Advaita Ashrama

Advaita Ashrama

Rest house of Vivekananda In the Ashrama
Formation	1899
Purpose	Philanthropic, Religious Studies, Spirituality
Headquarters	Belur Math
Region served	Worldwide
Website	Advaita Ashrama

Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, is a branch of the Ramakrishna Math, founded on 19 March 1899 at the behest of Vivekananda, by his disciples James Henry Sevier, and Charlotte Sevier. Today it is publishes the original writings of Vivekananda. As an ashram dedicated to the study and practice of Advaita Vedanta, no images or idols are worshipped there, not even of Ramakrishna; and no images were kept in the premises according to the Ashram ideals set by Vivekananda.

Also referred as the Mayawati Ashram, it is located at an altitude of 1940 meters, 22 km from Champawat in Champawat district, Uttarakhand, and 9 km from the town of Lohaghat. The ashram is a major publication centre of the Ramakrishna Order for books in English and Hindi, mainly through its branch in Kolkata. It also maintains a charitable hospital at Mayavati. Among its important publications are The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda in English and as well as a Hindi translation, The Life of Swami Vivekananda, and English translations of important Hindu scriptures.

Some of the old manuscripts of the ashram have now been microfilmed and preserved at Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) in Delhi.

The Advaita Ashram has its origins in 1896, when Vivekananda was travelling through the Alps recuperating, and expressed the desire to have a similar place in India, for retreat and study of Vedas.

Earlier, in 1895, James Henry Sevier who had served as a captain in the British Indian Army for five years, and his wife Charlotte Elizabeth Sevier, met Vivekananda in England. Later in 1896, for nearly nine months, they travelled with him through Switzerland, Germany, and Italy. It was in the Alps that Vivekananda, while travelling with the couple that he expressed his desire to have a similar retreat for the monks in the Himalayas. In December 1896, the couple moved to India, with Vivekananda on board a steamer from Naples, Italy, with an objective to find a place near Almora, and set up an Ashram, and arriving at Madras in February 1897. Soon just as Vivekananda left for Calcutta, the couple left for Almora, where they rented a bungalow and this became the residence of Vivekananda and the Seviers for next two years.