Swami Suddhananda Ashram

I have previously written about the beautiful Suddhananda Ashram on the Adiannamalai side of the Hill.

The Suddhananda Ashram in Tiruvannamalai (which welcomes visitors) is part of the Samvit Sagar Trust, founded by Swami Suddhananada to reach out to people in all walks of life and enable them to live happily. The purpose of the Ashram is not only for imparting Self-Knowledge but also to promote Swami Suddhananda’s humanitarian vision by providing care for the under-privileged sectors of society through orphanages and educational institutions.

Swami Suddhananda

To find out more about Swami Suddhananda and his work check out this link here.



Suddhananda Words


Love for self: Everybody should love himself/herself. A garbage given to us is that loving yourself is selfish. That is rubbish. On an airplane, if the cabin pressure falls you're asked to first wear the oxygen mask and then help the child. That is not selfish, because if you want to help somebody, you must first find strength in yourself.

Happiness: Be happy, an unhappy man cannot give happiness to others. If he does, he will demand his pound of flesh.

Faith: Often, in the name of faith they ensure that your sense of self is sacrificed from childhood and your spine is broken. If you don't question god, how will you understand yourself?

Leaders: We lack real leaders; when a mob selects leaders, what kind of leaders are you creating?

Following rules: On a small road if two people ride a cycle, both will be very careful. But the moment you have four-lane highways and powerful cars, don't expect the fellow with a Ferrari to go in the last lane at slow speed. He'll go in the first lane at the fastest speed; he has both power and speed. At one point in society everybody followed rules but as more money and power came in so did decadence and degeneration. Don't expect the rich and the powerful to follow rules.

Essence of change: A small car can be made powerful by changing the engine, tyres, steering. But the driver must also change; otherwise, there will be havoc.

Yoga: Its purpose is to go into the stage of samadhi or absolute freedom. But today yoga is associated only with asana, out of the eight limbs people are stuck to only one limb and thus is yoga vulgarised. In the US they now have doga... yoga for dogs. When people come for yoga with their pets, the pets are taught doga!

Meditation: Meditation has become a business with gimmicks, a job... telling people hold your nose, close your eyes, listen to music, dance or stand on one foot. Temporary suspension for 15-30 minutes is touted as meditation. If suspending your mind for half an hour is so good, what about the deep sleep that god has given? Forget god if you don't like god... in deep sleep any average person is suspended continuously for 7-8 hours. If seven hours of natural suspension doesn't enlighten you, how will 30 minutes of suspension do that?



Upcoming programmes at the Ashram are as follows:


Health Camp-Diabetes Management from 11-11-2008 to 16-11-2008
Self Knowledge Camp from 20-11-2008 to 30-11-2008
Deepam Camp from 08-12-2008 to 14-12-2008

Contact Information

Suddhananda Ashram
38 Girivalam Road
Adiannamalai
Tiruvannamalai 606604

Phone Number:
+91-(0)4175-233553


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Most recent contact information for Swami Suddhananda is as follows:

http://selfknowledgeonline.com/contactus.php

SUDDHANANDA FOUNDATION FOR SELF KNOWLEDGE

3/143 V V V Salai
Suddhanandapuram,
East Coast Road, Uthandi,
Chennai - 600 119, Tamilnadu, India.

Phone: +91 44 2453 0638/24530813

Suddhananda Ashram

One of the prettiest Ashrams at Tiruvannamalai is the Suddhananda Ashram on the Northside of the Hill near Adi Annamalai. This Ashram is also known as 'Self-Knowledge Village'. Swami Suddhananda regularly visits his Arunachala Ashram to conducts camps and seminars on Vedanta. Such classes also take him around the world. Most of his time in India is spent between Arunachala and Chennai. When a Camp or Retreat is not being conducted at this Ashram, pilgrims are allowed to stay. Several spiritual groups (some from overseas) do in fact use this Ashram as their venue when visiting Arunachala. Such matters need to be arranged well in advance.

The Ashram is beautifully maintained and located at the right side of the girivalam path. However if your wish is to regularly visit other Ashrams and the Big Temple, the Suddhananda Ashram is probably inconveniently located for such purposes. This Ashram is located about 1/2 km after Adi Annamalai Village which would be about 6 kms west of Ramana Ashram and 6 kms east of the Big Temple and downtown Tiruvannamalai. However once people find themselves at this peaceful oasis, not many want to move about. An excellent spot for a quiet Retreat.

The below photograph is of the auditorium at the Ashram. It is available for quiet sitting, lectures and talks. A very calm spot.

The next photograph is of inside the auditorium. Even in summer with its open construction and cool marble floors, the room is a cool spot.

The ceiling of the inside of the auditorium is elegant and also very functional. The open grills at the top of the roof are in the tradition of Tamil architecture and building styles as the open grills allow hot air, which rises, to escape to the outside.

The auditorium has a beautiful collection of wooden murals, carvings, stonework and also brass and metal idols. The below depicts Krishna and Arjuna going to war in the Bhagavad Gita; which is a scriptural work that Swami Suddhananda frequently lectures upon.

The below is the dining hall. As is the case with the auditorium, the style is open plan with an elegant roof, stone pillars and in this case a granite floor. I've eaten at the Ashram only once, but it was delicious. I've been told that in the case of Retreats and large groups, different sorts of menu can be supplied. Otherwise the usual menu is taken from both South and North Indian cooking.

The below is of a couple of individual accommodation units with Arunachala in the background. The variety of accommodation units, ranges from single cottages to dormitory facilities. The maximum amount of guests that can be accommodated at the Ashram at any one time is around 70 people.

All around the grounds are nice touches, like this lily and lotus pond in front of some accommodation cottages. A very pretty Ashram.

If you would like to find out more about accommodation at this Ashram,individuals or groups can get in touch direct with Suddhananda Ashram to discuss their own arrangements. The Ashram contact information is:

Email:

samvit@vsnl.net

Phone Number:

+91-(0)4175-233553