Editor 'Divine Life'

Indeed, there is no higher compliment that a Guru can bestow on his disciple than what Swami Sivananda has said of this illustrious aspirant: 'Crest-Jewel of my Mission, the resplendence of my work - will I ever see anyone shine brighter than he, Swami Venkatesananda? Surely none have I seen so far'.

To Swami Sivananda, in his great Jnana Yajna, Swami Venkatesananda has been a tower of strength, at once lustrous and full of splendour. His capacity for untiring work is flabbergasting, his devotion to Guru matchless and unswerving, his understanding deeply penetrating, profound and perspicacious, and his unflinching adherence to the principles of divine life is simply awe-inspiring and worthy of emulation.

It could be said without any exaggeration that no single individual has proved himself to be of such priceless worth in revealing to the world the personality of Siva and disseminating his teachings to such a wide extent and within so short a period - he joined Swami Sivananda in 1945 as Swami Venkatesananda.