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
![How to be a channel of God's light [www.JyotishandDevi.org] A Touch of Light Blog](https://www.ananda.org/jyotish-and-devi/files/2015/04/how-to-be-a-channel-of-gods-healing-light-yogananda-jyotish-and-devi-blog-touch-of-light-150x150.jpg)
Helpless . . . hopeless . . . overwhelmed—it’s easy to get drawn into these negative emotions when we see so much suffering in the world around us. Whether through natural disasters or man-made conflicts, the result is the same: we feel people’s pain, but don’t know how to help them.
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
Together we honor the second anniversary of Swami Kriyananda’s Moksha. In May we will have the dedication of the Moksha Mandir (May 15 to May 17), a place of pilgrimage and meditation for thousands of people, for decades, to come. Our celebration will have people from all over the world honoring the life of Swami Kriyananda. Together we will enter into a … Read More
“Is there anything I can do to help?” I asked, as I entered the crowded kitchen at Ananda’s Meditation Retreat. The staff was moving in high gear, busily preparing an elaborate Indian banquet for several hundred guests and residents to be served later that day. With a grateful smile, the head cook pointed to a twenty-five-pound box of lemons, and … 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
There once was a man of such holiness and humility that he attracted the interest of the Heavenly Father. A messenger from God was sent to offer him any boon that he requested. At first the saint could think of nothing to ask for, but then he said, “In my travels as a wandering monk, many people’s paths cross my … 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
“I’d really like to practice meditation, but I just don’t have the time in my busy life,” is a comment people often make to us. We need to understand that just as the physical body needs food and water to survive, the soul needs the sustenance drawn from meditation to flourish. Once we begin this practice in our life, we … Read More
Restore your hope for a better world: Hundreds of people will gather together APRIL 11 at the Olympic Collection in Los Angeles for a guided meditation and prayer for world peace, based on the scientific healing techniques of Paramhansa Yogananda. The night will be led by Nayaswami Jyotish and Nayaswami Devi Novak. The first 200 attendees will receive a free copy of … 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
March 8, 2015 Dear Friends, Our time in India is drawing to a close now, and we finally have a moment to share a bit with you. The two main qualities of our travels during this trip are expansion and clarification of Ananda’s mission in India. Starting with our time in Singapore, we saw that dedicated leaders are emerging to … Read More
I read a wonderful statement recently by the British author C.S. Lewis: “Many people want to serve God, mostly in an advisory capacity.” At least some of the time, most of us think God needs our advice on rearranging things more to our liking. When everything is going well, we think He’s doing a pretty good job of managing the … Read More
You never know when the universe is going to give you an important piece of the puzzle. This happened one time when Devi and I were with Swami Kriyananda in, of all places, a shopping mall in Sacramento, California. He had gotten a letter from someone who was discouraged after comparing his own accomplishments to those of Swamiji’s. (Aside: Comparing … Read More
We send you our loving thoughts from Gurgaon, where we arrived yesterday from Singapore, after a very relaxing flight from San Francisco, CA to Hong Kong. The work in Singapore is very dynamic and led by Yogi Yeo, a very dedicated man, who feels like an old friend and fellow gurubhai. We were joined in Singapore by a number of … Read More
The chemotherapy drug slowly dripped into my friend’s arm as we sat in the treatment room. She had been diagnosed some months earlier with an aggressive form of breast cancer, and, after surgery, was receiving a regime of outpatient chemotherapy treatments. The room in which we sat was a large, airy space with about two dozen comfortable reclining chairs where … Read More
Many people have a very complex relationship with their Heavenly Father/Mother, just as they do with their earthly parents. In fact, many attitudes and complexes toward God are simply projections of feelings experienced when growing up. Those from harsher backgrounds can see God as disapproving and vengeful, while those raised in loving and tolerant homes tend to see a loving … Read More
There is a humorous but instructive story in which a young man asks a wise, older gentleman for advice: “How is it that you have such good judgment?” The sage slowly reflects, and then says, “Good judgment is born of experience.” Not entirely satisfied with this answer, the young fellow pursues his questioning: “Well, how do you get experience?” The … Read More
Early in my spiritual quest, Swami Kriyananda was trying to help me balance a tendency to be overly rational. He patiently explained what I needed to do, and I said, “I understand, Sir.” He replied, kindly but firmly, “I don’t care whether you understand or not, I want you to change.”
A friend of ours in India told us a very interesting and instructive story. Indu is a lawyer, and at the time these events took place, ran a large legal firm that represented some international companies.