What an amazing day! Six of us were in Pench Tiger Reserve with Satya Prakash, a friend and gurubhai, and a very high official in the Indian Forest Service. He is one of the world’s top experts in preserving tigers. India has taken a lead in this area and is helping some eighteen other countries that have tigers still living … Read More
As Devi and I took our morning walk through the countryside near our rural Pune Ashram, we were met with a scene that has changed little in the last thousand years. Crops have just been harvested, and the farmers are plowing their small fields with wooden plows pulled by bullocks. They wave as we pass, and we somehow bridge the … Read More
We’re in India and recently had lunch with Indu Bhan, whom you may remember as the man who told us the fascinating story of how he and his companions found Babaji’s Cave. Indu is a font of amazing and inspiring stories, and he asked us if we would like to hear about the most memorable talk he had ever attended. … Read More
We have been helping give a Meditation Teacher Training course here in India, and, as part of the training, we talked about how to give magnetic classes. But the same principles apply to other areas of life: doing your job with magnetism, or having magnetic relationships, or developing the magnetism that draws God. Magnetism, you see, is produced whenever there … Read More
It was in the fall of 1966 that I found Autobiography of a Yogi, although in truth I think it found me. It was a time of great transition in my life. I had graduated from college and moved to San Francisco a few months earlier, and was just starting out as an independent adult. I was looking for a … Read More
This morning Devi and I spoke with someone who was feeling overwhelmed and a little guilty because he couldn’t keep up with all the “should do’s” on the spiritual path. I doubt if there is a devotee alive who hasn’t had these same thoughts. On the one hand, there are hundreds of techniques, habits, and attitudes that could be helpful. … Read More
September 12th is the anniversary of the day in 1948 when Swami Kriyananda first met Paramhansa Yogananda. Those of us who are members of Ananda consider this day as our collective “Spiritual Birthday.” Devi and I are in Italy and will celebrate this sacred occasion by giving a talk to several hundred people at a Yoga Festival in Rome. I … Read More
Nearly thirty years ago a member of Ananda, Dr. Peter Van Houten, started a medical clinic, which has grown over the years to now serve over 5,000 people. People coming to the clinic often hope for a quick fix, a shot or pill to make them well or at least ease their symptoms. The clinic is in a relatively poor … Read More
A yogi told me this story: “I was walking in the jungle with a companion when I tripped and accidentally gashed my leg very badly. Although we knew it would be dangerous to stay the night, I was unable to walk, and the situation looked bad. My companion, who had been trained as a healer, raised his hands and slowly … Read More
Swami Kriyananda wrote an affirmation for positive thinking: “My outer life is a reflection of my inner thoughts. Filled with the joy of God, I express His joy and harmony in everything I do.” This affirmation is so powerful that Devi and I repeat it daily, and have suggested that others from Ananda use it as a “theme” for the … Read More
Recently I received an email laced with unfair criticism, and my first reaction was to get defensive. I could feel my mind speeding up, getting ready to argue. Then I had a flash of insight and remembrance: You can’t fight darkness with more darkness. I decided instead to neutralize negativity with gratitude. I thought about this person and recalled several … Read More
It was in the late summer of 1967 that I first visited the land that was to become Ananda. August is hot in the foothills of the Sierra Mountains of Northern California, and we had spent all day working hard. I was part of a little group of Swami Kriyananda’s students who had come to help him build Ananda’s first … Read More
We have been reading a very interesting book: Being Mortal, by Atul Gawande. It’s a thoughtful, well-written examination of aging and dying, subjects often ignored in modern society. Someday, perhaps, I will write a blog about that, but not today. This blog is about a small part of the process—about how helpful it is to prepare for difficulties before a … Read More
“I really want to meditate more deeply, but I have a hard time concentrating.” This is a complaint we often hear from devotees. The mind seems to be programmed to be restless. A recent study by Microsoft showed that in the last thirteen years the length of time people can concentrate has decreased on average from 12 to 8 seconds. … Read More
“Swami Kriyananda’s influence will expand greatly now that he is no longer confined to a body. I have seen this happen with many other great souls.” We were speaking with Sri D. R. Kaarthikeyan, one of the dignitaries who attended the dedication of the Moksha Mandir at Ananda Village this weekend. He speaks from experience, being an advisor to many spiritual … Read More
Recently a friend was sharing her story with us. Her long-term marriage had ended with the sudden death of her husband, and she was being tested on many levels at the same time. Her financial security had vanished, her health had deteriorated, and it seemed that her whole world was under attack. We could do little but listen quietly and … Read More
Paramhansa Yogananda explained that everyone in the world is driven by the same motivation: the desire to be happy and to avoid suffering. What makes life so complex is the variety of ways we chase happiness. There is a kind of Happiness Cycle that works like this: We have a desire. We act in an attempt to fulfill that desire. … Read More
The Ananda communities movement was born in the living room of Swami Kriyananda’s small apartment in San Francisco. Most nights he travelled, teaching classes in various locations, but every Thursday evening he gave a satsang in his living room. Ten to twenty “regulars” formed the nucleus of what would, in time, become a worldwide movement. A few months after I … Read More
I’m feeling better today. I fasted yesterday, in part to help clear out some respiratory congestion I’ve had since we got back from India a few days ago. For this particular purpose, I did a fast called the “Master Cleanse,” in which you drink a “lemonade” consisting of lemon juice, Grade B maple syrup, and a little cayenne powder, diluted … Read More
A compilation of our blogs has just been released in India in book form, entitled Touch of Light: Living the Teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. As we travel from city to city to offer programs here, we’ve been “launching” the book after our discourse with a simple ceremony: a copy is brought to us tied in a bright ribbon, which we … Read More