Truckee author writes a deeply personal memoir about her escape from the grips of an oppressive ashram community

A Truckee resident for the past 13 years, Priya Hutner has done her part to enrich the area’s literary and culinary communities. In addition to creating delicious concoctions through her catering business, The Seasoned Sage, Hutner co-founded the annual Tahoe Literary Festival and Truckee Lit Crawl and has written hundreds of articles for local publications, mostly Tahoe Weekly (Tahoe Guide).

She is now promoting her new book, Chasing Nirvana: A Seeker’s Story of Love, Loss, and Liberation, which details her escape from a Florida ashram led by a tough-talking female guru from New York. 

Published by She Writes Press and distributed by Simon & Schuster in March 2026, the page-turning memoir has received rave reviews by a wide range of authors, artists and fans of Hutner’s work.  

“Priya Hutner’s Chasing Nirvana is raw, courageous and profoundly relatable for anyone who’s ever lost themselves in the promise of enlightenment,” Canadian actress and author Sarah Edmondson, a cult-recovery advocate who co-hosts the “A Little Bit Culty” podcast, writes on Hutner’s website. “Her story shines a light on the seductive power of charismatic leaders and the universal longing to belong.”

“Priya is one of the most courageous people I know,” writes famed American folk singer Arlo Guthrie, a friend of Hutner’s going back to her days in the ashram. “The journey of a real seeker isn’t for the faint of heart. As Priya makes clear in her story, you have to have courage to go beyond the mundane comfort of the familiar, on a road that leads to places you’ve never been. She went there her way, and that’s what makes her journey an inspiration to others.”

Life in a Cult 

When Hutner was a young teenager, her parents joined a growing New York spiritual community led by a guru known as Ma, who predominantly drew from Hindu and Tibetan Buddhist philosophy.  

At first, she had little interest in the spiritual teachings or the community’s strict lifestyle, which included celibacy, abstinence from alcohol and a vegetarian diet. Instead, she was excited by the prospect of leaving her home in the Philadelphia suburbs and living in New York City.  

Her mother and brother later moved to Florida, where Ma had established an ashram with a small group of students. Hutner eventually followed to give birth to her son. She then returned to New York and, after several years, moved back to Florida with her two young children. 

It was during this period that her search for deeper meaning and purpose intensified. Drawn to the spiritual path, she became increasingly devoted to Ma’s teachings. She experienced expanded states of consciousness, and her spiritual awakening became a central focus. 

“I wanted a deeper meaning for my life. I wanted to be enlightened, a better person and a different person,” says Hutner, who spent years working her way up to become CEO of the ashram.

In addition to seeking enlightenment, the ashram took care of people who were dying of AIDS and other illnesses, as well as those who lacked food or housing. 

“There were some really important lessons that were learned,” says Hutner, who was especially impacted by serving the dying, which reminded her that “our time here is limited and fragile.” 

“Ma was an outrageous being who didn’t hold back,” Hutner adds. “She swore like a sailor. We find teachers who suit us. I thought Ma’s outrageousness was awesome. I still have a little New York left in me. There were times I was mortified later taking her out into the world, though. There were some really embarrassing moments.” 

Hutner understood that her position in the upper echelon of the ashram management gave her the privilege of closer contact with the guru, and to speak with her more frankly—although Ma still had the last words, and those words were often harsh. Hutner was a gatekeeper, and people went through her to be with the guru.  

“People wanted what Ma offered. They longed to be free from their pain and suffering. They wanted to belong,” she says. “Thousands were helped, and many were hurt, with verbal and emotional abuse and manipulation and more.”  

Eventually, Hutner realized, “I wasn’t growing as a human and I saw things that I didn’t think were OK. The fracturing was slow. I looked around the room and realized nobody was enlightened. Something broke in me. I had an awakening through a series of dreams, and witnessing Ma’s increasingly erratic behavior, it led to an epiphany that made me realize it was time for me to leave.”

Starting Anew

Leaving wasn’t easy, though. In addition to her own involvement with the ashram, her mother was a longtime close confidant of Ma’s, and leaving Ma was in some ways also leaving her mother.  

But after more than 30 years in the Kashi Ashram (which still exists, although Ma has since died), she packed everything in her car and escaped under “traumatic and harrowing circumstances.”  

Truckee’s Priya Hutner is the author of Chasing Nirvana: A Seeker’s Story of Love, Loss, and Liberation, courtesy photo

“I left my community, my family and my guru. I had to reinvent my life and had no idea what I was going to do,” says Hutner, who was 40 at the time. “I was CEO of the ashram. I was in charge of the community. I was entrenched.” 

After leaving the group, Hutner moved in with her Sikh boyfriend, who ran a kundalini yoga ashram. They talked about building a home together in Truckee, where her younger son lived and ski leased a place. Truckee felt like home. 

The relationship eventually ended, and she made the move on her own. One of the first people she met in Truckee was Karen Terrey, a local writing coach and current Nevada County Poet Laureate.  

“She introduced me to a lot of people,” Hutner says. “She is a great networker.”

Hutner needed to make a living and wasn’t sure at first how to do it. She had a knack for cooking and writing, though, and was hired at Tahoe Weekly (later Tahoe Guide) published by Katherine Hill, serving as both the entertainment and food editor. 

“That job helped me become a better writer,” Hutner says. 

In 2014, Hutner established The Seasoned Sage and worked as a private chef, initially preparing healthy meals for individual clients before expanding the business into a successful catering company, which she still runs with her son. She also teaches yoga, meditation and breath work. 

Cathartic Endeavor

As soon as Hutner left the ashram, she knew she wanted to write the story of her experience, which she had documented in her journals. But the need to make a living put the book on the back burner for years.   

Finally, she was ready and began to focus on the book. At first, she realized she was writing from anger, so she worked to change her tone and focus on making it a spiritual adventure story that reads like a novel. 

She kept writing, sent it to an editor in Los Angeles and started querying agents and publishers. 

“To me, writing a book was cathartic, but it brought up a lot of stuff,” Hutner says. “Memoir is the past, but who wants to live in the past? Many stories didn’t make it into the book, but in the end, the body of work was compelling. I told my truth.”   

The publishing process, she found, was less cathartic than writing and a much more difficult endeavor. It involved hard work and the frustration of rejections. Since the book published, she’s remained busy with speaking engagements and publicity. 

“I am trying to pace myself,” Hutner says. “It has been interesting seeing how many people relate to the story, even though they were never in a cult but were in an abusive relationship or hooked into something. I wanted the story to be relatable.”

An Advocate for Writers

The challenge of writing the book led Hutner to want to help others who are interested in the craft.

“It was important to me to be an advocate for writers, particularly for emerging writers,” she says. “As I got deeper into the publishing world, I felt there was a way for me to support others.”

Hutner teamed up with Hill, the Tahoe Guide publisher, and co-founded the Tahoe Literary Festival, an annual fall event in Tahoe City that brings together readers and writers for workshops, panel discussions and readings. It has quickly grown into a much-anticipated event while helping connect the small but vibrant Tahoe writing community. Now in its third year, the event—scheduled for October 9 and 10—draws authors and participants from across the country. 

The festival has since expanded to include the Truckee Literary Crawl—aka the Truckee Lit Crawl—which features short author readings and Q-and-A sessions. This past April, over 60 authors read at venues throughout downtown Truckee.  

Hutner says what made the processes of writing the book and creating the literary festival more worthwhile is the people she’s met along the way. 

“It is the most amazing experience. The festival and writing and publishing a book has led to so much expansion and new experiences,” she says. “I’ve learned a lot about the publishing world. I’ve met many new and wonderful people. It’s led me to realize how I will curate my next book and how I can help other writers.”

Chasing Nirvana is available at Word After Word Books in Truckee and can also be ordered through bookstores or purchased on Amazon. Learn more about the Tahoe Literary Festival and Truckee Lit Crawl at tahoelitfest.com. Follow Hutner on Instagram, @priyahutner, or at priyahutner.com. 

Tim Hauserman is an author and a nearly lifelong Tahoe resident. He appreciates Priya Hutner’s contributions to the area’s small writing community and commends her for taking on the challenge of writing such a personal book.