Dr. Paranje and Shri Nathji

Sir Raghunath Purushottam Paranjpe  was born on 16 February 1876 at Murdi near Dapoli in the coastal Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. He was educated at Maratha High, Bombay, Fergusson College, Pune and Bombay University before entering St John's College, Cambridge in 1896. He graduated B.A. as senior wrangler in 1899. Paranjpe was a fellow of St John's College from 1901 to 1907, but returned to India to become a professor of mathematics at Fergusson College in 1902. He was the first Indian to achieve the coveted title of Senior Wrangler at the University of Cambridge, and became a university administrator and Indian ambassador. One of the earliest Indian documentary film makers, H. S. Bhatavdekar, made a documentary films - Return of Wrangler Paranjpe  in 1902, were he is shown stepping out of the ship from England at the Gateway of India. 

When R.R. Khanna was the Registrar of Lakhnow University,  Dr. Paranjpe was its Vice Chancellor. R.R. Khanna had sought several times to convert the man but had not succeeded.  Dr. Paranjpe was visiting Massoorie on one occasion when he fell ill there. R.R. Khanna and Shri Nathji went to his residence to pay a courtesy call. This event is mentioned in the Mahagranth - God Incarnate on page 290 were we can read his story in detail.

R.R. Khanna requested Nathji to Bless him. But apparently Dr. Paranjpe did not relish the idea of being blessed by someone he did not believe in, and made some sarcastic comments to the effect. Khanna described his friend as an agnostic and prayed to Shri Nathji to show him some light.  After Paranjpe returned to Lakhnow  severe earthquake rocked the city.  R.R. Khanna told Shri Nathji that when the earthquake rocked the building Paranjpe ran out crying “Good God”.  Shri Nathji said “ The Good God was within him, but it took a rocking to bring Him out”

Actually Shri Nathji didn’t give any spiritual light to this man even thought His dear devotee R.R. Khanna requested Him. Perhaps his heart was too cold and dead for divine love. As shri Nathji said that it might be easy to bring a dead man to life, but it is very difficult to bring a dead heart back to life. Dr. Praranjpe continued to rise materially in this world. He received a British knighthood in 1942. In the three years (1944–1947) preceding India's independence from the British Raj, the British government appointed him India's High Commissioner to Australia.

He was an atheist to such great extent that he considered religion as superstition and weakness of man.  He was the founder of the Indian Rationalist Association in Chennai in 1949, and remained its President for many years. Indian Rationalist Association is a voluntary organisation in India whose members promote scientific skepticism and critique supernatural claims. His indulgence towards material pursuits can be made out from the title of his autobiography, 84 Not Out, which appeared in 1961. So even in his old age he was still active toward material pursuits and felt no need to make any spiritual endeavours. He died on 6 May 1966 at a ripe all age of 90 years.
God came to the house of this man to bless and he refused to take His blessings. But Shri Nathji’s son – Priya Nathji has great love for all atheists as demonstrated in the beautiful essay he posted on facebook. He will now forcefully give his love to Dr. Paranjpe’s soul. The soul of a true Atheist.