Ask Ananda’s Experts
Questions and answers about meditation, yoga, the spiritual life, and more

Nayaswami Savitri

Ananda Village

Answer

Dear Nina,

I can find no reference to "Physiognomy" in Yogananda’s teachings.

However, I have heard Swami Kriyananda refer to the Masters or saints being able to read something of person’s character by looking at his or her face. This is especially true of one’s eyes, which Yogananda refers to as the "windows of the soul."

Nayaswami Savitri

Ananda Village

Answer

Dear Mona,

Karma is the sum total of every action, activity, or thought a person has had or done, in this and every other lifetime.

Most people think of all karma as "bad," but that is incorrect. It is simply an action or a thought. Karma may be bad (harmful), neutral, or good (helpful).

Nayaswami Gopal

Ananda Village

Answer

Dear One,

Sorry to hear about your father. If it’s O K with you, I too, would like to pray for him to return to good health.

For it is written, “Seek Ye first and all these things will be added unto you.” It is to say, if you want your dad to know God or develop spirituality then a good plan of action would be for you to increase your spiritual magnetism. The law of attraction says, “Like attracts like.” The closer your relationship is to the Almighty the more positive and uplifting your energy will be. If your father is open to receiving this heavenly energy it will naturally lift him to want to know and love God. The more in tune you are to a true spiritual master like Jesus Christ, Yogananda, Krishna or other divine saints the more your light will enlighten those close to you. For their light will merge with your light.

Nayaswami Gyandev

Ananda Village

Answer

Thought and energy are aspects of two different levels of divine manifestation: Thought is part of the causal world of ideas, and energy is part of the astral world of energy. The achievements of every human being — whether famous or not — are the result of both divine energy and the power of thought. We have an intention (thought), and we work toward manifesting that intention by putting out energy (which is divine energy because everything comes from God). Both are vital to any success, whether large or small.

Nayaswami Gyandev

Ananda Village

Answer

Dear Mamta,

Dreams can having meaning or not. Sometimes they are superconscious, and sometimes they are just a subconscious stew. Even when it seems that they carry true meaning, that meaning can be on any of a number of different levels, and it can be hard to know which level is the valid one. For that reason, we should be careful not to read too much into a dream unless we have a deep, calm, clear conviction that it carries an important message for us.

Tyagi Jayadev

Ananda Assisi, Italy

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Namashkar Nina!

The reason is: if you pray, miracles can happen, if you don’t, they won’t.

It’s like this: God is impersonal, but He is too great to be only impersonal, as Yogananda explains. He is also very personal: He is a Father, Mother, Friend. If you don’t pray, His impersonal law will be active, which is karma. Everything then that happens is in the flow of action/reaction, cause/effect.

Nayaswami Nitai

Ananda Village

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Dear Truthseeker,

Finding a spiritually supportive environment for education is a major challenge. Ananda has founded its first college in Laurelwood, Oregon to meet this need (www.anandauniversity.org). If your situation precludes this alternative, you can always pray directly to Master to guide you to the right people who can provide the support you need. One student I know is starting a kirtan group at her college with the idea of attracting other truth-seeking souls. Finding another place that appreciates Master’s teachings, even though they focus on another path, is also a possibility. Putting out positive energy in whatever way you can will create the magnetism that draws your answer.

Kristy Fassler-Hecht

Ananda Maine

Answer

Dear MPG,

Meditation can be a challenge and I appreciate your difficulty with sitting in the silence. We are conditioned from birth to send our energy outward and to have multiple thoughts each moment. Fortunately, our line of self realized Masters have brought timeless techniques that are guaranteed to help us interiorize our consciousness and offer it upward into superconsciousness. Every successful meditator is challenged by intrusive thoughts, feelings and impulses especially when establishing a regular meditation practice.