One or the other trend will eventually define the organization. I treasured the many letters I received from Brother Bhaktananda, but when the letters began to be signed Mother Center, my interest waned. It is made up of disciples of Paramhansa . After all, we are the standard bearers for Yoganandas work!, These calls got to be quite a joke. Instead of reflecting professional journalism at its best these reporters seem be treading down a different path. That works better for me.. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The community welcomes visitors and is open to the public. I found its ministers never less than inspiring. While reading books written by other Indian saints, I would wonder at the relatively pale expression of Yoganandas thoughts, as edited by SRF. love and symphony of Blessings to all. I couldnt imagine that their views on Ananda were based on anything deeper than misunderstanding. More recently a controversy arose regarding an Integral Yoga International (IYI) student in New York City who attended a 30-day retreat at Yogaville, the groups retreat in Virginia. But the background history of some YA board members is rather disturbing. She said last week that she probably would not have had the strength to continue with her case if she had been the only one. I have seen many of them grow profoundly in their attunement with the Guru, to the point where to be in their presence is a blessing. The story of how he completed that commission is spiritually inspiring, heroic, often humorous, and will be of interest to devotees of all paths who are seeking a new definition of religion for this dawning Age of Energy-Awareness. And I believe it is so even today. I dont think Divine Mother even notices our faults, is how Seva Wiberg, a senior Ananda member, once put it to me. Contact the Meditation Retreat at 530-478-7557 or email mailto: meditationretreat@ananda.org. The time is short, he repeatedly told his audiences. But Walters and his followers persevered. Will this crack down eventually include more established Indian gurus such as Sai Baba, who supposedly possesses supernatural powers? Theyre in it for the exercise and the physical benefitshold the chanting and the New Age vibes, reports Newsweek. Never-the-less Hoffman concludes, From all that, I learned to adapt the value of dreams to my own life.. Meanwhile, SRFs success in wooing Anandas members was notable for its absence. I also occasionally attended services at the Richmond and Los Gatos SRF centers. Yet another legacy of the late swami is the Yogaville Federal Credit Union. For twenty-five years, Ive discovered that whenever I follow Swami Kriyanandas suggestions, I thrive spiritually, but when I resist them, my spiritual light wanes and I feel distanced from God. Some groups called cults use yoga as a means of recruiting new members and exercise is not all they are teaching. I live in a community where it is never considered off limits to talk about God, or where it is unrealistic, when asking for advice, to expect to receive answers from the perspective of our Gurus wisdom, whether it concerns work, relationships, health, worship, or education and child-raising. You will get to serve with like-minded friends in a spiritual environment, study Yoga philosophy and participate intwice-daily sadhanas featuring Ananda Yoga, Ananda Meditation and Energization Exercises. They also host the Ananda Virtual Community, providing support, inspiration and spiritual friendship to truthseekers worldwide. It gives me comfort to get more involved with the Ananda community. I still hold them in the highest regard. At the time, there was a small new-age bookstore in Palo Alto that was run by a Sufi group. What is the matter with you people? I am by no stretch of the imagination trying to persuade anyone to leave or turn against that organization. In the apartment complex where I live, no one ever complains when someone organizes a rousing kirtan in the beautiful central courtyard on a balmy summer evening. I had just moved to Ananda Village and had begun working at Pubble, the communitys publishing house. And the helping professional occupies a position of power and influence in that persons life during the course of their therapy/counseling. Swami Kriyananda had founded Ananda as the fulfillment of one of the fourteen points that Paramhansa Yogananda listed in the first edition of Autobiography of a Yogi as main elements of his world mission: To spread a spirit of brotherhood among all peoples, and to aid in establishing, in many countries, self-sustaining world brotherhood colonies for plain living and high thinking. All references to the world brotherhood colony idea were removed by SRF from editions of Autobiography of a Yogi published after the Masters death. Why, then, was I required to wait for months to learn the most basic technique, Hong-Sau? Even these people, however, may be interested to note that, of persons reputed to have prophetic vision, every single one has predicted terrible sufferings for humanity in the years to come. Louise Royston couldnt realize what presentation would be the most effective in terms of reaching peoples actual understanding, satisfying their immediate needs, holding their interest, and answering their latent doubts before those doubts even arose. Trying to reconcile the two sides of SRF that I had experiencedthe profound spiritual blessings, and the incredible narrowness among its highest leadersI could only wonder in awe at the superhuman measure of Gods patient love. Many of his followers left in the 90s. He would have to study the Bible in secret, and meet clandestinely with like-minded friends. Thus, our teacher and divine friend, Swami Kriyananda founded the global movement called Ananda Sangha Worldwide. Browsing there on a Saturday evening in 1974, I picked up a copy of Swami Kriyanandas book, Cooperative CommunitiesHow to Start Them, and Why. I am not for a moment suggesting that the SRF monks never roll up their sleevesonly that SRF seems fussily concerned with its image. After recounting his personal history Hoffman eventually answers a readers inquiry about the meaning of dreams. View courses and webinars. I treasure the blessings I received from Brothers Bhaktananda, Dharmananda, and Turiyananda, as well as from Daya Mata. In a defining moment, someone in the SRF organization was inspired to produce, as evidence of Anandas passing-off, an exhibit in which the Ananda symbol, which portrays a bird soaring heavenward over a mountain top, then descending in a graceful arc to bring blessings to mankind, was claimed to resemble the SRF lotus symbol, when turned upside down. Take a Program Online Online with Ananda When SRF sued Ananda in 1990, we would discover that Anandas destruction had become a guiding obsession with SRFa virulent fixation that had been ingrained in the institution by some of its leading lights, most notably Tara Mata. After all, whats an ashram without its own credit union? This was not a puff piece and Sarkar comes off as little more than a sociopath, hardly covered in a life of peace. And not apparently respected by Hindus. I ask the reader, therefore, to hold this image of SRF steadfastly in mind as I describe how my understanding of the organization and its leaders gradually evolved. (How long have you been meditating? About eight years. Well, thats nothing! I know), I said, Ive been thinking of moving to Ananda Village, and Id like to know your thoughts on the matter. Dharmananda fell silent. In August 1994, she left the church under a cloud. Far from advertising itself as connected with SRF, Anandas residents made it clear to me that, even if they had wanted to pass themselves off as connected with SRF, they could not possibly have done so, since SRF made a special point of publicly and aggressively attacking Ananda and Kriyananda. The article reads almost like an infomercial with a plug for the groups website at the end. It was designed to keep the student associated with SRF for as many years as possible. I loved the SRF senior monastics as older, more experienced brothers and sisters in God, and I felt profoundly inspired in their presence. The astronaut will actually lecture at the Neyyar Dam Sivananda yoga ashram. It was simply an advanced disciples rendering of the Gurus aid to a disciple who desperately needed it. The Ananda Village marketplace and caf is a 10-minute walk away, as is the new Temple of Light for all religions. But such statements only raise more questions. In his autobiography, The Path, Swami Kriyananda tells many stories that reveal how the Master placed the spiritual needs of the disciples ahead of organizational priorities. Roberts writes, Swami Kriyananda (J. Donald Walters) devoted 45 years of his life to studying the teachings of Parmahansa Yogananda.. But, as I was to discover later, the capacity to serve as a channel for the Guru does not preclude fallibility. They expanded steadily, purchasing several hundred more acres of the foothills and bringing in ever more seekers of self-realization. Donna Karan once promoted IYI within Vanity Fair magazine, without apparently doing much of a background check. The gurus property holdings alone are worth millions. The monks are encouraged to run daily.) Learning of the famed Bay to Breakers race in San Francisco, I entered and had a wonderful time. In 1946, his guru, Yogananda, in his epic "Autobiography of a Yogi," had expressed his desire to create a Yoga Institute: "I plan to open a Yoga Institute here. Write down your ideas. She signed up for a meditation class and was soon attending Sunday services at Ananda's Palo Alto church. Even if SRF bent its rules and gave tacit support, wouldnt the organization, given itspresent mind-set, tend to feel a bit nervous about such groups, lest they, when their countries became free, might decide to create their own, separate churches, based on the strong local focus of spiritual energy and magnetism that had been generated during the times of persecution? The prominent lawyer litigated and won the landmark appellate court decision, Molko v. Holy Spirit Association (1988) 46 Cal.3d 1092. Does America need a crack down? In the late 1980's, Swami Kriyananda, Ananda's founder, spoke about Ananda Village that "someday there will be a college here!". It shows great courage on the part of Lahiri Mahasaya that, although a high-caste Brahmin, he tried his utmost to dissolve the rigid caste bigotry of his time. Ms. Roberts doesnt appear to do much research before listing yoga teachers? Have a Question about Meditation Retreat Programs? Before leaving SRF, I had assumed that matters of church policy were none of my concern. I am concerned only with your continual improvement!. Living at Ananda, I often reflected on SRFs animosity towards us. Surely the theory of meditation could be learned just as efficiently, if not more so, while practicing it. (He now serves with his wife, Maria, as the spiritual director of the Ananda community in Sacramento, California.) The story of Tara Matas influence, and of SRFs relentless persecution of Ananda, is told in Swami Kriyanandas book, A Place Called Ananda: The Trial by Fire That Forged One of the Most Successful Communities in the World Today. Lacking experience, her approach was based on another theory altogether. The newspaper article in the Hindu[stan] Times was planted by a devotee who had no idea as to my intentions in my trip. Swami Kriyananda discusses this in his book, A Place Called Ananda: Master had informed me that he hadnt organized the lessons himself. "If it was just me, I probably would have just carried on working.". NASA astronaut and scientist Brian OLeary reportedly stopped in at the ashram of Sai Baba, a controversial Indian guru with a history of sex abuse allegations, to learn about peace, reported the Hindustan Times. Then, holding that meditative calmness, think about what you intend to say. For twenty years, we responded to SRFs unprincipled lies with dignified restraint. Some journalists write hard-hitting news stories about destructive cults, which have often led to further action. Some yoga groups and teachers are essentially interested in proselytizing. Harmony with nature will give you a happiness known to few city dwellers. This means that the patient is frequently very vulnerable and suggestible. Whenever Ive managed to summon an expansive, self-offering spirit in my service, Ive felt his grateful blessings for my labors on his behalf. (Master considered running an ideal exercise, Brother Bhaktananda wrote in a letter. Always interested in the broader issues at stake in the lawsuit, I read an excellent book, The Gnostic Gospels, in which the author, Elaine Pagels, describes the early history of the Christian church. I certainly had devoted no energy at all to rooting out theirfaults, or testing their attunement. I would go so far as to say that every disciple has a duty to serve as a channel for his gurus grace to others, to the extent that he or she is able. If the blueprint for Masters work has been sewn in the ether, as he said, we can only assume that the essence of that blueprint, as of his teachings, is love. Satchidananda left behind a core group of faithful followers at Yogaville and a few in Manhattan too. In nearly every case, these were individuals who had failed at Anandawho had either rebelled against Swami Kriyanandas guidance (which was always offered, never imposed), or who had chosen to distance themselves from the community long before they left. It all started at Ananda Village where you can join us for an inspiring visit, retreat, for internships, family programs, or online. And if they fall, they can be assured that, far from judging them, I will hold them up to Gods light, and pray that He help and bless them. I was a member of the Lay Disciples group during the latter part of that period, and I served briefly as a part-time volunteer gardener and second service leader at the SRF church in Redondo Beach. About ten years ago, I visited him to observe his Siddha powers from the point of view of a scientist.. "I've had my character absolutely assassinated and that's been very difficult.". If you do what he tells you, youll make progress.. Health and diet guru Dr. Dean Ornish says he has found evidence that yoga can help fight cardiovascular disease and this may be true. One such body is called the Yoga Alliance (YA), its mailing address is in Reading, Pennsylvania. My longing was fed by the ministers transparent spirituality. It was not only the form of the letter that had changed, but the contents, which seemed to be cut from a mold, whereas Brother Bhaktanandas letters had been rich with inspiration and individual advice. I laugh, when I compare my memories of the eternally tidySRF monastics with the specter of Ananta McSweeney, the outsized and formidably good-humored former head gardener at Ananda Village, consuming a lunch of baked spaghetti squash seasoned with butter and molasses, in soil-dusted overalls, his long red hairbraided and graced with protruding straws. Ananda has given me many blessings. These stories evoked howls of laughter, because we all knew them to be patently untrue. Im 59 years old now. According to her attorney Mike Flynn, Bertolucci, then 28, was one of the church's most enthusiastic devotees. Three recent stories about well-known groups often called cults, expose what looks like a penchant for puff pieces. Some say it may also lead to a sense of inner calm and tranquility. Imagine a Christian devotee, living in the former communist USSR and unable to communicate with church leaders. Attachment makes them slaves. Decentralization, not strong central control, is the spirit of this age. The Gnostics, meanwhile, practiced their methods of inward communion quietly and in secret. This Australian article puffs on almost like an ad campaign, complete with a price quote per school term and a mention for a booklet by Hubbard called The Way to Happiness. To make a long story short, I began doing volunteer work for Runners World, translating magazine articles and taking pictures. Daya Mata had said that she would never be able to die until this Ananda matter is resolved. In other words, until Kriyananda and Ananda were once and for all put out of business. May 5, 2021. That IYI student was only at the ashram for two weeks before marrying one of its swamis she had never met, who was old enough to be her father. They were talking about their activities as Christian devotees. Yogananda stressed the joys of simple, natural living and God thinking a way of life that, he said, would bring people happiness and freedom. But his message went beyond simply presenting people with an attractive idea. Ananda Meditation Retreat offers Personal Retreat and Mentored Personal Retreat stays, as well as Silent Group Retreats, Women's Retreats and more! This time the group is the Twelve Tribes, a racist anti-Semitic cult led by Elbert Eugene Spriggs, a former carnival barker. Not only can we meditate and pray together, but we also share the same unspoken understandings about many things. A devotee answered evasively, "You won't lose your mind and be brainwashed." I had attended Stanford from 1959 to 1966, and I loved the Bay Area for its natural surroundings and relaxed atmosphere. Later, I learned that the lessons hadnt been compiled by Yogananda. Carol A. Stefanelli, head of the groups Networking Committee, once studied with Swami Muktananda the founder of Siddha. When I was first learning to lecture, he writes in his autobiography, The Path, Master gave me the following words of advice: Before lecturing, meditate deeply. Hare Krishna teacher abuses children in Dallas, ABC News show GMA3 promotes purported cult leaders as inspirational couples counselors and thought leaders, Rudolf Steiner, Racism and Waldorf Schools, Order of Christ Sophia has become a dangerous and destructive organization, Racist, sexist, homophobic cult leader dead at 83, Nature Boy and the cult called Carbonation, Animal Rights and Environmental Extremists, General Assembly Church of the First Born, Lyndon LaRouche and Executive Intelligence Report, Oklahoma City Bombing, Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols, Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association, True & Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the L. Swami Satchidananda, now deceased, had his share of sex scandals. The same was true of my rare encounters with Daya Mata. This is certainly not the first precedent-setting case for Green. View The Expanding Light Calendar, The Ananda School of Yoga and Meditation (based at The Expanding Light) offers teacher training in yoga, meditation, yoga therapy, and spiritual counseling. Paramhansa Yogananda professed the oneness of all religions. although he was supposed to be celibate. They consider themselves freer for their possessions, and dont see how their possessions in turn have possessed them!. What have I gained personally from Ananda? In Autobiography of a Yogi, he writes: A significant feature of Lahiri Mahasayas life was his gift of Kriya initiation to those of every faith. I have enjoyed these benefits for more than twenty-five years, not only in my living situation but also during the many years that Ive spent working in Anandas businesses. Standing in line at the local Wal-Mart recently, I overheard a conversation between the check-out clerk and a young woman who was also waiting in line. I remember once praying to the Divine Mother and asking for Her forgiveness, after I had committed some small error. SRFs thinking is: We run the organization that Paramhansa Yogananda founded. Daya Mata is known to have referred to newcomers on the spiritual path as pipsqueaksa foreshadowing, perhaps, of SRFs growing tendency to view its members as statistics. Twenty years after moving to Ananda, I was asked by the communitys manager, Vidura Smallen, in January 1996 if I would be willing to move to the branch community in Mountain View, on the San Francisco peninsula, to help with Anandas legal defense against the SRF lawsuit.
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