THE BLOG

The New Path: My Life with Paramhansa Yogananda

The New Path, by Swami Kriyananda, tells the story of a young American’s spiritual quest, his discovery of Autobiography of a Yogi, and his subsequent meeting with—and acceptance as a disciple by—the great spiritual teacher and yoga master, Paramhansa Yogananda.

This book has hundreds of stories of Yogananda, and is a priceless treasure for those interested in his life.

Paramhansa Yogananda: A Biography with Personal Reflections and Reminiscences

Paramhansa Yogananda’s Autobiography of a Yogi was more about the saints Yogananda met than about himself.

In this biography, one of Yogananda’s close and direct disciples wrote the story of this great spiritual master and world teacher: his teenage miracles, his challenges in coming to America, his national lecture campaigns, his struggles to fulfill his world-changing mission amid incomprehension and painful betrayals — and his ultimate triumphant achievement.

Founding a Yoga School in Ranchi

From Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramhansa Yogananda

The ideal of an all-sided education for youth had always been close to my heart. I saw clearly the arid results of ordinary instruction, aimed only at the development of body and intellect.

Moral and spiritual values, without whose appreciation no man can approach happiness, were yet lacking in the formal curriculum. I determined to found a school where young boys could develop to the full stature of manhood.

My first step in that direction was made with seven children at Dihika, a small country site in Bengal.…

Sri Yukteswar, Incarnation of Wisdom

Yogananda said that Swami Sri Yukteswar was a gyanvatar, an incarnation of wisdom.

Born to a wealthy business man and his wife on May 10, 1855, in Serampore, India, he was given the name Priya Nath Karar. In time he became a disciple of Lahiri Mahasaya, whom he called “the greatest yogi I ever knew.”

The great saint Mahavatar Babaji asked Sri Yukteswar to write a book on…

His Last Days

dinner-at-biltmore-hotel-on-yogananda's-last-day

Master was scheduled to speak after the banquet. His brief talk was so sweet, so almost tender, that I think everyone present felt embraced in the gossamer net of his love. Warmly he spoke of India and America, and of their respective contributions to world peace and true human progress. He talked of their future cooperation. Finally he read his beautiful poem, “My India.…”

The story of Yogananda’s mahasamadhi is told in full in Chapter 38 of The New Path (free online) by Swami Kriyananda.

World Brotherhood Colonies: A New Model for Spiritual Living

Yogananda dreamed of places where people of all walks of life, not only monastics, could devote themselves to living a life dedicated to “simple living and high thinking” by applying the teachings of yoga to every aspect of their lives.

In talks, he often said,

Take the best advice I can give you. Gather together, those of you who share high ideals. Pool your resources. Buy land out in the country. A simple life will bring you inner freedom. Harmony with nature will bring you a happiness known to few city dwellers. In the company of other truth seekers you will find it easier to meditate and think of God.

Although the colony in Encinitas didn’t last, Yogananda was enthusiastic about the idea of World Brotherhood Colonies even up until the end of his life, seeing them as places where people would have the “opportunity to find happiness, freedom, job, home, and church all in one place, and to produce food for their own use.”

Disciples of Yogananda, following in his dream, have founded colonies such as Ananda Village around the world.

The Famous Opera Singer

Amelita Galli-Curci (1882 – 1963) was a coloratura soprano and one of the most famed opera singers of the early 20th century. Her music is still available online.

She is known also as a devoted direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda. She wrote the foreword to Yogananda’s Whispers from Eternity and one of his poems in Songs of the Soul is dedicated to her and her husband, Homer.

Someone once asked Yogananda about Amelita Galli-Curci’s spiritual state. “She is soaring in God,” he replied.

Gandhi’s Practice of Kriya Yoga

“Did Mahatma Gandhi keep up his Kriya Yoga practice, after his initiation by you?” Swami Kriyananda once asked Paramhansa Yogananda.

“Gandhi was a man of his word,” the Master replied. “He was a great man, and a man of truth. Yes, he kept up his practice.”

From Conversations with Yogananda.

Visit Ananda’s Learn Kriya Yoga page to know more about Kriya Yoga, a technique that Yogananda called the “airplane route to God.”

“Thousands Turned Away…”

In 1925, Paramhansa Yogananda may have been the most sought-after speaker in the United States. He shared spiritual insights in a way that Americans could appreciate, offering what he called “original Christianity” as taught by Jesus Christ.

During his first series of classes, the Los Angeles Times reported,

“Thousands being turned away from the three thousand seat philharmonic auditorium.… Swami Yogananda is the attraction. A Hindu invading the United States to bring God in the midst of a Christian community, preaching the essence of Christian Doctrine.”

Kamala Silva Meets Her Guru

Kamala Silva, a direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda, first met him through the class series given in Los Angeles. In The Flawless Mirror she wrote,

“The lines of people had queued around the building for great distances waiting for the doors to open; by 7 p.m. there was no more seating space for the hundreds who were still there. This was repeated each evening for many weeks.”

`