The herald., 1896-04-26
BROOkLYN'S WOMAN MONK
A Disciple Of the Young Hin 90 Who Inter-
ested Society Last summer


Nothing in the outer aspect of the
house at 50 st. Felix street Brooklyn,
would indicate that it is a monastery,
vet III rooms on the top floor lives one
of the three women monks of this coun-
try. She calls herself Swami Abhay
amanda, and she is of the order of San
yasin monks, into which order she was
initiated last summer at the Thousand
Islands by Swami Nivekananda,a a young
Hndoo who was made much of by So
ciety in this city last year. With her in
itiation into the order, Swami Abhay-
ananda's past life fell away from her
and she was born again. All that she
will consent to recall of her personal
and family life is that she is called
Mary Louise, that she was French wo-
man. and that her religion was that of
Calvin. She is no more Mary Louise,
nor is she French, nor a Calvinist. be-
cause she has dropped family, national
ity and creed.
Her new designation is a regulation
Sanyasin monkish title. Swami means
monk" and Abhayananda fearless
bliss, therefore, translated into Eng
lish the monk would be called Monk of
Fearless Bliss BY those who know
her she is simply called Swami. the i
having the sound. In person she is a
most striking looking woman. Her
head is very largeand broad and the
race is ia ther masculine, with de-
termined mouth. a firm, square chin
and the eyes of a student and thinker.
In its broadness and squareuess of out
line the face reminds one strangely of
Thomas \. Edison Bushy iron grey
hair. cut short. surnlounts a high fore
head. She is tall and heavily built for a
woman, but is grs ceful in every motion.
The traces of former beauty in her face
are as unmistakable as the evidences
of present mental power One would
{ = nj I1a
rest, she has pleasing voice. the Celtic
habit of gesture and she speaks with
a strong French accent.
She willingly consented to tell any
thing she could about her religion. or
philosophy. as she called it. but de-
clined to tell OF herself.
My former life | have put away
from me-" she said. smiling. When |
became monk a new life began for me.
Some of the effects of the old are with
me yet, as, for instance, my Calvinistic
training. which taught me never to
kneel to God or man. l am thankful for
that training now. But all the old ties
are broken. Friends and family are no
nearer to me now than any living thing.
If my father We're to come to ne [
Snould have no more love for him than
for the first beggar l might meet on the
stret. Universal love; tnat is part of
our teaching
How did you happen to become a
monk"' asked the reporter.
For twenty five years | have been
studying various PHILOSOPHERS. Oriental
and Occidental. and the Vedanta seems
to me the synthesis of all the rest. The
Nedantic philosophy is about 1000 years
old, aud is based upon the Upanishads
or philosophical facts of the Vedas. /
made study of this philosophy. and
last summer when | met Swami Nive-
kananda he initiated ne into the order
han IL
and celibacy. and am now ,levoting my
life to the spread Of our philosophy
DO You seek to make converts from
Chl'istianity?''
BY no means. l teach the Christ
What are some of the chief points of
your philosophy"
Our philosophy is a monism. We do
do not believe in a crea tor or in strict
" personal supreme being. The infinite
! or supreme we call 1t" There is flu
ture life we call muchti. or freedom.
| which we shall all reach through sue
ceSSiVe reincarnations. The end of these
reincarnations comes when one per-
ceives that he or she is only part of the
Infinite. The moment YOU believe this
personality ceases and you reach the
condition of freedom. We are not So
much worshipers as philosophers W.
| have no rites or ceremonies. Science
underlies our belief. We believe that
all life started in the mineral, evolved
, to the vegetable and then to the animal
| There is no inanimate matter. 1t is only
! dormant. Similarly there is no evil
EVIL. so called. is but undeveloped good
1t all returns to the infinite from whence
it came. Nature is the totality of the
energy of universal spirit.
do you believe in governmcnts?''
Eventually we believe all govern
lnent will be done away With and man
return to his original state which is di-
vine. Such laws as exist we feel bound
to follow. For instance. Swami is a
mendicant monk, yet because begging
on the street is forbidden here we do
not do it.. We live on contributions Ii
I were in India my only property would
be q wooden begging bowl. Enough to
support life is all that | have a right
to here. This is for the monks alone.
however. We recognize the property
of different conditions for others We
teach, among other things, the karrla
Yoga. or the Joining in Work the ne
cessity and honor Of work; but not FOR
reward. Thy right is to action. not to
the fruits of action That is one of our
precepts. The spirit of love and duty
ebollI1 updarlie all la bOI There no