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Jyoti Shakti Photo by Gisele

Biography Jyoti Shakti had a friend in Kullu who tried to convince her many times to come and meet Swami Shyam in India. It was not until Jyoti was sufficiently disillusioned with the artworld that she decided to make the journey. As a dancer with several contemporary dance companies across Canada, she had not seen anyone getting the freedom that she desired. Once she had started meditating, she was finally interested in going to India to meet Swami Shyam. Fortunately, she got a grant from the Dance Transition Centre to study Yog, and meditation in India. Once she sat in front of Swami Shyam, her whole outlook on life changed. She considers being able to go to satsang every day in Kullu, as a kind of grace. Written by Gisele Beaupre

Interview

Gisele: Jyoti, how long were you a professional dancer?

Jyoti Shakti: For ten years I was caught up in the artworld. As with so many people who are here, I had a definite desire to go to the source and find the truth. My conviction for a long time was that I could find it through art. I did make a great attempt to do so.

Gisele:  What changed your mind?

Jyoti Shakti: I became disillusioned with the artworld because I thought however many years I'd been in this business, I never really saw anyone getting anywhere, or at least not where I wanted to get, not anywhere that was satisfying me. Questions like; "What am I doing?", "How am I connected to the World?", or "What am I doing here?", weren't being answered. At a certain point, I had to go further, to find a venue where such information would be made available to me

Gisele:  Did Swamiji become this venue?

Jyoti Shakti: Yes, luckily my friend had come back, and he initiated me into meditation and asked me if I was ready to come. I said, "Yes." Two months later I was in India, sitting in front of Swami Shyam and my whole life changed. I sat and listened to his satsang, and his message was one of immortality. It was definitely what I had been looking for....I wound up in front of the being who had all the answers to my questions, which I realized very shortly after meeting him. This is definitely where I wanted to study. It was the next step in my life.

Gisele: How did your life change?

Jyoti Shakti: In 1989, five years ago, I came to Kullu for a month. Then I left Winnipeg and got a job in Montreal. It was a busy year, with intense rehearsals. It was a dance style known as 'crash and burn' and I was really into meditation and my life was changing quite a bit. It was a good company, but somehow it wasn't working, and by June I quit. I went to the Dance Transition Center. They gave me a grant to come here and study yoga and teaching techniques....Kullu is the most magnificent training school I've seen. I've never had a teacher like Swamiji. Yes, he is a perfect communicator because he lives his knowledge completely. He speaks only the truth of his being. It is that knowledge that I am trying to develop and what I have always been trying to do, no matter what I was involved in.

Transcribed by Gisele Beaupre

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