Swami Omkarananda Saraswati of Sri Swami Chidbhavananda Ashramam at Vedapuri in Theni district passed away in Madurai on Monday. He had recently tested positive for COVID-19.
He had undergone treatment at a private hospital in Madurai for the infection. While he had recovered from COVID-19, his health condition suddenly deteriorated. Arrangements were made to fly him to Chennai for further treatment.
However, while on the way to the helipad, his condition worsened and he was brought back to the hospital in Madurai where he passed away. He was 65-years-old. He was known for spreading the message of Tirukkural, particularly among the student community.
Born Sri Goshteswara Sharma alias Manoharan in Perur, Coimbatore, on January 17, 1956, he was known as Swami Omkarananda Sarawati after his sannyasa diksha. He has delivered talks on sacred Tamil and Sanskrit texts. He has conducted jnana yagna in India and abroad.
He founded the U V Foundation in 2017 to spread ‘Ullam Thorum Valluvam’, an initiative to spread the message of Tirukkural. The foundation trains teachers, who in turn spread the knowledge on Tirukkural, among students.
He used social media platforms to spread spiritual messages and connect with the student community. He spread messages on Bhagavad Gita and Tirukkural on WhatsApp regularly for the benefit of students.
The followers of Swami Omkarananda remember him as a simple person accessible to all. He had a captivating voice and enthusiastically took part in all religious and spiritual activities with great vigour and strength.