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Arsha Vidya Gurukulam is a set ofVedic teaching institutions founded bySwami Dayananda Saraswati (1930 – 2015). Agurukulam is a center for residential learning that evolved from theVedic tradition.Arsha Vidya translates toknowledge ofrishis (sages).[1]
Its current president is Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati (born 1940).[2][3] Its three main centers inIndia are theSwami Dayananda Ashram inRishikesh, theAdhyatma Vidya Mandir inAhmedabad, and theArsha Vidya Gurukulam inCoimbatore.[4][5][6] In the United States, its main center is theArsha Vidya Pitham inSaylorsburg,Pennsylvania, about ninety miles west ofNew York City.[2] As of 2008, it had approximately sixty other centers worldwide.[7]
Since its establishment in 1986, the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam has provided an academic-like environment to focus on study ofAdvaita Vedanta,Sanskrit, theVedas and ancient Sanskrit texts. Over time, the institutes have broadened the scope of their libraries and curriculum to include a number of traditional Indian disciplines such ashatha yoga, meditation,ayurveda, andastrology.[8][9]
Arsha Vidya Gurukulam has two main teaching centers: TheSaylorsburg campus was established in 1986, and theCoimbatore center was founded in 1990[10][11] Anothergurukulam is inNagpur, India.[12]
The wordArsha has also been used by many of Swami Dayananda's students in naming their facilities to mark their lineage. A 2012 estimate found there were at least sixty centers[13][14][15] in India and abroad that carry on the tradition of Vedantic teaching under the banner of Arsha Vidya.
In 2017, the lineage of teachers convened at their annualRishikesh meetup and discussed the need to create a hub to organise thesampradaya (i.e., tradition). To that end, they have created the Arsha Vidya Sampradaya, which provides access to information maintains a directory ofArsha Vidya teachers.[16]
Arsha Vidya Pitham, also known as theSwami Dayananda Ashram is situated inRishikesh across multiple acres of land. The ashram facilities include a bookstore, modern facilities for dining, as well as a 250 person lecture hall. It also maintains a library with over 5,000 titles on grammar and philosophy and the personal collections of Swami Dayananda Saraswati himself.[17]
The ashram exists on the grounds that have been around since as early as 1967. It was in 1982 that the ashram was expanded and officially named theArsha Vidya Pitham.[18]
It also runs a publication house,Sri Gangadhareswar Trust that produces books onVedanta,Hinduism, Hindu philosophy and literature,Paninian grammar, Indian history and related subjects.
It houses the temple ofGangadhareswar, a shrine situated close to theGanges dedicated to LordShiva.[19]
After the Swami'smahāsamādhi (i.e., death) in 2015, a shrine was built at the ashram, containingDayanandesvara, a consecratedlingam for devotees, as well as the form of the Swami rendered into a statue.[18]
Several students andsanyassis (renunciates) who have studied at the centres, have gone on to spread Dayananda's teachings elsewhere and some have establishedashrams of their own.[8][20]
In 2016, theLos Angeles Times published a critical review ofGurukulam: One Without a Second, a documentary featuring residents and teachers of the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam inTamil Nadu, India.[21]