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Paramahansa Yogananda, (January 5, 1893–March
7, 1952), born Mukunda Lal Ghosh , was an
Indian yogi and guru who introduced many westerners
to the teachings of meditation and Kriya Yoga
through his book, "Autobiography of a Yogi"
Yogananda taught his students the need for direct experience
of truth, as opposed to blind belief. He said that “The
true basis of religion is not belief, but intuitive
experience. Intuition is the soul’s power of knowing
God. To know what religion is really all about, one
must know God.”
He taught Kriya Yoga and other meditation practices
to help people achieve that understanding, which he
called Self-Realization: "Self-realization
is the knowing in all parts of body, mind, and soul
that you are now in possession of the kingdom of God;
that you do not have to pray that it come to you; that
God’s omnipresence is your omnipresence; and that
all that you need to do is improve your knowing"
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Autobiography
of a Yogi
In 1946, Yogananda published his life story,
Autobiography of a Yogi. It has since
been translated into twenty-five languages. In 1999,
it was designated one of the "100 Most Important
Spiritual Books of the 20th Century" by a panel
of spiritual authors.
Autobiography of a Yogi describes Yogananda's
spiritual search for enlightenment, in addition to encounters
with notable spiritual figures such as Therese Neumann,
Anandamoyi Ma, Mohandas Gandhi, Nobel
laureate in literature Rabindranath Tagore, noted
plant scientist Luther Burbank, famous Indian
scientist Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose and Nobel
Prize-winning physicist Sir C. V. Raman. One
notable chapter of this book is "The Law of
Miracles", where he gives scientific explanations
for seemingly miraculous feats. He writes "the
word 'impossible' is becoming less prominent in man's
vocabulary".
| Free Copy of
'Autobiography of a Yogi' |
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Teachings of Yogananda
At Ananda Sanga we teach the philosophy and
meditation of Yogananda to sincere and dedicated
students. Anne
& Martin had the privellage to visit
some of the places Yogananda mentioned in his
famous book, including Yogananda's boyhood home in Gurpar
Road, Calcutta, India.
Essential Elements of Yogananda's Teachings:
* the science of Kriya Yoga;
* the importance of Energy (Prana);
* chanting as a valuable tool towards self-realisation;
* specific meditation techniques;
* how to increase your energy at will;
* the importance of love and devotion etc.
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