Some years ago we were completing the work on Swami Kriyananda’s dome at Ananda Village, the initial building of what has evolved over time into Crystal Hermitage. Although the interior of the dome still needed work to transform it from a building site into a home, Swamiji was eager to move in. To speed up the process, he rounded up … Read More
As I travel around the world, one of the questions asked most often is, “How can I bring my life into balance?” People feel pressured and pushed, unable to get centered. Rebalancing requires effort since we may have to change some long-standing patterns. This is inner work—it is no use looking for help in the world around us. People have … Read More
Paramhansa Yogananda described divine vision as being “center everywhere, circumference nowhere.” Because God is omnipresent, each of the billions of different perspectives He has created has its own validity. At the same time, no single point of view has a monopoly on truth. The ego-centered person approaches the world with the thought, “My way is the only right way, and … Read More
A few days ago my son and I were walking in the beautiful Tahoe National Forest in Northern California. We were enjoying the peace and beauty of this magnificent environment: the trees, the wildflowers, and the little chipmunks scurrying around. We strolled along, talking about this and that with long periods of silence in between. Then the peace was broken … Read More
The two brown bears that lumbered past our cabin at Lake Tahoe, California, were larger than I’d ever imagined a bear to be. It was twilight, and a steady rain was falling. Jyotish quietly but emphatically said, “Look,” as he pointed out the window: There they were, walking slowly by, not more than fifty feet away. Then, before the bears … Read More
Swami Kriyananda’s birthday was May 19—he would have been 90 this year. Often on his birthday a rainbow would appear, sometimes in a nearly clear sky, as if the heavens themselves wanted to celebrate his birth. Although he had many gifts and talents, he always thought of himself as simply a disciple of his great guru, Paramhansa Yogananda. Swamiji did … Read More
by Swami Kriyananda From now on, I embrace as the only purpose of my life the search for God. I will never take a partner, or, if I am married, I will look upon my partner as belonging only to Thee, Lord. In any case, I am complete in myself, and in myself will merge all the opposites of duality. … Read More
“Let’s clean up these beds,” our enthusiastic team leader said as we surveyed the badly neglected herb garden at The Expanding Light Retreat. The lavender, rosemary, and oregano were choked with weeds and dead leaves. Many of the plants looked lifeless or had gone to seed—a sorry sight for people who love gardens. It was Saturday, May 7, 2016 at … Read More
Years ago I read a short story about an American mountain climber. While gathering supplies in a market in India, he comes across a yogi with matted hair and a long beard, wearing nothing but a simple dhoti. The yogi politely asks the American what he is doing in India. The mountain climber curtly tells this “oddity” to mind his … Read More
The energy in Swami Kriyananda’s Moksha Mandir, where his physical body now resides, was vibrant with the tangible presence of his love and joy. It was April 21, 2016, the third anniversary of Swamiji’s passing, and residents of Ananda Village were honoring him with our annual observance of a six-hour meditation. A few days before this, I’d had a beautiful … Read More
Paramhansa Yogananda said, “I once met a very successful and wealthy man, who said to me, ‘I’m disgustingly healthy, and disgustingly wealthy.’ ‘However,’ I replied, ‘you are not “disgustingly happy,” are you?’ He admitted he was not. Soon afterward, he became a student of this path.” Happiness is something that everyone searches for but very few are able to find. … Read More
There is a story about a rich man who consulted a psychic to find out who he’d be in his next life. Planning to make out his will, he wanted to know about his future incarnation so that he could leave all his wealth to himself. Well, obviously this isn’t a serious way to affect our future. But both the … Read More
Excerpt of full Ananda Wedding Ceremony by Swami Kriyananda (After a brief period of prayer and meditation, the bride and bridegroom offer roses to each other and say:) Dear beloved, I offer you this rose As a symbol of my love for you; A love inspired by God, And offered to you as a channel of His love. SONG: Where … Read More
The Ananda Wedding ceremony and vows were written by Swami Kriyananda, direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi. HOLY VOWS AT MARRIAGE (Expressed first by the couple to God:) Beloved Lord, We dedicate to Thee our lives, our service, and the love we share. May the communion we find with one another lead us to inner communion with … Read More
The goal of the spiritual path is to shift one’s self-definition from the ego to the soul. The soul is our true nature, and is aware of its unity with God. But our soul nature is usually hidden from us by the ego. Paramhansa Yogananda defined ego as the soul identifying itself with a particular lifetime, body, and personality. When … Read More
A friend shared with me a delightful remark she’d heard recently. She was reading the Bhagavad Gita when another devotee walked by and commented, “That’s a really good book. It’s a mystery, you know, but I’ll tell you how it ends: God did it!” In talking with others, we’re often asked the question, “I hear that we should feel God … Read More
Ananda started as a retreat rather than a community. It was 1969, and the first few residents had moved to what we now call the “Meditation Retreat.” Among them were Swami Kriyananda and I. And Sisi. Few people know about Sisi. At that time, spring of 1969, she was probably three years old. Today we might call her hyperactive, but … Read More
by Paramhansa Yogananda I come to tell you all of Him, And the way to encase Him in your bosom, And of the discipline which brings His grace. To those of you who have asked me To guide you to my Beloved’s silently talking mind, Or speak to you through a gentle significant glance, Or whisper to you through my … Read More
This evening we’ll begin our journey back from India to the United States after an intense five weeks of travel and sharing with devotees here. Every spiritual seeker needs to come to India at least once in their lifetime, for it’s here that enlightened sages perceived the soul’s path back to union with God. This awareness lies beneath the surface … Read More
Dear Friends, Hello from Mumbai. Tonight we have our last big public function: a talk entitled “How to Stand Unshaken Amidst Life’s Challenges” (a fitting topic for our travels). They’ve rented a large, beautiful auditorium that seats five hundred people and have done extensive publicity, so we’re hoping for a big turnout like the one we had in Chennai. We’re … Read More