Studying the mind isn't an abstract or academic exercise...

Initially, my connection with Swami Tadananda began in Fiji, and eventually led me to the Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre Auckland several years ago, pulled in by something quite specific — a fascination with the mind itself beginning with Who am I?, What is it? Why does it behave the way it does? Why does it cause us so much suffering, and how might we work with it rather than be at its mercy?

I didn't expect that question to open up as much as it has. Over the years, contemplating on the wisdom of Vedantic knowledge and spending much time discussing with Swamiji various aspects of the mind and the science behind it, attending many retreats has slowly changed something in me. It's not that life's difficulties have disappeared — they haven't — but the way I meet them has shifted. There's more steadiness, more space between a difficult moment and my reaction to it. That alone has been worth everything.

Life became even more of an exciting adventure rather then a gruelling journey.

If there's one thing I wish more people understood, it's this: studying the mind isn't an abstract or academic exercise. It's practical, and it's personal. It touches how you handle a bad day at work, a strained relationship, a moment of fear or doubt. I'm deeply grateful to be blessed by the organisation for giving me the teachings to explore myself, and I'd encourage anyone even mildly curious to give it a chance. It has a way of quietly changing everything in you and allowing patience to grow in you and find peace.

-Member & Associate, Vedanta NZ