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Swami Saradananda
स्वामी शारदानन्द
The chronicler of Sri Ramakrishna — the secretary of the order
Years
1865 – 1927
Known as
Swami Saradananda — a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna
Birthplace
Calcutta, Bengal
Field
Saints & Sages
“The Master's life is the greatest scripture of this age — let it be written for all.”
— Swami Saradananda
The Story
Born in 1865, Saradananda — known as Sarat in his youth — came to Sri Ramakrishna in 1884 and became one of the Master's most trusted disciples, receiving his training in the years of the Master's final illness at Cossipore. After the Master's passing, he travelled to America to assist Vivekananda in his mission there.
His life's work, however, was the biography of his Master: for decades he collected the memories of the disciples, and in 1911 he published Sri Ramakrishna: The Great Master, a masterpiece that presents the saint's life with a fidelity and insight that have made it the standard life of Ramakrishna. It is one of the great spiritual biographies of the world.
He also served the order as its secretary and general secretary for twenty-five years, guiding its institutions through their formative decades. He died in 1927, honoured as the chronicler of the Master and the steady hand of the movement he helped to build.
Core Ideas
The Great Master
His biography of Ramakrishna is a world classic.
The Disciple
Trained by the Master himself in his last years.
The Secretary
Twenty-five years guiding the Ramakrishna Order.
The Collector of Memories
He gathered the disciples' accounts of the Master.
The Teacher
His life's work preserved the Master for all time.
Why it matters today
Swami Saradananda is honoured as the chronicler of Sri Ramakrishna — the disciple whose great biography gave the world its truest portrait of the saint. His book is read across the globe, and his name stands with the Master's in the history of the movement he served for a lifetime.