, academic Pabitra Sarkar believed that though the prefix “Swami” was not commonly used in Bengal while referring to Sri Ramakrishna, there was nothing gravely wrong if someone uses that particular prefix.
“Yes, it is customary to refer to Sri Ramakrishna using the prefix ‘Thakur’, but there should be no grave issue if anyone uses ‘Swami’ instead of ‘Thakur’. However, the most important point is that both political parties (Trinamool and BJP) are more focused on such debates, distancing themselves from many real issues concerning Bengal and India,” Sarkar said.