Role Guru | Name Atmananda Menon Books Narayanasmr̥tih | |
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Full Name P. Krishna Menon Died May 14, 1959, Thiruvananthapuram | ||
Sri Atmananda (December 8, 1883 – May 14, 1959), also referred as Sri Atmananda Krishna Menon, was an Indian sage, guru, and philosopher. He has been described by scholars as a "neo-Hindu".
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Early life
He was born as P. Krishna Menon in 1883 at Cherukulathu House, in Peringara, near Tiruvalla, in the state of Travancore, now a part of Kerala.
After completing his the study of law, he became a Government Advocate and Inspector and District Superintendent of Police and remained in service until 1939.
Sadhana and realization
Meanwhile, his search for a guru led to his meeting Swami Yogananda (not to be confused with Paramahansa Yogananda) briefly in 1913. In 1923, he assumed the name Sri Atmananda and started teaching Jnana Yoga. After retirement from government service, he resided in his family home, Anandavadi on the river Pampa in Malakara.
He died at Trivandrum (now known as Thiruvananthapuram) in 1959.
Legacy
He published several books including, Atma Darshan and Atma Nirvriti in Malayalam (both of which he translated into English), and Atmaramam (in Malayalam).
After his death, the book Atmananda Tattwa Samhita, based on tape-recorded talks between Sri Atmananda and some disciples, was published. In the following years, his eldest son Adwayananda continued his teachings from his home in Anandawadi, Malakkara, near Chengannur, till his death in 2001. A school in his name, Sri Atmananda Memorial School, was founded in 1987 in Malakkara, and another school of the same name was located in Austin, Texas from 1995 to 2011. When American mythologist Joseph Campbell visited India (1954–1955), his meeting with Krishna Menon has been described as the "climax of his visit" to India, and is recounted in his book, Baksheesh and Brahman, and the meditation he was given, "Where are you between two thoughts?"
His teachings have become a foundation for a cult called the Direct Path.