Namaste! Yesterday I read the passage in the Gita from the sixth chapter – verse 9: “He is a supreme Yogi who gazes equally upon patrons, friends, enemies, strangers, peacemakers, those who cause trouble, relatives, the virtuous and the ungodly.” Again, I smile at this passage where it says those who cause troubles and immediately follows that with relatives. Most … Read More
Category: Spiritual Growth
How to begin on the spiritual path
by Swami KriyanandaTo start being Spiritual, I would say start looking at the heart. Don’t look for examples of Religion and Spirituality. They are very different from each other. Spirituality is your inner consciousness. Religion is your outer behaviour. Spirituality begins when you start thinking what is true. How can I find what life is all about? Do I fit in? You … Read More
When the channel is truly blessed
by Priti IssarAs aspiring Yogis, we need to enhance and synchronise the ‘frequency’ of our own individual vibrational energy with that of Cosmic Consciousness. Our Guru Paramhansa Yogananda taught us to use concentration and will power to consciously increase our body’s supply of cosmic energy , and thence to direct it to any body part; or to release it again into space … Read More
The Inner Kingdom
by Aditya Gait“The legend of Adam and Eve is allegorical. It describes how the first human beings dissipated their spiritual energy centred in the spine. The spine is the channel through which flows the river of baptism and of spiritual life. The Bhagavad-Gita tells us, the wise speak of an eternal Ashwatha tree with its roots above and its branches below. The … Read More
The Mystery of Avatara, or Divine Incarnation
by Nayaswami DharmarajanAvatar – “the descent of God into human form”. In English, avatar literally translates to “descend – coming from above”. God’s intention behind sending an avatar is to fulfill a divine mission. People need help and God wants to help them. So he has to send someone who is already free and who already has the answers. Just as when … Read More
How Saints Are Made
by Nayaswami DevarshiAs a teenager I spent some months working in a paint factory, where paint was mass produced. Today I feel like I’m living in a saint factory in India, as I hear first-hand accounts every day of heroic love and selfless giving. Of course, one can’t mass produce saints like paints. But we are now seeing so many souls rising … Read More
Spiritual Adventurousness
by Brahmachari PremdasIn June 2018, the Monastery in India moved from Pune to Khandala (a hill station town between Pune & Mumbai). The decision to shift to Khandala was taken by my head monk Nayaswami Devarshi. He saw the need to have a much clearer focus and magnetism That wasn’t possible while serving the always compelling needs of an Ananda Sangha city … Read More
Silence is God
by SumitraListening to God is possible only in silence: the more our emotions, the less we can we hear Him; the more our thoughts, the less our divine perceptions are; and more our physical movements, the less it is possible to listen to Him. In daily life the same principle of silence holds true: worries, tension, waves of emotion, rushing about … Read More
A Test of Titiksha: Yogananda’s Nine Day Diet
by Cheena ChawlaEnjoying our daily meals day after day has made many of us forget the pangs of hunger, for we pamper our taste buds with delectable delicacies of our choice, more often than needed. The very thought of not getting our routine meals for nine whole days creates a ruffle in the minds of most of us, a few almost feel … Read More
Getting To Stillness
by Rashmi KrishnanHow does one get to the stillness at will? This question often teases us in our spiritual journey. Sometimes you have a deep meditation experience, and for a brief while, there is the experience of stillness and oblivion as to the passage of time. The moment you rise from the meditation seat, however, the world rushes in, clamoring for attention, … Read More
My Tryst with Seclusion
by Pankaj BhatiaMy initial attempts at seclusion My first seclusion was in company of fellow devotees at Mt. Abbot in Uttrakhand, Himalayas. A wonderful experience, but I came to sad realization that I can’t meditate for more than an hour at a time. With the crash of my dreams of achieving Yogic greatness, I was embarrassed and ashamed to be the cause … Read More
Antar Yatra – The Pilgrimage Within
by Amit PurohitThere was a time in my life, when things weren’t going very well. I desperately needed a break from the environment. It was December. In Delhi, it is the beginning of winter. So, I was wondering where I could go to escape people. Eureka! I decided to hike up to mount Triund hill: a 4 hours hike from Dharamsala. It … Read More