IMPORTANT UPDATE:
Our Sunday morning meditations in New York City have
returned.
We encourage everyone initiated into Kriya to join us for our Sunday morning
meditations in New York City. We will continue to monitor the
situation and keep you informed of any updates.
WELCOME TO KRIYA YOGA
THE
PATH THAT IS DIRECTED BY THE
REALIZED
The
sincere spiritual seeker who follows the path of
Kriya Yoga with desire for spiritual growth, love,
and devotion can attain Self-realization — even
within one lifetime. This powerful yoga stems from
many yogas described in the Bhagavad Gita; but,
primarily, from:
Karma
Yoga
—
actions of the soul which means both outer actions in
the world and, more importantly, inner actions of the
mind and detachment from the fruits of these actions
Jnana Yoga
—
intellect discipline which leads to wisdom gained
from the experience of spiritual knowledge that gives
freedom and inner detachment from the fruits of
actions
Bhakti
Yoga
—
unconditional love, awakened by gratitude and joy
experienced from oneness with all creation and cosmic
consciousness
Kriya Yoga is non-sectarian. Its simplified
techniques cause no hardships or austerities and were
developed for aspiring householders as well as for
monks. From Karma Yoga, Kriya Yoga teaches any
action, ‘kri’, is done by
‘ya’, the indwelling soul; work is
worship. Constant awareness of the power of the
indwelling soul inhaling leads to mind control and
liberation.
The Kriya technique highlights the relationship
between breath and mind. Breath influences mind and
vice-versa. Their mutual relationship has revealed
the mystery of how to control the mind. Breath
control is self-control. Breath mastery is self
mastery. Breathlessness stage is deathlessness stage
that brings the state of samadhi, the realization of
the Absolute.
During initiation, the aspirant’s body fields
are purified and the triple Divine qualities of
sound, light, and vibration are experienced. As
meditation deepens, the aspirant goes beyond body
sense and beyond mind; true meditation begins, and
the ego-sense that ‘I am the doer’ is
replaced by the experience of the indwelling soul as
sole doer. Life’s goal — variously known
as liberation, enlightenment or Self-realization
— grows closer.
Kriya Yoga is a golden opportunity to reach higher
states of consciousness and change your life, gaining
all-round development of body, mind, and soul. It is
a quick and easy path. Kriya Yoga techniques are
passed down from guru to disciple, master to
aspirant, teacher to student.
There is no written record of when the ancient
tradition of Kriya Yoga began. It is a spiritual
technique which has been practiced by saints, seers,
and sages from time immemorial. The rishis (seers) of
the Upanishads, Shri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita,
Maharshi Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras, and many other
masters of yoga, practiced and taught this scientific
method through the ages. Kriya Yoga is a powerful
tool to be used by those of all religions in order to
hasten their own spiritual development. Adi Shankara
in the Viveka Chudamani wrote three things are very
rare in the world: to get a human birth, to have
desire for liberation, and to get the company of a
great soul and realized master.
In modern times, an elusive and mysterious master,
Mahavatar Babaji, in 1861 brought the Kriya technique
to the general public through his able disciple, Shri
Shyamacharan Lahiri, a pious householder. Lahiri
Mahasaya, as he was popularly known, had many
realized disciples. Foremost among them were Swami
Shriyukteshwar, who was well versed in the scriptures
of both the East and West and attained the highest
stage of realization, and Shrimat Bhupendranath
Sanyal Mahasaya, a householder yogi most noted for
his metaphorical interpretation of the Bhagavad Gita
in the light of Kriya Yoga. Among the many disciples
of Shriyukteshwar were Paramahamsa Yogananda, author
of “Autobiography of a Yogi”, and Swami
Satyananda Giri, who until 1971 was the president of
Karar Ashram founded by Shriyukteshwar in 1903.
Paramahamsa Hariharananda, who became the head of the
Kriya Yoga Institute USA as well as the international
organizations, was also a direct disciple of Swami
Shriyukteshwar. Both Paramahamsa Yogananda and
Paramahamsa Hariharananda were not only
Self-realized, but became instrumental in spreading
the teachings of Kriya Yoga around the world.
Until the time of his mortal transition into spirit,
December 3, 2002, at the age of 95
(1907-2002),
Paramahamsa
Hariharananda
— lovingly called ‘Baba’ by his
thousands of disciples and students around the world
— oversaw each one’s spiritual
development. His divine love and compassion remain
unparalleled.
Today,
Paramahamsa
Prajnanananda,
the realized disciple and successor of Paramahamsa
Hariharananda, travels the world as a powerful
spiritual master, loving teacher, prolific author,
and speaker on world religions. Under his loving
direction, the
Kriya Yoga
international
organization, supported by its monks, yogacharyas
and devotees, continues to thrive.