Swami Kriyananda

Swami Kriyananda

Yogananda's disciple, Ananda founder.

An American disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda, he was a spiritual teacher and the founder of the Ananda communities. He dedicated his life to spreading the teachings of Kriya Yoga, emphasizing the importance of meditation and spiritual practice as paths to self-realization. He wrote extensively on spirituality and yoga, offering guidance on how to live a balanced, purposeful life that integrates spiritual practice with everyday activities. Through his leadership, Ananda became a global center for spiritual learning and service.

Swami Kriyananda Quotes about People

  • If you want to do one good thing in the world, the best thing you can do is give other people joy.
  • Trust life, even if you cannot trust people. For human nature is unreliable, but life itself is ruled by immutable law. Right action leads always, in the end, to victory.
  • I know that everybody is seeking bliss. And they're all looking for it mostly in the wrong ways, and as a result of that, they err, but there's no reason to hate them; they just don't know any better. Jesus himself on the cross said, "Forgive them, for they know not what they do." And so people who hate you, that's their problem. It doesn't have to be your problem. I wish them well.
  • Religion is organized, and spirituality is what the individual feels in his relationship with truth and with God. And although spirituality may be expressed in a religion, many people are spiritual and never go to church. They aren't religious in the sense that they practice a certain type of discipline.
  • It's a mistake to think that God has conflict with anything. He's everything. So the more close you are to God, how can you be in conflict with anybody? Conflict comes from ego, and from thinking, "I'm right and you're wrong." If I can reach the point where I understand that what is right for me may be different than what is right for you, that would be a good step. But most people don't reach that point, and so they fight about it.