Indian Religious Figures Finding Foothold In County

By Soumitro Sen
12:01 a.m. PT Jul 28, 2007

When Elyse Warner first heard of the spiritual teacher known as Amma in 2000, she wasn’t into visiting such people.

But a few weeks later, Warner stood in line to get her first audience with the 53-year-old Hindu holy woman in Amma’s ashram in San Ramon, Calif. Seven years later, Warner recalls how she wept without knowing why.

“It was the most powerful experience I’ve felt,” Warner, 54, said. “It felt like the presence of a divinity.”

The transformative power of eastern religions has drawn a significant following in western Nevada County, where one devotee attributes the spirituality of area residents to the gold lacing the ground.

Saintly people of 20th century India, in particular, draw many devotees from the region and around the world, including Amma, Sathya Sai Baba, Anandamayi Ma, Swami Yogananda and Swami Sivananda.

Two of them have ashrams in Nevada County. Ananda Village was established by Swami Yogananda’s disciple on the San Juan Ridge. The Sivananda Ashram Yoga Farm was founded by Swami Sivananda’s followers off McCourtney Road, south of Grass Valley.

“A lot of young people come here to find answers,” said Swami Sitaramananda, senior teacher at Sivananda ashram. “They take shelter from the worries and anxieties of life and recharge their (spiritual) batteries. They come in search of alternatives to what society provides.”

Devotees feel change in their lives

Amma means “mother,” the name fondly given by devotees to Mata Amritanandamayi. Today, Warner is an ardent follower, and hosts gatherings of local devotees at her home once a month.

“I believe Amma is an avatar — divinity in a human body,” Warner said. “When I am around her, I experience moments of real peace and joy that I can’t say I’ve felt very much before.”

The Sivananda ashram has 20 permanent residents, Sitaramananda said. More visitors come for retreats, she added.

Jon Anderson, 57, of Grass Valley, follows the teachings of Sathya Sai Baba. He attributes the spiritual bent among Nevada County residents to “the high vibration caused by the gold underground” in the area.

Anderson first visited Sathya Sai Baba in his ashram in India in 1992. He said the 80-year-old guru’s teachings bring love to his life and teach human values.

“Baba is an incarnation of God,” Anderson said. “This is a time that’s special because an avatar has come to heal mankind.”

No amount of criticism can shake his faith in Baba, Anderson said. Warner, like Anderson, feels her life has taken a new direction after meeting her spiritual teacher.

“I feel like a different person,” Warner said. “I feel I have found my path in life and my purpose in life. My close friends see the change in me. It feels like coming home.”

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