Ram Giri’s BIO
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Born in Germany, Ram Giri inherited the aftermath of WW II and the Holocaust, making him seek effective ways to end his suffering. In 1972 he meets Maharajji, who showed him that enlightenment was his true nature, and the nature of all beings. Profoundly inspired by this liberating love, Ram Giri spent the next 40 years learning from great masters and developing HeartSourcing®, a contemporary way to enlightenment through the power of the heart, described in his book “HeartSourcing: Finding Our Way to Love and Liberation.” Ram Giri holds a Ph.D. in Transpersonal Psychology. He is a spiritual teacher, yogi, and psychologist. He is a licensed Mental Health Counselor, clinical Hypnotherapist and Addictions Specialist. Ram Giri offers personal mentoring to people anywhere in the world. www.HeartSourcing.com.
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Born in 1951 in Germany, Ram Giri inherited the terror of WW II and the Holocaust. His struggle with deep depression, fear, anger, shame and low self-esteem led him from a very early age to seek effective ways to end his suffering and find self-realization. In his book “HeartSourcing: Finding Our Way to Love and Liberation”, he writes:
“I was born into that trauma, into that dreadful terror and shame. And so my normal state of mind was deeply riddled with fear and depression, self-doubt and shame. I wasn’t happy at all. I wasn’t free. And this needed to change.”
Beginning in his teens, a series of powerful spiritual experiences opened his inner awareness. The deep yearning for Love, for freedom, for the realization of his true nature arose. It guided him to India in the early 70’s where he became a direct student of the legendary Neem Karoli Baba – Maharajji, perhaps the greatest teacher of pure divine love in living memory, first made known in the West by Ram Dass, author of ‘Be Here Now’ and ‘Be Love Now’.
“From him I learned that this amazing unconditional divine love can actually be lived here in this world. It was an experience beyond what words can tell! It led to a lasting inner transformation. It awakened me in many ways. It was pure grace, an amazing gift, not because I deserved it, but simply because I opened my heart to it…Then I wanted to share this love that can work miracles, and it took almost 40 years for it to ripen in me.”
After Maharajji died in 1973, Ram Giri continued his Sadhana (spiritual path), meditating and living as a yogi and ordained monk in the Himalayas. He was a student of Anagarika Munindra and Sri Goenka, the acclaimed teachers of Vipassana meditation and became an accomplished practitioner of several traditions of Bhakti Yoga, meditation, Advaita Vedanta and mind-body healing. Ram Giri is an initiated Swami in the Giri order of sannyasins. Then, at the age of 23 while living in India, he was diagnosed with cancer and was advised to return to Europe where he experienced a miraculous healing.
In Europe, Ram Giri became a personal student of the great Tibetan leader H.H. the 16th Karmapa. His thirst to continue to feel the love and peace he experienced while being with his guru in India never stopped. Meditation and searching for the best ways to end suffering was part of his daily routine. He taught meditation to groups of people, which at the time in Europe was not common.
Later he was a founding member of Kashi Ashram in Florida, under the teachings of Ma Jaya, where he continued his very focused spiritual practice for 24 years, while married and raising two wonderful daughters.
Ram Giri holds a MA and a Ph.D. in Transpersonal Psychology. He is a licensed Mental Health Counselor, clinical Hypnotherapist and Addictions Specialist. Ram Giri has practiced and shared, for over 20 years, the gifts of therapy and of the world’s wisdom traditions with people from all walks of life who struggled with all kinds of problems. He is an associate professor with Union Institute and University and a pioneer in the higher development of human consciousness.
Ram Giri has worked closely with one of his core teachers, Byron Katie, helping people around the world gain peace of mind with The Work of Byron Katie. He has also been closely involved with Ram Dass and Krishna Das (both internationally acclaimed leaders in the field of Bhakti Yoga and consciousness).
An engaging speaker, Ram Giri weaves together accounts of his own personal inner journey and his travels around the world with stories rooted in ancient wisdom to inspire in his audience an enthusiasm about their own spiritual quest. He has a great gift to make complex issues easy to understand – which empowers his listeners to reach for their own truth.
His extensive worldwide, inter-disciplinary experience led him into 12 years of research about which of the countless approaches to healing, happiness and self-realization are most effective and lasting.
“Today there are 1000’s of methods and skills for a better life. It can be fascinating and very confusing. To get free I needed to know which methods work best. I began to test the different techniques. Three skills passed the tests. Just three. They are easy to learn and simple to do. They can put an end to our suffering, quickly. They awaken us and reveal to us the great light and love of our being.
But, I had one more thing to do. In 2006 I flew to Poland, to Auschwitz Concentration Camp, my version of hell. I knew if these skills worked for me there, in this horrendous place, they would work anywhere, in all situations and with all problems. I practiced the 3 Skills in Auschwitz. In the end this resulted in an exhilarating realization of the absolute love that lies at the core of all of us. So paradoxical and so true. I am still so amazed – and yet it makes perfect sense that the light should become most visible in the darkness.”
His deep compassion, knowledge and over 40 years of extensive worldwide, inter-disciplinary experience allow him to inspire audiences to reach for lasting freedom from suffering with the most practical, profound and direct approaches to self-healing and wholeness.
This approach, HeartSourcing®, is a highly effective and concrete way to access the true essence of Self, while dissolving the stressful thoughts and emotions that hide the real and abiding joy of the spiritual Heart. This path of HeartSourcing leads you directly to self-healing, self-love and self-realization. You are born to find this hidden treasure within you, and attain true fulfillment. It combines a set of powerful skills that are a vital help to manage the challenges of life and bring about the changes you seek with wisdom and integrity. Rooted in ancient wisdom and contemporary life the HeartSourcing Yoga guide seekers in their own personal practice on a highly direct path to self-realization.
“We have enormous undiscovered potential. But without realizing that, most people continue to suffer. This is no longer necessary today! We have been given new, highly effective approaches to resolve our own pain and in this way ease the pain of the world. It is time to awaken; we are all called. With the right approach and the willingness to practice we will become free. It can happen now, in this life. You can become a receiver and giver of grace.
It is in everyone; all have the potential to awaken. There are a simple set of steps: transform your unhappiness, fear, pain, and stress at the root. Learn to love yourself, others and life (or God). These gifts are already in you: this magnificent heart, this unconditional complete love, this integrity, balance and harmony. In you is the place of health and wholeness, sanity, refuge, the well that never runs dry. It’s the place where you’re already whole and enlightened. It is always there; you could not live for a second without it. But it is covered up by stressful thoughts and emotions.
So if you want to free yourself of all the trouble and tension in your life, you don’t need to look far. Look where the unhappiness, fear, pain, anger etc. is experienced: in you. Don’t keep getting lost in the 3 million things you can get upset about. Stay with the upset itself. It’s in you and there you can free yourself of it. Then use the gifts, the skills, to set you free and taste the heart, your core, the indescribable gift.”
In his book “HeartSourcing: Finding Our Way to Love and Liberation,” Ramgiri chronicles his own personal spiritual journey along with the teachings and powerful insights that are part of HeartSourcing™.
Ram Giri offers group seminars and workshops as well as one-on-one spiritual mentoring and coaching, nationally and internationally. His decades of experience enable him to assist his clients and students to create and sustain a solid and down-to-earth transformative spiritual practice. His one-pointed mind and heart’s focus has been, and continue to be, no other than the pursuit of the end of suffering and the realization of one’s true Self. This, and the transmission of profound divine love received from his guru, are the roots of his practice and service to humanity.
Interested individuals and couples can make Ram Giri their personal coach to overcome challenges of all kinds. Please refer to the section on Coaching for details.
Programs with Ram Giri are offered in the following ways:
* Seminars and Workshops, talks and keynote speeches about spiritual topics and a forum for questions and answers. Some seminars are taught with other like-minded teachers.
* HeartSourcing Satsang with Ramgiri via Google+, now from India.
* Series of seminars, meditations and teachings, in person and online
* Events and seminar series on The Work of Byron Katie. (Ram Giri is a facilitator of The Work)
* Weekend retreats and intensives. The participants are invited to dive deep within to explore the mind and heart, to experience the practice of Bhakti Yoga, the Yoga of Devotion and to master the practice of HeartSourcing®. Short sessions of Hatha Yoga taught by experienced teachers can be part of the weekend retreats.
* In his 3-Months Mentoring Program, Ram Giri offers deeply caring and direct personal guidance to anyone desiring to elevate their consciousness and functioning to the next level. This is a profound and transformative relationship in which you can thrive. Various packages from 3 months to 1 year are offered. Personal contact is maintained regularly either face to face or through Skype or phone calls and by email. The support and guidance of these teachings is available to you anywhere in the world.
“Enriching you enriches me. That is the nature of love.” Thank you!
(photo by Ana Bartlett)