Category Archives: About Gurudevi

Words Matter

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By Gurudevi Nirmalananda

Words are important. The radar screen of your mind is filled with what you say and with what others say to you. The unsaid words are on that screen as well. You’re always tracking the moving blips.

You may want others to use specific words to make you happy. Usually they don’t follow your script, not even if you give it to them. Bottom line, consider what are you looking to get from them. If your happiness depends on them saying the right things, they can upset your apple cart just a few minutes later. Your sense of self must come from a deeper inner center for you to be happy and to have successful relationships.

If words can shut you down, are there words that can open you up? Yes! The enlivened mantra is sacred words, words of power. They invoke the upwelling of Consciousness within you. This inner arising transforms you completely, bringing a whole new level of aliveness and enthusiasm into your life. You see the world differently. You see you differently.

It is your mind that needs this transformation. Your own Self doesn’t need to be uplifted, for it is already Divine. But your mind keeps you from seeing your inner radiance. Your own Self is Shiva: all encompassing, pervading all, being all. Your mind is puny by comparison. Yet your mind blocks your knowing of Self like you can use your thumb to block the sun.

Transforming your mind is accomplished through words. This is because your mind is churning out words all the time, day and night. When you change the words you use, you get different results. Research on affirmations shows measurable improvements in education, health and relationship outcomes.[1] Using different words on yourself makes a difference

The Shiva Sutras says this works in your spiritual development as well. The second chapter of the text focuses on transforming your mind. These practices are called shaktopaya, the upaya (path) of shakti (energy). Your mind is made of energy, as is everything. And the enlivened mantra is full of Divine Energy. Together they uplift your mind and empower you to transcend it.

Chittam mantrah. — Shiva Sutras 2.1

By intensive awareness of the Divine in the mantra, you become what it names.

The two Sanskrit words name two things: the power of your mind and the power in the mantra. Chittam means mind, literally a contracted form of Chit (Consciousness). Mantra means a set of words that enshrine God within them. These are Divine words, meaning they are God in the form of words. God can take on any form, even the form of words.

Your mind reflects whatever you present to it. If you present garbage, your mind becomes filled with garbage. If you present Divine words, your mind becomes filled with Divine light. What kind of mind do you want to have?

Every religion and meditative tradition uses mantra in some way. In tantra, you get an enlivened mantra from a Shaktipat Guru. It is plugged in. With a lamp that won’t turn on, first you check the light bulb, then notice the cord is unplugged. When you plug it in, you get light. You want a mantra that lights you up. Receiving it is called…

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Your Mind

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No one’s working on attaining equanimity.  Well, that’s not precisely true. You probably have tried to get a little peace by withdrawing from news, from the politicians, from the musicians, the social media influencers, and even your family and friends. But you bring your mind with you, even when you isolate yourself or numb out.

—  Gurudevi Nirmalananda

From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Equanimity — Peace of Mind“

Watch Full Discourse Here

Doorways to Your Self

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Ellen (Lajja) Mitchell, SVA Board President

It is my pleasure to introduce Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram’s fundraiser “Doorways to Your Self.” 

There are many ways to experience your Self, your Divine Essence.  One of them is dakshina (selfless financial giving).  Join me in giving to Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram. Bring yoga into your heart and wallet.

Gurudevi says:

If you do this yoga, you will come to know who you really are. It begins as brief glimpses, subtle knowings, inner impulses, flashes of insight and currents of bliss. They grow on you; they grow in you.

It is wonderful that there is not just one doorway to your own Self. You can access it many ways — Shaktipat, chanting, studying the sutras, mantra, asana (yoga), meditation and more.  I had the experience of Self in my first asana class, yet I could not put words to it. I felt different, like I was coming from a deeper place. Perhaps you have experienced it as well.  A dip into consciousness that left you feeling refreshed, joyful, deeper, more aware or embodied.

Recently, I have been experiencing my Self in the pause.  Particularly the pause when doing mantra repetition.  Between each mantra ( said out loud or silently), I pause.  I have found everything in the pause — joy, peace, contentment and more.

The feeling that arises when I think of all that Gurudevi has helped me uncover is gratitude.  Gratitude for her patient repetition of teachings, for creating Svaroopa® Yoga, for helping me uncover what was already there by showing me the many doorways to my Self. 

If you have benefited from Svaroopa® Yoga, please join me in supporting Gurudevi and Svaroopa® Vidya Ashram. Open the Dakshina Doorway to your own Self.  Please donate today. 

You can call us at (610) 644-7555.  Or you can send your check to Svaroopa Vidya Ashram, 116 E. Lancaster Ave., Downingtown, PA 19335.  Thank you again and again!

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Grace Infused Teachings

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When you hear these teachings, you are fed at the deepest level of your own being.  The words and the energy turn your mind inward, while the words name your own Divine Essence. So you experience Self again and again.  This is why I give discourses, to pour this stream of Grace-infused teachings into your head, and heart, and deeper.  Again and again.

—  Gurudevi Nirmalananda

From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Who’s In Charge?“

Watch Full Discourse Here

Shaktipat Retreat

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Begins May 2, 2025

Shaktipat accelerates your spiritual progress.  With Shaktipat initiation from Satguru Swami Nirmalananda (Gurudevi), your spiritual momentum is greatly enhanced. 

During the weekend Shaktipat Retreat, you gain new levels of access to the deeper dimensions of your own Beingness.

You receive formal Shaktipat initiation from Gurudevi twice. As a Kundalini Master, she is authorized to transmit this powerful initiation. She explains the process and purpose as well as how you cooperate with the inner light arising within you, in-light-ening you day by day.

Discover a whole new dimension to your own being. Recognize and revel in your own spiritual essence.  And learn tools that help you bring that into your life.

At the beginning of the Shaktipat retreat, my mind and body had a little resistance. “Oh,” I thought, “we’re chanting again??!” But I went with it. After Gurudevi’s first touch, I felt pulled up from my base and realigned. I could see a roadmap that Kundalini had implanted inside me. During my meditations, the kriyas were much stronger. I experienced a physical cleansing, a burning off.

– Darren T

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Your Own Self

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How do you meditate on your own Self when you don’t know your own Self?  In one way, it’s kind of like you lived in a cave your whole life and I tried to teach you to meditate on the sun or the moon.  You wouldn’t know what they are.  This is why the mantra names your own Self..

—  Gurudevi Nirmalananda

From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Meditating on Your Own Self“

Watch Full Discourse Here

Yoga Nidra — Yogic Sleep

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By Gurudevi Nirmalananda 

You lie on your back in yoga’s relaxation pose, Shavasana. Or you may prefer to lean back in a recliner.  

You drift into a quasi-meditative state without going all the way to sleep — this is yogic sleep, yoga nidra.

It is a state of deep rest but without the heaviness of sleep. In a short time, you arise refreshed, perhaps even more so than after a full night of sleep. Three hours of yoga nidra can substitute for a full night of sleep. I have taken advantage of this on many overnight flights. It is a lifesaver when my day’s activities overflow into late night hours, especially since I don’t want to give up my early morning yoga practices.

As a yoga teacher, I learned how to lead yoga nidra as part of a yoga class. We called it a “Guided Relaxation” even though it’s not really about relaxing. It is an awareness practice, where you extend your awareness into the inner spaces of your body and being. Thus I changed the name of it to “Guided Awareness,” which we still include in every Svaroopa®yoga class.  Twice.  At the beginning and at the end.  This is how important it is.

Its roots lie deep in the yogic tradition, with references in several ancient Sanskrit texts. Yoga nidra was brought to the West by students of Swami Sivananda of Rishikesh. In recent years, it has been used as a healing therapy for veterans and others with PTSD.

Most people are simply looking for an easy way to meditate. The value of following a Guided Awareness for yoga nidra is that it reins in your mind, bringing it back to where you are physically located. As you become more present in your body, you are becoming more present. It is your presence that matters.

We include yoga nidra in Ashram programs in several ways:

  • Svaroopa® yoga classes — every class begins and ends with yoga nidra. Online and On-Site classes are available around the world. Click for our Global Class Calendar.
  • Guided Meditation Series — this online series uses yoga nidra as a stepping stone to seated meditation, which offers you deeper and more powerful experiences. Find the next class series on our Programs Calendar.
  • Audio Recording — I have recorded the classic Guided Awareness for you on my album, “Experience Shavasana.” It can help you get to sleep, recover from stress or anxiety, or prepare for a deeper meditation.

Yoga nidra can be a little tricky. As you begin to settle more deeply within, you may want to roll over into your favorite sleeping position. Or your head may lean over toward one side. These are ways of going unconscious, into a sweet deep sleep, but not yogic sleep.

Yoga nidra is a light meditative state, yet not sleep but not wakefulness. Your mind is restful but not unconscious. Someone is still home inside.  Who is that someone? That is you. This is the whole point, that you find the deeper dimensionality within. This is what yoga is all about.

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Experience Shavasana

Busy Meditations

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While you may wish for bliss in every meditation, it’s actually the busy meditations that are moving you toward enlightenment faster.  Just like a car speeding along the highway passes more scenery, when you’re really zipping along…   

—  Gurudevi Nirmalananda

From Gurudevi’s full discourse “Growing into Self“

Watch Full Discourse Here

What Is Enlightenment?

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By Gurudevi Nirmalananda

Sometimes you can tell what’s going on inside a person by the way they look. Their silly grin or their wrinkled brow tells you what they are thinking and feeling.

Yet someone can be smiling while thinking negative or harmful thoughts. In poker and in politics, the pathway to success is to hide your true feelings. This can sometimes be true in close relationships as well.

Can you look at someone and see that they are enlightened? This is important because you want to study with the best. They can help you make rapid progress toward your own enlightenment. What is enlightenment like, both inside and outside? Fortunately, Arjuna asked this question for us:

Arjuna uvacha, sthita-prajnasya ka bhasha samadhi-sthasya keshava

sthita-dhih kim prabhasheta kim asita vrajeta kim. — Bhagavadgita 2.54

Arjuna asked, “What is the inner experience of an enlightened being? In worldly activities, how do they talk? How do they sit? How do they walk?”

The next eighteen verses are Krishna’s answer. He describes the process of becoming enlightened as well as how the enlightened being lives.

By divine Grace, all his sorrows are destroyed. With a peaceful mind, he abides in a Divine state of inner steadiness. — Bhagavadgita 2.65

Your understanding of this description begins from your own experiences of a peaceful mind. But what is “a Divine state?” These experiences are pivot points in your life.

I remember being a teenager at summer camp in the mountains. I often sat in a sacred grove that had a view of the valley. It was reserved as a silent lookout point. In the beginning, the view transported me. I felt like I could almost fly across the vast terrain. I felt free.

My experience changed as I returned again, sometimes multiple times daily. It became an inner vastness that was much greater than the view. At the same time, I felt…

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