Photographs of Sri Ramakrishna -Sarada Devi

DETAILS:

• Publisher : Sri Ramakrishna Math
• Edition : October 1, 2003
• Pages : 92
• Weight : 550g.
• Size : 11 x 0.4 x 8.8 inches
• Cover : Hardcover
• Auther : Swami Vidyatmananda (John Yale) and Dr. Purba Sengupta
• Language : English
• ISBN-10: 8178231182
  ISBN-13: 978-8178231181

ABOUT THE BOOK

This book was brought out in honor of the 150th birth anniversary of Sarada Devi. It contains the most important pictures taken of Ramakrishna and Sarada Devi. Included where possible is the story of the picture and other background information.

Photographs of Sri Ramakrishna-Sarada Devi, co-authored by the esteemed American monk Swami Vidyatmananda (John Yale) and the rigorous historian Dr. Purba Sengupta, is a monumental, archival masterwork in the field of spiritual history and hagiography. Published by Udbodhan Karyalaya (the premier publishing house of the Ramakrishna Math), this beautifully produced volume serves as the definitive, clinical catalog of all known photographic exposures of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi. The core philosophy of this text centers on structural visual preservation—treating these rare 19th and early 20th-century photographs not merely as nostalgic family relics, but as high-stakes, divine materializations that capture the exact physical forms of avatars during states of profound mystical ecstasy (samadhi).

The volume is structurally organized into a highly rigorous, chronological investigation that reads like a forensic art history manual. Rather than offering subjective, romanticized narrations, the authors approach each photograph with scientific precision, providing an exhaustive analytical breakdown of:

• The Exposure Timelines: Detailing the exact dates, physical locations (such as the Dakshineswar Kali Temple complex, Cossipore Garden House, or Radhabazar studios), and the specific camera apparatus used for the few confirmed photographic sessions.
• The Spiritual Context: Cross-referencing each image with accounts from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna (Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita) to explain the exact spiritual state of the subjects—notably decoding the famous Radhabazar studio photo where Sri Ramakrishna is photographed in absolute Nirvikalpa Samadhi, supported by his nephew Hriday.
• The Photographers' Profiles: Unearthing the historical backgrounds of early Indian and European photography pioneers who took these pictures, such as Abinash Chandra Dan and the Bengal Photographers studio.
• Restoration and Authentication: Outlining the complex historical lineage of the original glass-plate negatives, tracking how they were preserved, copied, and defended against silver-halide degradation over a century.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Swami Vidyatmananda (1913–2000), born John Yale, was an elite American writer, editor, and monk of the Ramakrishna Order. Before joining the Vedanta Society of Southern California and later moving to the Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre in Gretz, France, he was a highly successful commercial publisher. He spent decades traveling globally to painstakingly research, authenticate, and document holy sites associated with Swami Vivekananda and Sri Ramakrishna.

Dr. Purba Sengupta is an elite Indian researcher, historian, and prolific author specializing in the 19th-century Bengal Renaissance, the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda movement, and early Indian social histories. She is highly respected for her uncompromising, archive-driven methodology and her ability to unearth forgotten historical documents.

The collective authorial and narrative style of this team is exceptionally precise, objective, and deeply respectful. Writing with the clarity of expert museum curators, they strip away myths to present verified historical facts, eyewitness testimonies from direct disciples, and rigorous geographical data. Every single photograph is accompanied by clean annotations, structural diagrams explaining the seating arrangements of the subjects, and detailed physical descriptions of the clothing and backgrounds. By balancing deep spiritual devotion with uncompromising historical and technical accuracy, their collaborative work remains the absolute international gold standard for academic institutions, art historians, and millions of spiritual practitioners worldwide.