|
Paperback, 239 pages, ISBN: 978-81-89430-33-7, Ananda Sangha Publications.
Product Description:
God Is for Everyone contains the heart of Paramhansa Yogananda's teachings. Here is a concept of God and spiritual meaning that appeals to a broad spectrum, from the most uncertain agnostic to the most fervent believer. Clearly and simply written, thoroughly nonsectarian and non-dogmatic in its approach, God Is for Everyone is a perfect introduction to the spiritual path.
"Spiritual religion", as explained by Paramhansa Yogananda, offers a pragmatic, eminently useful set of solutions to profound problems. The Divine Spirit is the hidden inspiration behind all that we do, the one true experience that we all seek, the lasting happiness that eludes us when we seek it elsewhere. No mere abstraction, God is a real, ever-present, ever-conscious force ever near to those who call upon it.
This vision of spiritual practice emphasizes the underlying unity of all religions, while respecting the many different ways and forms of worship. In these times of intense religious strife, this landmark approach to religious unity can help to usher in an era of true mutual respect and understanding among the world's great religious traditions.
God Is for Everyone is a moving, compassionate exploration of our deepest human needs . . . and of the only way to fulfill them. This book brings fresh new insight to ourselves and our most sacred practices.
What Others Are Saying:
God is For Everyone provides us a wonderful new reworking of Paramhansa Yogananda's profound yet practical voice on the complex but crucial issues of religion, spirituality and yoga. It leaves the reader in touch with their higher Divine nature apart from all outer differences of religious belief and practice.
Vamadeva Shastri (David Frawley), Director, American Institute of Vedic Studies and author of Ayurvedic Astrology, Tantric Yoga and the Wisdom Goddesses, Vedantic Meditation, Yoga and Ayurveda, and Yoga and the Sacred Fire
This book reaches out to every person and therein lies its natural and powerful attraction. It speaks to the deep well of wisdom within and beckons us to our highest calling. Anyone seeking to extend and deepen their spiritual horizons will find great inspiration in God Is for Everyone.
-Michael Toms, co-founder of New Dimensions Radio, author of An Open Life, A Time for Choices, and True Work
In God Is for Everyone, I find wisdom as vast as eternity spoken with a voice soft and gentle as a child's. Within these pages we are once again reminded of the qualities necessary for entering the "kingdom of heaven."
-Maury Lamb, founder, Quantum Leap Insitute
Swami Kriyananda, who was born in Rumania and educated at Haverford College and Brown University, became a disciple of Yogananda in 1948. A much published writer in his own right, Walters has rewritten and updated Yogananda's earlier The Science of Religion into this clear and thoroughly captivating book, making the original work eminently more accessible to large numbers of contemporary spiritual seekers.
Yogananda offers an extraordinary ecumenical outlook even as he embodies age-long traditions of Indian spiritual wisdom. The rational, cognitive Western approach to religion is balanced with the wisdom and compassion so honored in the East. By synthesizing these two valuable frames of influence, God Is for Everyone helps the modern reader consider concepts of God and spiritual meaning within an intelligent, religiously unified framework. Religion, spirituality, and especially spiritual religion provide a balanced view through the mind-heart combination. Readers are told that the Divine Spirit is the hidden inspiration behind all action, the one true experience that everyone seeks, the lasting happiness that eludes when sought elsewhere. No mere abstraction, God is real, ever-present, ever-conscious force available for anyone to tap into at all times.
The best possible definition of God," writes the author, "is Ever-Existing, Ever-Conscious, Ever-New Bliss." While there are additional ways to define God, such as Love, Peace, Power, and Light, Bliss is stressed in this work because "Bliss fulfills humanity's need not only for complete freedom from suffering, but for freedom in divine completion. All men want to be aware that they are blissful. Conscious bliss will give them that awareness.
This book makes accessible the inspired pursuit of Bliss in simple, understandable ways. Written as an introduction for those just starting on the spiritual path, it is also a rejuvenating and inspiring boost for experienced seekers. Clear, practical techniques are offered to enhance personal spiritual practices. The author maintains that "everyone in the world is on the spiritual path" whether they know it or not, even if they are temporarily merely seeking pleasure and avoiding pain. Sooner or later, "They will want to experience Him (God)." Experiencing God-and specifically experiencing God as Bliss-is that underlying goal of this work, based on the teachings of a self-realized teacher. It hits the mark for contemporary spirituality.
-ForeWord Magazine
How are we to cultivate a personal relationship with God, in an age dominated by scientific practicality? Paramhansa Yogananda, the great master of yoga, attempted to reveal, in a 1920 book, The Science of Religion, the inner methods by which spiritually thirsty souls can most easily find God-communion in the present age. Yogananda was insufficiently familiar with the English language at the time to write the book himself, however, and so he asked a disciple, Swami Dhirananda to serve as his ghostwriter. The results were infelicitous: heavy and pedantic, reflecting the pride Dhirananda took in his intellectual attainments.
Nearly thirty years later, Yogananda told a young American disciple, J. Donald Walters, "Your role will be writing and editing." Swami Kriyananda, as the young disciple would eventually be known, revealed from the first a unique depth of understanding of his guru's teachings. He would write more that 80 books showing the relevance of those teachings in fields as diverse as meditation and marriage. If proof of his worthiness to resurrect this important work is required, it can be found in the quality of the results. As rewritten by Kriyananda, God Is for Everyone, glows with Yogananda's inspiration. Its message of a nonsectarian, practical path by which all can experience their inner oneness with God, shines forth in its original, intended glory.
This is religion looking forward eagerly toward the future, not sighing lamely over its past glory, and retreating into dogma and text before science's bold advances. It is spirituality not in conflict with science, but fully embracing the scientific method, with recommendations for practical experimentation and careful evaluation of results. This is religion's next glorious hour. It is in human nature itself that the author discovers the roots of the spiritual urge, as well as the method of its flight and its final fulfillment in God-joy. "Highly recommended" would be pathetically inadequate. This landmark work of universal spirituality deserves to be read by everyone.
George Beinhorn, East West Magazine
|
