By Vibhuti King

Seventy years ago on the auspicious day of 15 November, a great being was being born. Who knew then that she would follow her great love of God and find her Guru, Baba Muktananda? Yet she did, and under his love and guidance she became Swami Nirmalananda Saraswati, the great being she is today.

On her birthday, 15 November, we celebrate our relationship with our beloved Guruji. She is the Light that has lit our own inner Light. She is the Light that shows us the way. How blessed are we to know such a great being and revel in the day of her birth!  And what a celebration it is on the inside with the fruits so visible on the outside!

How does one celebrate such a day? Well, my idea is that baking our Guru’s favorite cake, carrot cake, is in order. Tirtha Richards will be making the cake, consciously, while repeating mantra. I am inviting yoga buddies, and we will all begin the celebration by chanting Swami Nirmalananda’s song, Sri Guru Gita. We will meditate. We will listen to one of her discourses on the Truth and take turns sharing what stands out for us in that talk.

To enhance our gathering, we will share stories of how we met Guruji. It is always so much fun to hear these stories! Then drinking chai and eating carrot cake— what delight! But before we dive in, we’ll pause just before taking that first sip and first bite, take a breath and breathe OM Namah Shivaaya into that sip or bite that has become ambrosia, the food of the Gods!

Already we are wishing, “Happiest of Birth Days to you, my beloved Guru. I am so blessed that you took birth this one last time.”

What are YOUR plans for this highly auspicious celebration? Please plan to share it with photos on our Ashram Facebook page. Send them together with the description of your celebration to Sandie@svaroopayoga.org.