Dear Beloved Sangha Members,
Hari Om.

We are delighted to share with you all that the United Nations has declared December 21 as the World Meditation Day. The resolution co-sponsored by India was unanimously accepted by the United Nations General Assembly recently. This unanimous acceptance by 193 nations is a true testament that the world leaders are now finally recognising the importance of meditation practice in holistic wellbeing of individuals, societies, nations, and the entire world. The World Meditation Day, which falls on the day of the winter solstice, will surely bring more awareness to the practice of meditation at a global level.

We are so very happy to hear of this wonderful news and extend our heartfelt invitation to each one of our AHYMSIN family members to come together in spirit and practice for this momentous occasion. At the Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama (SRSG) Ashram in Rishikesh, we will all sit together for 25-hours long akhanda (non-stop; continuous) meditation, beginning at 7 am India time on 21 December until 8 am India time on 22 December, for world peace.

The World Meditation Day shall serve as another opportunity and reminder for us to reconnect with the sacred, ancient yoga meditation tradition of the Himalayan Masters that we are all a part of and that beckon upon us to “practice, practice, practice”, as our Gurudeva Swami Rama has said.

Our beloved Swami Veda Bharati has written:

“The Himalayan Tradition of Yoga Meditation is distinguished in that it:
(a) is the first meditative tradition,
(b) is the most comprehensive, integral and all-inclusive,
(c) has given birth to the major meditative traditions of the world and has continued to enrich them all,
(d) does not require adherence to a belief system but experientially helps verify metaphysical reality,
(e) has an unbroken lineage whose continuity is ensured through transmission of shakti in meditative and initiatory states.”

As students and initiates within this ancient meditative tradition, we have received the blessing of walking in the footsteps of the great Himalayan Sages who have very lovingly illuminated the path of meditation for our spiritual upliftment. The illumination of their wisdom continues to light our way forward, and through our practices, we make an attempt to honour their teachings.

You are lovingly invited to sit in meditation, for as long as you comfortable can, multiple times throughout the day, wherever you are, in your home or with friends. Total beginners and longtime practitioners, non-initiates and initiates are all welcome. As Swami Veda has said, “Let the quietness of the mind continue even after you rise…”

This first World Meditation Day, would you also be celebrating with us? Do share how you celebrate this day with us, along with some beautiful pictures at ahymsin@gmail.com. We will be very happy to hear from our family members on this special occasion.

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Questions and Answers on the
Practice of Meditation

~ Swami Rama

What is japa? How does it help to deepen meditation?

Japa is the continuous mental repetition of one’s mantra. It is a helpful tool for keeping the mind focused on maintaining awareness of the center of consciousness. One can do japa all the time, in all situations and conditions. One of the best ways of doing japa is the silent technique of reciting the mantra without moving one’s tongue. The mind has a habit of always thinking of and obsessing about both the desirable and undesirable objects of events of the world. Keeping the mind busy doing japa is a useful accomplishment which counteracts this tendency. When japa becomes ajapa japa (spontaneous and effortless, going on by itself), it creates inner comfort, joy, peace, and happiness. If japa is done with feeling, and not mere mechanical repetition, it helps the student in attaining mahabhava (ecstasy).

In all spiritual traditions of the world, some form of japa is recommended. It is one of the great supports and aids for an aspirant of meditation. Japa can be done using a mala, which is a set of beads much like a rosary, or it can be done only mentally. If you use a mala, you move one bead each time you repeat the mantra.

What is the difference between meditation and mental japa?

Japa leads the meditator like a constant companion, helping the meditator cross all the intervening barriers to reach a state of silence. Silence is the greatest of all attainments. It is an experience in which one remains fully conscious and aware of the inner reality or Self, which is the Self of all, the universal truth.

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Beginning Meditation

~ Swami Veda Bharati

First Step to Meditation

Common to the practices of many schools, the first step to meditation is essentially awareness of breathing.

In this presentation, I would like to offer the first level of instruction in the method of meditation that anyone can start and practice any time and anywhere. It is seldom found in books and when suggested in books, it is less frequently properly understood. Yet it is so simple that I have found that even a three-year-old child can take to it.

Steps in the Method

I give here a systematic point-to-point method of starting the practice. Anyone at any age can begin; the younger the better. On the other hand, it is never too late in life to start. Starting even during a terminal illness will be helpful, and may prolong life, or at least it will impart peace. The practice should be done at least once a day, for whatever length of time is available.

It is not in the length of the period of sitting that success lies, but in intensifying the awareness, which comes gradually. One may also practice it at other times of the day, when one is tired and needs a quick recovery of energy, when one gets angry or frustrated and wants to be gentler, when one is busy and is consequently tense and needs to relax so one can be more effective. One may do it waiting at an airport, a railway station, or in a car when someone else is driving. There is no restriction and no limit. No harm can ever come from this practice.

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Meditation Makes Time for Itself

~ Swami Veda Bharati

In response to the frequently heard comment, "I don't have time for meditation," I say, first, meditation makes time for itself: it pierces the fortress of time to create fresh temporality. Second, meditation facilitates and hastens the tasks which previously seemed difficult and a time-consuming uphill struggle. Meditation creates time for itself.

What is time? Time is not the movement of a hand on the clock. It is a state of mind, a consciousness, and our time-consciousness depends entirely upon our view of life and our view of the universe. As we grow, our concept of time changes. Time, which is very long for a child, as from Christmas to Christmas, is very short for an adult. Time, which is like five hours when we stand for five minutes at a bus stop, reverses itself. When we are engaged for five hours in some highly pleasant activity, we are surprised because it passes like five minutes.

The greater beings, whose consciousness is not tied down to the human body, to human limitations, view time from an entirely different perspective. Meditation makes time for itself. It does so by increasing one's energy level so that less time is required for sleeping. It purifies the emotions so that less time is required for dreaming, day-dreaming, and fantasy. Fantasy includes reading stories and watching movies. This is not to say that one should stop reading stories – now, this minute! Meditation will change your inclinations. You will need less emotional outlets. Meditation makes time for itself by purifying your emotions so that less time is spent in that angry, vengeful, depressed, self-pitying, internal dialogue that we all carry on.

Meditation makes time for itself by suspending the sense of movement on which time depends. The existence of time depends entirely on the sense of movement in space. We experience space only because we move through it or observe objects moving through it. In meditation total stillness occurs. Where total stillness occurs, our relationship with space changes. As our relationship with space changes, the need for movement of the body is suspended. When the need for movement of the body is suspended, time stands still.

…

Here we come to the second statement: meditation facilitates and hastens the tasks which previously seemed difficult and a time-consuming uphill struggle. With much less effort things attend upon you when you have learned to meditate. If you sit to meditate, however, with the thought, "Panditji¹ says with much less effort things will attend upon me; therefore, let me meditate for fifteen minutes," it will not happen. You cannot bargain with God. You cannot sign contracts with God. You cannot say, "God, sit down and sign on the dotted line.” “How long do I have to meditate before you will start taking care of my affairs?” “If you don't sign on the dotted line, if you don't show a sign, then I will not believe it, then I am not going to meditate." This process will not work because you are imposing time, space, and causation upon the Transcendental One.

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Guided Meditation

~ with Swami Veda Bharati

A guided meditation practice on the “16 Basic Steps of Meditation” by our dear Swami Veda Bharati ji can be found by clicking on the image below.

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The Path of Fire and Light

~ Rabindra Sahu

Yesterday evening we spoke about how great masters as Swami Rama are like a living flame of consciousness, living flame of light and love. Today is the culmination of the yajna (fire ritual) that we are offering with the akhanda-mandalakaram mantra dedicating to Gurudeva.

Let us talk more about the fire rituals that are going on at the ashram right now and contemplate upon how we can connect with it at a deeper level, when we sit for the next session together. We can think of the fire ritual as the manifestation of the living flame that is within us, the living flame of the Guru force, the living flame of the Divine, the living flame of love, the living fire of tapas, the fire that purifies, the fire that soothes, the fire that nurtures and nourishes. The external fire (agni) is the manifestation of all that.

The akhanda-mandalakaram mantra acts as the bridge for our connection with the Guru force (Swami Rama and Swami Veda Bharati). When we chant the mantra, it invokes his presence and we connect with that "living flame" within our own hearts through that vibration, through that doorway. Before we go to the yajnashala, let us sit in deep reverence, and take a few deep breaths with eyes softly closed and listen to the mantra as it is being chanted.

Now let us set our own sankalpa (intention) silently, or softly state your intention. For example, one may say:

"With a heart full of reverence, I connect to the living flame of my Guru, Swami Rama/Swami Veda/the Guru force. Through this yajna, I offer my limited self into the fire of awareness, seeking to merge with the silence of the Supreme Self, seeking to merge with the divinity/Guru." This where we build an invisible and intangible bridge from our heart to the ritual.

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Updates about the
2026 AHYMSIN Sangha Gathering

We’re delighted to share that the ashram is fully booked for the AHYMSIN Sangha Gathering, and a waiting list has been started. For those on the waiting list, we are trying to arrange comfortable accommodation outside the ashram, so that everyone can still participate in the event and enjoy all the activities together.

We’re deeply grateful for the overwhelming response and enthusiasm from our global family. This gathering is a very special opportunity for us to come together in practice, reflection, and joyful connection—to renew our inspiration and strengthen our shared commitment to the teachings of the Himalayan Masters.

We are working with great care to ensure a smooth and meaningful experience for all our international family members joining us at SRSG. We eagerly look forward to welcoming you soon and to sharing this sacred time together in the presence of Swami Ritavan Bharati and the entire AHYMSIN global sangha.

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AHYMSIN Japan Retreat and Workshops
in October 2025

~ Yuko Metsugi

In October, we held a three-day yoga meditation retreat with Rabindra Sahu, themed “Bondage or Freedom – The Source of True Power.”　The venue, Retreat Dome “OR”, was surrounded by the Yatsugatake mountain ridges, where we were gracefully nourished by the prāṇa of Mother Nature, lovingly prepared Ayurvedic vegetarian meals, and the warm hospitality of the staff.

We began the retreat with an introduction to the Himalayan tradition and shared the systematic steps of meditation practice. The evening program explored the mind and its functions—how we can learn to use our buddhi, the higher mind, rather than being governed by lower tendencies. After evening prayers, participants practiced joints and glands exercises and haṭha yoga, followed by a guided meditation the next morning.

Through sessions on “The Essence of Being,” “The Life Force,” and “Liberation and Awareness,” participants gradually deepened their understanding of “Who am I?” — discovering the answer through understanding what we are not and recognizing our true nature. On the final day, Mt. Fuji revealed its beauty, surrounded by a rare “sea of clouds.” We embraced the moment as a blessing.

That morning, we meditated together by integrating proper posture, breathing, and breath awareness. The wave of breath and the sound of mantra gently merged into silence, filling the atmosphere with stillness and peace. Our final session centered on the source of true power, which is Love — the power that never changes but continues to grow as we rediscover its source within.

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Purpose, Practice & Inner Peace
in Malaysia

~ Tan Sin Yue (Gauri)

3-Day Immersion Course on Purpose, Practice & Inner Peace with Rabindra in Johor Bahru, Malaysia

We are deeply grateful to welcome Rabindra, a teacher from Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama (SRSG) of the Himalayan tradition, to The Seeds Iyengar Yoga Johor Bahru. He offered our students a truly unique and heartfelt inner experience.

The connection with the Himalayan tradition of The seeds Iyengar Yoga Studio Johor Bahru began from Dec 2019. We invited teacher Shi Hong to give a mandarin Yoga Sutra learning workshop. From there, the learning started and this year we again received the blessing from Guru, sending Rabindra to here.

Rabindra began by guiding us into the origins of yoga, its ancient purpose, and its relevance in today’s world—contrasting the essence of traditional practice with contemporary modern yoga. He opened our eyes to the many dimensions of yoga and expanded our understanding of its true intention.

Through engaging stories and everyday scenarios, he explained profound yogic wisdom in a simple, humorous, and relatable way.

After understanding the philosophy, he showed us how to bring small changes into daily life:

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A Month Filled with a
Sacred Sentiment of Love

~ Ilaria Sarri

October has been a special month for the Himalayan Yoga Institute of Florence, rich in events and initiatives to reconnect, to gather together, to share in the joy of kalyana mitras’ presence, and “to receive”, with deep gratitude, the guidance and the teachings of our International Teachers in the Himalayan Tradition: Rabindra Sahu and Stoma Parker.

As part of the initiatives dedicated to the celebration of the centenary of Swami Rama’s birthday, the month began with an online workshop with Rabindra Sahu, dedicated to the sacred theme of the “Divine Feminine”: with great surprise, more than 90 people attended the workshop, that was projected at the Institute for those who could meet in person.

Rabindra introduced us to the many possible ways to reconnect with the Shakti force, a welcoming, nurturing and transformative force of kindness, compassion, and love that each of us should learn to rediscover and to cultivate within: a non physical force, the union of the masculine and the feminine force inside each of us, the life force, an intangible and subtle force that resides within each of us. Rabindra invited us to contemplate on the importance to learn to reconnect with Her and to live our lives under Her Divine guidance. Stoma Parker opened the beginning of second year of the Italian TTP with an online session on the topic of mind and emotions: he went deep into the explanation of the connections between mind and emotions according to the Yoga Philosophy, talking also about the four primary fountains and how the awareness of their profound interconnections could help us in deepening emotional purification.

On Saturday October 25th the Institute organized a six hours akhanda japa to celebrate Swami Rama’s birthday and to reconnect with the ashram Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama, our spiritual home, where it had been organised a 28 hours akhanda japa. Teachers, students of the current TTP and members of the Institute joined the practice with enthusiasm and a sentiment of love, discovering the joy of deepening the practice and the feeling of a more profound connection to the Lineage.

At the end of the day the Institute was like a sacred cave, filled of silent prayers.

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3rd AHYMSIN Family Yoga Summer Camp 2025 in Greece

~ Sofia Foteina

3rd AHYMSIN Family Yoga Summer Camp 2025 in Greece from 31 July to 7 August dedicated to Sri Swami Rama, on the occasion of 100 years from His birthorganized by “Himalayan Yoga Meditation of Hellas”. It was a simple meeting of people coming to meet “their family”, which felt as if we knew each other before we met.

We have received the video about the AHYMSIN Family Yoga Summer Camp made by Panagiotis and Christos Fotinas Voinas. We thank them, as well as our beloved senior teachers, the participants, the organizers and junior teachers, for their offerings to make this event made of family moments that will be remembered as one of the heart - created events of our life.

Τhe participants came from different countries (England, India, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland, and Greece). We were all immensely humbled and honored by the online presence of our beloved Senior teachers: Stomaji (Stephen Parker), Carol and Charles Crenshaw and Sonia Van Nispen who were students of Swami Rama and Swami Veda Bharati (*). They told us stories about how they met Swami Rama and “How he raised us up” either by His presence or by his spirit. This was a way of teaching through experience and not through a lecture: A live suggestion to parents about how to raise their own children by their example.

The hours and days passed so quickly with three yoga classes per day, karma yoga, three hours that children with parents enjoying each other at the seaside, relaxing time during the hot hours of the day, one and a half hour parents’ time meeting online with our Senior teachers, while at the same time children enjoyed arts and crafts creation time. At the end of the day one hour for the whole family, with presentations, sharing ideas, chanting, folklore dances from each other’s countries. It goes without saying, we enjoyed three vegetarian meals per day by the blessed hands of Mr. Stathis, the scout chef.

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In Search of the Silent Mind

~ Jim Fraser

The Dutch Silence Retreat

There were calm September days for the annual HYMNS retreat at the Beukenhof in Biezenmortel. The lady officer at passport control at Schipol airport asked for my destination. Biezenmortel, I said with a smile. Where’s that? she asked. I have yet to meet a Dutch person who knows of it. Therefore. it must be the perfect place for a silence retreat.

The Beukenhof is a robust, stone-built former Capuchin monastery. Next door is a former nunnery and to the back a field of cows. On the bus to Biezenmortel you pass a large church. The area would have had a big rural population once, before the migration to the cities. Around you see thatched houses some with interesting modern alterations.

In an evening meeting the teachers gave funny, sober, playful and sometimes serious accounts of their experiences with silence. Reimke told of first experiencing silence as a child in church. That made me remember my own experience noticing silence around me. It was palpable, it came as I went about in sight of distant hills. Later, older but not wiser, I opted to read Kant’s Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysic where I came across the Transcendental Aesthetic in which space and time are inherent conditions of our thought prior to consideration of the world. Then it must follow that the space surrounding objects has an affinity with our consciousness. There is no separation, whatever the difference might be, for objects in space and the subtle sense of space within us. It is true we would not know our bodies were it not for the mind and our bodies exist in the space of our mind. But the consideration of space, offering unity of consciousness by its intrinsic nature can’t be the final condition of knowing. What is the condition allowing space and time to be? If consciousness of the world rests on space, what does space rest on? We are looking behind what makes knowledge possible here. What’s left after space? Silence. Think about it – there’s no thought there. Just silence. The deepest thinking is not reason but contemplation. Contemplation feeds on silence. I fancy all great philosophers east and west knew this silence and looked out upon the world from there. And this is where we were being directed at the Beukenhof.

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New Programs in 2026 at
Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama

We received an overwhelming to our events and activities this year, along with multiple requests to continue to our long term programs including the 84-Days Intensive Sadhana Retreat and the One-year Residential Program: Swami Rama Dhyana Gurukulam. We will be offering both these programs in 2026 as well, starting on the auspicious day of the Guru Purnima, 29th July 2026.

84-Days Intensive Sadhana Retreat

One-year Residential Program: Swami Rama Dhyana Gurukulam

Global Meditation Reminder

Full Moon Meditation
on 4 December 2025

New Moon Meditation
on 19 December 2025

You are invited to sit in meditation for an hour wherever you are, in your home or with friends. Total beginners and longtime practitioners, non-initiates and initiates are welcome. If you cannot sit for the entire hour, sit as long as you are able; as Swami Veda has said, “Let the quietness of the mind continue even after you rise...”

Global Meditations Schedule

Full Moon New Moon

Upcoming Ashram Events

Meditation and Its Practice

Mauni Amavasya Silence Retreat

AHYMSIN Sangha Gathering 2026

Himalayan Yoga Tradition -
Teacher Training Program Retreat

More Events

Upcoming Global Events

Yoga of Action in Thailand
with Shi Hong and Pandit Priyadarshan (Pierre Lefebvre)

For information and registration, you are welcome to contact: ahymsinthailand@gmail.com or visit the Ahymsinthailand Facebook page

The Light Within with Axel Byer

Christmas is the annual celebration of the so-called ‘Marvellous exchange’. That means that God became human, so that we might become children of God; the Divine Word came living among us human beings to uprise every man and every woman to Divine dignity. The Divine Light descended from heaven to enlighten and permeate the darkness of human existence, in order to lead us from non-truth to Truth, from darkness to Light, from death to Eternal Life.

Join this online open session with Axel Bayer on connecting with the deeper meaning of Christmas.

For more information, you may contact AHYMSIN Switzerland directly at ahymsinch@gmail.com or follow them on Facebook or Instagram.

Meditation and Silence Retreat with AHYMSIN Switzerland

For more information, you may contact AHYMSIN Switzerland directly at ahymsinch@gmail.com or follow them on Facebook or Instagram.

More Events

AHYMSIN

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Contact Us

AHYMSIN, Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama
Virpur Khurd, Virbhadra Road, P.O. Pashulok Rishikesh 249203, India

Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama