“Most people’s attention is fixed solely on the cure of bodily diseases, because these are so tangible. They don’t realize that their mental troubles of fear, despair, bereavement, worry, violent anger, lack of self-control—and their spiritual suffering, through ignorance of the clue to the mystery and meaning of human life—are still more important and overpowering. If the mind is free … Read More
The famous novelist Herman Melville, who authored Moby Dick 170 years ago, made this interesting statement: Life is a voyage that’s homeward bound. From a yogic perspective, was he correct? What do you think enlightened yogis would say? If they agree, then what kind of a journey is this life? And what exactly does home mean? Further, and perhaps most … Read More
Yogavatar Lahiri Mahasaya revived the lost, sacred art of Kriya Yoga in the 19th century. During that time he advised his disciples to solve all problems through meditation. This advice, so deceptively simple, is still true for us today but left me wondering, “How exactly can I do that?” In Autobiography of a Yogi, Lahiri Mahasaya (the guru of Paramhansa … Read More
Spiritual surrender is the way to true freedom despite its great threat to the ego. Whims and limited understanding, as Paramhansa Yogananda used to say, guide human will. Divine will is in harmony with every level of reality. It will sometimes appear to us at first to be wrong though it always proves, in the end, to be for our … Read More
I must admit that meditation has not been easy for me lately. I have so many things calling for my attention including the daily priorities of family life, longer-term goals, creative projects, and of course, spontaneous desires. It has been almost impossible to keep still long enough to go deeper in meditation. I was humorously sharing with a friend recently … Read More
Nayaswami Sadhana Devi leads you in a 30-minute guided meditation on finding peace and calmness within. Sadhana Devi is a longtime meditator and teacher and lives at Ananda Village, California. Transcript Nayaswami Sadhana Devi: Namaste, and welcome everyone. My name is Nayaswami Sadhana Devi and I will be guiding you through 30 minutes of meditation. So, let’s begin with a … Read More
Recently, a long-time friend shared with me that they are not doing their spiritual practices; they are without faith, and even losing their belief. This person explained to me that they know what needs to be done but do not have the energy to do it. It saddened me deeply to hear this. The only door open to me was … Read More
In 2010, my husband, Gyandev, and I visited our friend Francis at his home in Palm Springs. He was a devotee of Paramhansa Yogananda and took us to visit Palm Canyon, a place Yogananda had visited in the late 1920s. While there, Yogananda went into a deep period of samadhi (a state of oneness with God). After he emerged from … Read More
This quotation of Muir captures the essence of his love for the California Sierra Nevada mountain range and passionately attests to the inspiration that enabled him to strive tirelessly to preserve their beauty. As I read these words colorfully painted on a bench alongside the forest path at our Meditation Retreat, I was immediately struck by their powerful relevance to … Read More
Swami Kriyananda, Paramhansa Yogananda’s direct disciple and the founder of Ananda, counseled thousands of people during his lifetime. He developed our approach to counseling others spiritually. Most people live in the conscious realm, which is limited to the material world. They are not used to thinking in superconscious ways or to drawing on intuition to find solutions. In spiritual counseling, … Read More
