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Vinamrita Photo by Gisele

Biography Twelve years ago Vinamrita was in London, looking for an apartment. An artist by profession, she was rather quiet and shy, and hesitantly accepted to rent a room from a person who had been to Kullu. She came to like the people who attended the weekly satsangs, as she found them very down to earth, practical and caring people. Not liking to be pushed at anything, Vinamrita became interested in meditation when she had the opportunity to explore it at her own pace. Once she met Swamiji she knew her questions were answered, as the direction and meaning of life became clear to her. She went to Kullu a year later and now lives there year round, except for visiting her family in England every other year. Vinamrita now spends her time meditating, attending satsang, and teaching art to the children at the ashram, and is happier than she has ever been. Written by Gisele Beaupre

Interview

Gisele: So Vinamrita, you came to Kullu and then never went back to live in England?

Vinamrita: Yes, I had no real need to go back. My parents were curious, and six months later they came out to visit me. They were both very delighted with what they found. In England, I had been very quiet and shy and never sure of what I wanted to do. My parents had been quite concerned about me. When they came I was saying, "Yes, this is what I want to do and this is how I feel." I was talking, and expressing myself freely, and my parents were really surprised.

Gisele: What did they think of Swamiji?

Vinamrita: My father couldn't help recognizing Swami as being a very beautiful, and genuine person, and how much he had helped me.

Gisele: What did Swamiji do for you?

Vinamrita: When I was a teenager, I felt such an emptiness. After therapy, it was as if the infinite blue-black hole had been bandaged over for awhile, but was still there. I have since come to know that it was an expression of our own infinite being, but I did not know this at the time. I made me feel very frightened. I was lucky to meet Swamiji, who told me that our own true nature is pure space, infinite, immortal, and forever free. At first my mind did not always understand Swamiji's words, but my inner being kept on recognizing itself, and saying, "Yes, yes, that's it, that's it!" When I first met Swamiji, it did not seem to be a big thing; it was very natural. In retrospect, one can see how everything unfolds perfectly.

Gisele: How did Swamiji get you to speak?

Vinamrita: If there were speeches and I thought I would be asked, I would leave the room. Now I see it is a process, as the knowledge of Oneness turns our dualistic mind upside-down. I think for at least six months, I did not know how to speak in this new language, for I had no frame of reference. I just had to be there to absorb it, and then slowly I found I had more to say as my understanding and confidence grew. As the sense of who one really is becomes clearer, one does not have the same feelings of division when talking to people. Through the practise and study of meditation, one comes to know and live that sense of oneness which underlies all our different conditions.

Transcribed by Gisele Beaupre

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