Swami Dharyananda’s Nastic Ashram

Muslims all over the world make their way to the mosque every Friday afternoon, listen to the Imam and pray. Christians do the same on Sunday and Hindus on Tuesday. Atheism, the fastest growing belief system if you can call it that, has no holy day. In fact the word holy does not find place in their book. May be it would have if they had a book. Let me call a spade a spade, there is no room for holy in their lives. I do have some sympathy for them. They have no place to go where a preacher strengthens their wavering faith, no guide book to help them through the vicissitudes of their humdrum life. They have to survive by their own wits, no divine guidance for them.

Atheist of the world, stand up and take note. Help is now available. No more of stewing in your own juice. Swami Dharyanand has seen the misery of his fellow atheists and devised a solution. It is so simple, so elegant; you would wonder why no one else thought of it. Could it be divine inspiration? Of course Swami does not credit divinity but inspiration it was, and he has spared no effort in making its realization possible.

Swami has set up an ashram in one of the most picturesque places in the world. An ashram you say! Is not an ashram where Hindu devotees of a saint go to seek peace and tranquility in his august presence? Well, it is. Only Swami Dharyananda calls his abode a Nastic Ashram; sanctuary for atheists if you insist on English equivalent. His idea is that the atheists who need support in any form, except financial of course, can visit him, spend time at the ashram, resolve the issues bothering them under his guidance and return rejuvenated to their normal lives enriched by Swami’s blessings bestowed after a donation appropriate for the severity of their problem with scant regard for what they can afford.

What took so long for such a crying need to be attended? Atheists are generally self-assured individualistic persons who hate to seek help however much they may need it. Dharyanand was no different till six calamities struck his immediate family. He could have borne them if they had struck simultaneously; with a lot of suffering but nothing he could not endure. But the statistical improbability though it was, they struck him sequentially, and without a break! Each suffering weakened his resistance and by the time last one struck he had reached the end of his tether. Fortunately for all other atheists he was able to garner new internal resources and survive what would have been a fatal stroke to most ordinary humans. It did lay him low though. He spent several months recuperating in the psyche ward and in the padded cell of a mental hospital. But Dharyanand was made of different stuff than most of us. He spent this time not in feeling sorry for himself as most of us would have but on considering what to do with the rest of his life now that all he valued had been snatched away. The enlightenment came with the last bump of his head on the wall over the patch where the padding had worn off a little. As he is fond of saying, its source was from within, not from above. There was no invisible finger pointing towards him sending a spark. It was an idea crashing into his sore head and causing a rather ugly bump. Being a man of action as well as of ideas, he jumped at the opportunity to put the idea into practice as soon as it presented itself.

On his release a few days later Dharyanand was greeted by his trusty accountant in the lobby of the asylum. For once, the old bean counter was the bearer of good news: the investments his late wife had left to him had grown substantially. Of course the news came with the suggestions on what he should do with his life now that he was free. But he waved these aside without hiding his contempt. After thanking the kind gentleman profusely he took a cab home. He was pleased that everything there was undisturbed except for a thin cover of dust.

He phoned a realtor he had known since they worked for the sanitation department. The ex-colleague had just what he needed; a section of farmland nestled in the foothills with marvelous view and no restriction on building. He sold all his possessions and acquired the farm. Within a few months the site boasted a building with modest private quarters for Dharyanand, a meeting room to accommodate fifty people, men and women dormitories with washrooms, a row of small rooms to serve as meditation rooms, a suitably equipped kitchen and a dining area. A small unassuming sign went up at the entrance “Swami Dharyananda’s Nastic Ashram”. Not many people passed the rustic road and there were no curious visitors. Of course no one questioned the origin of Swami or what the ashram was about.

The road was not destined to remain quiet for long. A quarter page ad appeared in a northern California spiritual magazine announcing the opening of the Nastic Ashram in remote foothills in Western Canada. “A sanctuary for those who feel uncomfortable in religious gathering places because of their personal beliefs but are in need to commune with like-minded individuals. For info www.nasticashram.com.” The hits of the website over next two days set new records. Before the magazine bearing the ad had dropped in the newly minted Swami’s mail box, flights due to arrive at nearby airports for several months were booked in advance and all rented cars had been claimed.

Swami is thrilled at the reception of his idea. He would have liked more local colour among his disciples but that can wait. However, he does find smiling all day while listening to Californian twang taxing and answering conflicting spiritual queries in a soothing voice vexatious. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are times he wishes to return to his former abode for the next inspiration.


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