In the long, slow, tedious and meandering march of evolution of human consciousness, culture and civilization, over the millennia, it has been only on rare turning points that Avatar like multi-faceted geniuses with superhuman attributes have appeared on the human scene to raise human consciousness to a higher nobler plane. The Saint-Scholar-Philosopher Pandit Shriram Sharma Acharya, undoubtedly, belongs to this small rare group of divine vibhutis. Born on September 20, 1911 in a village Anwalkheda in Agra District, U.P., India, Acharyashri's whole life was devoted to Bhaghirath-like tapasya in clearing the way for the emergence of a new Era of universal peace, harmony and goodwill that could be linked with an era of descent of Heavens on the Earth.
Acharyashri (known as Gurudev by the disciples) scrupulously carried out the biddings of his divine Guru, a great Himalayan Yogi. When he was only fifteen years of age he endeavoured 24 Mahapurushcharans of Gayatri Maha-mantra; took part in the non-violent struggle for India's independence as a volunteer; went to jail a number of times as part of the freedom struggle, and embarked upon the task of social and moral upliftment through spiritual means with the blessings of Mahatma Gandhi.
A sage, a visionary, a social reformer, Acharyashri propounded 100 points Yug Nirman Yojna for social, intellectual and spiritual evolution. He lived a simple, disciplined life full of devout austerity, visited the Himalayas several times and attained spiritual eminence and foresight.
He translated the entire Vedic Vangmaya in lucid Hindi with eloquent comprehensive introductions and accomplished a feat of writing more than 2400 enlightening books in Hindi on all aspects of life. His writings encompass far-reaching, sagacious and feasible solutions to the innumerable problems of today. The Gayatri Pariwar fraternity, Shantikunj Ashram (the headquarters of Gayatri Pariwar), an academy for moral and spiritual awakening; Brahmavarchas Research Institute which strives to synthesize science with spirituality, Akhand Jyoti Sansthan, Mathura, Gayatri Tapobhumi, Mathura and thousands of social reform and sadhana centres (Shakti Peeths) around the globe are other grand contributions of Yugrishi Pandit Shriram Sharma Acharya to the modern world.
Millions of people in India and abroad have been fired kindled with missionary enthusiasm and zeal to transform their own lives and the society as a whole in the light of Yugrishi's messages. He voluntarily shed his physical sheath on Gayatri Jayanti, June 2,1990 but even after his physical departure from the scene, the Mission spread to global dimensions and 41 Ashwamedh Yagyas (32 in India, 9 abroad including U.K, U.S.A, Canada, Australia and South Africa ) were performed to carry forward the tasks initiated by the Yugrishi.
“Eighty golden years of this life have passed by. An important chapter of vibrant and stunning results, that have been a lifeline for many, is coming to an end. An in depth analysis of the past reveals that what has been achieved is something that I can be proud of and feel delighted about. Whatever task was assigned to me and for what I had been sent, kept moving in an orderly fashion and kept getting completed with showers of love and affection. It can be considered worth feeling satisfied about. I got abundant opportunities for laying the seeds of change, nurturing them and eventually guarding the produce. It has surely been a great gift of God.
“The first chapter of directing the transformation through this life is now complete. This was the visible aspect. Whoever saw what has been accomplished has described it as a plain adoption of the principle of 'as you sow, so shall you reap'. The seeds of right thoughts that were sown in the social field during the life of this director of change, have sprouted and grown into a big garden. Through my life I have demonstrated that same principles are worth adoption by anyone and everyone. To tread this path is easy and enjoyable.
“Whatever could be performed with my body under the guidance of the Invisible Force is there for everyone to see. Cleansing of the soul through Sadhana, creation of all the literature (Yug Sahitya), forming the organization of millions, development of capable volunteers, chiseling of the social workers, laying the foundation stone of change, conducting of a thought revolution and many other such unparalleled tasks have been experienced by many. This is all a small introduction of all the activities that could be performed through this body. Whatever other activities were carried out that are not currently known to my soul kins (Parijans) will be known to them in times to come.
“Now begins the next chapter. What will happen now will be more important and valuable. Those acquainted with the matters of the soul (Adhyatma Vigyani) keep telling about the existence of the sublime beyond the physical existence. It has been described to be many times more powerful than the physical body. That is what will now be used during the next century. This chapter has begun on Vasant Parva, 1990 and will continue till 2099.
“The causal body is very powerful. Its field of influence is bigger too. The causal body is capable of effectively dealing with hurdles of the invisible world. In the 21st century, it will be required to stand up against many eventualities and put such extraordinary efforts as are not possible by the physical body or even the subtle body. But, by associating with Brahmi Chetna (super-consciousness), the causal body could put into practice all such tasks that may be considered amazing and supernatural.
“In these times of change of the era (Yug Parivartan), the facilities that will be provided to accomplish this task of change will originate in the invisible world. The visible actions will have their roots in the invisible world. Whatever has to be done shall be done by the sublime body in close association with Brahmi Chetna. Similar transformations, as have been seen in the past, will continue to be brought about but it will not be apparent as to who is driving them and how. Since the mistakes of the past two thousand years have to be remedied in one hundred years, the refinement process will also be at its peak.”