Ramakrishna Paramahansa , 18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886),[1] also spelled Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, born Gadadhar Chattopadhyaya,[2][note 1] was an Indian Hindu mystic and spiritual leader. After adhering to various religious practices from the Hindu traditions of Bhakti yoga, Tantra, and Advaita Vedanta as well as from Islam and Christianity, he proclaimed the world's various religions as 'so many paths to reach one and the same goal', thus validating the essential unity of religions