Author Archives: Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram

Shine with Divine Light

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By Ellen (Lajja) Mitchell, President

Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram Board of Directors

Our Ashram’s year-end fundraiser theme is “Shine with Divine Light.”  

Please join me in donating with a one-time amount or starting a monthly donation, or increasing your current monthly amount.  Any gift will help your Ashram shine its Divine Light brighter into the world.

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Kindly take a look at our Vision and Mission statements at the bottom of all our emails.  Our Vision is “To engage in and teach the worship of Paramashiva, the all-pervasive Divine Reality, focusing on finding and experiencing the Divine within the individual.”  

Our Mission Statement explains how we do that.  It says “We provide yoga and meditation programs, teacher training and a vowed order. As a conduit of Grace in an ancient yogic lineage, we serve seekers of Self-Realization.”

This means our fundraising theme, Shine with Divine Light, is what we do.  Gurudevi Nirmalananda, our Master Teacher, says

It’s about shining in a way that you help others find their own light.

Think of the world and everyone as a string of lights.  Not all the lights are shining or functioning at their full wattage. The Svaroopa® Sciences help you look inside so you find the source that powers your light to its fullest.  Once you are sourced this way, you in turn affect others in your circle.  

How many lights can turn on or shine brighter?  Your donation will help us to provide the opportunity for you and others to “Shine with Divine Light.” How? By doing more yoga.  Your generous donation is a shining example!

Donate today on our website.  Or you can call us at (610) 644-7555.  Or simply send your check to Svaroopa Vidya Ashram, 116 E. Lancaster Ave., Downingtown, PA 19335.  Thank You!

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Yogic Nutrition with Gurudevi 

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Online beginning November 7

What does a yogi eat?  

To achieve health as well as pleasure and (most importantly) spiritual development, yogis feed themselves consciously.  

Drawing on yoga, Ayurveda and scientific nutritional guidelines, Gurudevi gives you easy ways to improve your nutritional profile.

Taste is also important, especially as it contributes to your nutrition as well as your quality of life. Each class includes a tasting session with discussion. Enrollment is limited, so everyone can participate in the discussions as well as get personalized support and recommendations from Gurudevi.

My taste buds came alive.  I was in shock! Gurudevi guided us through making toast with all six tastes on it.  A huge light bulb went off.  Food can be good and good for me!  In this course, I learned I’ve been protein-deficient for 20 years.  Now I understand where my cravings come from.  The course inspired me to slow down and be more conscious of my eating.  I was thrilled to learn so much in a short period of time. And watching Gurudevi in the Ashram kitchen was a joyful experience.  — Sheralee H.

Yogic Nutrition

Inner Strength & Clarity

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By Jules (Brahmani) Watson, Yogaratna

I am grateful for the flexibility that Svaroopa® yoga has given me! I can now sit comfortably without props in the classical Vajrasana (Lightning Bolt pose). This was not the case when I first started yoga.

I sit in Vajrasana to teach classes. Settling into my sit bones, I begin by leading students into Shavasana with the Guided Awareness. Then I guide them in Ujjayi Pranayama. During class I sometimes sit in this pose beside a student to assist them. I also sit in Vajrasana to give private yoga therapy sessions. With an upright spine, I feel balanced and present. 

When I want to sit longer in my own practice, I bring in blanket props. This takes the pressure off my ankles and allows the blood to flow freely to my feet. It also takes the pressure off my knees and supports my spine. Then I can stay sitting longer.

It’s delicious! My spine lengthens upward, my belly softens. I feel vibrational energy in my solar plexus, my breathing is easier, and I feel expansive. My spine softens even more, and my awareness turns inward easily. I am at peace.

I am held by my inner stambha (the arising column of spinal energy). And I slip into the bliss of the Self. After sitting in Vajrasana for this longer time, I feel balanced and composed with a new sense of inner strength and clarity.

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Teacher Directory

Learning to Eat Again

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By Sheralee (Shambhavi) Hancherow

Interviewed by Lori (Priya) Kenney

Food had lost its luster.  I was tired of cooking, tired of trying to find something exciting to eat. Nothing inspired me. My friends talked about recipes, but I wasn’t interested.  Being gluten and dairy-free made it even harder.  

In the first “Yogic Nutrition” class, my taste buds came alive.  I was in shock! Gurudevi guided us through making toast with all six tastes on it.  A huge light bulb went off.  Food can be good and good for me!  

Gurudevi told us that Baba said, “Food is medicine.”  Food can help me with my health too.  In this course, I learned I’ve been protein-deficient for 20 years.  Now I understand where my cravings come from.  

The course is both personal and practical.  I’d been accustomed to stressing about what to cook for myself and my family.  The course inspired me to slow down and be more conscious of my eating.  I was thrilled to learn so much in a short period of time.

Watching Gurudevi in the Ashram kitchen was a joyful experience.  It was amazing to see her and Swami Samvidaananda having fun making hummus.  It was heart-warming to see her doing things just like I do in my kitchen.  

I’m not 100% doing everything I learned, but I’m working on it.  I have staples on hand to bring the six tastes into every meal.  I know when to have the biggest meal, and I get much more protein than I used to.  I feel like Gurudevi really cares about how I’m nourishing myself.  She gave me confidence to continue on the path of yogic nutrition.  

Yogic Nutrition

Tired of Living with Pain

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By Kelly (Kushala) Sharp

Tired of living with pain, Jen started a Yoga Therapy healing series with me.  

Before her first session, she reported pain in her right shoulder at 8 (out of 10), with her right wrist at 6, and her right ribs at 7.  After her first session, her shoulder pain was down to 4, with her wrist pain at 0, and her rib pain at 5.

Jen reported, “After three days in a row of my Embodyment® sessions, I played golf.  I found that I hit the ball 20 yards farther.  I had to slow my swing down, and I could let my club do the work.  Usually when I swing the ball, I grip my toes.  I didn’t do that, so I didn’t have any cramping in my feet.  After the game, I didn’t experience any of my usual stiffness.”  These improvements supported Jen’s resolve to do her 20-minute Ujjayi practice twice daily.

By the time Jen was on session 13 of 30, she was free from pain.  She consistently reported having more energy and better sleep.  On session 30, Jen couldn’t recall what the chronic pain areas were when she started her series.  Her daily practices had become more consistent.  

Now two months into her weekly maintenance sessions, Jen continues to see improvements.  In Shavasana she feels her heels leaning more heavily into their support.  She sits in Baddha Konasana (Cobbler’s Pose) with her feet together, without efforting to hold them together.  Having done Svaroopa® yoga for many years, Jen is very excited to feel these changes in her body.  She continues to experience reduced pain and more energy.  And she’s still doing her home practice regularly!

Svaroopa® Yoga Therapy
Teacher Directory

Yogic Nutrition with Gurudevi

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Online beginning November 7

What does a yogi eat?  To achieve health as well as pleasure and (most importantly) spiritual development, yogis feed themselves consciously.  

Drawing on yoga, Ayurveda and scientific nutritional guidelines, Gurudevi gives you easy ways to improve your nutritional profile.  

As these principles begin working for you, you’ll notice a change in your digestion, assimilation and elimination. 

Taste is also important, especially as it contributes to your nutrition as well as your quality of life.  Each class includes a tasting session with discussion.

Enrollment is limited, so everyone can participate in the discussions as well as get personalized support and recommendations from Gurudevi.

Yogic Nutrition

Diagonal Leg Deliciousness!

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Carolyn (Karuna) Beaver, Yogaratna

One of my go-to poses is Diagonal Alternate Leg.  It has a wonderful way of resetting my unstable hip joints.  Lately, however, I have been slowing it W-A-Y down.  Then I get all the juice I can from it.  It feels like my own self-administered Cure All Knee Press.

It’s a two-for-one pose.  You start in the regular angle of Alternate Leg.  I linger just a little, first with my knee in towards my chest.  Then, I move my leg into an advanced and deeper angle, thus I can feel my tailbone release in both angles. Ahh…

I take my time moving my leg across my body into the diagonal angle.  I go slow, and then pause.  When I coax my knee in towards my chest, I might even feel into a tight spot.  Some softening breaths, and I can feel those muscles let go.  It’s the “Cure All” effect!

My favorite part of all?  Allowing my leg to lean in towards my chest slowly and naturally, as I ease it back to its starting point.  I can feel my thigh bone pivoting and settling into my hip socket in a different and deeper way.  And even better than all this?  I get to do it all on the other side!

Svaroopa® Yoga Classes

Telecourse: Being, Light & Bliss

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Gurudevi’s Telecourse helped me remember I am more than my daily to-do list.  I am a human BE-ing.  My greatest potential is realized not by becoming but by relaxing into who I already am. I am the Light and Bliss of Consciousness.  The constant obsession for fulfilling my to-do list wears me down.  The constant knowing of my own Divine Beingness lights me up.

— Phil M.

Each of Gurudevi’s Telecourses has several modules.  Enroll in them all for a discount or take only the ones you want.  You have personal access to all the articles and videos for months.  You can dive in deep, even reviewing each offering multiple times.  This is guaranteed to shift your sense of who you are, supporting your life in the world from the inside-outward.

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Filled with Grace

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By Lloyd (Dharma) Apirian

Interviewed by Lissa (Yogyananda) Fountain

By attending Swami Sundays with Gurudevi, I’d already made profound inner shifts.  Yet I was looking for something even deeper.  Feeling a little down and flat, I wanted renewal: a deeper knowing of my own Self.  

An immersion with my Guru guarantees this!  I also know Shaktipat is a powerful way to boost my personal growth and transformation.  So I signed up for my first online Shaktipat Retreat.  

Doing a Shaktipat Retreat weekend at home has its advantages.  I was in my yoga room and everything was so familiar.  Yet I went just as deep in meditation as when I am in Gurudevi’s presence.  After Gurudevi gave Shaktipat-diksha, the spiritual energy climbed my spine more than ever.  It was freeing, opening and releasing.  I was surrendering to the Self. 

During a longer meditation, I experienced an auditory kriya.  I heard OM Namah Shivaya singing in my left ear!  In a short time, the sinus congestion I’d been feeling cleared away.  This was all Grace, pure Grace.  The Shakti moving through the Guru transcends limitations of space, time and energy.

To keep the Grace flowing, it’s recommended you increase your meditation time and be consistent.  After the retreat, I did notice the effects were fading.  I hadn’t been doing enough meditation.  Before my next Shaktipat, I’m signing up for Meditation Club!  To support carrying these effects into my life, I need the structure.

The Shaktipat experiences that Gurudevi describes with her Guru, Baba Muktananda, inspire me.  They once seemed unattainable and remote.  Now I know they are possible for me.  Shaktipat is a life changing opportunity to experience the Truth of my own Beingness.  I am forever grateful.

Shaktipat Retreat with Gurudevi

Saved Her Life

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By Rebecca (Rasa) Rivers

Interviewed by Marlene (Matrikaa) Gast, Yogaratna

From her yoga classes and yoga therapy sessions with me, Clair credits yoga with “saving her life.” She describes it in these ways:

I mean that Svaroopa® yoga has enabled me to live the life that I want.  Both of my parents and my older sister suffered from genetic-based osteoarthritis.  At an early age, I was warned that I could look forward to serious physical issues.

In 1972, in my early 30s, I had my first surgery to address complications of osteoarthritis.  Given my family’s health history, I was not surprised.  In the early 2000s, I had knee replacement surgery.  In 2011, when my physician suggested a hip replacement, I said, “Let me think on that.”

I’d taken yoga classes from Rebecca (Rasa) Rivers in a nearby town.  By 2011, she was teaching Svaroopa®yoga in my town, so I got in touch with her.  After an assessment, she suggested that I join her classes.  I also availed myself of her private sessions.  I received yoga therapy and private instruction on specific poses for my condition. 

When I saw my surgeon a year later, he said, “I don’t know what you did, but you no longer need hip surgery.”

Indeed, I was able to climb mountains again, walk three miles a day, and return to swimming.  Given the therapeutic effects of Svaroopa® yoga, I am so grateful and so happy to be alive.  

Since 10-years-old, I’ve been doing things that are positive for my body, including diet and exercise.  When I’ve walked through forests, their scent and vibrations have uplifted me.  I’m conscious now of the same sense of fulfillment from Svaroopa® yoga poses.

I have also become interested in learning more about yoga philosophy.  My original interest was focused on yoga’s physical benefits only.  Having recently completed a Learn to Mediate course, I am expanding my interests to yoga’s spiritual teachings as well as Svaroopa® Vidya meditation.

Seeing clients experience such profound change is one of the joys of my serving as a Svaroopa® yoga therapist.