Nitya Chaitanya Yati - Legacy

Legacy

Nitya published over 120 books in Malayalam and more than 20 in English, as well as a number of articles on philosophy, psychology, social ethics and aesthetics. He established numerous Gurukulas in India as well as two in the US, in Portland, Oregon and Bainbridge Island, Washington. He was the founder-chairperson of the East-West University of Brahmavidya, and also worked as the Commissioner for World Education and as a sponsor of the World Government of World Citizens. Of world citizenship, Nitya wrote:

The term 'world citizen' can be better understood with a negative definition than with a positive one. If a citizen of a state with political frontiers is expected to pay allegiance to the government of the state to which he or she belongs and is expected to take arms against aliens who might invade the territory of the state, a world citizen recognizes the entire world as one's state and in principle does not recognize any member of one's own species as an alien to the world community to which oneself belongs. Such a person recognizes the earth as one's sustaining mother, the innate inviolable laws of nature as one's protecting father, and all sentient beings as sharing one's home. The world citizen's allegiance is to the foundation of truth, the universality of knowledge and the fundamental ground of all values."

Nitya believed that mysticism should be brought to bear in the everyday world as a force for justice and understanding between people. He addressed many meetings convened between Christian, Muslim and Hindu leaders to help them diplomatically work out their differences. Some credit him, as the torch-bearer of Narayana Guru’s wisdom, with being a major force for peace in South India, which has been relatively free of the violence plaguing the North.