It’s just another normal day. But then…. imagine… the doorbell rings. You go to open the door, curious as to who would show up at this late time of the year. To your great surprise, a very special person is standing before you: Mr. New Meditative Year. He smiles at you in greeting and silently hands you a special note. … Read More
The real spirit of Christmas is JOY! And you can get that joy by always wanting less and less, by understanding that in your heart you already have everything that you will ever have. This joy that comes in simplicity, in a child-like, humble heart is worth everything. When you can sit in your meditation and just feel so good … Read More
In a recent seclusion, this one in a little bungalow below the Ananda monastery, I felt especially close to Christ and our line of Masters. Occasionally footsteps could be heard approaching, then receding— outside the door I would find food, and an aura of kindness, self-offering and divine friendship so palpable that tears would come to my eyes. Into my … Read More
“What a trippy life it’s been!” That was what my friend Nayaswami Maria said as she lay on her deathbed. If not her last words, they at least summed things up. I wish I could interview her and find out what it was that she was thinking of. I only knew her in her last five years, and it’s safe … Read More
The back-to-the-land movement of the 1960s and 1970s produced a compilation of related products and how-to advice called The Whole Earth Catalog—resources for living off the grid, homesteading, organic gardening. Threading its way through pages of product information is a Bildungsroman for the hippie era—the journey of self-discovery of a young man driving across America in his VW bus (which … Read More
By Brahmachari Sagar For students of Paramhansa Yogananda all over the world, the focal point of the Christmas celebration is the annual eight-hour Christmas meditation. Yoganandaji started this tradition in 1936 as an opportunity for all seekers to experience deep communion with Christ in the cradle of their meditation-stilled hearts. Will Christ come? While we prepare in the spirit of … Read More
The energy is building for the Living Wisdom High School at Ananda Village. A concerted effort was made in recent months to increase enrollment and expand outreach. The school will now have 4 new international students for the spring semester, three from India and one from Iran. Students who are able to attend the school from other countries will take the blessings of the community … Read More
Grief is not a linear experience. It is not something that you leave behind. As a wise friend who lost her son in a tragic gun accident once said to me, “You do not move through grief, you move in it.” Grief does not recede like a tide, you never move past it. The goal of its recovery is not … Read More
5:57 am Realizing what time it is, you wake up and take your baby daughter into the living room so that her mother can get some sleep. 6:03 am You start a diaper change while trying to stay awake. Aphorisms pop into mind which you can’t resist sharing with your eight-week-old, an obvious symptom of early-onset dad humor. “Life is … Read More
We all know that meditation, as well as sleep, are very similar in their benefits. They offer deep relaxation, joy, and a release (if only temporary) from the incessant demands of life. It is perhaps only natural then that we should ask the question: Which of these two—sleep or meditation—offer the better benefit? Let us see what Paramhansa Yogananda has … Read More
