I had an amazing time visiting Purna Vidya Ashram in Coimbatore along with my fellow student Niraja Sahasrabudhe from Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. We have been part of Purna Vidya since 2021, as a part of Samskrtam study group. Since then, I have joined Bhasyam study and Tattvabodha classes online.
Ashram is surrounded by beautiful mountains and I was struck by the simplicity and beauty of the Ashram. The striking feature of the Ashram was the planting of 3500+ trees and the creation of forest in very short period of 8+ years. Forest was created following the vision of organization called “Siruthuli (meaning “small drop”) Clean Kovai, Green Kovai” to preserve natural resources along with Japanese method of Miyawaki, which mimics the way a forest would recolonize itself with many native species.
We were blessed with the company of Pujya Swamiji and Pujya Ammaji for two days. It was an experience of lifetime. Words can’t describe our joy. Meeting my teachers in person for the first time made me realize how blessed I am. We spent many hours and many meals with Swamiji and Ammaji. Ammaji had just return from USA trip but that did not slow her down. Ammaji took time from her busy schedule, so we can be part of the recordings of Taittariya Upanishad Bhasyam classes.
We attended daily pooja at 5:30 am and 5:30 pm. We also attended Shiva Pradosh pooja and Sri Rudram chanting on March 4th. Ammaji also presented a lecture on Introduction to Bhagvat Gita for a Gita study group. Ammaji gave us personal tour of lectures recording areas and her meditation room.
My special thanks to Sureshji, Renukaji, Arunaji, kitchen staff and many others in making our stay very welcoming.
