Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar

Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar
Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar
Born	(1921-05-21)21 May 1921 Jamalpur, Bihar and Orissa Province, British India
Died	21 October 1990(1990-10-21) (aged 69) Calcutta, West Bengal, India
Nationality	Indian
Alma mater	Vidyasagar College University of Calcutta
Occupation(s)	Spiritual Guru, philosopher, social reformer, linguist, author and composer
Known for	Founder of Ananda Marga, Progressive Utilization Theory, Amra Bangali, Prabhat Samgiita, Ananda Marga Universal Relief Teams

Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar^[1] (21 May 1921 – 21 October 1990), also known by his spiritual name Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti (Ánanda Múrti="Bliss Embodiment"), and known as Bábá ("Father") to his disciples, was a spiritual guru, philosopher,^[2] social reformer, linguist, author and composer of 5,018 songs mostly in the Bengali language.^[3][4] He founded Ananda Marga (the Path of Bliss) in 1955 as a spiritual and social organisation that continues to offer instruction in meditation and yoga.^[4][5][6] and runs numerous social service and disaster relief projects throughout the world.

Sarkar developed his system of spiritual practice as a synthesis of Vedic and Tantric philosophies.^[7] He denounced religious dogmas, casteism, materialism and capitalism, considering all of these as impediments to social harmony, progress and spiritual growth. He described the universe as a manifestation of consciousness coming under the bondage of its own nature, resulting in creation. His spiritual and social philosophies embraced diversity as the law of nature; a result of Singular Consciousness expressing itself in numerous forms. Sarkar advocated for the welfare of humans and the planet through his socio-economic philosophy of PROUT, which is rooted in the idea of Neohumanism, a worldview based on inter-connectedness of all beings.