Baba commented on this verse, saying, “The Guru destroys the darkness in the hearts of his disciples, and fills them with the light of knowledge. The Guru is the one who dispenses Divine Power.” The Guru points you inward, takes you by the hand and walks you inward and …
— Gurudevi Nirmalananda
From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Light Incarnate“
November 2026
Join Gurudevi in celebrating her 50th anniversary of teaching as well as her 80th birthday in Ganeshpuri, India. She is generously inviting you to join her in her Golden Jubilee, explaining,
I had been planning a personal retreat for my 80th birthday, marking off tentative dates in my calendar. Then I realized it is also the 50th anniversary of my teaching. That means you are part of the reason I’m going. You are the reason why I do what I do. So you are invited!
This retreat focuses on diving deep. Daily practices begin at 4:20 am in Nityananda’s temple, followed by breakfast, chanting and a yoga class. A leisurely lunch and recess follows.
The afternoon includes a sutra discourse, more chanting and meditation. After dinner, Nityananda’s temple has a special closing ceremony every night. Day by day, hour by hour, you will join Gurudevi in marinating in Consciousness.
Yogis who have previously traveled with her to Ganeshpuri describe their powerful experiences:
The practices are intensified by being performed on these sacred lands. Each
time I come to India, my starting point is where I left off last time. — Bob (Rudra) Nogue
Ganeshpuri puts me physically in the riverbed of Grace that flows through this lineage. Doing practices with Gurudevi in the dusty village that was built around Nityananda is a magical combination. Being submerged in a village culture that is full of love for Guru and God opens my heart. I blossom as I spend immersive time with Gurudevi and like-minded yogis. — Rosemary (Rudrani) Nogue
I have traveled to Ganeshpuri three times to be with Gurudevi in the place where she was with her teacher. Early morning, meditations in Nityananda’s mahasamadhi room propelled me deeper and deeper inside. When I visited Muktananda’s mahasamadhi shrine and laid my head on his silver-casted sandals, a wave of Shakti shot through me and unlocked access to my Self. I saw my future. — Carolyn (Karuna) Beaver
Inner happiness is ever-arising, independent of any external circumstances. This is what yoga calls your own Self. Well, not the happiness. Your own Self is not merely happiness; it is the source of happiness within. When you’re based in your own Beingness, you live in…
— Gurudevi Nirmalananda
From Gurudevi’s full discourse “When You Grow Up“
Yet any and every holy site is important for only one reason – the effect it has on you. It opens you to the greater reality within, the inner infinity. Many people go on pilgrimage so they can open to God, whom they…
— Gurudevi Nirmalananda
From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Pilgrimage to the Infinite“
The process of Self-discovery is a process. Sometimes it’s bliss-filled, sometimes not. Consider how many years have you invested in being unenlightened? How many days have you done your unenlightenment practices? How many…
— Gurudevi Nirmalananda
From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Dharma, Karma, Moksha“
By Ellen (Lajja) Mitchell, Ashram Board President
Our fundraiser, “The Gift of Grace,” is ending. I thank everyone who participated in giving.
Thank you for choosing to support Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram. Your financial support helps us to continue to shine light into the world as well as support you in uncovering your light. I am grateful for you and for our Ashram’s support over the years.
Our Ashram has helped me through physical and mental stuff (oh, mind!). This has helped me to see myself. I am so grateful for our Ashram and for all its offerings. I am more myself and I navigate through life more fluidly. What a gift it is to receive support from Gurudevi and the Swamis.
I opened the Gurudevi App today, and this quote was displayed:
The high points in life are when you’re shining with light, loving, generous, joyful and peaceful. You want to be that way all the time. Of course you do — because it’s who you really are, deep down inside.
– Gurudevi Nirmalananda & Swami Samvidaananda
Yes, that is what our Ashram does. It helps you to see yourself as you truly are and be yourself. What a gift it is to support you in this process. What a gift it is to have your financial support. Yes, a gift of Grace.
While our campaign is coming to an end, we still welcome and appreciate your financial gifts. They make a real difference in what we do!
Donate online or call us at (610) 644-7555. Or send your check to Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram, 116 E. Lancaster Ave., Downingtown, PA 19335. Thank you again and again!
By Cayla (Mangala) Allen
The chanting, teachings and meditation with Gurudevi uplift my soul. Shifted into a sense of ease, I settle into my own Self.
Every week, I attend Gurudevi’s satsangs online: Swami Sunday and Wednesday Chant and Meditation. She delivers the full package from chanting, through teachings and on to deep meditation.
She brings this maha (great) yoga to life by making the ancient teachings accessible and relevant to our modern day lives.
Gurudevi’s Teachings Article comes out at the beginning of each month. It’s like a two-page sutra. Reading it, I receive mini aha moments.
At Swami Sundays, Gurudevi unpacks what she wrote making the article even easier to understand. I receive huge aha moments. This makes it easy to apply the teachings to my life.
Each satsang offers layers of understanding. While sitting at her feet, whether in person or online, I receive this by simply being aware. The effect on me, and on who I feel myself to be, is awesome.
Then sweet, deep meditation sets in as she offers her guidance. I settle in deeper as the meditation arises.
What I experience in these moments is beyond words. Sometimes unconscious, sometimes conscious, in Consciousness, I am somewhere beyond my mind.
The gong sounds. Gurudevi brings us through the sweet pause that closes meditation. I practice bringing my deep experience into my life.
I used to think the key to life was to live passionately. I now know it is to live fully enlivened from within, living in Self in every moment.
Passionate for me was living on the edge, riding the roller coaster of life with all its ups and downs. Now I live from center, blissfully observing the multi-diversity of the universe.
I revel in amazement of all that exists, knowing there is more than I can imagine. I am grateful for all. On some level I know there is only One and I am That.
I am grateful for a true Guru who reveals all and leads me to greater understanding. This readies me to receive more as I move toward Enlightenment.
Who am I? Why was I born? Who created me? And what am I supposed to do here? Why am I here? Your mind cannot answer these questions. Your mind asks them, even mulls them over and repeats them again and again. This is called contemplation. Your mind may try on various answers, but your mind won’t rest until….
— Gurudevi Nirmalananda
From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Having Experiences“
Your Inner Essence is deep, timeless, expansive, unchanging — the inner infinity of your own Divinity. And everything else is also Divine. So, you care. You care and you act on that caring, but freely, without need, without greed and without…
— Gurudevi Nirmalananda
From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Perception“
By Gurudevi Nirmalananda
Every birth is a Divine embodiment, a manifestation of the One Source. Each and every one of us is made of the Divine energy that becomes all.
This means your birth was a Divine birth. It may be that your parents felt it. New babies are easy to adore. It is because they don’t yet know how to block their inner light from shining through.
Yet some babies grow up to share the Divine Light with others. The world celebrates the birth anniversary of a few: Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed. But were they the only ones?
No. Many saints are honored in several traditions, with their life stories told and retold in order to inspire and to bless others.
India specializes in saints. Not only do they honor more of them, throughout a longer timeline, but they acknowledge that anyone can become a saint. Even you? Yes, even you. But you have to apply yourself, like with anything you want to accomplish. And you need training.
Gururupaaya.h. — Shiva Sutras 2.6
The Guru is the goal as well as the path.
The Guru both teaches you about your Divine Essence and gives you tools to experience it — both the goal and the pathway to it. Since the Sanskrit word “guru” means teacher, it applies to a teacher of any subject. Maybe you had a piano guru when you were growing up.
The West has adopted this term to refer to an expert in any field, like a stock market guru or a basement guru. Yet the term came from India, specifically naming the God-inspired yogis who began coming to America in the 1800s.
A Divine teacher teaches about God. This is true of any priest, minister or pastor. Yet yoga holds them to a higher standard in order to qualify for the title, Guru. They must have found God, not merely on the outside, but within their own being. Now they are a Divine teacher in two ways: being Divine and teaching about God.
You are also able to find God within, yet you might not have the dharma to teach. Being a saint without having a world mission means you…
practice & grace: giving you your Self
revealing the mystery
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