Central Chinmaya Mission Trust (CCMT)

Chinmaya Mission® was established in 1953 by devotees of the world-renowned Vedanta teacher, His Holiness Swami Chinmayananda, and is guided by His vision.

The word ‘Chinmaya’ means ‘true knowledge’. The Chinmaya Mission® is dedicated to global spiritual upliftment and Indian cultural renaissance. It is an organization where seekers of the Truth come together to acquire and impart the ancient teachings of the Upanishads.

A vital and unique contribution of Chinmaya Mission to the world at large is that it gives the logic of spirituality and the foundation of Vedic culture in the teaching tradition of Advaita Vedanta, the ageless wisdom of universal oneness. Vedanta, the universal science of life, is at the heart of Hinduism, linking the sacred to the secular. It is relevant to people of all backgrounds and faiths, inspiring all seekers alike.

The global governing body of the Mission is the Central Chinmaya Mission Trust (CCMT), Mumbai, presently headed by His Holiness Swami Swaroopananda. The Mission has over 313 centres all over the world which organize and coordinate the spiritual, cultural, educational and social service projects and activities of the Mission. More than an organization, Chinmaya is a movement that touches all aspects of human life and is therefore relevant at all times.

Our Guiding Lights

Swami Tapovan Maharaj was a consummate Vedantine, a strict teacher, poet and a sage of great wisdom and tranquility. He undertook the pilgrimage to Mount Kailash on foot and wrote inspiringly of the divine experiences of his wandering in the Himalayas.

He was that pristine glacier of self-knowledge from whom flowed the Ganga of Vedantic wisdom through Swami Chinmayananda, the Founder of Chinmaya Mission. Swami Sivananda called him ‘Himavat Vibhuti,’ meaning “the glory of the Himalayas”. It is to his credit that India saw a saint like Pujya Gurudev, who often said that the Mission and its activities were the blessings and gift of his Guru to all of humanity.

Swami Chinmayananda said of his Guru, “He was a God without temple, a Veda without language”.