Hero #149: Paramahansa Yogananda … (01/05/16)
Paramahansa Yogananda (born Mukunda Lal Ghosh) was an Indian yogi and guru who introduced millions of Indians and westerners to the teachings of meditation and Kriya Yoga. His book, Autobiography of a Yogi remains a spiritual masterpiece and was included in the 100 best spiritual books of the 21st century.
In 1917, Yogananda began his life’s work with the founding of a ‘how-to-live’ school, where modern educational methods were combined with yoga training and instruction in spiritual ideals. In 1920, he was invited to serve as India’s delegate to an International Congress of Religious Liberals convening in Boston. His address to that Congress (on ‘The Science of Religion’) was well received and for the next several years he lectured across the United States, teaching a unification of ‘the original teachings of Jesus Christ and the original Yoga taught by Bhagavan Krishna’ … Later that same year he founded the Self-Realization Fellowship and in 1925 established its headquarters in Los Angeles. Among other things, Yogananda stated that this Fellowship was to “teach that the purpose of life is the evolution, through self-effort, of man’s limited mortal consciousness into God Consciousness,” to “reveal the complete harmony and basic oneness of original Christianity as taught by Jesus Christ and original Yoga as taught by Bhagavan Krishna,” to “show that these principles of truth are the common scientific foundation of all true religions,” to “liberate man from his threefold sufferings: physical disease, mental unharmony, and spiritual ignorance,” to “spread a spirit of brotherhood among all peoples,” to “unite science and religion through realization of the unity of their underlying principles,” and to “overcome evil by good, sorrow by joy, cruelty by kindness, ignorance by wisdom.”
“To me there is no difference between one person and another; I behold all as soul-reflections of the one God. I can’t think of anyone as a stranger, for I know that we are all part of the One … Let my soul smile through my heart and my heart smile through my eyes, that I may scatter rich laughter upon sad hearts … Indeed, the happiness of one’s own Heart alone cannot ever fully satisfy the Soul; one must choose to include, as necessary to one’s own happiness, the Joy and Peace of others.” ~ via P. Yogananda
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