“I have never heard teachings the way that I’ve heard them from Swami Nityananda. She’s the real deal. Amazing. I’ve learned to give myself a break and know that everybody’s doing their best.” —Purna

“I’ll say two things. My favorite memory of Swami was probably the second time I attended a service. It was still when the community was at Falls Road. I had never heard teachings the way that I heard them from Swami Nityananda.

“I remember at the end of the service, the first time that Kashi and I came, we didn’t go in the greeting line, but the second time we did. We just wanted to tell Swami: Oh, my gosh, you’re the real deal—amazing. We got up there and Swami—in true Swami fashion—opened her arms so wide and said, ‘You guys are my sisters,’ and gave us both a huge hug. Group hug. And we’ve been coming pretty much ever since.

“What I’ve discovered as I meditate and live the teachings is to give myself a break and to give other people a break and to really know that I’m doing my best and everybody’s doing their best from where they are.”

—Purna