Swami Sarvapriyananda

Swami Sarvapriyananda is a monk of the Ramakrishna Order and, since 2017, the minister and spiritual head at the Vedanta Society of New York, a centre Swami Vivekananda started in 1894. He joined the order in India in 1994 and took full monastic vows in 2004. Before moving to New York he trained young monks at Belur Math, the order's headquarters near Kolkata, worked in its educational institutions, and served as assistant minister at the Vedanta Society of Southern California. In 2019–20 he held a fellowship at Harvard Divinity School.

He teaches Advaita Vedanta, the non-dual school of Indian philosophy, by working closely through classic texts such as the Upanishads, the Mandukya Karika, the Bhagavad Gita and the Drg Drsya Viveka, joined with guided meditation and patient answers to questions. His recorded talks, many filmed at the society's house on the Upper West Side, reach a very large audience online. He often speaks with scientists and philosophers about consciousness, has taken part in interfaith events, including at the United Nations, and teaches retreats at Omega and centres around the world. His books include Mahavakya, Fullness and Emptiness, and Moments of Awakening.