Interview

Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati

Founder and Chairman, India Heritage Research Foundation
Rishikesh

Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati is a renowned spiritual leader who is the founder and chairman of the India Heritage Research Foundation.

What is the mission statement of your organization?

The basic mission of the IHRF is to bring food to the hungry, medicine to the sick, housing to the homeless, education to the illiterate, training to the unemployable, hope to the downtrodden, and light to the darkness.

How long have you been involved with the India Heritage Research Foundation?

Since its inception.

Why did you get involved?

I have always felt that "Giving is Living," and in a wide variety of ways, I have always served humanity in whatever way I could. The formation of this foundation was just a way to consolidate the numerous projects and activities which I was already doing, or planning to do.

Why is NGO work important?

Helping those less fortunate, helping the needy is not only beneficial for them, but also beneficial for us! The act of serving and giving selflessly is one of the clearest and straightest spiritual paths. But of course, the main aspect is that charitable work is important for the planet. If everyone lives only for him or herself, I believe the planet, and all life thereupon, will quickly perish.

Have you always worked with NGOs?

I am a sanyasi, a renunciant, a monk, so for me the foundation isn't an NGO (although logistically it is). Rather, for me it is just the umbrella under which I can carry out my mission of service.

Did you have an inspirational figure in your life growing up?

God has always inspired me.

Are there other selfless leaders out there that you admire? If so, who and why?

There are many, many divine leaders, of so many of the world's traditions whom I greatly admire for their selflessness and wisdom.

What is your operating budget? What would you do with more funds?

The more funds we have the more we can serve. I take every dollar, rupee, pound or euro as a blessing from the divine and as a message to do more work. There is always so much more work to be done, so many more uneducated, illiterate people, so many more orphans, so many more ailing with no hope for medical care. The more financial resources we receive the more work we are able to do.

Outside of funding, what are some of the biggest challenges it faces? Or, specifically, what is the most frustrating part?

Nothing is frustrating. Everything is a gift.

What is your dream for the IHRF?

To grow and expand and blossom into being able to embrace even more and more of the needy humanity, with no barriers of caste, creed, or religion.

How was the grant given by explore through the Annenberg Foundation used?

We used the generous donation by the Annenberg Foundation to continue to run our charitable activities. We have no regular source of income, as we don’t charge any fees for any of our services and we don’t receive any funding from the government. So, when the Annenberg Foundation gave the grant last year, it was extraordinarily helpful to us and allowed us to undertake new projects (free computer centers, free schools, etc.) as well as improve the quality of services we were already providing.

Do you think it had an impact? How?

Yes, of course. Absolutely. Ask the thousands and thousands of impoverished young girls and boys who receive free vocational training, free computer classes, and so much more. Ask the orphans who are taken into our orphanage. Ask the local, indigent people who have received free operations and other medical care.

Absolutely, it had a wonderful impact.

What was your biggest surprise when explore came to visit you?

I was not surprised by anything, but very happy to see the devotion and dedication with which Charles and the entire team worked. His simplicity and sincerity truly touched me and I have said special prayers for him each day since.

Why is it important to be a selfless person?

There is no other point to life. The goal of human existence is not to hoard for ourselves. The goal is to give. Indian culture and spirituality teaches us that there is nothing wrong with earning. The question is what you do with that which you’ve earned. It is said beautifully, “Earn with ten hands, no problem. But distribute the wealth with one thousand hands.” Selflessness is the very point of our existence - to learn how to see oneness and unity amongst all beings. If we are one with the starving child, if we are one with the sick old woman, if we are one with the struggling young girl, we will naturally extend both our hands to help.

If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?

I would want people to be more aware of the point of life. People are running unnecessarily after external possessions, temporary wealth and pleasures and forsaking the true point of existence - service, selflessness, and surrender.

What do you believe to be the biggest challenge facing our planet today?

Greed, selfishness, and illusion. The illusion of separateness is killing the planet. We think we are separate from each other. We think we are separate from the polluted rivers and oceans. We think we are separate from the deforested jungles. We are not. As they suffer, so we are suffering and so we will suffer in the future. The left hand can’t cut off the right hand without bringing about great and severe suffering to the entire body.

What do you think will be our planet’s biggest challenge 10 years from now? 25 years from now? 50 years from now?

The same we are facing now, but in a bigger way, unless we open our eyes and wake up.

What is the key to living a happy life?

Realization of the innerconnectedness of humanity, and complete surrender of our lives and our actions to the divine. When we become simply tools in his hands, when we allow his work to flow through us, when we stop asking “What about me? What for me?” - then and only then can we be happy. The motto of life should be not “what for me?” but rather it should be “Not for me - for you.”