By Prakash (David) Falbaum, SVA Board Member

I was raised in a Jewish family and we went to synagogue every Sabbath. When I was in my teens, my dad had a stroke and was out of work for a year. With no money coming in, it wasn’t possible to buy the necessary tickets for services during High Holidays. The great angst suffered by my family as a result helped turn me away from religion. Before I encountered Svaroopa® yoga, I would not have considered myself spiritual. I had a very hard shell.

But once I took my first Svaroopa® yoga class, everything began to change. Within a few months, I had communicated directly with Swami Nirmalananda about the openings in body, mind and heart that the practices created. Her response to my questions and her guidance — her support of me — propelled me into deep transformation.

Feeling gratitude for the healing practices of the Svaroopa® Sciences, I talked to another yogi about the practice of dakshina, contributing financially to support the source of these teachings. I learned that even giving a dollar for dakshina was enough. So I made a small donation to our Ashram. Just as with all the Svaroopa® Sciences, the unexpected arose. That initial gift returned an immense reward to me, release that I could never have imagined. It continued to unravel all the stuck stuff in my heart. Giving just a couple of dollars began to melt that armor enclosing my heart.

Since then, my consistent, committed support of the Ashram has meant the continuing easy expansions of my experiences of my own Self. The Grace of the Guru has enabled me to pierce through layers and layers of maya. I continue to have experiences that release me from any doubt and steep me in the experience of my Self. The layers that obscure my view of myself as Consciousness-Itself simply let go and peel away.

Benefits arise outside as well as inside. Before Svaroopa® yoga, I projected an aloof and unapproachable image. In social situations, everyone would just talk to my wife. All my “hard heart” projection kept people away. But the Svaroopa® Sciences cracked me open so that I could move into the spiritual depths. I became spiritual without knowing I was becoming spiritual. Now people are drawn to me, and I am able to share myself joyfully, from the depths of my Self.

Besides financial support, my gratitude for the Grace of the Guru leads me to offer seva to our Ashram. So I serve as “web wizard.” I know firsthand that when anyone in our community needs the support of the teachings, they can access audio and print teachings as Freebies from Swamiji 24/7. But the online presence of Freebies is not without costs. Other sevite work does help in maintaining easy access to our 1,500 high-quality online pages. But paid staff is necessary for making immediate updates when something important to community changes, and for daily coordination of our enrollment system. We must engage IT experts to integrate seamlessly the complex moving parts for our virtual portal into the Svaroopa® Sciences. This virtual Ashram, which supports all of us in sustaining our yogic lives, requires ongoing care and maintenance like any other home. This is just one element of the operational costs of the Ashram, the source of support that frees us from limitations.

The Ashram needs your financial support to provide the yogic release that makes such a difference in our lives, inside and outside. Please join me in giving as generously as possible in our Support = Release campaign. Especially beneficial to planning and budgeting is your monthly contribution, so please consider giving support in that form. To donate, click here or call 610.644.7555.