Pravrajika Mokshaprana (1915 - 1999)

Pravrajika Mokshaprana Pravrajika Mokshaprana was the second President of the Sri Sarada Math and the Ramakrishna Sarada Mission. During her long tenure of twenty-six years of spiritual ministration, she initiated thousands of people, guiding them to lead a spiritual life.

Before she became President of the Math, she was headmistress of Sister Nivedita’s Girls’ School from 1946 to 1948. When in 1948, Swami Virajananda informed her that someone with the proper qualifications was soon going to replace her, and so he wanted to know if she would remain in the school. She replied that she would stay even if she had to accept the role of a janitor, so determined was she to live an ashram life. She had an ardent interest in providing education for women as envisaged by Swami Vivekananda. Bold and fearless, she encouraged other women to be fearless and self-confident. Swami Premeshananda met her at Nivedita School and later wrote to her, 'The very sight of you has raised such high hopes in me that I rejoice at the prospect that through you we may at last give effect to our long long cherished vow of bringing about women's emancipation.'

After Sri Sarada Math and the Ramakrishna Sarada Mission were established, Pravrajika Mokshaprana became the Vice President and the Secretary and Headmistress of Shiksha Mandir, a branch centre of the Ramakrishna Sarada Mission at Baruipara in Kolkata. She thought of the students as her chosen ideal and was able to identify with them. The children responded to her faith in them.

Under Pravrajika Mokshaprana the expansion of Sri Sarada Math and the Ramakrishna Sarada Mission which had started in the time of Pravrajika Bharatiprana continued to spread. New centres came up in Arunachal Pradesh, Pune, Bangalore, Trivandrum, Indore, Bhuvaneswar, Haridwar, Almora and one in far off Australia. New Mission centres were opened in the rural areas of West Bengal like Burdwan, Midnapore and 24 Parganas and Siriti in Kolkata. As President, she visited all the branch centers in India giving initiation to many and spreading the message of Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda. Whenever she visited a centre she created an atmosphere of a joyful festival to which the devotees looked forward each year.

Pravrajika Mokshaprana’s life was distinguished by her learning and discipline. Her articles and lectures were published in the journals of the Order. A voracious reader, she studied the scriptures as well as other books about the world History and its trends. She was interested in a variety of subjects such as literature, astronomy, geography and philosophy. She enjoyed discussions with the scholars and distinguished litterateurs who visited her regularly. Her compassionate heart attracted many souls from far and near. Whether tribal children of Northeast India, scholars from America or probationers of the Math, everyone received her motherly love and inspiration.