Anna Murugova, Artist in Residence

The ashram hosted its first official artist-in-residence, Anna Murugova, from Izhevsk, Russia, now residing in Kazakhstan. She came with a special mission to develop further Radha Ma’s classical voice training, as well as give free private classes to ashram nivassis and group lessons for those interested. As she herself said, “the purpose of these classes is not for you to become singers, but to feel something new and different in relation to your self.” How we shape our vocal tract is directly related to our relationship to language, and thus to how we communicate, and to beauty itself.

In the three afternoon group Master classes she offered, she shared that a professional singer is “beauty and freedom expressed through the voice, without getting tired” and that the professional voice can create an artistic image that inspires the audience to a deeper level of feeling. Shunyamurti once expressed this idea regarding the singer’s task, as “creating a vocal crystal” that the audience can attune to and resonate with vibrationally, changing the pranic and even mental body, and in its highest form, can bring the audience to bliss.

This final form would be what Shunyamurti called an avataric level of art. At the very least, Anna explained in her classes, “the higher quality of singing, the higher the quality of communication”. Her knowledge of classical singing and her teaching skill demonstrated this quality of communication, as well as her singing that we were all privileged to hear on various occasions.

We have learned in Sat Yoga that such power of communication is the heart of the purpose of culture, that is the fulcrum between an ego lost in maya needing a clear compass of reality, and the Heaven to which it strives, very often first through a cultural form. “The beauty must express the freedom” she re-iterated, and we know as Sat Yogis, from Shunyamurti’s teachings, that the freedom of the Self is the inherent Beauty. In great art, these two great rivers come together.

“Step by step our voice becomes even, and beautiful. It is a long and interesting work. Whatever you do, perform with pleasure!” These were Anna’s words of guidance in the last of her group classes. “Stay with one color, don’t change constantly your voice and position”.

In a way, classical singing can be thought of a kind of “lyrical sadhana”, for we do the same in both singing and yoga sadhana—step by step we perfect our instrument, to receive and transmit the highest vibrations of the Self. One pointed focus gets us more swiftly to our goal, while deeply enjoying our discipline of honing our tuning forks for the Absolute.

And just as we in Sat Yoga are studying to free our soul, the same is true, fractally, of the voice—both need to be freed from the ego. Anna ended her final Master class by saying, “don’t scream, don’t try to be loud, relax, and be brave!” The same can be said for atmanology and meditation.

Anna was very open and reverent towards the teachings she encountered in Sat Yoga. She revealed she was in awe of the functioning of the community, the unity she felt on all levels—from the teachings to the structures of community life—and wished Sat Yoga could be a model for communities worldwide.

In honor also of Anna’s visit, Shunyamurti selected a documentary film based on the life and work of Nikolas Roerich, the great Russian painter and visionary.

The underlying thread that needs to be mentioned, of Radha Ma’s attraction to Russian classical vocal literature and bringing Anna to the ashram, is Shunyamurti’s recognition of the Hyperborean greatness of Russian culture still felt today by those attuned to such levels of historical and spiritually aesthetic truths.

Why bring a Russian artist to Sat Yoga Ashram? To open once again the pillars of Hyperborea. Anna and Radha Ma offered recitals from this potent tradition—music of tenderness, depth, and the opening of the soul. In their final musical sharing, they sang a duet, Panis Angelicus, Bread of Heaven, completing the three-week vocal intensive with music that dissolves all symbols.

Reflections from Anna Murugova

Following her stay at the Sat Yoga Ashram, Anna shared these heartfelt reflections on her time as our first Artist-in-Residence. In this short testimonial, she speaks of the community’s warmth, the inspiration of nature, and the profound influence of Shunyamurti’s presence on her creative and spiritual process.