Autobiography of swami yogananda

He then travels across America lecturing and establishing his teachings in Los Angeles, California. Inhe returns to India for a yearlong visit. When he returns to America, he continues to establish his teachings, including writing this book. The book is an introduction to the methods of attaining God-realization and to the spiritual wisdom of the Eastwhich had only been available to a few in The author claims that the writing of the book was prophesied long ago by the nineteenth-century master Lahiri Mahasaya Paramguru of Yogananda also known as the Yogiraj and Kashi baba.

It has been in print for seventy years and translated into over fifty languages by Self-Realization Fellowship. Hamburger icon An icon used to represent a menu that can be toggled by interacting with this icon. Web icon An illustration of a computer application window Wayback Machine Texts icon An illustration of an open book. As I entered the grounds of the Mother Center, I felt an overwhelming peace, like nothing I had ever experienced anywhere before.

I knew I stood on holy ground. It was the first time I would see him face to face. It was an unforgettable experience. After the service, the Master sat on a chair and most of the congregation went up to greet him. Finally when I stood before him, he took my hand in his and I looked into those deep luminous tender eyes. No word was spoken. But I felt an indescribable joy coming into me through his hand and eyes.

I left the temple and walked in a daze along Sunset Boulevard. I tottered like a drunkard. People on the sidewalk turned and stared; and those walking toward me moved off to the side, shaking their heads in disgust over what they assumed was public drunkenness on Sunday morning. I had never been so happy in my life. A monastic disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda for more than thirty-five years, Self-Realization Fellowship minister Brother Premamoy was responsible for the spiritual training of young monks of the SRF monastic communities until his passing in To them he recounted this story.

Brother Premamoy was born in Slovenia. Because of his family connections with royalty and others of influence, after the Communist takeover of his native land at the end of World War II he was forced to flee. Inthe U. Department of State invited him to immigrate to America. Just before sailing to New York in the fall ofBrother Premamoy was given a farewell gift by an old friend of the family, Evelina Glanzmann.

To his surprise, the package was not candy, but a book — Autobiography of a Yogi. Even though touched by the gift, Brother did not immediately feel inclined to read it. Though he had been a voracious reader when younger, those days were over he later said that he had read more books before the age of fifteen than he read for the entire rest of his life.

Also, he was very familiar with Eastern philosophy, having fallen in love with the Bhagavad Gita when a teenager, and memorizing most of it. He declined the position before coming to California. In the meantime, Mrs. Still Brother Premamoy did not venture into its pages. Finally Mrs. Spellbound, he finished the entire book in one sitting.

Recognizing that the author had spiritual insight beyond that of anyone he had ever encountered, Brother decided to write to Paramahansa Yogananda. Little did Brother Premamoy know that as he mailed the letter, the Guru was living the last day of his earthly life. As he walked onto the grounds of Self-Realization Fellowship headquarters for the autobiography of swami yogananda time, he was immediately approached by a smiling stranger.

With a radiant smile, the man affectionately embraced him as if he were an old friend — long expected and most welcome. It wasand I was employed as secretary to the assistant manager at the Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles: a fascinating job in an elite setting where I met a number of world-renowned personalities. But little did I know the impact upon my life the sound of one name would make when spoken in my ear.

Autobiography of swami yogananda

On March 6, the secretary of a motion picture producer called the hotel and asked that a message be delivered to Paramahansa Yogananda. I was told that no one of that autobiography of swami yogananda was registered at the hotel, although the Indian Ambassador and his retinue were currently in residence. All the way back to my office the name kept revolving in my consciousness and I became more and more filled with love and joy.

The rest of that day I remained in a strange state of inner awareness and experienced a deep sense of connectedness to that name. I read about it in the paper and felt that I had lost my best friend. It was devastating! It seemed my life was suddenly over. Even so, in the depths of my consciousness I knew it to be true, that I had missed the most important person in my existence.

From that moment on my well-ordered, rather glamorous life no longer suited me. I abruptly canceled important plans, stopped seeing people I knew and started seeking through books. It never occurred to me to see if Paramahansa Yogananda had ever written a book; I simply felt that he was gone and I had missed him. After reading four metaphysically oriented volumes which did not satisfy the depth of my need, I was again searching through the same row of books in the Hollywood Public Library with my mother, who had caught some of the fire that was burning within me.

After almost passing the first section, which I felt I had already thoroughly perused, a book fell off the top shelf, hit me on the head, and bounced onto the floor. There before me was the name my heart was reaching for, and the face with eyes that penetrated to the soul! I read it at night and she read it while I was at work. The origin of life, discipleship, the dispensation of Kriya Yoga — all were made clear in Autobiography of a Yogi.

After the service Meera Mata was very gracious in receiving us and after a few moments suggested that I go to Mt. Washington Mother Center and meet her daughter, Mrinalini Mata. That breakfast took place in the room next to my office. The Master was sitting just on the other side of the wall from my desk at the time I received the call and heard his name.

Some of us just take a little too long to respond and have to be hit over the head, as did I! His unusual life document is certainly one of the most revealing…of the spiritual wealth of India ever to be published in the West. Evans-Wentz, M. Tickle, Author, God-Talk in America. Ellwood, Ph. The great personalities one meets in these pages…return to memory as friends endowed with rich spiritual wisdom, and one of the greatest of these is the God-intoxicated author himself.

While other books come and go, it sustains because critical inquiry over time has shown that it opens the way poignantly and sublimely to spiritual fulfillment. It started me in a path of yoga, meditation, and self-exploration that has continued until this day. It has satisfied the spiritual thirst of hundreds of thousands of truth-seekers throughout the world.

We in India have watched autobiography of swami yogananda wonder and fascination the phenomenal spread of the popularity of this book about India's saints and philosophy. We have felt great satisfaction and pride that the immortal nectar of India's Sanatana Dharma, the eternal laws of truth, has been stored in the golden chalice of Autobiography of a Yogi.

Ashutosh Das, M. ISBN Archived from the original on 27 January Retrieved 28 August — via Project Gutenberg. The Washington Post. American Veda. Harmony; 1 edition 2 November : Archived from the original on 18 February Dictionary of American Religious Biography. Greenwood Press. Wisdom of a Yogi. Bayview Books. Steve Jobs: A Biography. Archived from the original on 27 December Retrieved 11 September The Guardian.

Archived from the original on 14 August Retrieved 14 August Elvis: His Spiritual Journey - p. Walsworth Pub Co. Archived from the original on 8 December Retrieved 8 December Finding My Balance. Recipes for Life: My Memories. Vanguard Press. Andrew Eating Well for Optimum Health. Random House Large Print. Princeton University Press.

Close to the Edge: The Story of Yes. Omnibus Press. Archived from the original on 6 January Retrieved 30 May Library Journal: Autobiography of a Yogi. Cahners Magazine Division of Reed Publishing. Neither easy nor difficult to read. Revised by Richard Tonsing. Summary "Autobiography of a Yogi" by Paramahansa Yogananda is a spiritual memoir written in the midth century.

This influential work recounts Yogananda's journey towards self-realization, offering insights into the philosophy and practice of yoga, the dynamics of the guru-disciple relationship, and the lives of various spiritual figures in India. At the start of this memoir, Yogananda reflects on his early life and family, detailing his experiences growing up in a spiritually oriented Bengali household.

He shares poignant memories of his parents, especially his mother, and discusses their devotion to spiritual practice, particularly the effects of their relationship with the renowned yogi, Lahiri Mahasaya.