ABOUT US

“Kalpa tree” is the wish-fulfilling tree in Sanskrit, usually in the sense of spiritual enlightenment. A beautiful song from The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, excerpted below, identifies this mythical Kalpa tree with Brahman, the Supreme Reality of Vedanta philosophy. Ever perched on the Absolute, the divine bird in our innermost heart is asked to sing its celestial song of God-absorption. This mystical aspect of the Kalpa tree inspired the name of Kalpa Tree Press.

Sing, O bird that nestles deep within my heart,
Sing, O bird that sits on the Kalpa-tree of Brahman,
Sing God’s everlasting praise . . .
Sing, O bird, “He alone is the Comfort of my soul.”
Sing, O bird, “He alone is my life’s enduring Joy.”
O thou wondrous bird of my life,
Sing aloud in my heart.

(Reprinted by permission of the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, New York)

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Kalpa Tree Press was established in September of 2000 in order to publish Centred in Truth: The Story of Swami Nitya-swarup-ananda (a two-volume set with 1,128 pages and 131 illustrations) and to offer it at a reasonable price. This monumental work gives readers a dynamic view of Vedanta philosophy and its forceful role in creating a truly humane world civilization. The global vision of Vedanta—originally preached in the West by the great Swami Vivekananda at the Parliament of Religions in 1893—was Swami Nitya-swarup-ananda’s lifelong crusade.

Following its publication in 2001, Dr. Karan Singh nominated Centred in Truth for the prestigious Grawemeyer Award. The success of Centred in Truth in India and the United States prompted Sister Gargi (Marie Louise Burke), a prominent author and monastic in the Vedanta movement, to work with Kalpa Tree Press on three books she authored about Swami Ashokananda, her own spiritual teacher: A Heart Poured Out: A Story of Swami Ashokananda; A Disciple’s Journal: In the Company of Swami Ashokananda; and, in collaboration with Shelley Brown, Shafts of Light: Selected Teachings of Swami Ashokananda for Spiritual Practice. These Kalpa Tree Press publications were widely praised by Library Journal and other reviewers.

Kalpa Tree Press will continue to publish works that deserve to be called contemporary classics. Our publications help readers understand how India’s timeless philosophy can be practiced on its highest and deepest levels in a contemporary mode, and how Vedanta can spiritualize communal, as well as personal, thought and endeavor.