SWAMI RAMDAS was born in 1884 at Hosdrug, Kerala, India, and named Vittal Rao by his parents, Sri Balakrishna Rao and Smt. Lalita Bai, a devout Saraswat couple. He lived the ordinary life of a householder in and around his community until age thirty-six. During that time he experienced a variety of trials and tribulations from the worldly point of view, but in his case they caused him to enquire deeply into the true meaning of life. An intense spritual transformation occurred in him basically out of nowhere and suddenly he was filled with an overwhelming wave of dispassion. In the process he came to realize the futility of worldly pursuits, and the need for real, everlasting peace and happiness. Inspired by the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda and Swami Ram Tirtha, he became convinced that God alone can give one eternal peace and happiness. The path of pure devotion and self-surrender shone forth for him with an irresistible appeal. All attachments to family, friends and business dropped away just as a fully ripened fruit falls from the tree. He was inwardly ready to give himself up wholly and unreservedly to God.
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2 -[Ramdas : Life]
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