Trigunatita was fond of teaching by means of forceful maxims. When someone at the table recited the great watchword of the American Republic, “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty,” he made him repeat it. Some of the mottoes hanging in every room of the monastery were: “Live like a hermit, but work like a horse”; “Do it now”; “Watch and pray”; “Do or die — but you will not die.” The swami believed in singing as a devotional exercise, and led his young male disciples in hymns and chants up on the roof of the temple, or down by the harbour in the early morning, astonishing the fishermen and sailors.
Trigunatita was an uncompromising ascetic. He taught his students through personal example more than through words. He was a consistent example of regularity and punctuality. He would go to bed last and rise before any of the other members of the monastery. His office was his bedroom, and he had no bed: He would spread one blanket on the carpet, put another blanket over himself, and use the upper part of his right arm as his pillow. The swami strongly believed that through discipline one can form a strong character, which is absolutely essential as a foundation for spiritual life. To the earnest disciple he would say: “I don’t mind if I break every bone in your body if I can drag you up to the shores of the ocean of Immortality and throw you in. Then my work will be finished.” (Source: God Lived with Them)