I was reading about Maharishi effect, which says a group of meditators can bring safety, stability and prosperity to the entire surrounding area. So can this be possible that LA become such a rich prosperous and abundant city because of the SRF meditation temple launched by Yogananda in LA?
—Siddharth Kumar, India
Dear Siddhartha,
Yours is an interesting question! In Autobiography of a Yogi there is a discussion of the famous cities of Sodom and Gomorrah which might not have been destroyed by God had there been but 10 righteous souls in their midst. So, yes, it is certainly likely to some degree that the presence of an avatar — Yogananda — and of his disciples in the midst of Los Angeles has had a salutary effect upon the city’s vibration and consciousness (with attendant material benefits). It is impossible to substantiate this effect, however.
When Paramhansa Yogananda first arrived in LA it was clearly on a trajectory of success and prosperity already. Yogananda moreover stated that Los Angeles is the “Benares of the West” and had, long, long ago, been home to great saints. So already the potential preexisted for a possible explanation for the City of the Angels to be prosperous and successful.
So there surely must be something to be said here about the success and prosperity of LA being attributable to the high vibrations of the region being channeled there by great saints (rishis) of the past and the present era.
We must also, however, understand that this world of ours is essentially rajasic (restless) and that all things are a mixture. LA has plenty of crime and tamas (darkening energy), too. The omnipresent threat of earthquakes and past destructive riots are also part of the landscape.
Still, yours is a “happy” thought and worth contemplating. Thank you!
Nayaswami Hriman
Seattle WA USA
www.Hrimananda.org
