Premanand Ji Maharaj FAQ
The 30 questions seekers search for most, answered plainly and grouped so you can find yours quickly. Where something genuinely varies, such as darshan timing, this page says so rather than inventing a number you might travel on.
Last updated 31 August 2026How to read these answers
Most confusion about Maharaj Ji online comes from three things: facts copied between sites without checking, timings quoted as if they never change, and pages that exist to sell something. It is worth knowing which is which before you rely on any of them.
Where these answers come from
They are drawn from what Maharaj Ji has said publicly in satsang, from what the ashram itself has stated, and from the small number of independently verifiable records that exist, such as encyclopaedia entries and licensed photographs.
Where those sources disagree, the disagreement is named rather than resolved by picking whichever version reads better.
Why some answers refuse to give a number
Darshan and satsang timings genuinely vary, and have varied more since his health changed in late 2025. A page that prints exact hours with confidence is guessing, and people plan overnight journeys on those guesses.
So this page says the morning session is early and the evening session follows, and tells you to confirm at the ashram. That is less satisfying and considerably more useful.
What this site cannot do for you
We are devotees running an independent site. We cannot arrange darshan, pass a message to Maharaj Ji, secure an ekantik vartalap slot, or take any payment for anything. None of that runs through here and none of it ever will.
If a page using a similar name offers you any of it in exchange for money, that page is a scam.
If an answer here is wrong
Tell us. Corrections sent through the contact form get read and acted on, and a fixed page is worth more to everyone than a defended one.
The date at the top of this page changes whenever an answer does.
Who he is: Maharaj Premanand of Vrindavan
Who is Premanand Ji Maharaj?
Shri Hit Premanand Govind Sharan Ji Maharaj is a Hindu saint of the Radhavallabh Sampradaya, based at Shri Hit Radha Keli Kunj ashram in Vrindavan. He was born Anirudh Kumar Pandey in 1971 near Kanpur, renounced home at thirteen, and now gives satsang twice a day on naam japa and the path of pure love.
What is Premanand Ji Maharaj's real name?
His birth name is Anirudh Kumar Pandey. Premanand Govind Sharan is the name he received at diksha in the Radhavallabh Sampradaya. Devotees usually say Premanand Ji Maharaj or simply Maharaj Ji.
What is Premanand Ji Maharaj's age?
He was born in 1971, which makes him 55 years old in 2026. Some sources give 1972. The ashram has never published a birth certificate, so treat the year as reliable and the exact date as unconfirmed.
Where was Premanand Ji Maharaj born?
In Akhri village, Sarsaul block, Kanpur district, Uttar Pradesh, into a Brahmin family that was already religious. His grandfather had taken sanyas and the Gita was ordinary evening reading at home.
Who is Premanand Ji Maharaj's guru?
Shri Hit Gaurangi Sharan Ji Maharaj of Vrindavan, from whom he received diksha into the Radhavallabh Sampradaya, the tradition founded by Shri Hit Harivansh Mahaprabhu that places Shri Radha at the centre of worship.
Why did he leave home at thirteen?
He left without telling the family and took sanyas in 1985. He describes the years that followed without romance: no money, no shelter arranged in advance, and food only when it was offered unasked, which was his own rule rather than anyone else's.
Is Premanand Ji Maharaj married, and does he have a family?
No. He took sanyas at thirteen and has lived as a renunciate since. His birth family remains in Uttar Pradesh. When he speaks of family in satsang he usually means the devotees around him.
What does the name Premanand Govind Sharan mean?
Prema is love and ananda is bliss, so Premanand carries the sense of one whose joy is love itself. Govind Sharan means taking refuge in Govind, a name of Krishna. Hit is the honorific of the Radhavallabh Sampradaya, carried from its founder Shri Hit Harivansh Mahaprabhu. Taken together the name states the whole path in four words.
Have well known people visited the ashram?
Yes. Public figures from across India visit, including President Droupadi Murmu, along with politicians, actors and cricketers. None of it changes the format. The satsang still begins in the dark, still runs on the same handful of instructions, and visitors sit through it like everyone else.
His teachings
What does Premanand Ji Maharaj teach?
That chanting the Radha naam with love is the whole practice and everything else follows from it. Around that core he addresses anger, anxiety, overthinking, grief, money, marriage and loneliness, usually by telling people to stop feeding the thought and give the mind the name to hold instead.
Do I need diksha or initiation to start naam japa?
No. He is explicit that the name is available to anyone immediately, with no initiation, no fee, no fixed hour, no posture and no minimum count. Chant while walking, cooking or commuting, in whatever language you think in.
Does he ask people to renounce the world?
No, and he is direct about it. He left home himself but tells householders to stay householders. Family, job and duty are where the practice is tested. He treats the idea of walking out as a shortcut with suspicion when a young devotee raises it.
What is the Radhavallabh Sampradaya?
A Vaishnava tradition founded by Shri Hit Harivansh Mahaprabhu in the sixteenth century, centred on Vrindavan, which worships Shri Radha as supreme rather than as a companion to Krishna. That lineage is why the Radha naam sits at the centre of everything Maharaj Ji teaches.
Does he give a mantra or a technique?
Not a technique in the modern sense. There are no breathing exercises, stages or certifications. The instruction is the naam and the attitude behind it: do your work fully, then surrender the result rather than negotiating with God for outcomes.
Ashram, darshan and meeting him
Where is Premanand Ji Maharaj's ashram?
Shri Hit Radha Keli Kunj, on a narrow lane in Vrindavan, in the Braj region of Uttar Pradesh. There is no grand gateway and no reception, only a yellow awning, a timing board and devotees seated along the wall from well before dawn.
What are the darshan and satsang timings?
Satsang runs in the early morning and again in the evening, with the padyatra before the morning session. The exact hours have shifted since his health changed in late 2025, so treat any timing you read online as indicative and confirm at the ashram before you travel.
How can I meet Premanand Ji Maharaj?
By going to the ashram in Vrindavan and joining the queue for satsang or darshan like everyone else. Ekantik vartalap, the private conversation, has very limited slots and is arranged at the ashram's discretion. There is no form, no list and no way to reserve a place in advance.
Is there any fee or online booking for darshan?
No. Darshan is free and nothing is sold online. There is no official booking portal, no authorised agent and no paid fast track. Anyone asking for money to arrange a meeting is running a scam, and the ashram has said so repeatedly.
What is the morning padyatra?
A walk that leaves the ashram in the small hours, along which devotees line the route in the dark for a few seconds of darshan. It has been irregular since late 2025 because of his health, so do not plan a trip around it without checking first.
What should I expect if I go?
A long wait, often in the cold, and a very short darshan. Reach early, dress modestly, keep the lane clear for residents, follow whatever the volunteers ask, and do not push. The queue moves because everybody in it accepts that it moves.
Practical questions before you travel
How do I reach Vrindavan?
The nearest railway station is Mathura Junction, about fifteen kilometres away and well connected to Delhi, Agra and most of north India. The nearest airports are Delhi, roughly three and a half hours by road, and Agra. From Mathura, autos and taxis run to Vrindavan through the day. The ashram lane itself is narrow, so the last stretch is usually on foot.
When is the best time of year to visit?
October to March is comfortable. Summer in Braj is severe, with May and June regularly above forty degrees, and standing in a queue before dawn is easier in winter than heatstroke is in June. Festival periods such as Holi, Janmashtami and Radha Ashtami bring very heavy crowds to Vrindavan as a whole, which affects every queue in the town.
Where should I stay?
There are dharamshalas, guest houses and hotels across Vrindavan at every price. Staying close to the ashram matters more than comfort does, because the queue forms long before dawn and no transport runs at that hour. Book ahead during festivals, when the town fills completely.
Can women attend satsang and darshan?
Yes. Women attend in large numbers and there are separate queues. Dress modestly as you would for any temple in Braj, and follow whatever the volunteers direct on the day, since arrangements change with the size of the crowd.
Can I take photographs or make videos?
Satsang is recorded and streamed officially, so it is available to watch afterwards without anyone needing to film it. Inside the ashram, follow whatever the volunteers say on the day. Do not film other devotees without asking, and do not hold up a queue to get a shot.
Should I bring an offering or a donation?
Nothing is required and nothing is asked for. Maharaj Ji has repeatedly placed naam japa above money given, and quiet service above service announced. If you wish to give something, do it at the ashram itself and never through a website, an agent or a payment link sent to you.
Is there an official website or YouTube channel?
Satsangs are published on official channels associated with the ashram. This site is not one of them: premanandjimaharaj.org is an independent devotee site and says so on every page. Treat any site claiming to be official while asking for payment as fraudulent.
How do I spot a fake booking page?
Three signs, any one of which is enough. It asks for money to arrange darshan or ekantik vartalap. It offers a guaranteed meeting slot or a fast track queue. It requests payment to a personal UPI id or bank account. Genuine darshan is free, unbookable and arranged only at the ashram.
Health and rumours
Is Premanand Ji Maharaj alive?
Yes. He continues to give satsang and darshan at the ashram. Rumours of his death circulate periodically on social media and have been false every time.
What illness does Premanand Ji Maharaj have?
He has long standing kidney illness and has spoken about it openly from the stage, declining treatment at various points and treating the body as something to be used rather than preserved. The satsang schedule varies with it, which is the part worth checking before you travel.
Nobody sells darshan, ekantik vartalap or a meeting slot with Maharaj Ji. There is no paid online booking, no agent and no fee anywhere. If a page or a person asks you for money to arrange a meeting, it is a scam, and you can report it to us.
Question not answered here?
Read the teachings for the longer explanations, or write to us and we will add the answer to this page.