Shri Mataji

Birth and Childhood

Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi was born on March 21, 1923 to a Christian family in Chindawara, India. Her parents were Prasad and Cornelia Salve, direct descendants of the royal Shalivahana dynasty and very respected and known for their achievements people. They called their daughter Nirmala, which means ‘Immaculate’.

Later on she came to be known by the multitudes by the name of Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi – the revered Mother who was born with her complete Self Realization and knew from a very young age that she had a unique gift which had to be made available to all mankind.

As a child, Shri Mataji lived with her parents in the ashram of Mahatma Gandhi who frequently sought her advice on spiritual matters.

Youth

Shri Mataji studied medicine and psychology at the Christian Medical College in Lahore.

She was very courageous and played a daring role as a youth leader in the struggle of India for independence. In the 1942 “Quit India Movement” announced by Gandhi, she was even arrested and put in jail along with other freedom fighters for actively participating in this movement.

Shortly before India achieved independence she married Sir. C.P. Srivastava, one of India’s most dedicated civil servant officers, who was knighted by the Queen of England. He rose in government ranks very quickly though he was an absolutely honest person. At some point, he was elected for 16 consecutive years to be the Secretary General of the United Nations International Maritime Organization and since than Cir C.P. and his wife has been travelling much.

The Birth of Sahaja Yoga

Although Shri Mataji knew about her own spiritual consciousness, she did not know how to present it to the people of modern times. She was also aware of the problems encountered by the earlier spiritual personalities who came on this earth like Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha, and others when they prophesized the truth directly to the people.

As she was pondering on the many faceted problems confronting human beings, on the 5th of May, 1970, on a lonely beach of Nargol (about 150 km from Mumbai) a divine spiritual experience filled her whole being and suddenly she found an answer to her question. She discovered a historical process of en-masse Self Realisation through which thousands of people could get this connection to their Spirit and thereby their inner transformation.

Shri Mataji made this experiment of awakening the spiritual power of every human being (which the Hindus name the Kundalini, the Muslims as the Ruh and in the bible it is described as the Holy Ghost) and was amazed at the results.

Since 1970, Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi has kept a busy schedule, travelling around the world to teach the techniques of Sahaja Yoga meditation.

Recognition

Shri Mataji has delivered thousands of lectures, given many television and radio interviews, and been the subject of hundreds of newspaper articles around the world. She has been recognized worldwide by several prestigious institutions for her selfless work and for the powerful results of her spiritual teachings. Shri Mataji has received numerous awards and accolades for her work for humanity and improving the human condition.

Shri Mataji in Russia

Shri Matai condicted more than 50 public programs in Russia. She gave many press-conferences and interviews, participated in talks and discussions. For more detailed information on this, please, visit How Sahaja Yoga Began in Russia.