Arsha Vidya Gurukulam is a set of
Vedic
upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''.
The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...
teaching institutions founded by
Swami Dayananda Saraswati (1930 – 2015). A
gurukulam is a center for residential learning that evolved from the
Vedic tradition. ''Arsha Vidya'' translates to
knowledge
Knowledge can be defined as Descriptive knowledge, awareness of facts or as Procedural knowledge, practical skills, and may also refer to Knowledge by acquaintance, familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called pro ...
of ''
rishis'' (sages).
Its current president is Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati (born 1940).
Its three main centers in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
are the ''Swami Dayananda Ashram'' in
Rishikesh, the ''Adhyatma Vidya Mandir'' in
Ahmedabad, and the ''Arsha Vidya Gurukulam'' in
Coimbatore. In the United States, its main center is the ''Arsha Vidya Pitham'' in
Saylorsburg,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, about ninety miles west of
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
.
[Advaita Vedanta
''Advaita Vedanta'' (; sa, अद्वैत वेदान्त, ) is a Hindu sādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience, and the oldest extant tradition of the orthodox Hindu school Vedānta. The term ''Advaita'' ( ...]
s and ancient Sanskrit texts. Over time, the institutes have broadened the scope of their libraries and curriculum to also include a number of traditional Indian disciplines. Some of the added disciplines include
.
Courses range in duration from a single-weekend to three years, and instruction is in English, though advanced students study the original texts in Sanskrit.