04/01/2020
Sahaja Yoga was founded in 1970 by Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi (1923 – 2011). Shri Nirmala Srivastava is more widely known as Her Holiness Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi or as "Mother" by her followers, who are called Sahaja yogis.During meditation, seekers of truth experience a state of self-realization produced by kundalini awakening, and this is accompanied by the experience of thoughtless awareness or mental silence.
Shri Mataji described Sahaja Yoga as the pure, universal religion integrating all other religions.Before starting Sahaja Yoga, Shri Mataji earned a reputation as a spiritual healer . 211–212 With a small group of devotees around her, she began spreading her message of Sahaja Yoga in India in the year 1970. As she moved with her husband to London, UK, she continued her work there, and year by year the movement grew and spread throughout Europe, by the mid-80's reaching North America. In 1989, Shree Mataji made her first trip to Russia and Eastern Europe.She charged no money, insisting that her lesson was a birthright which should be freely available to all. "There can be no peace in the world until there is peace within," she said. By 2006, Sahaja Yoga had ashrams in at least 16 countries.