Swami Nirmalananda Giri (Abbot George Burke)

Swami Nirmalananda Giri (Abbot George Burke) is the founder and director of the Light of the Spirit Monastery (Atma Jyoti Ashram) in Cedar Crest, NM, USA.

In his many pilgrimages to India, he had the opportunity of meeting some of India’s greatest spiritual figures, including Swami Sivananda of Rishikesh and Anandamayi Ma. During his first trip to India he was given sannyas by Swami Vidyananda Giri, a direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda, who had himself been given sannyas by the Shankaracharya of Puri, Jagadguru Bharat Krishna Tirtha.

In the United States he also encountered various Christian saints, including Saint John Maximovich of San Francisco and Saint Philaret Voznesensky of New York.

For many years, Swami Nirmalananda has been engaged in deep study of the spiritual unity (actual identity) of Jesus Christ and his teachings with India and Sanatana Dharma. It is his conviction that original Christianity (not contemporary “Churchianity”) and original Yoga are not just compatible, they are essentially one; that Jesus lived in India for most of his life, being a Sanatana Dharma missionary to the West, and that after his resurrection he returned to India and lived the rest of his life in the Himalayas.

He has written extensively on these and other topics, many of which are posted here at OCOY.org. Of major significance are: The Christ of India, Soham Yoga: Its Theory and Practice, The Bhagavad Gita for Awakening and his various commentaries on spiritual texts which you can explore in the Dharma for Awakening section.

Most of his writings available here at OCOY.org are also available in print and ebook formats at Amazon and other online book outlets.

The Benefits of Past Life Recall | Podcast

The subject of past life recall is a broad topic. So this interview of Abbot George Burke by our friend Bianca Vlahos of PBA-fm radio in Australia is a long one—just over 53 minutes. Among the questions Bianca asks is “What is the main value … Continue reading

Worship of God in India: Questions and Answers

Q: In India which is mostly worshipped: God with form (Saguna Brahman) or God without form (Nirguna Brahman)? Do you think that to worship the Personal God is better than to worship the Formless God? Certainly in India Saguna Brahman is worshipped more than Nirguna … Continue reading

What Are the Many Faces of God?

Q: Reading Abbot Burke’s The Christ of India, (all in all a great book) I am a bit confused as to the disposition of Saint Thomas Christians on the matter of God? At one point, he states that they are Unitarian and at other times … Continue reading

Past Life Recall: Is It a Good or a Bad Idea?

Q: Can someone today have had “no” past lives? Could this be the start of lives? We have many, many reincarnations in lower life forms before we ever reach human form. (See Robe of Light.) By the time we are (primitive) human beings we have … Continue reading

God or Godzilla?

The following is taken from a condemnatory review of The Gospel of Thomas for Awakening that was posted on the Amazon page where it can be ordered. It is extremely revealing about the attitude toward and the concept of God held by the reviewer–and most … Continue reading

Did Jesus Really “Pay the Price” for Our Sins?

Follow-up questions and answers to How Karmic Debt is Used by Great Masters Such as Jesus Q: Did Jesus Christ actually “absorb and cancel” the karmic debt of the world’s people and all sentient beings for all past present and future offenses? No, he did not. For … Continue reading

Explore Blog Categories