Arsha Vidya Cnter
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Transcript of Arsha Vidya Cnter
Arsha Vidya Center
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Arsha Vidya Center
Souvenir 2011 2
Aae< nmae Égvte di][amUtRye mý< mexa< à}a< àyCD Svaha .
oà namo bhagavate dakñiëämürtaye mahyaà medhäà prajïäà prayaccha svähä
Oà. Salutations to Bhagavän Dakñiëämürti. Please bless me with medhä,
memory and prajïä, wisdom.
Temple door of Arsha Vidya Gurukulam temple in PA
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Arsha Vidya Center
Arsha Vidya Center has been formed to introduce, promote and establish study of Vedänta for students
and seekers in the San Francisco Bay Area in a traditional way through an unbroken sampradäya, that
began with Lord Dakñhiëämürti, uplifted and maintained by Veda Vyäsa and Ädi Çaìkara, now handed
directly to us by Püjya Swami Dayananda Saraswati.
Activities
Adult classes
Children’s classes
Celebration of special occasions
Annual visit of Swamijis to the Bay Area
Annual trip to the ashram in Salylorsburg, PA
Annual trip to the ashram in Rishikesh, India
Gétä Home Study Groups
Please visit AVC website http://www.arshavidhyacenter.org for all the information and latest updates.
Contact Information
Programs Contact Person Email
Adult Classes Vijay Kapoor [email protected]
Children Classes Kumud Singhal [email protected]
Web Pages & Souvenir Kumud Singhal [email protected]
Books & Tapes Chaula Joshi [email protected]
Gétä Home Study Anjali Deshmukh [email protected]
Arsha Vidya Center Vijay Kapoor [email protected]
Swamijis visit to Bay area
Satyan Chidambaran [email protected]
Zarina Kaji [email protected]
Kirit Khichadia [email protected]
Lychee Chu [email protected]
Mona Vijayakar [email protected]
Madhu Grandhi [email protected]
Recordings of Swamiji's talks Kumar Padmini [email protected]
nih }anen sd&z< pivÇimh iv*te,
nahi jïänena sadåçaà pavitramiha vidyate
There is nothing as purifying as knowledge
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Çänti Päöhaù/Guruvandanam/Gétä Dhyänam ..................................................................... 3
Selected Verses From Bhagavad Gétä (Chapter IX) ..........................................................................5
By Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
Püjya Swamiji Dayananda Saraswati: Satäbhiñekam ................................................................... 10
About Püjya Swamiji
Seva Activities
Research & Publications
Arsha Vidya
Our Swamiji ....................................................................................................................................... 19
By Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
Çänti Mantra : Oà saha nävavatu ................................................................................................... 22
By Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
Saïcita, prärabdha, kriyamäna and ägämi-karma ......................................................................... 24
By Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
Action versus Knowledge ................................................................................................................ 26
By Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
An Interview with Vijay Kapoor ..................................................................................................... 27
Science and Nonduality Conference; San Rafael, October 2009
` g//[ana<š Tva g/[p?itg!< hvamhe k/iv< k?vI/namu?p/mï?vStmm!,
J/yeó/raj</ äü?[a< äü[Spt Aa n>? z&/{vÚU/itiÉSsId/ sadnm!.
` mhag[pty/e nm>
oà gaëänäà tvä gaëapatigà havämahe kavià
kavénämupamaçravastamam
jyeñöharäjaà brahmaëäà brahmaëaspata ä
naù çåëvannütibhisséda sädanam
oà mahägaëapataye namaù
Oà Gaëapati we invoke your grace, You are the Lord of all beings,
the most renowned Seer among Seers, the Supreme Lord, the Lord of the Vedäs.
Hearing our prayers, may You be seated in our hearts and protect us.
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zaiNt paQ> (Çänti Päöhaù)
` sh navvtu, sh naE Éun´… , sh vIy¡ krvavhE, tejiSvnavxItmStu, ma iviÖ;avhE.
` zaiNt> zaiNt> zaiNt>.
oà saha nāvavatu, saha nau bhunaktu , saha vīryaṁ karavāvahai, tejasvināvadhītamastu
mā vidviṣāvahai. oà śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
May the Lord indeed, protect both of us. May he indeed, nourish both of us. May we together acquire
the capacity (to study and understand the scriptures). May our study be brilliant. May we not disagree
with each other. Oà peace, peace, peace.
` pU[R/md/> pU[R/imd/< pU[aR/TpU[R/mud/Cyte pU[R/Sy pU[R/mada/y pU[R/mevaviz/:yte,
` za/iNt> za/iNt> za/iNt>.
Om pürëaÞmadaÞù pürëaÞmidaÞà pürëäÞt pürëaÞmudaÞcyate, pürëaÞsya pürëaÞmädäÞya pürëaÞmevävaçiÞñyate |
oà śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
That (Brahman) is fullness. This (apparent creation) is full. From fullness this full (apparent creation)
comes about. Bringing (out) this full from fullness, fullness alone remains.
Oà peace, peace, peace.
guévNdnm! (Guruvandanam)
ïuitSm&itpura[anam! Aaly< ké[alym!, nmaim ÉgvTpad< z»r< laekz»rm! . 1.
çrutismåtipuräëänäm älayaà karuëälayam, namämi bhagavatpädaà çaìkaraà lokaçaìkaram
I salute Çaìkarabhagavatpäda, the abode of çruti (Vedas), småti (Gétä, etc.), and puräëas (epics like
Rämäyaëa, Mahäbhärata, etc.), the repository of compassion, the one who bestows happiness on the
world.
z»r< z»racayR< kezv< badray[m! , sUÇÉa:yk&taE vNde ÉgvNtaE pun> pun> . 2.
çaìkaraà çaìkaräcäryaà keçavaà bädaräyaëam, sütrabhäñyakåtau vande bhagavantau punaù punaù
I salute, again and again, Çaìkaräcärya who is Lord Çiva, and Bädaräyaëa who is Lord Viñëu, the
venerable ones who wrote the aphorisms (Brahmasütras) and commentaries (bhäñyam to
Brahmasütras).
$Zvrae guéraTmeit mUitRÉedivÉaigne , Vyaemvd!VyaPtdehay di][amUtRye nm> . 3.
éçvaro gururätmeti mürtibhedavibhägine, vyomavadvyäptadehäya dakñiëämürtaye namaù
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Salutations to Lord Dakñiëämürti, who is all-pervasive like space, but who appears (as though) divided
as Lord, Teacher, and Self.
gukarSTvNxkarae vE ékarStiÚvtRk> , ANxkarinraeixTvad! guéirTyiÉxIyte . 4.
gukärastvandhakäro vai rukärastannivartakaù, andhakäranirodhitväd gururityabhidhéyate
The letter “gu” stands for darkness (of ignorance), and “ru” represents its destruction. A guru is so
called because he destroys the darkness (of ignorance).
sdaizvsmarMÉa< z»racayRmXymam! , ASmdacayRpyRNta< vNde guéprMpram! . 5.
sadäçivasamärambhäà çaìkaräcäryamadhyamäm, asmadäcäryaparyantäà vande guruparamparäm
I salute the lineage of teachers, beginning with Çiva, the Lord, (linked by) Çaìkaräcärya in the middle,
and extending down to my own teacher.
gIta Xyanm! (Gétä Dhyänam)
` pawaRy àitbaeixta< Égvta naray[en Svy< Vyasen ¢iwta< pura[muinna mXyemhaÉartm!,
AÖEtam&tvi;R[I< ÉgvtImòadzaXyaiynIm! AMb TvamnusNdxaim ÉgvÌIte ÉvÖei;[Im! .
oà pärthäya pratibodhitäà bhagavatä näräyaëena svayaà
vyäsena grathitäà puräëamuninä madhye-mahäbhäratam
advaitämåtavarñiëéà bhagavatémañöädaçädhyäyiném
amba tvämanusandadhämi bhagavadgéte bhavadveñiëém
Oà. Oh! Goddess Mother, Oh! Bhagavadgétä, (you who were) taught by Bhagavän Näräyaëa, himself
for the sake of Arjuna, the son of Påthä (Kunté), (you who were) faithfully collected and reported by the
ancient Sage Vyäsa, (and placed) in the middle of Mahäbhärata, (you who are) in eighteen chapters, you
who have the nature of showering the nectar of non-duality, the destroyer of the life of becoming
(saàsärä), again and again I invoke you.
y< äüa vé[eNÔéÔmét> StuNviNt idVyE> StvE-vRRedE> sa¼pd³maepin;dEgaRyiNt y< samga> ,
XyanaviSwttÌten mnsa pZyiNt y< yaeignae ySyaNt< n ivdu> surasurg[a devay tSmE nm>.
yaà brahmä varuëendrarudramarutaù stunvanti divyaiù stavair-
vedaiù säìgapadakramopaniñadairgäyanti yaà sämagäù
dhyänävasthitatadgatena manasä paçyanti yaà yogino
yasyäntaà na viduù suräsuragaëä deväya tasmai namaù
To the Lord about whom Brahmä, Varuëa, Indra, Rudra, and the Marut-devatäs praise with divine
hymns, the one whom the singers of Sämaveda praise by singing with full complement of the limbs (of
singing) in the order of pada and krama and the Upaniñads, the one whom contemplative people see
with minds resolved in him in a state of meditation, whose nature the celestials and demons do not
know, unto him, the Lord, my salutations.
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Selected Verses from Bhagavad Gétä (Chapter IX)
Püjya Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
Aw nvmae=Xyay>, rajiv*arajguýyaeg>
atha navamo'dhyäyaù | räjavidyäräjaguhyayogaù
1) mya ttimd< sv¡ jgdVy´mUitRna,
mTSwain svRÉUtain n cah< te:vviSwt>. 4 .
mayä tatamidaà sarvaà jagadavyaktamürtinä
matsthäni sarvabhütäni na cähaà teñvavasthitaù Verse 4
mya mayä – by Me; AVy´-mUitRna avyakta-mürtinä – whose form cannot be objectified; #d< sv¡
jgt! idaà sarvaà jagat – this entire world; ttm! tatam – is pervaded; svR-ÉUtain sarva-bhütäni –
all beings; mTSwain matsthäni – have their being in me; n c Ahm! na ca aham – and I am not; te;u
AviSwt> teñu avasthitaù – based in them
This entire world is pervaded by Me by my form that cannot be objectified. All beings
have their being in Me but I am not based in them.
2) svRÉUtain kaENtey àk«it< yaiNt maimkam!,
kLp]ye punStain kLpadaE ivs&jaMyhm!. 7.
sarvabhütäni kaunteya prakåtià yänti mämikäm
kalpakñaye punastäni kalpädau visåjämyaham Verse 7
kaENtey kaunteya – O Son of Kunté (Arjuna); kLp]ye kalpakñaye – at the dissolution of the cycle
of creation; svR-ÉUtain sarva-bhütäni – all beings; maimka< àk«itm! mämikäà prakåtim – to My
prakåti; yaiNt yänti –– go; pun> punaù – again; kLp-AadaE kalpa-ädau – at the beginnng of the
cycle; Ahm! aham – I; tain ivs&jaim täni visåjämi – create them.
All beings, O Son of Kunté (Arjuna), go back to My prakåti at the dissolution of the
cycle of creation. Again, at the beginning of the cycle, I create them.
3) myaXy]e[ àk«it> sUyte scracrm!,
hetunanen kaENtey jgiÖpirvtRte. 10.
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mayädhyakñeëa prakåtiù süyate sacaräcaram
hetunänena kaunteya jagadviparivartate Verse 10
mya AXy]e[ mayä adhyakñeëa – owing to Me, the presiding presence; àk«it> prakåtiù – the
prakåti; scracrm! sacaräcaram – (the world) consisting of movables and immovables; sUyte
süyate – creates; Anen hetuna anena hetunä – because of this reason; kaENtey kaunteya – O Son of
Kunté (Arjuna); jgdœ ivpirvtRte jagad viparivartate – the world revolves
Owing to Me, the presiding presence, the prakåti creates (the world) consisting of
movables and immovables. Because of this reason, O Son of Kunté (Arjuna), the world
revolves.
4) mhaTmanStu ma< pawR dEvI— àk«itmaiïta>,
ÉjNTynNymnsae }aTva ÉUtaidmVyym!. 13.
mahätmänastu mäà pärtha daivéà prakåtimäçritäù
bhajantyananyamanaso jïätvä bhütädimavyayam Verse 13
pawR pärtha – O Pärtha; mhaTman> tu mahätmänaù tu – those of noble heart, on the other hand;
AnNy-mns> ananya-manasaù – with single-mindedness; dEvI— àk«it< Aaiïta> daivéà prakåtim
äçritäù – being possessed of divine virtues; mam! mäm – Me; ÉUt-Aaidm! bhüta-ädim – the cause
of all beings and elements; AVyym! avyayam – one who is not subject to destruction; }aTva
jïätvä – knowing; ÉjiNt bhajanti – they seek
O Partha (Arjuna), those of noble heart, on the other hand, who possess divine virtues and
knowing Me as the imperishable cause of all beings and elements, worship Me with
single-mindedness.
5) iptahmSy jgtae mata xata iptamh>,
ve*< pivÇmae»ar \Ksam yjurev c. 17.
pitähamasya jagato mätä dhätä pitämahaù
vedyaà pavitramoàkära åksäma yajureva ca Verse 17
ASy jgt> asya jagataù – of this world; Ahm! ipta aham pitä – I am the father; mata mätä – the
mother; xata dhätä – the ordainer; iptamh> pitämahaù – the grand father/the uncaused cause;
ve*m! vedyam – that which is to be known; pivÇm! pavitram – that which purifies; Aae»ar>
oàkäraù – Oàkära; \kœ sam yju> @v c åk säma yajuù eva ca – Åk, Säma, and Yajur Vedas
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I am the father of this world, the mother, the ordainer, and the grandfather (the uncaused
cause). I am what is to be known, I am the purifier, I am the Oàkära, and Åk, Säma, and
Yajur Vedas.
6) te t< Éu®va SvgRlaek< ivzal<<
]I[e pu{ye mTyRlaek< ivziNt ,
@v< ÇyIxmRmnuàpÚa
gtagt< kamkama lÉNte. 21.
te taà bhuktvä svargalokaà viçälaà
kñéëe puëye martyalokaà viçanti
evaà trayédharmamanuprapannä
gatägataà kämakämä labhante Verse 21
te te – they; tm! tam – that; ivzalm! viçälam – vast; SvgR-laekm! svarga-lokam – heavenly world;
Éu®va bhuktvä – having enjoyed; ]I[e pu{ye kñéëe puëye – when their puëya is exhaused; mTyR-
laekm! martya-lokam – the world of mortals; ivziNt viçanti – enter; @vm! evam – in this
manner; ÇyI-xm¡ AnuàpÚa> trayé-dharmam anuprapannäù – following the rituals in the three
Vedas; kam-kama> käma-kämäù – those who are desirous of pleasures; gt-Aagtm! gata-ägatam
– the state of coming and going, saàsära; lÉNte labhante – attain
These people, having enjoyed that vast heavenly world, enter the world of mortals, when
their puëya is exhausted. In this manner, following the rituals in the three Vedas, those
who are desirous of pleasures, attain the state of coming and going, saàsära.
7) AnNyaiíNtyNtae ma< ye jna> pyuRpaste,
te;a< inTyaiÉyu´ana< yaeg]em< vhaMyhm!. 22.
ananyäçcintayanto mäà ye janäù paryupäsate
teñäà nityäbhiyuktänäà yogakñemaà vahämyaham Verse 22
ye jna> ye janäù – those people who; AnNya> ananyäù – (see themselves as) non –separte from
Me; ma< icNtyNt> mäà cintayantaù – Inquiring into Me or recognizing Me; (mam! mäm) pyuRpaste
paryupäsate – worship Me, gain Me everywhere; te;a< inTy-AiÉyu´anam! teñäà nitya-
abhiyuktänäm – for those who are always one with Me; yaeg-]emm! yoga-kñemam – what they
need to acquire and protect; Ah< vhaim ahaà vahämi – I take care of
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If the verse is about jïänés:
Those people who see themselves as non-separate from Me, recongnizing Me, gain Me
everywhere. For those who are always one with me, I take care of what they need to
acquire and protect.
If the verse is about mumukñus:
Those people who are non-separate from Me, inquring into Me, worship Me everywhere.
For those who are always one with me, I take care of what they want to acquire and
protect.
8) pÇ< pu:p< )l< taey< yae me É®ya àyCDit,
tdh< É®yupùtmîaim àytaTmn>. 26.
patraà puñpaà phalaà toyaà yo me bhaktyä prayacchati
tadahaà bhaktyupahåatamaçnämi prayatätmanaù Verse 26
y> yaù – he who; É®ya bhaktyä – with devotion; pÇm! patram – a leaf; pu:pm! puñpam – a flower;
)lm! phalam – a fruit; taeym! toyam – water; me àyCDit me prayacchati – offers Me; tdœ Éi´
%pùtm! tad bhakti upahåatam – that which is offered with devotion; àytaTmn> prayatätmanaù –
of the person whose mind is pure; Ah< Aîaim aham açnämi – I receive
He who offers Me with devotion, a leaf, a flower, a fruit, water – I receive that offering
imbued with the devotion of the person whose mind is pure.
9) smae=h< svRÉUte;u n me Öe:yae=iSt n iày>,
ye ÉjiNt tu ma< É®ya miy te te;u caPyhm!!. 29.
samo'haà sarvabhüteñu na me dveñyo'sti na priyaù
ye bhajanti tu mäà bhaktyä mayi te teñu cäpyaham Verse 29
svR-ÉUte;u sarva-bhüteñu – in all beings; Ah< sm> ahaà samaù – I am the same; n me Öe:y> AiSt
na me dveñyaù asti – there is no one whom I dislike; n (me) iày> na (me) priyaù – nor is
(anyone) my favorite; ye ÉjiNt tu mam! ye bhajanti tu mäm – but those who worship Me; É®ya
bhaktyä – with devotion; miy te mayi te – they exist in Me; te;u c Aip Ahm! teñu ca api aham –
and I exist in them
I am the same in all beings. There is no one I dislike nor do I have a favorite. But those
who worship Me with devotion, exist in Me and I in them.
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10) i]à< Évit xmaRTma zñCDaiNt< ingCDit,
kaENtey àitjanIih n me É´> à[Zyit. 31.
kñipraà bhavati dharmätmä çaçvacchäntim nigacchati
kaunteya pratijänéhi na me bhaktaù praëaçyati Verse 31
i]àm! kñipram – quickly; Évit bhavati – he becomes; xmaRTma dharmätmä – one possessed of a
virtuous mind; zñt!-zaiNtm! çaçvat-çäntim – eternal peace; ingCDit nigacchati – attains;–
kaENtey kaunteya – O Son of Kunté (Arjuna); àitjanIih pratijänéhi – may you proclaim boldly;
me É´> me bhaktaù – My devotee; n à[Zyit na praëaçyati – does not get ruined
Quickly he becomes one possessed of a virtuous mind and attains eternal peace. May
you proclaim boldly, O Son of Kunté (Arjuna), My devotee never gets ruined.
11) mNmna Év mÑ´ae m*ajI ma< nmSk…é,
mamevE:yis yu®vEvmaTman< mTpray[>, 34.
manmanä bhava madbhakto madyäjé mäà namaskuru
mämevaiñyasi yuktvaivamätmänaà matparäyaëaù Verse 34 mn!-mna> man-manäù – one whose mind is fixed on Me; mdœ-É´> mad-bhaktaù – who is devoted
to Me; mdœ-yajI mad-yäjé – whose rituals are offered to Me; Év bhava – may you become; ma<
nmSk…é mäà namaskuru – may you surrender to Me; AaTman< @v< yu®va ätmänaà evaà yuktvä –
concentrating your mind in this way; mt!-pray[> (sn!) mat-paräyaëaù (san) – being one for
whom I am the ultimate end; ma< @v @:yis mäm eva eñyasi – you will surely reach Me
May you become one whose mind is fixed on Me, who is devoted to Me, whose rituals
are offered unto Me, and may you surrender to Me. Concentrating your mind in this way
and being one for whom I am the ultimate end, you will surely reach Me, the self.
` tTsidit ïImÑgvÌItasUpin;Tsu äüiv*aya< yaegzaôe ïIk«:[ajuRns<vade
rajiv*arajguýyaegae nam nvmae=Xyay>. 9.
om tatsaditi çrémadbhagavadgétäsüpaniñatsu brahmavidyäyäà yogaçästre çrékåñëärjunasaàväde
räjavidyäräjaguhyayogo näma navamo'dhyäyaù || 9||
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Püjya Swami Dayananda: Satäbhiñekam
The sheer aura of Çri Swamiji’s presence has touched millions across the world. This
Satäbhiñekam is an opportunity to all those who have always wanted to express their gratitude to
Çri Swami Dayananda Saraswati for having influenced their lives in some way.
The Satäbhiñekam celebrations on behalf of all the disciples, devotees and well wishers of Çri
Swamiji is from July 20 to 22, 2011 at Coimbatore. The celebrations will consist of Maha
Rudram, homas, Kanakäbhiñekam, Scholars’ meet, cultural programs, public felicitation and other
such programs.
Satäbhiñekam is celebrated for a person who has lived through 1000 moons. It is in our
tradition to seek the blessings of such a person by performing rituals, etc. for the welfare
of humanity.
About Swamiji
From establishing Arsha Vidya Gurukulams to initiating All India Movement (AIM) for Seva, from
convening to setting up Dharma Rakñaëa Samiti, Çri Swamiji has been untiring and unflinching in his
efforts to achieve the desired results. With his inspiring ideals, there is still hope for peace to prevail in
the generations to come.
The Early Years
Swami Dayananda Saraswati was born as Natarajan in the year 1930 in a small village called
Manjakkudi in the Tanjore district of Tamilnadu. Although he went through the routine of acquiring
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education and pursuing a career, the inner voice within propelled him to seek the ultimate truth of
existence. To answer this call, he set off on a journey towards the spiritual wisdom that governs the
philosophy of existence and the truth of the inner self. With the grace of great gurus like Çri Swami
Chinmayananda, Çri Swami Pranavananda and Çri Swami Tarananda Giri and after a number of years of
intense struggle, he ultimately succeeded in unraveling and assimilating the vision, the knowledge
revealed in the ancient scriptures.
“There is nothing as purifying asknowledge.”
The boundless compassion in Püjya Swamiji manifested in the form a desire to share this priceless fruit
of wisdom with the rest of the world. He started sharing this Arsha Vidya, knowledge of the åñis,
through his teachings to a number of committed fulltime seekers of this knowledge. Under his tutelage,
there are more than 200 disciples, who are renunciates, through the teaching institutions in India and the
US, who continue the tradition of Vedänta Teaching, in various parts of the globe. Travelling
extensively all over the world, Püjya Swamiji has enlightened and touched millions of people through
his teachings and his abundant love for mankind.
Seva Activities
“To live is to be a positive contributor. Something happens to a person when he or she is able to do
something for someone. It is something natural, an inner expansion. That is an indication of growth
because the essential nature of a human being is fullness, wholeness.”
Çri Swamiji’s initiatives are a translation of his extraordinary insights into noble actions. He is not one
to merely preach, his actions speak for themselves through the various movements that have been
pioneered by him.
AIM for Seva [All India Movement for Seva]
Recognizing the empowerment that only education can bring, Püjya Swamiji initiated the AIM for Seva,
whereby the lesser privileged children get access to quality education. Spread across the country with
more than 80 student homes and over 600 Sandhyä Gurukulams, it enables children to enjoy the finest
education in a residential atmosphere with total care. To penetrate the length and breadth of the country,
Swamiji envisions atleast one student home in all the 600 districts in India. Besides educational
institutions, AIM for Seva also manages hospitals, health care centres and self-help groups where most
services are offered free of cost. Visit www.aimforseva.org for more details.
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Manjakkudi
Dayananda Educational Trust was established to provide quality education to the economically
backward sections of rural Tamil Nadu, particularly Manjakudi and surrounding villages. The Trust has
enabled a model for rural education. Nearly 3,500 students attend schools/college daily and we provide
in one campus pre-grade to post-graduation education. Both the school and college offer co-education.
The trust has also under it the management, two other schools in nearby villages (Semmangudi and
Mudikondan). Overall, the schools and college serve the need of approximately 200 villages within a 30
km radius. By and large the student body consists of 1st generation students. We have both commuting
as well as residential students. The schools and college are run with high efficiency. You would be
surprised to know that there are nearly 3,500 daily commuters (students & staff) exceeding the village
population of 2,500. Four school buses are run by the Trust to address the inadequate public transport.
The Government furnished free bicycles to facilitate commuting from homes. Student volunteers
manage the student density during school start and end times. The facilities include a hygienic canteen
and adequate toilet facilities. Over the years, there is a steady increase in the enrollment of girls in the
college, indicating the progressive empowerment of women. More parents are sending their children to
schools and there is a greater awareness of the importance of education leading to economic well being
and improved standard of living. Further, there is also an increased awareness of health, hygiene, and
nutrition in families through students. The Manjakudi schools and college are indeed a good model for
replication in other similar rural areas. Visit www.sdet.in for more details.
Hindu Dharma Äcärya Sabhä
The Hindu Dharma Äcärya Sabhä is a unifying body that provides leadership, guidance and a collective
voice for the Hindus. It was formed in 2002. The uniqueness of it is that for the first time in the history
of India, heads of Hindu religious institutions have come together under one umbrella organization. The
Sabhä has presently more than 150 members who are maëdalesvars and heads of ancient traditional
institutions that are a few hundred years old. It consists of äcäryas belonging to all the ancient
sampradäyas of Hindu Dharma each having a congregation of millions of people.
The Äcärya Sabhä is a collective voice of the Hindus, making the Sabhä an apex body of the Hindus to
raise a unified voice against callous disregard of Hindu sentiments and adverse propaganda against
Hindu Dharma. Four annual conferences have been held since inception. One of the activities that the
Äcärya Sabhä is seriously engaged is in matters of religious endowments and temple governance in
many states. The Sabhä is also providing leadership at various levels including legal and legislative
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processes and in statutory changes in the manner of temple governance. It advocates temple committees
comprising local temple worshipping communities for transparent and accountable management. Visit
www.acharyasabha.org for more details.
World Conference
The World Council of Religious Leaders, incepted in the year 2002, is the outcome of Çri Swami
Dayananda Saraswati’s vision and mission to bring about a better understanding between different
religious leaderships through a process of dialogue. The dialogue meetings in 2008 with the Jews have
resulted in a historic declaration of mutual understanding. The process is now on with the Buddhist
Religious Leadership.
Dharma Rakñana Samiti
Püjya Swamiji’s Dharma Rakñana Samiti has its roots in Chennai. It was founded to preserve the native
spiritual culture of Bhärat inherited from the åñis and to raise the awareness among Hindus of the
Vaidika Dharma (a.k.a. Sanatäna Dharma). This Dharma which has percolated in every aspect of our
society makes all our pursuits as sacred. Our culture recognizes and respects divinity in every being and
in every aspect of the creation. Its objectives include implementing a variety of programmes to include
ostracized people under Sanatäna Dharma. Visit: www.dharmarakshanasamiti.org for more details.
Chariot Festival
Reviving the chariot festival at Tiruvidaimarudur, a renowned temple in Tamilnadu by undertaking the
construction of the chariot for Çri Mahäliìgaswami and other deities. A trust was formed with the main
objective of preserving the various forms of declining fine arts of our country. These fine arts include
wooden and granite sculptures, traditional painting, folk music and dance, puppetry etc.
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This trust has taken up as its first project the construction of five wooden rathas (chariots) for Çri
Mahäliìgaswami temple situated at Thiruvidaimarudur near the famous temple town of Kumbakonam
in Thanjavur District of Tamilnadu. Thiruvidaimarudur, a great sivasthalam, is known as
madhyarjunam and is said to be on par with Benares. Among the temple rathas (chariots) of Tamilnadu,
this temple’s rathas are very famous. The main ratha of Çri Mahäliìgaswami is one of the biggest. Due
to various reasons, all the five rathas disintegrated over time and there has been no rathotsva (chariot-
festival) at the temple for the past 74 years. A project was undertaken to revive these chariots and the
main chariot is expected to be ready by the year (2010) end.
Oduvar
Çri Swami Dayananda’s efforts towards the conservation and revival of arts, culture and temple tradition
remain unparalleled.
Setting up training centers for oduvars and appointing the trained oduvars to various temples sung by the
poet-saints known as nayanmars. The term Thevaaram is used to denote the devotional poems sung by
the three Saiva saints - Appar, Sambandar, and Sundarar who lived in the 7th and 8th centuries CE.
There are nearly 8000 Thevaarams. These hymns, together with the ones composed by 23 other Saiva
saints, have been compiled into 12 volumes known as “Panniru Thirumurai.” They constitute the
canonical books of Saiva Siddhantam and they are also an essential element of ancient Tamil literature.
During Raja Raja Cholan’s rule in the 11th century, Thevaarams and other Thirumurais were sung in the
Saiva Temples. With the loss of the royal patronage, there has been a slow decline of this tradition.
Oduvar Support Program in 2005 was launched to stop the downward slide of the ancient Saiva tradition
and to revive it to its original glory.The program consists of appointing oduvars in the Saiva Temples,
conducting annual festivals known as Thirumurai Thiruvizha, and honoring senior oduvars who have
dedicated their lives to preserve the ancient tradition.
Veda Paöhasälas
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Several rare Veda sakhas are now on the brink of extinction. To preserve them for posterity, Püjya
Swamiji has started many Veda Paöhasälas. Rare sakhas such as Maitrayani, Ranayani, Jaimini and
Kauthuma Sakhas are taught in addition to Vaikhanasa Agama in many places in South India with
Swamiji’s support.
Pürëa Vidyä
“One's wisdom and appreciation of beauty manifests through various forms of one's culture. And the
study of one's cultural heritage leads to the appreciation of beauty and wisdom in life.”
Growing up in modern India can be very confusing. The native forms of culture and religion are
challenged by other forms reaching the children through the global media. They have to now choose.
Without knowledge of the meaning of those forms, choosing is impossible.
Pürëa Vidyä is a program for imparting a value based cultural education to children. This program
offers an insight into the vision of the Vedas and the vast literature and rich cultural heritage of our
country in keeping with the Vedic vision. It is a guide for schools, families and communities that wish to
teach cultural heritage to children in an authentic, systematic manner. Children are taught our Heritage
through solving puzzles and playing games testing the memory and rational thinking. There is also an
elaborate teaching guide for those who wish to teach this to children. Visit www.purnavidya.com for
more details
Arsha Kala Arangam
Sri Püjya Swamiji says "Carnatic music is a sure means by which both the performer and the rasikas
could transcend the mundane world. Also through Carnatic music one is in constant with the ancient
dharma."
The Arsha Kala Arangam was established by Sri Swamiji to promote Classical Carnatic Music. The
"Arsha Kala Bhushanam" award has been instituted to honor renowned musicians. They are honored
with a purse and a citation. "Arsha" means "From the Rishis" and Kala means 'art'. Hence Arsha Kala
means Art from the Rishis. The title - Arsha Kala Bhushanam means one for whom Arsha Kala is
bhushanam (ornament) or one who is a bhushanam for Arsha Kala. So far 13 senior musicians (vocal
and instrumental) have been recognized with this award.
Sri Swamiji himself has composed many kértans in Sanskrit on different deities. Many of them including
"Bho Sambho ---" have become a part of many music and dance performances. These kértans are highly
devotional and profound.
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Sandhyä Gurukulam
Sandhyä Gurukulam, is a very unique project, impacting the lives of more than 10000 school going
children in villages around Anaikatti, Tirukkoviloor, Vadipatti, Usilampatti, Theni, Erode, Cuddalore,
Tirucherrai, Tirunaraiyur, Gobichettipalayam, Pazhaverkadu, Mohanur, Tirupattur and Nagercoil.. It is
an educational program conducted in the evenings in villages, and committed to a child’s Academic
improvement, Health and hygiene, Learning values early in life, Physical fitness and most importantly
and Cultural validation.
There are more than 350 Sandhyä Gurukulams functioning now. Teachers for these Sandhyä
Gurukulams Sandhya have been hand picked from remote villages and given a week’s training after
which they have started the Sandhyä Gurukulams in their villages. For more information on this
porgramme please write to [email protected]
Research & Publications
Publicatons
Arsha Vidya Centre for Research and Publication based in Chennai has published a number of books on
the teachings. About 30 books have been published so far. A list of the books can be seen at
http://collections.arshavidya.in
One of Swamiji’s unique contributions is the Bhagavad Gétä Home Study Course. The Bhagavad Gétä
has been a source of inspiration and knowledge for generations. Placed in the middle of the
Mahabhärata of Veda Vyäsa, it shines like a pendant jewel of wisdom. The ‘Gétä’, as the Bhagavad Gétä
is popularly called, carries a timeless message. The person to whom it is addressed is Arjuna, a prince
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and a warrior. At the scene of a great battle, Arjuna faces a conflict between emotions and universal
values. In this setting of war, Arjuna’s friend, Lord Kåñëa, becomes his teacher. Through Kåñëa’s
teaching extended over seventeen chapters of verse, Arjuna resolves his conflict and gains Self-
Knowledge, the essence of the teaching.
Bhagavad Gétä is a complete teaching including yoga (the preparation) and the Gétä Home Study
material is a great help towards that end. The course material, comprising of a set of 4 volumes, is based
on actual classroom teaching of the complete Bhagavad Gétä to students of a three-year program in
Vedänta. The study material can be supplemented with the set of 7 MP3 CDs that cover all the 360 plus
classes forming the basis for the home study material. There is also a searchable version of the course
material for those who prefer an online resource rather than books. This material is also available in
Tamil, Kannada, Telgu, Gujarati.
Small groups of 8 to 10 people called a Gétä Vicära Group come together with a commitment to meet at
a regular interval, like once in a week, and study together. One person plays the role of a facilitator and
the group members can choose to take turns playing this role. Each member in the group reads a couple
of pages loudly and then it is discussed. The group is helped by one of the Gurukulam’s teachers in that
area.
Research
A digital library has been established under the auspices of the Sruti Seva Trust at the Arsha Vidya
Gurukulam, Anaikatti. The purpose of the digital library is to preserve in digital format ancient
manuscripts that are on the verge of getting lost, to publish texts that are not in print and provide the
infrastructure for scholars to stay and do research. The digital library has digital images of palm leaf
manuscripts and paper manuscripts running to around 5 to 6 lakh pages and video documentation of
rituals running more than 100 hours. The collection includes texts from various branches of our ancient
knowledge. A team of scholars has also been formed as part of the research council.
Arsha Vidya
The word Arsha means ‘from the åñis. Åñi means the one who knows and vidyä means knowledge.
Ignorance of oneself alone is the cause of all human limitations and emotional problems. Right
knowledge of oneself viz. ‘I am the whole, I am complete’, alone frees a person from emotional issues.
Arsha Vidya, the vision of the åñis, is unique because gaining this knowledge one becomes free from
seeking and can make others also free. This knowledge is Vedänta.
Püjya Swamiji is an eminent teacher of Vedänta and an erudite scholar in Sanskrit. He has been
teaching Vedänta in India and abroad for about half a century. A teacher of teachers, Sri Swamiji
designed and taught six resident in-depth Vedänta courses, each spanning 30 to 36 months and four
more have been conducted under his guidance. Sri Swamiji has also conducted numerous short term
courses ranging from a week to six months at the gurukulams (centers of learning) established by him.
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Püjya Swamiji has established gurukulams at Anaikatti,
Coimbatore (www.arshavidya.in), Nagpur (www.arshavidya-
nagpur.org), Rishikesh (www.dayananda.org) and
Saylorsburg, PA USA (www.arshavidya.org)
Püjya Swamiji says, “As a student I recognized that for a
seeker to study Vedänta is not simple – one needs a good
teacher, a place to stay, food – each one of these requires
grace”. Not many such places are available.” This, according
to Püjya Swamiji, is the reason behind the establishment of
these institutions.
Many graduates from these courses are now äcäryas, many of
them renunciates, teaching around the world. Students come
from all over the world. The only requirement is a sincere
desire and commitment for gaining this knowledge.
Quotes by Püjya Swamiji
Just as darkness, no matter how long it has existed, is removed
instantly by light, so too ignorance, which is beginningless, is
removed immediately by knowledge.
Nothing except knowledge can purify your heart. The Lord is
in the form of knowledge, which is unsullied by ignorance.
Ignorence is the bondage, so knowledge is the Liberation.
Ignorence is Universal, Knowledge is also universal.
Oà represents the underlying order that sustains all creation,
and to one who understans the true significance of the word, it
is indeed the name of the Lord.
One has to see the beauty of Prayer. Here, the will willingly submits. The submission performs the
miracle.
Living begins when one contributes something that will bring about more happiness, more wisdom and
more freedom. Until then one merely drags one’s life.
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Our Swamiji Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
Incomparable
Çri Çaìkaracärya, while attempting to describe his teacher, says in one place that he finds no illustration
adequate to describe sadguru, the giver of the knowledge of the self. How about a philosopher’s stone?
Is it not great that it converts a piece of iron into gold? Yes, a philosopher’s stone is indeed great, but not
great enough to stand as a comparison to the guru. Why? Because a philosopher’s stone cannot create
another philosopher’s stone, while my teacher converts the disciple into a teacher like himself. And so
this teacher is incomparable.
We were no better than a piece of iron, all dark about the purpose and truth of life, when we went to our
teacher. We did not know where we were going and what we were worth. Simply by the grace of God,
we happened to take refuge at the feet of Swamiji and were stunned by what was revealed to us: “You
already are what you have been searching for all along. There is no question of acquiring something you
do not have; it is a matter of recognizing what you have---what you are—and owning it up. There is
nothing to be done; there is something to be known in life. You are already full, complete.
Incompleteness and inadequacy are merely notions arising from ignorance of the true nature of the self,
the self that is constantly being experienced but not recognized. The self is to be known; it is not to be
experienced because the self is constantly being experienced—no experience can take place without the
self being there. The experiences you already have are to be understood. So stop searching or looking
for the self. Recognize the self that is ever present, self-evident, self-shining.”
This direct and clear teaching lifted the veil. All of a sudden, life became meaningful. After all, I am not
worthless, which so far I thought I was. There had been a constant struggle to achieve something, to
become something, to prove myself. There had always been an undercurrent of self –condemnation,
self-rejection. The mind was instantly relieved of this entire burden and was poised to see the beauty, the
glory, of the self. Thus the teacher first converts the iron, dark and worthless, into gold, shining and
precious, by unfolding the fact that iron is false and gold is the reality. Then he proceeds to convert this
gold, the enlightened student, into a philosopher’s stone, a teacher, by giving him an insight into the
methodology of unfolding the vision of the scriptures.
The Guru
Swamiji fills up the word guru. It is said that the letter gu stands for darkness or ignorance and the letter
ru stands for light or knowledge that dispels the darkness. Guru is therefore the one who dispels the
darkness of ignorance in the heart of the disciple. This great task requires a teacher who is a çrotriya,
one having an in-depth knowledge of the scriptures and possessing the art of communication, and a
brahmaniùñha, one who is rooted in the Truth, reflecting the beauty of the Truth in word and deed. For
such a teacher, teaching is a joy because he has only to unfold himself. The Truth is unfolded as the self
of the teacher that is non-different from the self of the taught. Therefore, the student finds his own self
being unfolded by the teacher; he finds his own reflection in the words of the teacher. This is what
we found while listening to Swamiji.
The teacher is the embodiment of the Truth. Swamiji stands before the student as an embodiment of
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what the student is seeking, of what the student wants to become. Therefore, as students, the task is easy:
simply compare notes with the living illustration. The joy and simplicity radiating from the personality
are a source of inspiration as well as solace when needed.
Ocean of Compassion
What makes such a mahatma teach, organize, constantly act, and thus apparently undergo a lot of strain?
It is the love for people, for teaching, and for the tradition. Çri Çaìkaracärya describes a teacher as an
ocean of compassion for no reason. What reason can we assign to the spring that comes and spreads
freshness and joy and enthusiasm all around? Compassion is natural for a mahätmä who reaches out to
people to help them.
When our Swamiji talks to an audience, everyone is taken as one qualified to learn. Swamiji used to say,
“Never dismiss a listener as incompetent to learn. Everyone can learn.” And so we find Swamiji taking
great pains to communicate the ideas. And teaching does not merely stop at communication with words.
It is molding the personality of the student, like a sculptor who carves a beautiful form out of rough
stone. A sculptor only deals with a stone that is inert, that yields, that does not offer any resistance,
while here, the teacher has to deal with live people who very often resist and react. But we never saw
Swamiji losing his patience with anyone. Swamiji does not dismiss even one who is openly hostile. Very
often, Swamiji even takes all the blame upon himself, to protect the student, so that the student is not
discouraged. Swamiji emphasizes accommodation, just as space accommodates everything, the good
and the bad. But here we find something more: a concern that shows the heart of a mother.
Torchbearer of Tradition
Swamiji has a deep commitment to the scriptures and the tradition. çruti is the only pramäëa, the only
valid means of knowledge to reveal the Truth. Çruti’s statements are couched in the language of
paradoxes and so the teacher must handle them properly, must create a proper context, and make the
student see the meaning. The one who is blessed by Mother Çruti alone can do this. To that one alone
does Çruti reveals herself. Swamiji obviously enjoys the grace of the Çruti and the mother freely flows
from the tongue of this worthy son in the form of jïäna-gaìgä.
Swamiji takes pride in declaring that he belongs to the age-old tradition of guru-çiñyä-paramparä and
that none of his ideas is original. Very often Swamiji used to point out Upaniñads and bhañyäs as the
source of various ideas. The deep love and reverence for tradition inspires, in the hearts of the students,
a similar love and respect for the scriptures and tradition.
Swamiji’s words exhibit a great clarity, firmness, and conviction arising from the intimate knowledge
free from doubts and vagueness. Swamiji is able to adhere to the tradition without taking refuge in
technicalities. Every word is used deliberately and appropriately. Teaching, for Swamiji, is an art, a deep
insight into the scriptures, a keen observation of life, a thorough understanding of the human mind, a
love for life, and a joy of teaching—all these make listening to Swamiji a treat.
A great deal of confusion prevails regarding the true significance of all the important concepts of
Vedänta such as karma yoga, bhakti, knowledge, and meditation. Karma yoga is often interpreted as
performing action without expectation of results; bhakti is thought to be a separate path for emotional
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people; knowledge is thought to be a mystical experience and so on. These misconceptions create
tension and conflicts in the minds of people. Swamiji takes pains to clarify these concepts, a proper
understanding of which is absolutely necessary. Thus, the tradition gets a new lease through Swamiji.
A Sädhu
What is most important is that Swamiji is a sädhu. Sädhu means a simple person who has a heart free
from conflicts and angularities and a conduct that shows an alignment between thought, word, and deed.
Life is open and simple. There is no stiffness, and love and kindness are just natural. Further, there is an
acceptance of the other person as he or she is so that no one has any difficulty in relating with Swamiji.
Everyone has an “entry” with Swamiji and whoever comes in contact with him experiences a warmth
and concern. The very presence of the mahatma relieves the mind of worries and anxieties.
In the words of Kaöhopaniñad, the teacher is a wonder and we are indeed privileged to be the disciples of
this great teacher. As a brahmacärini once said “There is one wonder that even Swamiji does not
know—that of being Swamiji’s disciple.”
Question: When I use my free will and perform an action, am I not still acting under the influence of
destiny?
Answer by Swami Viditatmananda:
This is a question that is asked often. What is freewill and what is destiny? Is an action performed out of
free will or does destiny make me perform the action in a particular way? We cannot really declare what
the extent of free will is and what the extent of destiny is. Both are present in our lives. We have to
accept the many things that we cannot control as being destiny. On the other hand, there are a few
things we can control and our freewill comes into play when we do control them in a given situation.
There is thus some freewill and some destiny in every action. However, it is difficult to determine the
extent of destiny and freewill in our actions.
When I act out of an impulse, I don’t use my free will. For example, if I act out of anger, jealousy, or any
one of these reactions, it is my impulse and not my freewill that determines what I do. We have the
freedom to use our freewill if we choose to, and perform an action in keeping with Dharma. In fact, each
one of us knows what the right thing to do in most situations is. Even when I am about to hurt someone,
something within tells me that it is a wrong action, for the simple reason that I myself do not want to be
hurt. There is an inner voice that tells me that my action is wrong. I have the freedom to listen to that
voice and act accordingly. This is the use of freewill. I am conscious of what is right and what is wrong
and I have the freedom to do what is right. Sometimes we submit to our impulses, which are the result of
our past actions. We do not exercise our freewill then and, thus, do not benefit from having freewill.
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Çänti Mantra : Oà saha nävavatu
Püjya Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
` sh navvtu, sh naE Éun´… , sh vIy¡ krvavhE, tejiSvnavxItmStu, ma iviÖ;avhE.
` zaiNt> zaiNt> zaiNt>.
oà saha nāvavatu, saha nau bhunaktu , saha vīryaṁ karavāvahai, tejasvināvadhītamastu
mā vidviṣāvahai. oà śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
This is a very famous prayer from the Vedas. It is traditional to chant a prayer before starting any
activity, particularly before starting the study. This prayer is traditionally recited both by the teacher as
well as by the student.
Saha nävavatu, may the Lord protect us both. What is meant by protecting with reference to the study?
When the teacher is unfolding something, he is trying to communicate, and the student is making an
attempt to listen and understand. When this process of communication takes place, it is necessary that
our mind should be free from other distractions. Sometimes it is difficult for us to keep our mind free
from distractions because there may be many things that are weighing on our minds, and therefore both
the teacher and the student pray that the lord protect them. May He protect us from any disturbing
thoughts, or any negative tendencies!
Our mind needs protection. Often our mind is compared to a garden. A gardener cultivates flowers and
very nice plants in his garden. He needs to protect these plants from the animals which may come in and
perhaps disturb and destroy the plants. Particularly, in a country like India, you could have cows or goats
or other animals which may enter your garden and perhaps destroy the plants. Therefore it is necessary
to have fencing around the garden to keep them away. Similarly our mind is like a garden where we
want to sow and cultivate beautiful flowers in the form of thoughts and this garden needs protection
from the negative thoughts which can come and disturb them. Therefore it is necessary to have fencing.
That is why we pray that our mind be protected from the assaults of any negative thoughts or negative
tendencies.
Saha nau bhunaktu, may He nourish us both, the teacher and the student. What is meant by nourishing
with reference to the study? In order to cultivate the plants and the flowers in the garden, in addition to
the protection from animals, we also need to provide nourishment with the right kind of soil, fertilizer,
water etc. Similarly in addition to the protection from the assault of negative thoughts, our mind needs
the nourishment of good thoughts. So we pray saha nau bhunaktu, may He nourish us both with good or
positive thoughts, and with a frame of mind which is conducive to learning.
Saha vīryaṁ karavāvahai, may we both strive together. The teacher should make a sincere attempt to
communicate in a manner that the student can grasp. That communication should be with care and
compassion and concern for the student. On the part of the student also there is an attempt to give
benefit of doubt to the teacher, and have a positive or open mind to receive, appreciate and accept the
knowledge. Thus in order for the communication to take place effectively, it is necessary that the teacher
should have certain attitudes, and the student also should have certain attitudes. Therefore, both the
student and the teacher pray, may we both strive together! May we have this right kind of attitude in
order that the communication can effectively take place!
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Vasudevsut< dev< k<sca[UrmdRnm! , devkIprmanNd< k&:[< vNde jgÌuém!
vasudevasutaà devaà kaàsacäëüramardanam
devaképaramänandaà kåñëaà vande jagadgurum
I salute Kåñëa, the Lord, the teacher of the world, son of Vasudeva,destroyer of Kaàsa and
Cäëüra,and the greatest joy of DevakÞé.
Tejasvināvadhītamastu, may we become brilliant! May whatever we study reflect in our understanding,
in our own life! That is the way the study becomes brilliant. When I understand what is taught by the
teacher, I see the relevance of that teaching in my own life. I need adequate understanding, commitment
and strength to put the knowledge into practice so that my life becomes a process of learning and
growing. There should be a recognition that the human being is here primarily to grow -- grow our
personality, and grow our good qualities. The scriptures explain to us that there is a treasure of all the
goodness within every living being. May our life become a process of invoking and bringing to
manifestation that goodness or wholeness which is the inherent nature of our self! May what we learn
here help us in living our life properly so that our life becomes good, bright and brilliant!
Mā vidviṣāvahai, may we not have any misunderstanding with each other. The teacher and the student
both are praying that they may not have any misunderstanding about each other. When the teacher
communicates, he or she is trying to present a certain view point. When the student receives the
teaching, it is possible that he perceives it from a different view point and perhaps interprets what is said
in a manner different from what was meant by the teacher. When communication takes place between
two individuals through words, it is possible that what is understood by the listener is different from
what is meant to be conveyed by the speaker. Sometimes the students feel hurt. Sometimes they feel
being targeted. These kinds of feelings sometimes arise in the mind of the listener and let this not
happen. Let the teacher have that kindness, compassion, care and concern for the student or the listener.
The students or listeners, in turn, have a respect or reverence or openness with reference to the teacher,
so that a right kind of atmosphere is created for the communication to take place effectively.
Oà śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ. Let there be peace, let there be peace, let there be peace. Let there not be any
disturbances to the peace of our mind. We recognize that the peace of our mind can be disturbed from
three possible sources. I myself can be a source of my own disturbance. Perhaps there maybe some
physical pain, or there may be some emotional difficulty and these can disturb the composure of my
mind, and then it is difficult for me to listen and to grasp. There may be disturbance from the
environment, such as noise, other people. Or there can be disturbance from unknown sources too. So we
pray that there be no disturbances from within, from without and from unknown sources. May the mind
of both the teacher and the student, enjoy that peace and tranquility.
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Saïcita, prärabdha, kriyamäna and ägämi-karma
Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
Karma means action. Here karma is action that is deliberately performed by a human being with a sense
of kaåtrtvam or doership. Any action that is deliberately performed by us is an action that brings about a
result. It is an action for which we are accountable. An involuntary action like breathing etc. does not
produce any result because there is no sense of kaåtrtvam or doership involved in it. That is why if
somebody who is fast asleep kicks his neighbor we do not hold him accountable for it because he did not
intend to do it. Even in a court of law, if it can be proven that some crime was committed by a person
when he was not in his right mind he may either not be punished or get reduced punishment. That is why
the defense lawyer will also try to prove that his client was provoked, or did not intend to commit a
crime, or something or the other like that. The idea is that only an action intentionally done makes one
accountable and produces a result.
An action that is in keeping with dharma or righteousness produces what we call puëya or virtue. If that
action is in violation of dharma, it creates the opposite. Therefore, puëya and päpa, virtue and vice, are
the results of actions that are either righteous or otherwise.
As human beings, we are constantly performing these deliberate actions. One of the main reasons why
actions are performed is the fulfillment of desires. We are born with all kinds of needs. We are born
needy and most people also die needy. As these needs arise in the mind, the mind is prompted or
sometimes compelled to perform the action to fulfill the needs or desires. Therefore, actions are usually
performed as motivated by desires, by needs, or by expectations or demands. Since there is no end to
desires, the fulfillment of one desire brings in its wake another desire. That being the case, human beings
are continuously performing actions from birth to death. And, therefore, we keep on accumulating the
fruits of these actions. The one who has a sense of doership and has performed the action is accountable
for experiencing the results.
The next question is, “When will these actions give rise to results?” That depends upon the kind of
action that has been performed. It is like asking when a given seed will result in fruit. That depends upon
the kind of seed it is. Certain seeds bring forth fruits in about a year or two. Other seeds take a few years
longer, perhaps five years or even ten. It depends entirely upon the seed. For instance, it may take a
mango tree five years of growing before you get mangoes, while it takes a banana or plantain about two
years to produce fruit; some seeds fructify soon and some take time. Similarly, there is no rule that an
action that is performed now will produce results immediately. Some actions do give immediate results.
Eating food appeases hunger as an immediate result. But when I perform an action of charity, service, or
worship, it will produce results only in its own time. By the same token, if I hurt somebody, steal
something or cheat somebody those actions will also bring about results in their own time. Therefore, of
the number of actions that we perform during this lifetime, there are many that yield results in this
lifetime itself, while there are many others that will perhaps not fructify during this lifetime.
One may ask what happens to those actions, which do not fructify in terms of results during this
lifetime? They are stored in an ‘account’ for us to experience their outcome in the future. And, therefore,
those results will be experienced in a future lifetime. It can be the following lifetime or a future lifetime;
we do not know. We call them accumulated results or accumulated actions. The accumulated actions,
which are waiting to fructify in the future, are called ‘saïcita-karma’. Saïcita means that which is
accumulated. A saïcaya-is a collection. Saïcita is that which is collected or accumulated. Now, there is
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no beginning to this creation. Therefore, each one of us must have gone through countless human births
and, therefore, performed countless actions. It is therefore possible that there are countless actions in our
‘account’ that are waiting to fructify. Theoretically, this can result in countless births; there is no end to
the process of exhausting the results of the actions we have performed because we do not know how
many they are. Not only that, but in the very process of experiencing the result of an action, I perform
some more actions.
These actions also add up, and thus we accumulate a huge store of saïcita-karma. It is like a certain
amount of my salary getting automatically deposited in the bank every month. The amount in the bank
accumulates each month. Some of that accumulated fund is invested in short or long term deposits for a
period of five years, ten years, fifteen years, or even thirty years. Therefore, periodically, some part of
that invested money results in the maturity of a deposit and then I get back that chunk of money.
Similarly, of all the karma that accumulates, the result of some of it may ‘mature’ and I then get the
result of those actions. This is called prärabdha-karma, and is that which has given rise to this birth and
this life.
Of all the saïcita-karma, that part, which has fructified and resulted in this body and this life, is called
prärabdha-karma. It is prärabdha or prakarñana-ärabdham, that which has begun to fructify or produce
its effect. However, our ‘deposit’ continues even while we exhaust our prärabdha-karma in this lifetime
as we continue to perform new karmas. And, in turn, that which fructifies will determine our prärabdha
in the next lifetime. So the total continually keeps adding up. That is how prärabdha-karma works. As I
live in this present life and experience the effects of my prärabdha-karma, I continue to perform new
karma. Some of this new karma may yield results in this lifetime and some of it may get added to my
store of saïcita-karma.
The karma that I perform now are called kriyamäna-karma or ägami-karma. They are the same.
kriyamäna means that which is being performed and ägami means that which will give rise to result in
the future. Thus, there are three kinds of karma: saïcita-karma, prärabdha-karma, and ägami-karma,
which is also called kriyamäna-karma.
All action is karma, but it is classified into three kinds because we are experiencing the results of some
of those actions in the form of prärabdha-karma. To become free from the bondage of karma, all our
prärabdha-karma should be exhausted, which is impossible. The only way to become free from this
cycle of karma is to recognize that one is akartä, actionless, and recognize our real status in the sense
that doership is not our true nature. All my actions were performed by the ignorant ‘I’; the enlightened
‘I’ has nothing to do with them. This is just as in a dream I may do all kinds of things, which, at that
time, seem very real. The dream-karma may well even give rise to a dream result of pleasure and pain.
When I wake up in the morning, however, I have nothing to do with those dream actions or results
because the one performing actions in the dream is no more.Thus, when I wake up to my true nature of
being Brahman, all the actions that I perform as a jéva are applicable no more. Therefore, the knowledge
of the actionless self is the only means to become free from the bondage of action and its result.
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mUk< kraeit vacal< p¼u< l¼yte igirm, yTk&pa tmh< vNde prmanNdmaxvm! .
mükaà karoti väcälaà paìguà laìgayate girim
yatkåpa tamahaà vande paramänandamädhavam
I salute Kåñëa, the Lord of Lakñmé (wealth),whose nature is fullness,whose kåpä, grace makes
even the mute, eloquent and causes the lame to scale mountain tops.
Action versus Knowledge Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati
The Bhagavad Gétä says that there is only one path. It is the path of self-growth, which is the path of
freedom. So there is only one path of attaining the freedom. Karma and jïäna become stages on this
path. Karma means karma yoga. It enables me to acquire freedom from my raga-dveças, or likes and
dislikes.jïänais the subsequent stage of acquiring freedom from the remainder of obstacles.
Basically, my mind consists of 3 guëas, sattva, rajas and tamas. Rajas and tamas result in the raga-
dveças. As the likes and dislikes get subdued, my mind becomes sattvic. It enjoys poise and equanimity.
Karma yoga helps me achieve a sattvic mind, a cheerful mind, and a contemplative and thinking mind. It
is a mind where there is desire for knowledge. Jïäna removes ignorance and enables me to attain my
true nature. It thus also gives me the ultimate freedom, freedom from ignorance. So freedom becomes a
process. The first step to which is karma yoga, and the second step, jïana. So we do not look upon
karma and jïänas separate paths. We look upon them as one path.
In doing karma, it is not so much the actions that count, as the attitude behind the actions. This attitude
is also of the nature of knowledge. We have to know what the sense of duty is and how there is harmony
between the world and ourselves. We have to be aware of how the universe is supporting us, and thus
our actions should become a means of returning this favor. All this requires understanding. In karma
yoga, there is a progressive growth in our maturity and understanding. When karma is performed with
the right attitude, it becomes a means of knowledge. So karma yoga is not purely the performing of
action, or even the right attitude. It is also knowledge; the knowledge that I have progressively grown in
my understanding of myself and the realities of life. Jïäna yoga is the next stage of this knowledge of
the true nature of my self. Each stage serves to bring me closer to my awareness of my true self. Karma
yoga removes the bigger obstacles in this quest and jïäna yoga removes the finer obstacles.
It is like the tuning of a transistor with a big knob and a fine-tuning knob. Karma yoga is the big knob, as
it were, and you hear the music near your desired frequency, andjïänayoga helps in fine-tuning, so that
you can hear it properly. Karma yoga makes the mind sattvic, contemplative, so that I can experience
my self, which is my happiness. Progressively there is a desire to understand this Self. This is when
jïäna yoga helps with the fine-tuning, to reveal that the happiness is the very nature of my true self.
Therefore, just as the two knobs of the radio serve the same purpose, so also, karma yoga and jïäna yoga
are not two separate paths, but stages along the same path of self-realization.
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An Interview with Vijay Kapoor
Science and Nonduality Conference; San Rafael, October 2009
Çri Vijay Kapoor took Pujya Swami Dayananda Saraswati as
his guru at a family camp the very first year Swamiji came to
the US. Later, Çri Kapoor was one of the pioneers to establish
the three-year course taught by Pujya Swamiji in Piercy,
California, started in 1979. To attend this course, he left his job
as a Marketing Manager for the Hewlett-Packard Company
and moved his entire family to live in Piercy.
After his graduation from the Piercy course in 1982, Çri Kapoor resumed his work at HP, and also
started teaching Vedänta in the San Francisco Bay Area. He took early retirement in the year 2000 to
devote his time to the study and teaching of Vedänta and Sanskrit. Çri Kapoor established the Arsha
Vidya Center (AVC), whose goal is to promote Pujya Swamiji's teachings in the local area. Toward that
goal, both Swami Viditatmananda and Swami Tattvavidananda have been visiting the Bay Area
regularly for talks, classes and retreats. Çri Kapoor currently teaches two Vedänta classes per week to
about 50 students, two Sanskrit classes per week and has established four Gétä Home Study groups in
the area.
Q. I would like to get back to the basics of the teaching – what is Advaita Vedänta from your point
view?
What we experience in our lives is diversity. And some of the diversity is unpleasant, and all of it is
limiting. For example, one finds a sense of unease in differences amongst people – ideas, concepts,
competition, and so on.
So what I find myself facing in life is diversity and some of it bothers me. If diversity were all agreeable
and nice then it wouldn’t bother me. But it is not always like that. One is born with a sense of isolation,
and always one tends to remove it. So really speaking, one wants to have peace of mind, when there is
no diversity, when one is just with oneself.
Take a feeling of love, for example. Supposing there are two people who are in a marriage; if the
husband and wife are fighting with each other – it’s a very unpleasant thing because there is duality.
They look upon the other person as something different from themselves.
If you are able to bridge that difference through love, it’s not just the physical embrace of two people
coming together but the fact that there is a lack of duality. This is very comforting, that you love
somebody. So you don’t have a sense of separation through any duality.
Having said that, what I find is that I cannot get rid of duality because the very nature of life is diversity.
So what we have is a very interesting conundrum because we love not having duality but we are faced
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with duality all the time. The answer to this is that diversity doesn’t need to be eliminated. It needs to be
transcended, by understanding.
Q. So the teaching of Advaita is not that the diversity doesn’t exist, but to transcend it by understanding,
so that it is no longer limiting.
Precisely. So the real meaning of nonduality is in spite of duality. Not the absence of duality.
For example, take a wave on the ocean; if it were conscious, surely it would be in sorrow. If asked for
the reason for its unhappiness, the wave is likely to say that there are all these other waves that are trying
to compete with me and I’m not going to live for very long because I’m going to disappear and I don’t
like it. I wish I were a bigger wave that can be there for long and dominate others.
Now a guru wave comes along and says, wait, there is a problem in your thinking. You have a notion of
isolation and it is not correct. The wave says, I don’t understand, what’s wrong with my thinking? Can’t
you see that I am a small wave buffeted by all these other waves around me and then I am going to
disappear?
The guru wave says, no I don’t see it that way. Why? Because you are putting the ‘I’ in the wrong place.
When you say ‘I’, you are putting the ‘I’ in the particular shape and form of the wave. Instead, you
should put it in the very content, the very reality of yourself, which is water. That is you.
That is indeed you; it is not the shape of you that defines you. The shape is incidentally you. But what is
intrinsically you is the very water itself; in fact, it is the same water for the whole ocean. It takes a while
for the wave to understand. But soon, it says, I see!
Now if I look at diversity this way, it is suddenly not biting. It is not fundamentally threatening to the
very existence of me. Once you understand that there is water that transcends the individual forms of the
waves, then there is an underlying nonduality in spite of duality.
That is our goal; that is what we need to understand. Advaita Vedänta strives to show us through this
teaching that within the entire universe there is one underlying, nondual content, which is 'I', the
limitless consciousness.
Q. Is there a reason why it is set up this way, to be tinged with problems and a sense of isolation?
This is a very good question. I am just going to tell you the way it is. It turns out that in reality there is
only one being in this creation, which is Ishvara, God. Only one being. Not many, separate beings but
only one being. And that being was never born, he or she was always there, never not there and has no
competitor because it is infinite, totally infinite. And so it cannot change or disappear.
It’s kind of like an ocean, a huge infinite ocean, with no depth whosoever. Now the question is, how do
you create diversity in that one, nondual being? How do you create a play in that being? The only way
that you can do that is to pretend that you are not the only being. So, like a painter uses colour as the
basic ingredient for painting, Ishvara uses ignorance as the basis of the whole creation because if the
ignorance was not there, if the play of ignorance is not there, you cannot have diversity. And so really
the only way to have diversity is to pretend there is diversity. This is very much like the individualistic
dream that we have. You know, in the beginning of the dream there is one person who is me – I lie down,
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and I dream. And now some interesting things happen – I create multiple characters and I am each and
every one of them. I am the person who is afflicted, I am also the tiger who is frightening me, or the
snake that is trying to bite me, I am also somebody else who is trying to save me. I am creating all of
this seeming diversity.
Q. In the beginning, when someone embarks on a spiritual path, it is usually precipitated by some form
of crisis, a distaste, a disgust for the world, a sense that one cannot take it anymore, for whatever reason.
The world is rejected. And yet you are suggesting the complete opposite – the way out of the situation is
actually embracing the world and learning to enjoy it.
Yes, this sense of utter isolation and rejection of the unpleasant experiences of life is just a subjective
viewpoint. It is ultimately a distorted view of what actually is. It is very understandable but the
avoidance of the world is not necessary. It turns out that merely a relook at the situation makes the
engagement with the world totally different and life itself becomes very pleasant. In fact this is the very
theme of the Bhagavad Gétä.
Q. Living in the world, being a householder …
Right. When Kåñëa explained the Self to Arjuna, Arjuna says yes, this is good, I like this. And then
Kåñëa says, there is no diversity, and Arjuna also says, yes, this is wonderful. Because of this Arjuna
says, I do not want to fight, I prefer to retire to a quiet place and meditate on it! Kåñëa says, not so fast.
Arjuna, you cannot escape the fight, you have to face it. You see, you have to engage with the world to
see that the world doesn’t bite – to retest your old ideas of what bites and what doesn’t in light of the
new teaching. If a person mistakes a rope for a snake, then the best thing for someone to point that out is
to take the person near the rope and show that it is not a snake; if one escapes from the scene, no words
are really comforting.
Q. I have certainly noticed in my own experience that I can subtly manipulate the teaching for my own
purposes to justify avoidance or non-engagement. But what’s really going on is there can be, say, fear
arising in a given situation, so I detach myself, when in fact it would warrant a facing the thing that is
provoking the feeling of fear.
Yes. This is a repudiation of the yogic principle of saying I am just going to quieten my mind and not
think about anything; any thought is not a good thought… but it doesn’t work. It just means that the
thought world is still too real to me. The trick is to see the non-reality of it.
It’s like saying in order for me to experience the water of the ocean, I want all the waves to subside.
The real enlightenment is to see that whether the waves are there or not, whether they are dancing,
prancing, making noise, it is the reality behind them that really matters and that requires thinking, work,
and dedication. Even though the principles behind them may be instantaneous, in order for me to gain
clarity, I have to do the work.
Q. The Neo Advaita argument that states you don’t exist, you are already it, feels like an excuse to avoid
any kind of work, any kind of discipline, any kind of practice. Indeed, the word ‘practice’ has become a
dirty word. People will say, oh you don’t believe in all that traditional claptrap do you? You’re already
free! And yet I still have the experience of being caught up in the illusion and not tasting absolute
freedom – how can that experience be dismissed or denied?
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‘I’ the self has no problems but ‘I’ the individual appears to have a problem so I have to see the
distinction between I the individual and the notions that I cover myself with.
Just by saying I am the awareness by itself is not enough; if I don’t see the truth in all of its
manifestations, I am fooling myself.
Q. So may I ask you about your own tradition? If I come to you in a state of madness and chaos, what
would you advise me to do? What can you offer me? How can you help me? What would you say to me
in order to set me free?
I think the first thing that I would do is to reassure you that I have the answers that can help you. Even
though I have not given the answers yet, you need to have confidence in my ability.
I start a new class every year. It’s very interesting to see the worried looks on people’s faces. They are
all sitting there thinking, who is this guy, how is he going to help me and so on?
I invariably tell them something that catches their attention. I say, you know I have never met any of you
before, this is the first time I have seen you today in the class but you’ll be surprised by what I am going
to tell you. I actually know you better than you know yourselves. They say, really, how? And I say,
because I know myself to a certain extent and the one that I know is the same as you.
What I say is I have to reassure them that I know the answers so stick with me for a while. Be patient. It
takes time. This is called shraddhä.
Q. So what would you prescribe for the ailment?
Listening to the right teacher, that is the only way. There are two aspects – one is to find the right person
who knows what he/she is talking about. There’s so much gobbledygook that goes on, oh my God!
But this is where Ishvara’s grace comes in. Initially, you do not know enough to test whether the person
is right or not. So a certain amount of serendipity, your past karmas if you will, get you to the right
teacher.
And the other is not to let go when you begin to sense the truth of what the guru is saying, and to hold
on to his/her tail tight. This happened to me. Once I met Swami Dayanandaji, within about half an hour I
could sense he is the right teacher for me; at that point I knew I would never leave him.
Q. So what is Swami Dayananda’s quality?
His knowledge, his impeccable logic. There was no question of mine that he could not answer. And by
the time I had met him, I had been enquiring quite a bit so I had some reasonably intelligent questions to
ask him.
This is one thing we have in our sampradäya – unlike some mahätma that may be ‘self-realised’ but
doesn’t have the ability to teach you - we don’t consider that to be a very useful person.
You know, you approach a well-known mahätma and you are inspired and think, wow, he is very
peaceful and so on. When I was in his presence, I felt so good. And then you go out on the street and
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there’s traffic and horns and so on and the whole feeling is gone. What difference does that encounter
make in your life?
So we have a saying in the Muëòaka Upaniñad (1.2.12):
parékñya lokän karmacitän brahmaëo nirvedamäyännästyakåtaù kåtena |
tadvijïänärthaà sa gurumeväbhigacchet samitpäëiù çrotriyaà brahmaniñöham ||
Examining the experiences gained by doing actions and meditation, make the discriminative person
discover dispassion. mokña, which is not created, cannot be gained through action. Therefore, to gain the
knowledge of Brahman, he must go with sacrificial twigs in hand to a teacher who is well versed in
scriptures and who has clear knowledge about Brahman.
There are two words used here: brahmaniñöa means clarity of the vision and çrotriya means that the
teacher must know the method of showing the clarity to a student.
This is where Swami Dayanandaji has become such an important person - he has taught thousands of
people, out of which I think there are about two hundred teachers or so who themselves have become
teachers with that ability. And I can see just by teaching how slowly we all improve. My own life is
getting slowly but surely better. There is no guesswork; it works!
Q. Ramana Maharshi talks about how a true teacher inspires the teacher within you.
This is what is called kåpä, which means blessing. There are different kinds of kåpä. There is çästra
kåpä, there is guru kåpä and there is ätmä kåpä. First the blessing of the teaching from the çästra
çästra – it has to be full and complete, it has to be with the blessing of the teacher because this is a very
subtle subject. So just by reading chapter one, chapter two, chapter three…, and be done with it, it
doesn’t happen that way. My doubts are so damaging to me that I have to find someone that I can trust;
this is called guru kåpä.
Finally, what Ramana Maharshi was talking about is ätmä kåpä, that is should be my knowledge, my
experience, my thinking, my clarity. Part of that comes from the fact I am so used to putting myself
down, thinking I am no good, how am I going to be able to do this.
Swamiji says forget about this. Just don’t have any doubts about it, have a clean slate and live the fresh
life everyday. And then the teaching becomes clear.
Q. So is it therefore vital in your opinion that a student needs a living teacher?
Yes, very much.
Q. It can’t just be an intellectual study, no matter how sincere?
No. This is the real meaning of the word sampradäya. It is almost like, for example, when you want to
be a violin virtuoso. You can learn some of the basic tones by reading a book and by practising on your
own but if you want to be a Yehudi Menuhin, with some subtle qualities, you have to be sitting next to a
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live teacher. You need someone to show you how to do it. That kind of interplay between two real
people is imperative. In all of our teaching, it is said that it cannot be done on one’s own. We all try to
prove it wrong – oh no, I’m different, I’m smart – but then you’ll live the whole life and say what have I
done? Finding a real teacher is absolutely crucial. It cannot be done on one’s own.
Attachment and Duty (by Swami Viditatmanandaji)
There is nothing wrong with attachment. Having some attachment is okay. Actually, without attachment,
nothing can be done. Nobody can perform their duty without attachment. For instance, one performs
one’s duty only towards one’s child; one doesn’t do the same thing for every other child. One does
something special for one’s child. A person does something for their own spouse or their own parents.
Thus, there is that attachment towards one’s own. A person has a special relationship with their spouse,
their parents, their children, their siblings, and their friends, and these special relationships will remain.
And where there is a relationship of affection, there is some attachment as well, which enables you to do
special things for them. Therefore, some attachment is always there in life.
Generally speaking, there is no life without attachment unless we are wise persons. However, we have
to draw the line somewhere so that the attachment does not become a burden. It is quite all right that I
am attached to my child because it enables me, motivates me, or inspires me to do something for my
child. But my attachment should not become a demanding attachment as in ‘I did all this for you. What
did you do for me in return?’ When I start demanding or controlling on account of my relationship, the
attachment becomes binding. As long as the attachment makes me help them or take care of them, the
attachment is okay. When the attachment becomes somewhat distorted and I start controlling them or
equating them to me, the distance reduces. At that point, I do not look upon them as individuals in their
own right; I look upon them as an extension of myself; I begin to see them in my own image. I think,
therefore, that if I am a doctor, my child should also be a doctor. If I am a so and so, I want that they
should also be a so and so. I begin to regard their success as my success and their failure as my failure.
This is called attachment that is binding. It is an attachment in which the one related to me ceases to
have a separate individuality and is as though a part of me or an extension of me. This kind of
rlationship causes unhappiness both to me as well as to the one to whom I am attached.
Understand that attachment in the form of care and concern must be there in our relationships.
Detachment does not mean that I don’t care what happens to my son or to the one closely related to me.
We cannot be indifferent. We have to be concerned. At the same time, if we can give them the freedom
to be what they are while doing what we want to do, what we need to do, or even what we would like to
do, it would be an ideal relationship; we would have the privilege of expressing our care and concern for
them and they would have the privilege of receiving that from us while, at the same time, also having
the freedom to grow in their own way. We facilitate, not control, their growth. We should be like the
gardener, who only facilitates the growth of a plant. He does not control it because he cannot control it.
If I try to control it, I would want to pull the plant out because it doesn’t grow fast enough! The plant
wants to grow where there is sunlight and I want it to grow where I would like it and try to twist it this
way and that. Similarly, we come in the way of the freedom and growth of those we love. Therefore, one
must recognize boundaries and draw boundary lines. All of these things require a lot of experience and
wisdom. It is difficult, but desirable. It is also easy to say and difficult to do, but then, this is what we
have to learn to do. From all our experiences, we must recognize what attachment does and when we
see that it hurts, we should pull back; we must recognize boundaries. We must value having healthy
relationships and keep watching and adjusting our expectations and behavior .
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tSmE ïIguémUtRye nm #d< ïIdi][amUtRye
tasmai çrégurumürtaye nama idaà çrédakñiëämürtaye
Salutation to Çré Dakñiëämürti (Lord Çiva facing south) who is manifest in the form of
my teacher.
Arsha Vidya Center
Souvenir 2011 36
Çré Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati, a disciple of Çré Swami Dayananda Saraswati, is an
outstanding teacher of Vedänta. He expounds Vedänta with a simplicity and directness that
make it easy to assimilate. Having studied and worked in the United States prior to becoming a
sannyäsi, Swami Viditatmananda is familiar with the lifestyles of India as well as the West.
With this insight, he reaches out to students across both cultures, with equal ease.
Swamiji is traditional in his teaching and preserves the entirety of the age-old wisdom of the
Upaniñads. He takes a contemporary approach in his lectures, which enables the student to
relate to his teaching and imbibe this knowledge without effort. Swami Viditatmananda is the
resident teacher at Tattvatértha, which is situated in the western outskirts of Ahmedabad in
Gujarat. As the name suggests, it is a center for learning the tattva, or truth, as revealed in the
Upaniñads and the Bhagavad Gétä. Apart from English, Swamiji teaches and writes in Gujarati
as well. He also conducts management seminars with a view to illustrate the relevance of
Vedänta in modern management. Swamiji visits the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam at Saylorsburg,
PA, every year, to conduct Vedänta classes and camps from spring through summer. At this
time, he also travels all over the US and Canada delivering lectures.
Swamiji is an ideal guru, who imparts the core wisdom of the scriptures and explains each
point in detail until he is sure that each person in front of him has understood. The depth of
Swamiji’s wisdom, compassion, and kindness brings great joy to his disciples and to all who
come in contact with him.
