Spiritual growth and happiness add a positive flavour to life and imparting that to lives of people with all their heart are Mrs. Darshana and Mr. Gaurang Nanavaty—the Pioneer Acharyas of Chinmaya Mission. The wisdom of Vedanta is beyond everything and the organisation spreads the same to the world around.
The couple had seen a vision of building a spiritual community together and little did they know that their mission would get the direction so well. Gaurang was born and brought up in Mumbai. He did his graduation from the University of Bombay in 1966. However, his family made it to the land of opportunities in 1966 for bigger and better prospects. Gaurang then did his Chemical Engineering from Washington State University and then moved to California State Polytechnic University. Rolling the picture, Darshana had a childhood in Surat, Gujarat. She did make to the USA for her Master’s degree in Clinical Chemistry as her brother lived there. They both met in India, fell in love, and later married each other.
Fortunate we are to meet these noble-minded leaders and have featured them in our coffee-table book, Jewels of Gujarat – Leading Global Gujarati Personalities: Vol 1 in 2015. The couple, today, is leading the flourishing Chinmaya Mission community having beyond 800 families in Houston.
Gaurangbhai settled for a job in Seattle in 1973 after his marriage with Darshana and the couple met Chinmayananda in 1975, which is in charge of the pivotal moment in their life. After meeting the Hindu spiritual leader, listening to his discourses and attending Jnana Yajna Camps organised around America, they started to witness an incredible transformation making their lives better than before. The husband and wife then abandoned their respective jobs and joined the Vedanta course at Piercy, California for 2.5 years.
The Acharyas of Houston endeavour to build self-confidence in the young generation with the quiet conviction, which says, ‘we should live the scriptural teaching and lead the way, and the next generation will imbibe the right values just like we did.’ They work sincerely to bring home the simple yet insightful message.
Unflinching in their central goal and controlling a gigantic network with cherishing initiative, Darshanaben and Gaurangbhai transformed a material dream into a noble mission in America and we wish that the inspired leadership of this couple spread love and service everywhere.
Know more about the shining Acharyas of Chinmaya Mission in
Jewels of Gujarat-Leading Global Gujarati Personalities (Vol. I)