| Background: |
|
| Giriraj Swami | |
| Religion: | Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Hinduism |
| Alias: | Glenn Phillip Teton |
| Initiation: | Diksa–1969, Sannyasa–1978 |
| Post: | ISKCON Guru, Sannyasi, Member of the Governing Body Commission |
| Birth Date: | September 13, 1947 |
| Birth Place: | Chicago, United States |
| Website: | http://www.girirajswami.com |
Giriraj Swami (; born 13th, September 1947) is an initiating guru in the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and a disciple of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder-acharya of ISKCON.[1] [2]
Giriraj Swami was born Glenn Phillip Teton,[2] the only son of a Chicago lawyer Alfred B. Teton, who was later appointed judge. In March 1969, while studying at Brandeis University in Boston, he met A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder-acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), from whom, he felt, he learned more in one brief exchange than he had learned in his many years of academic education. After graduating from Brandeis he accepted formal initiation from Srila Prabhupada and received the spiritual name Giriraj das.
In 1972, Giriraj was appointed by Prabhupada to be president of ISKCON Bombay and trustee of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.[3] Since then, he has made many significant contributions to Srila Prabhupada's mission, most notably overseeing all aspects of the development of Hare Krishna Land in Juhu, Bombay. He was instrumental in the acquisition and development of Bhaktivedanta Ashram in Govardhan and led the development of the Kirtan Ashram for women,[4] the Bhaktivedanta Hospice, and the Vrindavan Institute of Palliative Care, all in Vrindavan.
In the year following Srila Prabhupada's death in 1977, Giriraj was awarded sannyasa, the renounced order of life, and appointed president of ISKCON's board of trustees in India. In 1982 he was appointed to ISKCON's Governing Body Commission, and he went on to oversee the Society's activities in Bombay, Mauritius, South Africa, Spain, Portugal, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan.
Giriraj Swami has also taught at the Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education.[5]