Recently I was doing some routine maintenance on my bicycle. It may be my mechanic karma or something, but more than often after I am done with the maintenance, my bicycle is rendered with more problems than before I started working on it. Looking at the bright side however, each time is a learning experience…

A group of us at Ananda Village are exploring technologies involved in giving the Ananda Sangha, Expanding Light Retreat and Crystal Clarity Publishers an ability to offer online courses for distance learning. As the economic downturn continues and people’s travel budgets are decreasing, we are looking into ways of bringing Yogananda’s teachings closer to people,…

On Tuesday December 23rd, we had our annual all-day Christmas group meditation, where we inwardly celebrate the birth of Christ and the true meaning of Christmas. Paramhansa Yogananda started this annual tradition at Mt. Washington, where he held an eight-hour group meditation on December 24th (Spiritual Christmas), and followed the next day by a banquet…

On August 9 2008, the day before the Spiritual Renewal Week, eighteen great souls gathered at Ananda Village to honor Ananda’s 40th anniversary and Swami Kriyananda’s 60th anniversary of discipleship by doing a bicycle ride. They had options of starting or ending the ride at different points along the planned route, thanks to the great…

In one of my previous posts, I had mentioned that Ananda Velo (Ananda Village’s Bicycle Club) is organizing a bicycle ride for Ananda’s 40th anniversary and Swami Kriyananda’s 60th anniversary of discipleship. The date of this ride has been finalized as August 9th (the Saturday before Spiritual Renewal Week). Yesterday, we sent out an email…

After countless hours spent by the volunteers and staff of Crystal Hermitage, the gardens opened their doors to the public about a month ago. Nevada County’s local newspaper, The Union, featured a wonderful front-page article, titled “Spring glory over the Yuba”, talking about the beauty of the gardens and inviting the public to visit them.…

Ananda’s Expanding Light Yoga and Meditation Retreat recently hosted a group of people with early stages of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) to conduct a Yoga Therapy Workshop. The purpose of the workshop was to investigate yoga’s effect on the functional abilities of an MS patient to maintain an active and fulfilling life. I have had a…

It’s been over five years since I moved to Ananda Village. In 2001, when my wife and I had decided to move here, we also had to figure out our job situation. She was a nurse back then and it wasn’t hard for her to find a similar job in Grass Valley. I was (and…

In my previous post about bicycling (Satsang on Bicycles) I had talked about the great joy of bicyling in the Sierra Foothills, especially when joined by gurubais. The more I ride my bicycle in this area, the more I am convinced we live in one of the most beautiful areas in the world. The neighboring…

Being located in a rural area with lots of brush and trees, Ananda Village has always been in risk of being affected by wildfires. Add to this the hot and dry summers, it is almost impossible to have a year without any fire incident. Year 1976 (way before my time here) marked the worst fire…

On June 2nd, JT, Bob and I did our first century together in Calaveras County, organized by the Sacramento Wheelmen Bicycle Club. I had talked about this upcoming ride in my previous post, titled “Satsang On Bicycles”. Three of us have been preparing and training for this event for the several months preceding it. We…

Only a few days left to the launch of the new book “Revelations of Christ” written by Swami Kriyananda. A large group of us from the Ananda Village are heading down to Los Angeles to help with and attend this event as well as to attend and support the opening of Ananda Los Angeles. I…

June 23rd 2007 marked the day for the dedication of the beautiful Ananda Seattle Meditation Temple. The Ananda community of Seattle joyfully and skillfully organized the entire weekend with keen attention to detail. All events for the weekend were sold out. People who weren’t able to get in the temple had to use the auxiliary…

Glorious weekend! Around 400 Ananda Village residents and guests gathered to honor and celebrate Swami Kriyananda’s birthday. Saturday morning class at the amphitheater was his first public appearance since he arrived at the village last Wednesday. Though his body shows his age, his spirit is ageless. He gave a very inspiring talk on his search…

Every year the first weekend in May, Ananda village residents and devotees gather together and beautify the community in remembrance and dedication to the life of Rajarsi Janakananda, Yogananda’s foremost disciple. We work on projects suitable for every age and talent, such as landscaping, land clearing, deep cleaning temples, fixing roofs of common buildings, preparing…

I have just finished the fourth and final week of Level 1 Ananda Yoga Teacher Training. After five years of living in Ananda Village I have finally been able to take the time off to do this four-week program. I am so glad I did. The course has been educational, fun, inspiring, challenging, deep in…

One of my favorite pastimes living in this rural community is to be able to go for bicycle rides that could easily be labeled as world-class. If you have visited Ananda Village you know what kind of natural beauty it is surrounded with. Sierra Foothills create some beautiful rolling hills and therefore beautiful (and hilly)…

My wife Suzanne recently had a surgery, which she is still recovering from. She had to stay at the hospital for three days and now she continues to recover at home for a few more weeks. The outpouring of love and prayers from our friends at our community before, during and after the surgery continues…

We had our traditional Christmas Eve service at Ananda Village. Our dear friend Lila Devi, who was the mastermind of the evening, weaved the story of the birth of Jesus with stories, music and theatre. It was magical and very moving. The community center was filled with residents and many guests. The evening ended with…

It took me years to convince myself that I should start a blog. I don’t necessarily chase the latest technology craze and end up usually waiting for a while until the dust settles and see what remains after that. Finally about a year ago I started a blog, primarily to send news and pictures to…