*“Ashram”*

After the Trust was established and everyone expressed their wish, I began looking for land for the Ashram. Whenever someone mentioned a good piece of land somewhere, I would go see it. Some lands in the mountains were very beautiful, but after hearing their price, I would run away. Some lands were reasonably priced, but they were too far from home. Some lands nearby were so big that we didn’t really need that much. My heart just wouldn’t settle anywhere. I would go to see the lands, but every time I returned disappointed.

By now, I was exhausted. Gurudev would always say, “While doing your karma, you will eventually reach the right place.” Those words alone kept me moving forward. In this way, I kept searching for land for four long years! The Trust didn’t even have any money to buy land. But before my Guru’s command, my own thoughts meant nothing.

*“Ashram”*

It was the year 2015. Gurudev said that someone was going to come home, and after their arrival, a trust would be established here.

To tell you the truth, I didn’t even know what a trust was! What it meant, how it would happen—I had no idea.

But the most important question was, who was coming?

And soon, Gurudev’s words came true.

During those days, one of Swami’s devotees came from Switzerland to Kangra. Around the same time, a few devotees from Delhi also arrived in Kangra. Both groups had a desire to create a trust there. And at that very moment, Bhagwan Himself gave the name of the trust — *“Shri Sai Mangalam Central Trust.”*

*“Ashram”*

After learning from my Guru for many years, I realized that there isn’t really much to know — there is only the Self! Man runs around uselessly here and there, while life is actually about pausing and observing everything. To pause and observe means to stop within — to seek the inner Self!

One day, my Gurudev said to me, “A time will come when the responsibility of teaching will fall upon your shoulders. People will come here, and it will be your duty to guide them on the right path. Whatever I have taught you — it is not for you alone. You must share it. For that purpose, in the time to come, this place will become an Ashram. People from across the country and from abroad will come. Whoever I send to you, it will be your responsibility to guide them.”

I laughed and said to Swamiji, “You speak of people coming from other countries, but even people nearby don’t come here! Who here even understands spirituality or meditation?”

But the future was known only to God, so I stopped thinking about it and decided to simply focus on my work.

*“Ashram”*

Before learning about an ashram, it is important to understand what an ashram truly is — what its real meaning is. Without understanding the meaning of the word “ashram,” it’s difficult to grasp what it means to visit one, or what one is meant to gain from it.

So first, let us understand the true meaning of an ashram.

An ashram is a place where people go for spiritual or religious rest — a space where they practice deep self-realization.

It can be the secluded residence of a Guru or a center for spiritual training, where seekers engage in meditation and penance under the guidance of their Guru.

Freed from worldly attachments, they experience true peace and bliss. It is a place where one learns the real meaning of renunciation — where, sitting at the feet of the Guru, one understands the true path of this world and beyond it.