(limited liability) • 1st in Europe since 2026
Retreat • Monastery • Seminar and Retreat Center
Origins & Founding
ORIGINS
In the 1970s, our founder’s father
visited the ashram of the Ramakrishna Order in Colombo,
in what is now Ceylon (formerly Sri Lanka).
From her early childhood, he introduced his daughter
to the teachings of Advaita Vedanta,
the doctrine of the unity of all being,
and even then they visited temple complexes
and other sacred sites.
Throughout her life, our founder consistently engaged
with spiritual literature from around the world,
and after her father passed away,
she once again found her own path
to the authentic, traditional teachings
of Advaita Vedanta and the yoga system.
In April 2013, she visited the ashram
of the Vedanta-Gesellschaft e.V., Berlin
for the first time,
which has been led since 2004
by monks of the Ramakrishna Order of India.
At that time, this ashram was located in Mühlheim am Main
(near Frankfurt am Main),and there was also
the retreat house in Steinebach/Sieg (Bindweide),
which our founder then began visiting a few months later
just as frequently and often for extended periods.
Over a period of approximately 13 years,
under the guidance of the head monk,
the highly revered Swami Baneshananda Ji Maharaj
(monastic teacher and former head of the legal department
at the Belur Math headquarters in India),
she participated very regularly in 3-day retreats,
pujas, and other spiritual events.
During this time, she gained profound experiences
that greatly contributed to her inner growth
and spiritual development.
She also had the opportunity,
through the highly revered Swami Baneshananda Ji Maharaj,
to serve the Vedanta-Gesellschaft e.V., Berlin
over an extended period and in many areas
as the organization consolidated three locations
into one in Berlin.
Following the completion and inauguration
of the new ashram in Berlin,
run by monks of the Ramakrishna Order from India,
however, according to traditional rules of the Order,
there was no possibility for women
to continue their own spiritual path there
while living together with like-minded ones.
And when, subsequently,
some women raised the question of a
“SARADA MATH”
— a monastery for women and nuns in Germany —
a widespread call for it emerged.
FOUNDING
Convinced that founding a new nonprofit organization
was now the only —and at the same time the best—way
to establish a “SARADA MATH” in Germany
for nuns and women to be and to live there,
came to the founder, Kerstin Weber,
after her mother passed away
unexpectedly in October 2024,
peacefully and with a smile.
She left her a half-timbered estate
in the Hoher Vogelsberg (Hesse) and some cash,
so that nothing should stand in the way
of starting a new community.
That seemed like a glorious opportunity.
As has long been the case in India and the U.S.,
an independent monastery for nuns and women
based on Sri Ramakrishna’s Advaita Vedanta
was to be established in Germany also.
And the founder was ready to give everything for this cause.
Kerstin Weber – A Bridge Between Dynamism and Stillness
From the marketplace of the world
to the stillness of Vedanta within
“My life’s journey has always been shaped by two forces:
The deep desire to understand and shape structures,
and the search for the one, unchanging truth behind all changing forms.
In Advaita Vedanta, I have found the philosophy
that seamlessly connects these two worlds.
Before I devoted myself entirely to monastic life,
I spent decades at the heart of the business and educational life
of the East Hesse region for decades.
As the long-time managing director
with sole power of representation
of our family-owned wind turbine partnership (oHG),
I had the opportunity to learn over the course of 17 years
what it means to take responsibility for sustainable projects.
At the same time,
my heart has always been in sharing knowledge:
At my own computer school in Grebenhain/Volkartshain
and as an instructor for certified employment agency courses,
my goal was to help people overcome their fear of complex systems
and to provide them with logical, clear tools
for their own development."
13 Years of Teaching and the Call of the Monastery
"For me, these professional experiences
were not at odds with spirituality,
but rather the best preparation
for what Swami Vivekananda called ‘practical Vedanta’:
realizing the divine core in everyday actions.
Thirteen years ago (in April 2013),
my intensive inner journey began
under the lovingly strict guidance
of monks of the Ramakrishna Order in Germany.
After well over a decade
of intensive study of the scriptures,
spiritual training, and daily service (seva),
I am now coming full circle
and am preparing to take myself
the traditional nun’s vows (sannyasa),
in order to carry on this timeless lineage
in a pure and authentic way."
My Vision
"As the sole founder and managing director of
SARADA HOME Germany gUG (limited liability),
I would like to use my organizational knowledge
and my teaching experience
to offer you a safe space for reflection.
I usually lead the lectures and seminars myself
at our half-timbered estate.
It is a personal priority of mine
to convey the profound truths of the Upanishads,
the Bhagavad Gita, the Bible, and other sacred texts
in a way that is as understandable, clear, practical,
and applicable as possible,
as I have done throughout my life.
I therefore cordially invite you
to experience the stillness
in this sacred and peaceful place
in the High Vogelsberg in Germany,
which, in truth, seems to lie deep within ourselves.