At the dawn of creation and the emergence of humankind, the Infinite Spirit endowed the universe not only with the power of expansion but also with the divine energy to draw back wandering souls towards union with the Supreme Being. These profound words by Paramhansa Yogananda — regarded as an incarnation of yoga — appear in his spiritual commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, The God-Talks with Arjuna. He emphasized that the science of yoga can never be destroyed because it is inherently connected to the eternal truth residing within the human being.
As the soul descends into the material realm, it becomes enmeshed in the workings of the mind and often loses sight of its divine origin. Influenced by the five senses, the mind creates disturbances not only for the individual but also for society at large. Eventually, yearning for peace and fulfilment, the soul turns inward and rises again, merging with the infinite through the unifying path of yoga.
The great sage Patanjali defines this state in his Yoga Sutras as: “Yogash chitta-vritti-nirodhah” — Yoga is the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind. While controlling the turbulent speed of thoughts is no easy task, it is certainly possible through specific yogic techniques and sincere practice.
Yoga, a treasured gift of India to the world, was officially recognized by the United Nations in 2015, when June 21 was declared International Day of Yoga — a step that underscored yoga’s relevance and benefit to all of humanity.
Among the spiritual leaders who brought yoga to the West, Paramhansa Yogananda is considered a pioneer. Spending more than 30 years in the United States, he founded the Yogoda Satsanga Society of India (YSS) and Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) in the US. Through these organizations, he introduced and disseminated the powerful science of Kriya Yoga, an advanced form of meditation that offers a practical path to inner transformation and liberation from suffering.
In his renowned spiritual classic Autobiography of a Yogi, Yogananda describes Kriya Yoga in Chapter 26 as:
“A specific technique or action (kriya) that leads to union (yoga) with the Infinite.”
Through sincere and regular practice, the Kriya Yogi gradually becomes free from the bondage of karma — the unending chain of cause and effect.
This transformative technique, once reserved for renunciants, is now accessible to all sincere seekers, thanks to the divine grace of Mahavatar Babaji and his disciple Lahiri Mahasaya. Anyone interested in learning Kriya Yoga can visit the YSS website yssi.org, where a home-study course offers a step-by-step guide to mastering this scientific path to self-realization. With consistent practice of these foundational methods, even the human body — which naturally generates energy equivalent to a 50-watt bulb — can be trained to harness and withstand the immense spiritual power awakened by Kriya Yoga, amounting to millions of watts.
This International Day of Yoga, let us resolve to become true Kriya Yogis — empowering our body, mind, and soul to express the infinite potential of the divine life force that sustains the entire cosmos.
By Dr. (Mrs.) Manju Lata Gupta