Neem Karauli Baba and Kainchi Dham,1900 - September 1973

Shri Hanumant Ansavatar Maharaj Ji is counted among the greatest saints of the twentieth century. For the devotees and faithful seekers, he is the real Shri Hanuman Ji. His birthplace is village Akbarpur, district Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh, which is one kilometer away from Hirangaon. Maharaj ji's most famous ashram is situated on the left side of Bhuwaligad at a distance of 7 km from Kainchi, Nainital, Bhuwali. An annual function is celebrated every year on 15th June in Kainchi Temple. On that day there is a huge crowd of Baba's devotees reaches here. Maharajji is among the Indian divine men of this era. We call Shri Neem Karoli Baba Maharaj Ji. Maharaj ji's pre-retirement name is Lakshmi Narayan Sharma. Come, let us know about the life of Maharaj ji.
Early life
Born in a wealthy Brahmin family, after his parents arranged a marriage at the age of 11, he left home to become a monk. He later returned home, at his father's request, to live a married life. He became the father of two sons and a daughter. It is believed that by the time Maharajji was 17 years old, he had all the knowledge at such a young age. It is said that Lord Shri Hanuman ji is his guru. He visited many places in India and was known by different names in different states. During his visit to Maa Tara Tarini Shakti Peeth in Ganjam, the local people used to address him as Hanumanji, Miraculous Baba.
Neem Karoli 
The incident is that once Baba was traveling in a train but he did not have a ticket due to which the Ticket checker  caught him. Since he had no ticket, the officer asked him to get down at the next station. The name of the station was Neem Karoli. The village near the station is known as Neem Karoli. Baba was taken out of the car and the officer ordered the driver to drive away. Baba did not go anywhere from there. He placed a pair of tongs on the ground and sat near the train. The driver tried hard but the train did not move forward. The train was not showing signs of moving forward. Then all the people sitting in the car said that this is Baba's anger. The reason why he was thrown out of the car was that the car was not running. Then there was a senior officer who was familiar with Baba. He apologized to Baba and asked both the driver and the ticket checker to apologize to Baba. Everyone together convinced Baba and apologized to him. After apologizing, Baba respectfully sat on the train but he kept a condition that a station would be built at this place so that it would be easier for the people of the village to come by train because people used to walk from miles to come there. Only then could we board the train.He promised Baba and a station named Neem Karoli was built there. It was from here that Baba's miraculous stories became famous and from this place Baba's name came to be known all over the world as Neem Karoli Baba. It was from here that Baba got the name Neem Karoli.
Kainchi arrival
The story of Maharaj ji coming to Kainchi and establishing the ashram is also miraculous. The incident is of 1962.Sometime in 1962, Maharaj Ji called Shri Purnanand of Kainchi village, while he himself was waiting for him sitting on the wall on the roadside near Kainchi. When he arrived, he reminisced about their first meeting 20 years ago in 1942. In this meeting, many saints and accomplished sages were discussed and the work on establishing the ashram started. Arrangements were made to acquire land for the ashram from the forest department. Deities of Shri Hanuman ji and other Gods and Goddesses were established.These idols were established in different years but the date remained 15th June. That is why the establishment date of this ashram is celebrated as an annual festival on 15th June.
Construction of temple
The journey of subtle incarnation started from the body. Babaji left his physical body on the night of 10 September 1973. The urn containing his ashes was installed in Shri Kainchi Dham. Thereafter, the construction work of Baba's temple started in 1974 without any plan and design. All his devotees cooperated willingly in this. The artisans and masons engaged in the construction work started the work after taking bath in the morning, wearing clean clothes, reciting Hanuman Chalisa and raising the slogan "Maharaj Ji Ki Jai". While the construction work was going on, devotees also recited Hanuman Chalisa and performed kirtan by singing Shri Ram-Jai Ram-Jai Jai Ram. Mothers also wrote "Ramnam" on bricks and gave them to the workers. The entire atmosphere resonated with the slogans of “Baba Neem Karauli Maharaj ki Jai”. Influenced by the fervent devotion of the mothers towards Baba Ji, the same feeling of devotion, faith, reverence and love arose among the workers also. It was Baba Ji's act that he instilled in these workers the qualities of Vishwakarma (craftsman of gods) and they remained engaged in construction work.
15 June 1976
Divine Yoga was formedJune 15, 1976 came, the day of installation and consecration of Maharaj ji's statue. Maharaj ji himself had fixed June 15 for the consecration of Kainchidham. Before the installation and consecration ceremony, Bhagwat Sapta and Yagya etc. were completed. Devotees installed the Kalash on the temple and hoisted the flag with the sound of bells, gongs, drums, conch shells etc. The sky echoed with the sound of applause. Kirtan and slogans of Babaji ki Jai started echoing. There was joy in the atmosphere and everyone started feeling the direct presence of Babaji Maharaj. Thereafter, the idol of Maharajji was installed with the recitation of Veda mantras and with the consecration and worship in the prescribed manner. In this way, Babaji Maharaj is present in Shri Kainchi Dham in idol form.
Maharaj Ji's Ashram
Neem Karoli Baba's ashrams in India are at Kainchi, Bhumiyadhar, Kakrighat, Hanumangarhi in the Kumaon hills, Vrindavan, Rishikesh, Lucknow, Shimla, Neem Karoli village near Khimasepur in Farrukhabad and Delhi. His ashram is also located in Laos, New Mexico, United States.
Notable Disciple
Notable disciples of Neem Karoli Baba include spiritual teacher Ram Das (author of Be Here Now), singer and spiritual teacher Bhagwan Das, author and meditation teacher Lama Surya Das, and musicians Jai Uttal and Krishna Das. Other notable devotees include humanitarian Larry Brilliant and his wife Girija, Dada Mukherjee (former professor at Allahabad University, Uttar Pradesh, India), scholar and author Yvette Rosser, American spiritual teacher Ma Jaya Sati Bhagwati, filmmaker John Bush, and author Daniel Goleman. Baba Hari Das (Haridas) was not a disciple, but he supervised several buildings and maintained ashrams in the Nainital area (1954 to 1968) before moving to the United States to become a spiritual teacher in California in early 1971.
Fame abroad
Steve Jobs traveled to India in April 1974 with his friend Dan Kottke to study Sanatana religion and Indian spirituality; He also planned to meet Neem Karoli Baba, but when he reached there he learned that the Guru had left his body the previous September. Hollywood actress Julia Roberts was also influenced by Neem Karoli Baba. One of his photographs attracted Roberts to Hinduism. Influenced by Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg visited the ashram of Neem Karoli Baba in Kainchi and meditated. Larry Brilliant also brought along Google's Larry Page and eBay co-founder Jeffrey Skoll. The number of disciples of Maharaj Ji and those who have faith in him is global which can neither be written down nor can the names of all be mentioned.

(Senior Journalist Sanjay Tiwar is based in Lucknow)