Written by Veronica Leifer: November 25, 2019
Sign outside the entrance of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center. The color orange holds special significance in the Hindu religion, and the volunteers in the center can usually be found dressed in orange. The symbol to the right of the words has an Om and the words “Serve, Love Meditate, and Realize” and “Unity in Diversity”.
The Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center, located in Chelsea, is one of many Sivananda Centers around the world. Established in 1957 by Swami Vishnudevananda, just a few years before Swami Sivananda left his body in 1963, the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center considers itself to be one of the first “yogic philosophy” centers to come to the West. The center offers programming ranging from yoga classes, Bhagavad Gita courses, satsangs, meditation classes, and holiday celebrations. These programs attract a diverse group of participants across religions, ages, and yoga experiences.
The mission statement of the organization is to “spread peace, health and joy through yoga.” The organization emphasizes that its centers are inclusive places meant to welcome all people to learn about “how Yogic philosophy, applied in daily life, can help maintain a peaceful mind and spirit.” (Sivanandanyc.org) There are almost eighty centers and ashrams around the world that teach Sivananda’s philosophy, and the Chelsea center, opened in 1964, has served as a center of Vedanta learning and practice in New York City for 55 years. Though the center has grown and evolved, a research project posted to this site in 2005 shows that it has remained consistent in many ways.
The front desk in the reception area with photos of Swami Sivananda (left) and Swami Vishnudevananda (right). Books for sale written by the founders line the back wall.
The center’s physical space occupies a multi-level brownstone, with the first three floors of the building open for public use. Upon entry, you will see a reception area that has a shelf for shoes, books for sale, a front desk and a kitchen and dining table towards the back of the space. There is also a statue of Ganesh, which sits prominently in the center of the lobby. The next two floors have multi-purpose studio rooms that are used for all the programming in the center. At the top of the first set of stairs is the Sivananda room; the Durga room is up the next set of stairs. Both have decorations relevant to their respective namesakes.
Statue of Ganesh and other significant symbols displayed prominently in the center of the reception area.
The Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center has a very homey feel. One feels a definite familiarity between the people who gather in this space because many are regular participants. The staff is also stable. It is comprised entirely of volunteers, many of whom live in the center full-time. One can find details of the center’s course offerings and special programs on its website at https://sivanandanyc.org/. The center’s most popular program is its yoga classes. Priced at $18, a typical class is an hour and a half session that consists of breathing exercises, mantra singing, and postural yoga.
The core principles of the organization are the philosophies that Swami Sivananda himself followed. Swami Sivananda taught “The Four Paths of Yoga,” which he advertised as the path for integral development of body, mind and soul. These four paths are Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Raja Yoga, and Jnana Yoga. Swami Vishnudevananda expanded on these four paths by means of a rubric called the five points of yoga. The first point is Proper Exercise, involving yogic asanas; the second is Proper Breathing, pranayama; the third point is Proper Relaxation, savasana; the fourth is Proper Diet, namely a vegetarian one; and the fifth and last point is Positive Thinking and Meditation—Vedanta and dhyana respectively. The entire group of five points are intended to slow down the busy lives we lead. The values expressed in the above-mentioned four yogas and five points are the foundation on which the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center is currently built. They are infused into every aspect of the activities that the center hosts.
The Sivananda room on the first level above the lobby. The room is set up for a set of satsangs (gatherings) which took place during the holiday of Navratri.
One of the big questions about Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center is whether it can rightly be called a manifestation of Hinduism. While the organization resists being thought of as specifically religious—likely in an attempt to project an inclusive message—it maintains a very evident connection to Swami Sivananda’s faith, which would familiarly be called Hindu. The center hosts religiously Hindu services, like Diwali, and is classified as a religious organization as a part of its NGO status. During my time researching the center, it became evident that there is a wide range of ways to make the center a part of your life. Though many of the people who are heavily involved in the center have altered their ways of life significantly, some by even taking on a “spiritual name,” there are many other people who visit the center only occasionally. One gets some sense of this range by observing that some people come to cook in the kitchen, thereby practicing Karma Yoga, while others participate in drop-in yoga classes twice a week. Certainly the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center feels more spiritual than an average yoga studio. A holistic understanding of Hinduism makes it possible to understand how this center, which is clearly nonreligious in the eyes of certain participants in its activities, may nonetheless feel religious to others. The question of what counts as “religious” seems more important to external observers than it does to those who frequent the center itself.
“About,” New York Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center, accessed December 3, 2019, https://sivanandanyc.org/about/