Paramahansa Yogananda

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Paramahansa Yogananda bigraphy, stories - Yogi, a guru of Kriya Yoga and founder of Self-Realization Fellowship

Paramahansa Yogananda : biography

5 January 1893 – 7 March 1952

Paramahansa Yogananda (January 5, 1893March 7, 1952), born Mukunda Lal Ghosh, was an Indian yogi and guru who introduced millions of westerners to the teachings of meditation and Kriya Yoga through his book, Autobiography of a Yogi.Bowden, Henry Warner (1993). Dictionary of American Religious Biography. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-27825-3. p. 629.

Autobiography of a Yogi

In 1946, Yogananda published his life story, Autobiography of a Yogi. It has since been translated into twenty-eight languages. In 1999, it was designated one of the "100 Most Important Spiritual Books of the 20th Century" by a panel of spiritual authors convened by Philip Zaleski and HarperCollins publishers. Autobiography of a Yogi is the most popular of Yogananda’s books. According to Philip Goldberg, who wrote American Veda, "…the Self-Realization Fellowship which represents Yogananda’s Legacy, is justified in using the slogan, "The Book that Changed the Lives of Millions." It has sold more than four million copies and counting…" In 2006, the publisher, Self-Realization Fellowship, honored the 60th anniversary of Autobiography of a Yogi "with a series of projects designed to promote the legacy of the man thousands of disciples still refer to as ‘master.’"

Autobiography of a Yogi describes Yogananda’s spiritual search for enlightenment, in addition to encounters with notable spiritual figures such as Therese Neumann, Anandamayi Ma, Mohandas Gandhi, Nobel laureate in literature Rabindranath Tagore, noted plant scientist Luther Burbank (the book is ‘Dedicated to the Memory of Luther Burbank, An American Saint’), famous Indian scientist Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose and Nobel Prize-winning physicist Sir C. V. Raman. One notable chapter of this book is "The Law of Miracles", where he gives scientific explanations for seemingly miraculous feats. He writes: "the word ‘impossible’ is becoming less prominent in man’s vocabulary."

The Autobiography has been an inspiration for many people including Steve Jobs (1955-2011), Co-Founder, former Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Apple Inc. In the book Steve Jobs: A Biography the authors writes that in preparation for a trip, Mr. Jobs downloaded onto his iPad2, the Autobiography of a Yogi, "the guide to meditation and spirituality that he had first read as a teenager, then re-read in India and had read once a year ever since."

Noted disciples

The members of this list were drawn from Yogananda’s book Journey to Self-Realization, unless otherwise noted, and the date and location of first discipleship to Yogananda are given.Book: Journey to Self Realization original list in footnotes

  • Minot & Mildred Lewis, 1920, Boston
  • Yogamata, 1920, Boston
  • Tara Mata, 1924, San Francisco
  • Gyanamata, 1924, Seattle
  • Vladimir Rosing, 1925, Seattle
  • Mildred Hamilton, 1925, Seattlehttp://www.crossandlotus.com Date is when she met PY in Seattle
  • Oliver Black, 1925, Detroit
  • Premananda, 1928http://www.self-revelationchurch.org/ Yogananda ordained Premananda as a swami in 1941
  • Durga Mata, 1929, DetroitSri Durga Mata (1993 1st edition). A Paramhansa Yogananda Trilogy of Divine Love. Los Angeles, CA: Joan Wight Publications; ISBN 0-96358-380-8.Yogananda, Paramahansa (1997). Journey to Self-Realization, Discovering the Gifts of the Soul. Los Angeles, CA: Self-Realization Fellowship. ISBN 0-87612-255-1.
  • Ananda Mata, 1931, Salt Lake CityYogananda, Paramahansa (1997). Journey to Self-Realization, Discovering the Gifts of the Soul p.72. Los Angeles, CA: Self-Realization Fellowship. ISBN 0-87612-255-1.
  • Daya Mata, 1931, Salt Lake City
  • Rajarsi Janakananda, 1932, KansasSelf-Realization Fellowship (1996). Rajarsi Janakananda: A Great Western Yogi. Self-Realization Fellowship Publishers. ISBN 0-87612-019-2.
  • Sraddha Mata, 1933, Tacoma, WA