Paramahamsa Yogananda

Paramahamsa Yogananda

Kriya Yoga master, spiritual teacher.

An influential spiritual teacher who introduced Kriya Yoga to the Western world. Known for his book, "Autobiography of a Yogi," he emphasized the unity of all religions and the potential for personal spiritual realization. His teachings blend Eastern philosophies with practical spiritual techniques aimed at achieving inner peace and self-realization. He founded the Self-Realization Fellowship to disseminate his teachings and promote a universal approach to spirituality. His legacy includes a significant impact on the Western understanding of meditation and spiritual practices.

Paramahamsa Yogananda Quotes about Joy

  • Beginning with the early dawn of each day, I will radiate joy to everyone I meet. I will be mental sunshine for all who cross my path. Before the unfailing light of my cheer, darkness will take flight.
  • Happiness lies in making others happy, in forsaking self-interest to bring joy to others.
  • The soul loves to meditate, for in contact with the Spirit lies its greatest joy...
  • Keep puffing on the bubble until it breaks its confining walls and becomes the sea of joy.
  • The man of Self-realization knows a bliss that cannot be compared to anything in this world. His joy is independent of any object or sensory experience. It is an incomparable happiness that cannot be described in words. Such joy is known as sattvik-ananda.
  • Ever-new Joy is God. He is inexhaustible; as you continue your meditations during the years, He will beguile you with an infinite ingenuity. Devotees like yourself who have found the way to God never dream of exchanging Him for any other happiness; He is seductive beyond thought of competition.
  • From joy people are born; for joy they live; in joy they melt at death. Death is an ecstasy, for it removes the burden of the body and frees the soul of all pain springing from body identification. It is the cessation of pain and sorrow.
  • There is in India a story of a dying youth who, hearing the sobs of grief around him, cried: Insult me not with your cries of sympathy. When I soar to the land of eternal light and love; it is I who should feel for you. For me, disease, shattering of bones, sorrow, excruciating heartaches no more. I dream joy, I glide in joy, I breathe in joy evermore.
  • It takes a long time-many incarnations of right action, good company, help of the guru, self-awakening, wisdom, and meditation-for man to regain his soul consciousness of immortality. To reach this state of Self-realization, each man must practice meditation to transfer his consciousness from the limited body to the unlimited sphere of joy felt in meditation.
  • Conserve the vital energy, follow a balanced diet, and always smile and be happy. He who finds joy within himself discovers that his body is charged with electric current, life energy, not from food but from God. If you feel that you can't smile, stand before a mirror and with your fingers pull your mouth into a smile. It is that important!
  • The soul loves to meditate, for in contact with the Spirit lies its greatest joy. If, then you experience mental resistance during meditation, remember that reluctance to meditate comes from the ego; it doesn't belong to the soul.
  • In the spiritual life one becomes just like a little child, without resentment, without attachment, full of life and joy.
  • From joy I came, for joy I live, in sacred joy I melt.
  • He who finds joy within himself discovers that his body is charged with electric current, life energy, not from food but from God.