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The Cult Dossier · No. 126 · Eastern-Derived

Sri Chinmoy Centre

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1964 – present · Queens, New York; worldwide

XII. THE WIDER FIELD — CONCISE ENTRIES

Fully religious

Who led it

SRI CHINMOY (Chinmoy Kumar Ghose, 27 August 1931 – 11 October 2007), who led twice-weekly meditations at the United Nations for 37 years.

What it worshipped and taught

Devotional meditation on the guru, celibacy for all disciples, vegetarianism, and an extraordinary emphasis on athletic and artistic feats — ultramarathons (the 3,100-mile Self-Transcendence Race, the world's longest certified footrace), weightlifting feats he began at 54, and a vast output of paintings and more than 120,000 published poems.

Who was in it

Sri Chinmoy; Carl Lewis, Roberta Flack, and the former followers Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin; JAYANTI TAMM, whose memoir Cartwheels in a Sari (2009) is the principal insider account; the former female disciples who alleged he summoned them for sexual encounters while requiring celibacy of all. He was never sued or charged.

How it ended, or where it stands

ACTIVE, run collectively by his students through branch centres worldwide, with no successor guru named. Note the mainstream standing the organisation now holds: in March 2024 the Peace Run torch was lit at the Vatican by the Pope.

The dead

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Of note

A well-known instance of the celibacy-for-followers, exemption-for-the-leader pattern that recurs across this dossier — former female disciples alleged that Chinmoy sought sexual encounters with them while requiring celibacy of everyone; he was never sued or charged. Compare ANANDA (115), where a court put a legal finding on exactly that conduct. IT IS ALSO A FOURTH INSTANCE OF THE SUCCESSION PATTERN set out at ADIDAM (113): the founder died without naming a human successor and authority dispersed into the branches and committees. Along with SAHAJA YOGA (114) and THE CHURCH UNIVERSAL AND TRIUMPHANT (061), that is four guru-centred movements in this dossier which, on the founder’s death, simply DECLINED TO REPLACE HIM — and which persist, smaller and far less dangerous, as a result.

Its timeline

  1. 1964 Arrives in New York from India.
  2. 1970 Begins leading UN meditation group.
  3. 1970s–2000s Global network of centres; marathon and music events.
  4. 11 OCTOBER 2007 Sri Chinmoy dies, aged 76. NO SUCCESSOR IS APPOINTED; his students continue the work collectively through the branch centres.
  5. 2024–2025 STILL RUNNING, and visibly. Andrea Marcato won the 2024 Self-Transcendence Race, his fifth straight win, and the 2025 edition started on 30 August with 11 runners. The European ONENESS-HOME PEACE RUN set off on 6 MARCH 2024 after the Peace Torch was symbolically lit AT THE VATICAN BY POPE FRANCIS, and ran until 18 October. The Marathon Team, the Peace Run and the ONENESS-HEART TEARS AND SMILES aid programme all continue.

Its people

Sri Chinmoy

Chinmoy Kumar Ghose

Founder, the Sri Chinmoy Centre · 27 August 1931 – 11 October 2007 · active 1964–2007

Led twice-weekly meditations at the United Nations for 37 years and built a global network on devotional meditation, mandatory celibacy for all disciples, and an extraordinary emphasis on athletic and artistic feats — the 3,100-mile Self-Transcendence Race, the world's longest certified footrace, weightlifting feats begun at 54, and more than 120,000 published poems. Former female disciples alleged he sought sexual encounters with them while requiring celibacy of everyone else; he was never sued or charged.

Before the law. Never charged.

Where things stand. Deceased 2007. The centres continue.

  1. 1964 Arrives in New York from India.
  2. 1970 Begins leading the UN meditation group.
  3. 1970s–2000s Global centres; marathon and music events.
  4. 11 October 2007 Dies, aged 76. No successor is appointed.

Checked 2026-09-16

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