Gurumayi was born on December 13, 1977, in Winchester, Virginia, and spent most of her life in northern New Jersey. From an early age, she felt “out of place,” as if she did not belong anywhere, and she searched for something she sensed she needed to find. Although she attended church with her family, her family did not feel a deep connection to the tradition. While in high school, learning about the Salem witch trials sparked her interest and led her to the public library, where she learned everything she could about the subject. For a few years, this set her on the path of pagan practice. During her childhood and youth, she was also exposed to traditional Judaism and learned some Jewish prayers. She was always very physically active and excelled in several sports, especially diving, swimming, and softball. From childhood, she practiced diving professionally and won many gold medals, but for her the most important part was the special moments she experienced while diving—moments she can now recognize as meditative states. She was always drawn to aesthetics, and that attraction led her to study Industrial Fashion Design. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Centenary University in New Jersey. While studying, she was deeply involved in mentoring first-year students and participated in the university’s humanitarian projects. In everything she did—whether in her studies, her social contributions, or sports—she was consistently recognized and appreciated for giving her very best. She has always felt, and still feels today, that she must give everything she has in every service she undertakes.

From her first meeting with Prabhuji on September 4, 2009, an intimate certainty took root within her: Prabhuji was her Master. That conviction became clearer during the retreat, through a decisive experience remembered vividly in her own words: “After the second day at the retreat, I remember it so clearly. Prabhuji was giving a satsang. He said something and I thought, ‘Oh my God!’ You had just answered so many questions I had in my head. Then I thought, ‘I’m going to stay here and live with Prabhuji.’”

From that moment on, Gurumayi undertook an intense sādhana under Prabhuji’s personal guidance. She systematically studied every aspect of the Retroprogressive path until, in December and January 2025, her awakening finally occurred. Gurumayi received all her titles directly from Prabhuji, including that of Avadhuta. Officially, her full name is Her Divine Grace Avadhutika Bhaktivedanta Yogacharya Srimati Lilananda Mataji Maharani, known among Prabhuji’s disciples as Gurumayi. She is recognized as a fully enlightened Master whose presence radiates a serene and constant joy. Devotion manifests in her as an unbroken purity: a transparent love for her Master and for God, without calculation or any trace of possessiveness. Sanctity appears not as a solemn pose, but as living simplicity—a humility that does not display itself and a strength that does not wound.

Her gaze welcomes without intruding. Her silence guides without imposing; her words comfort and bring light. Compassion is expressed in small yet decisive acts, able to relieve without humiliating and to support without binding. Wherever she goes, the heart finds calm, as if the world were to remember, for an instant, its own capacity for goodness. In her, surrender and lucidity walk together, and joy becomes a testimony—not a passing emotion, but a form of truth.