Morari Bapu (born Moraridas Prabhudas Hariyani, 2 March 1946) is an Indian spiritual leader and narrator of Rama katha from Gujarat.
[7] Tribhuvandas, grandfather and guru of Bapu, taught him the deeper meanings of Goswami Tulsidas's Ramcharitmanas and initiated him on the path of recitation of the sacred text, i.e., the narration of katha.
[10] Tribhuvandas Bapu's younger brother, Vishnu Devanand Giri, was the 6th Mahamandaleshwar of Kailash Ashram, Rishikesh, Haridwar, Uttarakhand (India).
[19] Bapu has traversed major areas and pilgrimages in India, including Amarnath, Vaishno Devi, Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath, Badrinath, Kurukshetra, Vraj Chaurasi, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Hastinapur, Naimisharanya, Ujjain, Omkareshwar, Bet Dwarka, Bodh Gaya, Jagannath Puri, Dhanushkodi, Rameshwaram, Somnath, Vaishno Devi, Ambaji and Ayodhya.
Some overseas Kathas would include Toronto, Atlanta, Panama, Amazon Rainforest, London, Paris, Switzerland, Vatican City, Athens, South Africa, Mauritius, Jordan, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Rakshastal, Kailash, Bhushundi Sarovar, Moscow, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Bali, Hiroshima, Sydney and New Zealand.
[7][3] Bapu's overall ethos of katha is universal peace by reciting nine-day discourses, spreading the message of truth (satya), love (prem), and compassion (karuna), and relating the Ramcharitmanas scripture to everyday lives, embedding spirituality rather than religion.
[3] Bapu spreads awareness about the essentials of life, which captures the interest of numerous young individuals who are also drawn to attend katha.
Bapu celebrates and espouses the importance of Sanatan Dharma festivals like Diwali,[35] Janmashtami, Ram Navami,[36] Shravan Maas and Navratri[37] and encourages vegetarianism[38] and keeping the Holy Basil Plant (Tulsi) in homes.
[39][40] Morari Bapu himself follows the tradition of bhiksha, a sacred ritual in the Sanatan Dharma of accepting food as alms without any personal choices and eating whatever is served.