James Swartz on Moksha

For those of you who do have not yet met Ramji, also known as James Swartz, here is a little background.

James' life has been an exotic journey around the world including a heavy dose of Indian lore, mahatmas and supernatural stories thrown in. To fully hear from whence he has come would require a book. That book has been written (click here). An "Indiana Jones meets Shiva" story from top to bottom. What fascinates me is that having abandoned all hope of Moksha, James had returned to the United States, where finally met his true Guru, Swami Chinmayananda.

Swami Chinmayananda was a very famous and highly respected Indian holy man, studying for years with Swami Shivananda on the Ganges River. As popular as Vivekananda, Chinmayananda attracted thousands of devotees in every city he travelled to throughout the world.Founding the on-going Chinmayananda Mission, he wrote dozens of compositions on the Upanishads, Brahma Sutras, and Bhagavad Gita.

My experience with Ram started in India, where James has kept a home for decades. We travelled from Tiruvannamala, the home of Ramana Maharshi, to Varanasi, as he unfolded one ancient text after another, with the same precision of his teacher, the great Chinmayananda, yet with a western vantage point a mirthful touch throughout.

James still travels throughout the workd and he blessed me as my guest when he visits California, normally in the spring of each year.

Along the way, we devleoped a passion for de-mystifying Vedanta for a Western audience much in need of its wisdom. He has been patient and tireless in these efforts, all the while radiating the sparkle in his eyes and playful humor in his talks.

We have recorded more than 20 hours of James' work, and the offspring of this work can be found here. Look below to view video of James Swartz  from our DVD entitled, "Introduction to Vedanta" where as he explains in plain English the complex discoveries of the Rishis in a simple down-home manner that has delighted his students throughout the years.