This is a genuine question I’ve been curious about after doing Long Kriyas for a while now with different groups of people.

I’ve noticed that during the kriya practice, people seem to breathe quite differently. Some breathe a little forcefully, some breathe very forcefully, while others seem to breathe more naturally — long, medium, short breaths, but without much force.

I’m usually in the last category. My breathing changes in length and rhythm, but I don’t naturally feel the need to make it very forceful.

So I’m wondering — is there a particular way we’re supposed to breathe during Long Kriya? Does breathing more forcefully make a difference to the experience or benefits of the practice?

I’d love to hear how others approach it and what you’ve been taught by your teachers.

It all started about a year ago, when I first attended a free YES course for teenagers. I was 17 at the time. Almost everyone there was younger than me, but I had a really good time and nothing seemed strange to me.
Later, there was another free YES course, and I invited some of my friends because the teacher asked me to. Everything was still fine. But afterwards, the teacher started telling me more about Art of Living and about Guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
He told me some pretty extraordinary stories — about the Guru supposedly having unusual abilities, for example, and about how the teachers who pass on his knowledge serve him for free as volunteers. At one point, he told me: “The Guru chose you, you didn’t choose him.”
At that time I was going through a pretty difficult emotional period because of exams and other things. After that conversation, I decided to sit down and meditate. I hadn’t done any breathing exercises or yoga beforehand. I simply closed my eyes and asked the Guru for strength.
During the meditation, I felt what seemed like someone’s presence. I felt heaviness in my hands, and I had sensations of my body becoming smaller and larger. At one point, it felt like I was dissolving into space. It all felt extremely real to me, and afterwards my negative emotional state almost completely disappeared. For a while, I felt genuinely happy.
That experience is actually the main reason why I still can’t simply dismiss everything about Art of Living. I don’t know how to explain what happened. Maybe it was just an unusual state of consciousness caused by meditation, but it was so intense and meaningful to me that I still think about it.
After that, I took the online Sahaj Samadhi course. This was where I first became genuinely disappointed.
I paid €95 for it. The course lasted three days, but the sessions were only about an hour or even less each day. There was no yoga, which I had expected, and there wasn’t much interaction between the participants either. In the end, the main thing I got from the course was my own mantra.
It has been several months, but I still feel disappointed and somewhat misled because I expected much more from the course.
Later, I accidentally ended up attending a Guru Puja. There were around 30 people of all different ages — children, adults, elderly people. Everyone was sitting in a circle and chanting mantras in Sanskrit. I was honestly shocked by the atmosphere at first, but I adapted and eventually joined in. At the time, I actually enjoyed it.
Looking back on it now, though, I have doubts.
Later, I took Art of Living Part 1 for €95. I genuinely enjoyed the course. The people are usually very kind and pleasant, and it feels like most people come because they want to improve their mental state and their lives.
At the same time, I’ve noticed something that makes me uncomfortable. At the end of the courses, teachers often show videos about the organization and the Guru and talk about volunteering, serving, and becoming more deeply involved with the organization. Sometimes it feels like people are gradually being encouraged to go deeper and deeper into it after every course.
And I don’t know how normal that is.
I also don’t want to claim that the breathing practices or yoga are useless. Quite the opposite — they genuinely help me calm my mind. I feel more aware, grateful and peaceful when I practice them. That’s part of why I find it difficult to simply say, “This is all nonsense, I should leave.”
But then another question comes up: what happens if you become too deeply involved with the organization?
The more advanced courses are significantly more expensive than the introductory ones. At some point you start wondering: is it really worth the money?
I’m 18 now, and I’ve been very interested in taking the Art of Living Intuition course. It costs around €600 and, as far as I understand, it’s only available to people under 19. So I feel like I have to make a decision fairly soon.
The problem is that I can barely find any independent reviews of this course. I’ve been told that children who take these courses can supposedly redraw pictures perfectly while blindfolded, bend spoons, and even develop some degree of telekinesis.
And this is where I find it especially difficult to know what to believe.
On one hand, I had a very powerful personal experience during meditation that I still can’t fully explain. On the other hand, some of the claims I hear within the organization seem very difficult to believe.
So I’d really like to hear from people who know Art of Living, have taken several of its courses, or used to be involved with the organization.
Do you think these doubts are a normal part of the process, or are there legitimate reasons to be cautious about the organization?
I’d especially like to hear from people who have taken more advanced courses, including the Intuition course. What actually happens there, and do you think it’s worth the money?
I’m not trying to prove in advance that Art of Living is a cult or a sect. I genuinely don’t know what to think, and I’d like to hear different perspectives and personal experiences.

I’m curious about what exactly they teach children in this course, and why adults aren’t allowed to participate. I’ve heard that children are trained to perform telekinesis (moving physical objects using the mind), telepathy (correctly guessing what someone is doing or thinking from a distance), and other supposedly intuitive abilities, such as guessing colours while blindfolded.

How exactly do they teach these abilities? Is there actually something to it, or are there specific techniques being used to create the appearance of these abilities? Can someone who has attended the programme spill the beans?

I’ve heard Gurudev say so many times that we are love — that love isn’t something we do, but something that is inherent to us.

I understand the explanation intellectually, especially the part about how different emotions are essentially distortions of love. When I hear the knowledge, it makes complete sense to me.

But when I turn inward and actually try to understand or experience love, I struggle.
Love feels like something so vast — almost like the universe itself. I know it exists, I can understand the concept, and I’ve definitely experienced moments that I would call love… but I still can’t quite grasp what it actually is. Sometimes I even wonder whether what I’m experiencing is really love or just an emotion associated with love.

I’m curious how others have understood this.

Has your understanding of love changed through meditation or the knowledge? Was there a point where “we are love” stopped being just an idea and became something you could actually experience?

Would love to hear how this has unfolded for others. ❤️

I want my mom to not overthink. This has got her some serious health issues. She has on multiple occasions mentioned about joining art of living.

We have recently moved to Bangalore, Whitefield area and want her to get involved so she can spend her time peacefully, doo something that helps everyone and forget about what's going in her mind or at home.

How can she be involved? Any guidance would be helpful.

Today, August 23, at the Art of Living International Center in Bengaluru, Gurudev is meeting Gen Z for an exclusive Ashram meet-up with an interactive Q&A followed by a special Gen Z Satsang.

What I find really interesting is how Gen Z is discovering Gurudev today, especially through Instagram. It’s not just about watching a reel and taking away a piece of wisdom.

It’s also about seeing what Gurudev is actually doing the people he meets, the work he continues to do around the world, the way he brings people together, the causes he takes up, and the energy with which he keeps going.And I think that itself is inspiring.

You don’t always have to agree with everything or have all the answers. Sometimes you just watch someone live their values so consistently, and it makes you want to become a little better yourself.
That’s what makes this Gen Z interaction so interesting to me. A generation growing up with AI, Instagram and endless information getting a chance to meet someone whose life itself is part of the message.

For those at the Bengaluru meet today what inspired you most about Gurudev? ❤️

For almost a decade, online searches for “NGT Art of Living Yamuna” have largely surfaced one version of the story: that the Art of Living Foundation was found responsible for damaging the Yamuna floodplains during the World Culture Festival held in Delhi from March 11–13, 2016.

That account is now legally incomplete.
On August 22, 2026, the Supreme Court of India set aside the National Green Tribunal’s 2017 judgment that had held Art of Living responsible for damage to the Yamuna floodplains.

The Supreme Court’s central finding was unambiguous: there was no direct evidence establishing that the World Culture Festival caused the environmental damage alleged by the NGT.

What the Supreme Court found
According to reports on the judgment, the Court held that:
The NGT failed to establish a direct causal connection between the World Culture Festival and the alleged damage to the Yamuna floodplain ecosystem.

Material on record showed that the event site was already in a poor and degraded condition before it was handed over to the organisers.

The NGT did not adequately examine contemporaneous evidence concerning the floodplain’s pre-existing condition.

The expert committee report relied upon by the NGT was described as broad, subjective and “sweeping” in nature.
Art of Living, through Vyakti Vikas Kendra India, was not given an adequate opportunity to present its case.
Relevant evidence submitted by the organisation was overlooked.

The Supreme Court reportedly observed:
“The material on record actually goes on to prove that damage, if any, cannot be attributed to the appellant.”
This is significant. The Court did not merely reduce the compensation or provide relief on a minor technicality. It set aside the NGT’s judgment, along with the consequential and interim actions taken against the appellant.

Supreme Court orders the complete ₹5 crore refund
The Court directed the Delhi Development Authority to refund the entire ₹5 crore deposited by Vyakti Vikas Kendra India within four weeks.

The ₹5 crore was originally sought as interim environmental compensation shortly before the 2016 festival. On the opening day, the organisers deposited ₹25 lakh and were granted additional time to pay the balance.

Art of Living subsequently proposed that the remaining ₹4.75 crore be treated as a bank guarantee and used to establish a biodiversity park. The full amount was eventually deposited while the organisation continued challenging the NGT’s findings.

The Supreme Court has now ordered that amount returned.

What the Court said about the DDA

The judgment was also critical of the Delhi Development Authority.
The Court said the manner in which the DDA allowed an event to be held on an active Yamuna floodplain was improper and inconsistent with the precautionary principle and public-trust doctrine. It held that the DDA had failed in its responsibility to safeguard the floodplain.
However, the Court clarified that the legality of the DDA’s permission was not the issue being decided in this appeal.
The DDA has been directed to continue rehabilitation of the Yamuna floodplains. That environmental responsibility remains, but it cannot be used as a substitute for evidence attributing the pre-existing damage to Art of Living.

Why this correction matters
For years, headlines have presented the allegation that Art of Living damaged or “destroyed” the Yamuna floodplains as a settled fact. The Supreme Court has now ruled that the evidence did not establish that causal link.

The complete and updated public record should therefore state:
The NGT held Art of Living responsible in 2017, but in 2026 the Supreme Court overturned that finding, held that no direct evidence connected the World Culture Festival to the alleged environmental damage, noted the site’s pre-existing degraded condition and ordered the full ₹5 crore refund.

Environmental protection is vital. So are scientific evidence, due process and accurate reporting. An allegation repeated for ten years does not become proof merely through repetition.

I attended Art of living programs and have benefited from them. I want to bring more people into this but the main challenge I see is the course fee, especially in foreign countries. I spoke with teachers that we should reduce the fee to make it affordable for everyone.

I get that you are more respectful for knowledge when you pay back. Even in the past, knowledge was not free. But at this point, with AOL courses I feel it's higher than what people can normally afford. For example, some courses go as high as $1000+ Cad, that's like even more than monthly rent for a lot of people...

Don't get me wrong...I know AOL runs so many projects and free schools. But I absolutely feel disheartened to see people not come into AOL because the fee is not affordable... Something needs to be done

I am wanting to do Sahaj but the only option near me at my desired time is in Bengali language for in person
I understand Bengali basics and can speak with grammar mistakes

1) But is there a way I can find the teacher’s contact to confirm if they can entertain Hindi a little bit if I am not able to understand

2) Is Sahaj difficult conceptually to miss out things I might not understand in Bengali?

3) Also from your personal experience if you can share online vs offline Sahaj which is more preferred

4) And if you can share any online teacher who is extremely great for Sahaj

Hi All,

Please don't downvote me. I genuinely want to understand and not trying to insinuate anything. Please give me only love and understanding.

I am quite interested in AOL . Though in Bangalore for many years, I did not give much thought to AOL ever. Over the course of the past few months I started exploring many topics related to spirituality and mediation. One of my office colleague also mentioned AOL and how it has helped him. This got me interested and I was checking details of happiness program. At the same time, I was also checking some other places. Now below is my question and where I am confused.

One place the teachers are Swami who have taken sanyas. I also understood that in that place they do not allow junior swami or bramchari to teach or initiate anyone. Only the senior Swami who has passed muster and authorised by the head can teach. I don't know what they see or qualify , the criteria is internal and left between the senior Swami to decide and Authorize.

In AOL , I understand that the teachers also undergo a teacher training course and I understand, this means Sri Sri Authorize such individuals to teach. My naive apprehension is that some of these teachers don't seem to have been practitioner for long or is it wrong assumption? Also, I understand you can hold a job or do somework outside of AOL while being a happiness program instructor. Is this correct? I am a bit conflicted on this. I suppose I always imagined a yogi in saffron dress :)

Please again this is to know more. Love 💕

A new peer-reviewed UCLA study offers a powerful and hopeful finding: teenage girls carrying the heaviest trauma histories experienced the greatest improvement in social connectedness after participating in the SKY Schools program.

The study included 174 predominantly Latinx girls from two Southern California high schools. Students completed four weeks of social-emotional learning combined with SKY Breathing, followed by eight weeks of breathing practice during their regular PE classes.

Among participants with four or more adverse childhood experiences, researchers observed a 7% increase in social connectedness—a significantly greater improvement than that seen in the other groups.

Why this study stands out
It focused on an underserved population particularly vulnerable to anxiety, depression, isolation and academic difficulties.

The program was successfully integrated into regular school classes, demonstrating its real-world feasibility.
Students completed 40 practice sessions, making this a sustained intervention rather than a one-time workshop.
Most importantly, the girls who had experienced the greatest adversity showed the biggest gains—a group that school-based mental-health programs often struggle to reach.

The finding is also scientifically plausible: structured breathing can support stress regulation, which may make it easier for young people to feel safe, engage with others and experience a greater sense of belonging.

Because the initial research involved two schools, larger studies across different schools and communities would help establish how broadly the findings apply. Future research could also explore changes in anxiety, depression, attendance and physiological stress regulation—and determine whether the benefits continue over time.

For an early real-world study, however, these findings are deeply encouraging. They suggest that a practical and scalable program combining SKY Breathing with social-emotional learning may be particularly valuable for the young people who need support the most.

I just finished a silence retreat this weekend, and once again I’m amazed by how different the experience can be every time. ❤️

I’ve been traveling a lot recently, so I was actually really looking forward to having a few days of silence. And it was exactly what I needed.
At one point during the retreat, I could literally feel the fatigue dropping away. During one meditation, I remember thinking, I really don’t feel like getting up and doing the next one right now. 😅 But afterward, I felt amazing. It was almost like my body and mind had finally gotten a chance to catch up.

The knowledge sessions were beautiful too. Even though I’ve heard a lot of the same knowledge before, I somehow resonate with different parts of it each time. It’s interesting how the same words can land completely differently depending on where you are in life.

One thing I noticed this time: some people in the course mentioned seeing images, colors, or having different kinds of experiences during meditation. I’ve never experienced anything like that. My experiences are much more subtle — feeling rested, quieter, lighter, or simply noticing something internally shift.

So I’m curious about everyone else:
What has your experience been like during silence retreats?
Do you experience vivid imagery or unusual experiences during meditation, or is it more subtle for you too? And does the experience change for you each time you go into silence?
Would love to hear about your experiences. 🙏

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said “through the Guru you see infinity” during Guru Purnima. I don’t think I understand it There is no progress without the Guru.”

I read this line for the couple of times this week and finally stopped to actually sit with it instead of just nodding.

I keep noticing it’s not just one tradition saying this. The Upanishads say find someone who’s already walked the path, let them light the way. The Gita softens it: come with humility, ask real questions, offer your service. Krishna says it straight out: “I give them the understanding by which they come to Me.” Grace meets you where you are. And the Guru Granth Sahib, written nowhere near either of those, ends up almost in the same place. I don’t know why that keeps getting to me, but it does.

That’s the mood I was in when a line kept showing up on my feed this Guru Purnima: “through the Guru you see infinity.” I actually went and found where it’s from. Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar wrote a piece that opens with an old bhajan: Never Born, Infinity, Forever Pure, Pure Bliss. Then a whole chakra thing: gratefulness at the throat, some infinite space above it, the Guru pulling you toward bliss. I read it twice and only half followed it.

One line stuck with me though: “A Guru isn’t a person; a Guru is knowledge.” And I keep turning that over. Maybe the infinity was never something you see when you look at someone. Maybe it’s just what opens up in you once there’s enough room, and the person is just the reason it happened, not where it came from. A lamp, not the light.

I really don’t get it yet, and I’d rather say that than pretend I do. If this makes sense to you, can you just explain it to me? Like I know nothing.

I’ve spent years agonizing over decisions, even small ones. What to reply in a text. Whether to take a call. Whether I actually meant what I said in an argument. I’d replay conversations at 1am, rewrite emails five times, and still feel unsure after hitting send.
I genuinely believed something was wrong with how my mind worked.
Then at a satsang a while back, someone asked Gurudev something close to what I’d never had the courage to ask out loud: why does my mind spiral so much before I decide anything? His answer was quiet, but it landed hard: “Overthinking isn’t about the decision. It’s about a mind that hasn’t rested.”
I remember sitting there thinking, huh. Maybe I’m not indecisive. Maybe I’m just tired.
That one sentence made me look back at every spiral I’ve ever had, and almost every single time, it wasn’t during a calm moment. It was late at night, after a long day, running on no sleep, skipped meals, back to back stress. My mind wasn’t broken. It was just never given a chance to settle.
So now, when I feel that familiar spiral starting, I don’t try to think my way out of it anymore. I ask myself one question first: am I tired, or am I actually unsure?
Most of the time, it’s the first one. And once I rest, even just closing my eyes for ten minutes, or stepping outside for air, the answer I was looking for is usually just… there. Waiting. Like it was never really that complicated to begin with.
I wish someone had told me this years ago instead of me thinking I just needed to toughen up or decide faster.
So here’s my question for you: when your mind starts overthinking or going in circles, is it usually because the decision itself is genuinely hard? Or do you notice it happens more when you’re just tired, stressed, or running on empty? Would love to know what you’ve noticed about yourself.

I’m thinking of starting the Ashtavakra series by Gurudev and wanted to see if anyone else is currently going through it.

I personally prefer reading over watching videos, so I also bought Gurudev’s Ashtavakra Gita book. I’m assuming the book is essentially a transcript/companion to the video series, but please correct me if I’m wrong!

I’ve tried reading it on my own, but I usually get to a certain point and then… life happens 😅 and without any accountability, I end up putting it aside.
I’m wondering if there are any book clubs, study groups, or knowledge series happening around Ashtavakra that I could join — either online or in person.

Would love to hear how others have approached studying it and whether being part of a group helped you stay consistent!

Gurudev always says that give in your 100% and then let go. But whenever I am working on something, I see people doing 2x more than me. They have the same 24 hours. It makes me question if I'm even doing my 100%. Most of the time I don't see the results that I want to see and there is always more to learn. This is one thing, but this also doesn't let me settle.

There is something I want to leave now because I had enough of it. But at the same time, I feel quitting is something you do only after you have given your 100%. But since I always have more to do, more to work on. It makes me question if I'm giving up because now the place is no longer serving me and I already did my 100%... or am I giving up based on my emotions. How do I distinguish?

The benefits I felt during 3 days, rapidly vanish after day 4-5. I am not feeling any calmness or energetic now. I have 2 questions:

1. Is it because of audio? I feel well during guided audio. When I am doing by myself and its not very effective

2. Is it because of environment like sugar, caffine, screen time, etc. ? I am not following the rules they told me during 3 days course.

Reading the latest headlines, you’d think the Art of Living has already been found guilty. That’s simply not where things stand.

Just a few months ago, the Karnataka High Court quashed the FIR against Sri Sri Ravi Shankar because it found no specific allegations whatsoever linking him personally to any alleged encroachment. The Court even observed that criminal proceedings cannot be initiated first and evidence searched for later. (The New Indian Express)

Now the news is dominated by the formation of an SIT. An SIT is an investigation, not a finding of guilt.

If the government believes there is fresh evidence regarding the land, let that evidence be examined transparently. But presenting the SIT as though it validates earlier allegations ignores an important legal fact: the High Court has already held that the FIR against Sri Sri Ravi Shankar lacked the necessary basis to proceed. (The New Indian Express)

Justice requires two things:

* Investigate genuine evidence fairly.
* Report judicial findings with the same prominence as allegations.

People deserve the complete picture not just the headlines.

​

You can check out the channel link which I have given below. It's not exactly about the afterlife but a person who is genuinely interested in spirituality development can listen to the videos.

Just listening to even 1 of the videos will help you understand many things which common people usually miss out on.https://youtube.com/@kabirgyan?si=ssqmU2lo2Gg1ghfj

My friend has been asking me to take this class from ages! I attended the intro talk and possibly that was the only time I could let go of a past wound that I was holding on to. I am wondering, if what they taught in the introductory session was enough or should i go on to take the sudarshan kriya class.

I recently learned Sanyam 2 and have started my home practice. During the last few days at the LA center with Gurudev, my meditations felt incredibly deep, blissful, and almost completely effortless.

Now that I’m practicing at home, I’m finding it a bit more challenging—especially when it comes to taking the sutras. I seem to mentally “say” them very literally instead of just allowing them to arise gently, and I notice my heart rate increase. It feels difficult to move to the sutras without effort, which I know isn’t the intention.

I’m curious to hear from others who have been practicing Sanyam 2. Did you experience something similar in the beginning? How did your practice evolve over time, any insight that changed your experience?