Oswald Pereira is a senior journalist who worked with the Times of India and Outlook and runs a website called www.yourspositively.com. He is a disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda and practices Kriya Yoga. He has also authored eight books. The book is divided into two parts - the first about the 'Autobiography of a Yogi' and the second which are the author's commentaries on various aspects of Yogananda's teachings and being.
The book starts with the miracles surrounding the early days of Paramahansa Yogananda, then called Mukunda Lal Ghosh (born in 1893 in Uttar Pradesh). Once when on what appeared to a sure death from illness to the boy, he fully recovers thanks to his mother's ardent pleas to the yogi Lahiri Mahasaya who they followed. Then a vision about his mother's death when he was 11 years which came true. Yogananda finally followed his teacher Yukteswar Giri who was a follower of Lahiri Mahasaya who followed Bababji and so on.
'Lahiri Mahasaya never allowed the ego principle to consider itself a causative force. By perfection of resistless surrender, the master enabled the Prime Healing Power to flow freely through him'
'You should meditate all day long'. Yogananda himself meditated 7-8 hours a day. The route to God was through meditation.
'Tried to get people to understand that God is not a mere abstraction. He is also human in a way. Relates to human children. Likes above all to see in them a childlike trust.'
'God won't come to people who cannot meet him on his own level of self-giving love.'
Yogananda had no sense of ownership on anything. He would give away his belongings, once even his bike because his friend asked for it.
Something powerful about how he viewed astrology - 'The planets are made by the same God who made me. As his child I am forever free. I won't submit to the dictates of a mere planet.'
There is the interesting story about how he was drawn to his master Yukteswar Giri who told him to go home and meet him again after four weeks. He took him as his disciple and developed him under strict training.
'Wisdom is better sought from a man of realisation than from an inert mountain.'
Also that one only needs a bit of space to be alone to do their spiritual practices.
'Spiritual advancement is not measured by one's outward power but only by the depth of his bliss in meditation.'
'The Swami's goal is absolute unity with Spirit. A Swami may follow reasoning, renunciation while the Yogi engages in step by step procedure by which the body and mind are disciplined and the soul liberated.'
'Anyone who practices a scientific technique of God-contact is a yogi.'
Yogananda said that Kriya Yoga is the airplane route to God. Kriya yoga includes body discipline, mental control and meditating on Aum. The advanced Yogi is cleansed of all human desires.
'Human body can be recharged with energy through the direct agency of human will.'
'Man's conscious state is an awareness of body and breath. His subconscious state, active in sleep, is associated with his mental, and temporary, separation from body and breath. His superconscious state is freedom from the delusion that existence depends on body and breath. God lives without breath; the soul made in His image becomes conscious of itself, for the first time, only during the breathless state.'
'For the Kriya Yogi however, the breath link is severed at will by scientific wisdom, not by rude intrusion of karmic necessity.'
'The physical world operates under one fundamental law of maya - the principle of duality and relativity.'
'Light is king. The masters who are able to materialise and dematerialise their bodies or any other object, and to move with the velocity of light, and to utilise the creative light rays in bringing into instant visibility any physical manifestation, have fulfilled the Einsteinian condition - their mass is infinite.'
In 1920 Yogananda went to America, spoke at the Science of Religions congregation.Set up his ashram at California, set up the Self-Realisation Church of all Religions, the Brotherhood colony. Lived there for 35 years.
'The mystery of life and death is all about breath.'
'Truth is no theory - it is the unshakeable knowledge of his real nature, his self as soul.'
'God is love.'
In Part II the book addresses the impact and some ideas. Elvis, George Harrison, Steve Jobs were some of those who followed him. Many believe he is an avatar. As a person he was characterised by a 'complete absence of ego, centred in his Infinite Self, desirelessness, enjoyed everything, had complete inner freedom.'
Among his many miracles and healings are people rising from their death beds, blind who could see, chronic conditions healed etc. He attributed all his miracles to the Divine Mother. Yogananda spoke of the Krishna-Christ connection. He in fact says Christ was an Oriental who visited India and met many masters. Warren Hastings was one who pointed out the many parallels between the Gita and the Bible - concepts such as detachment, forgiveness, loving your enemy, loving your neighbour, reincarnation etc.
'Find God through joy, in immaculate silences, through meditation. The spirit of God is within you. God is beauty and love, is for everyone and everywhere.'
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It's a easier read which tried to capture the essence of the 'Autobiography of a Yogi' and also gives insights into Yogananda as a person. Practice Kriya Yoga, be egoless, pursue truth and God, meditate, God is love, forgive, detach, merge with the one. Thanks for the gift mate.
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