Without concentration, which helps interiorize the life-force, any time spent supposedly meditating is largely ineffective. In very deep meditation the prana becomes completely focused at the spiritual eye, and the body’s need for oxygen and breath ceases.

A lot of times instead of going up the mountain of God-realization, we’re going down and we can’t even remember where the peak is. We hit some of those walls of pain, confusion, or stress and we can’t maintain the same level of intensity in our spiritual practices.

It is important not only to draw what we can from nature, but also to give back to it, by praying to God through the devas, those subtle entities who create and sustain plant life, and by loving them and showing them gratitude.

Much of our daily life is spent in work or in other outward activities, and our minds often become engrossed in what we are doing at the expense of the thought of God. Some sort of exercise is needed to help us form the habit of feeling His presence in everything we do.

Just as my meditations have deepened from focused repetition of the poem, so also has my ability to gain insights into any dilemma or problem I might be facing.

When standing beneath the almighty wishing tree of your will power, always be careful to wish for good things.

The essential attitude for correct meditation is one of listening. The mind must be kept receptive.

Prayer helps us to open our consciousness to the flow of God’s grace. By praying, we make a conscious connection with God that otherwise wouldn’t be there, and thereby attune ourselves more fully to Him.

Despite his guru’s request, the disciple would not come out of the room. “How can I get through that narrow door?’ he rumbled. ” My horns are too big and my body is too large.“

The smooth, black stone in the Badrinath temple has upon it, in relief, an image of a yogi sitting in meditation pose. The image looks strikingly similar to the drawing of Mahavatar Babaji — in our Kriya Yoga tradition, an incarnation of Lord Krishna. It is said that the stone is not carved and that the image on it occurred naturally.

Wherever there is a lonely heart or a weeping brother by the wayside, and your heart goes out to that soul, you have expanded your consciousness toward true, infinite Christ consciousness.

Man has the independence and free will to live in the house of life with its three windows open or closed. When man closes the windows of life, he shuts out the three divine rays and finds himself living in the darkness of physical disease, mental disquietude, or abysmal soul-ignorance.

Ganesha, the elephant-headed God, is honored throughout India and has come to be one of the most universally recognized images of Hinduism, a symbol of cultural identity and a force for unity in a land of disparities.

People often talk of relaxation, but few know how to achieve it. Complete mental relaxation is voluntary withdrawal of consciousness and energy from the entire body and identification with one’s true nature in Spirit.

The ultimate culprit that holds us back spiritually is the non-use of Paramhansa Yogananda’s techniques. The failure to use the spiritual tools given by the Guru puts us out of attunement with him.

There is no question that seclusion, as Yogananda says, “is the price of greatness.” Greatness of spirit comes only with an increasingly closer walk with God—with feeling God’s presence within and all around you at all times.

Taking an attitude of positive expectation into every meditation is very important because the truth is: God could come to us at any time. We don’t know how much or how little karma we have left.

I shall feel Thy energy
Flowing through my hands in activity
Lest I lose Thee
I shall find Thee in activity.

Because the authors included in their book studies of a wide range of different religions, they were able to show that the positive effects of religious beliefs and practices on the brain are not tied to any specific religion or belief system.

The repetition of this mantra will begin to drive out all other thoughts and desires, until your consciousness begins to rotate around that single phrase, “God, God, God.”

Our own bad karma allows the entry of darkness and suffering into our lives, but with our will and determination we can overcome its power.

Once again I was “burning the candle at both ends,” but now I was asking the Divine to flow through me instead of trying to do everything by the power of my own will. I was acting as a channel for God’s will, not my own.

To learn to interiorize one’s awareness completely can take many years, but even small progress in breath control can mean a great deal. The corresponding improvement in mental control could help you stay calm amid severe trials, to heal others with peace and kindness, and to concentrate successfully on your work.

The study showed that Ananda Yoga helps people with a significant chronic disease to be more uplifted, to be less depressed, to be less at risk of falling, to be much less fatigued, and to be more socially active because they feel less noticeably disabled.

What is it to “concentrate a new way”? It means focusing your mind in a new direction, and putting a lot of energy behind your re-focused mind. But there’s another important aspect, one that I learned through experience.

The most powerful effect that I noticed was that writing about the day’s tests and lessons cleared my mental state. I found myself going into meditation with a clear mind, free of the restlessness that is born of unresolved experiences.

Union with the Cosmic Beloved is the most enjoyable experience possible. It is dream after dream, joy after joy; a thousand million divine romances in one, ever thrilling your heart.

Through the proper use of will power, anyone can overcome restlessness and achieve major progress in meditation.

ParamahnsaYogananda called this Nine-Day Cleansing Diet “a method for rejuvenating the body cells and awakening the latent powers of the mind and the inner forces of the soul.”

We tend to think, “Gosh, there’s so much in life that’s unpredictable.” But we know of many devotees who have been in life-threatening situations and have felt only calmness.