Conversations with Yogananda

A disciple who took many photos of the Master • Does God answer our prayers? • How to pray (Conversations with Yogananda: 364-365)

Yukteswar’s training: deep scriptural study • Yogananda’s interpretations of The Rubaiyat • How people come to the spiritual path • Yogananda as “just a bulge in the ocean” • The importance of taking care of the body when younger • “Fools argue, but wise men discuss” (Conversations with Yogananda: 358-363)

Which branch of Yoga did Yogananda teach? • What is Raja Yoga? • If you love yourself, how can you love God? • Offer the good and bad you do to God • How to break the barrier of egoic self-identity • God as the doer • What does it mean to “be practical in your idealism”? (Conversations with Yogananda: 354-357)

What is superstition? • Fascinating astrological and related instructions Master gave to his disciples • “It is easy to be spiritual if you follow a few rules” • SImplify your life • Don’t mix too much with others • “Seclusion is the price of greatness” • Yogananda teachings) a new expression of religion • Why materially poor Indians are generally happier than wealthier Americans • God alone is the actor, the doer behind everyone we think we love • What is non-attachment? (Conversations with Yogananda: 348-353)

What does it take to have a relationship with someone also deeply serious on the spiritual path? • Master often compared life to a movie • What is the benefit of good karma, during this lifetime? • How much is this life a dream? How much should we relate to it as a reality? • Master’s concern for suffering in the world • A particular challenge to those on the yoga path) dismissing the world as a dream too easily • The difference between affirmation and wishful thinking • The reason for challenges • A story of a chant during the Christmas meditation in 1949) “Do not dry the ocean of my love” (Conversations with Yogananda: 343-347)

God is ever in the present (Conversations with Yogananda: 340-342)

Why did Yogananda sometimes go to the movies? • Movie theaters: symbolic of earthly life and God’s influence behind the changing scenes • “The thought that you are not free keeps you from being free” • “Samadhi is not something one needs to acquire. You have it already” (Conversations with Yogananda: 336-340)

When did Yogananda achieve final liberation? • Is ego-consciousness the same as self-consciousness? • The story of Byasa, Krishna, and cheese • How should one act in the world? • Yogananda’s praise for Sister Gyanamata’s consciousness • Shouldn’t we develop our own will, and not submit always to our teacher’s will? • Casting out ego-consciousness • The inner relationship with the guru (Conversations with Yogananda: 330-335)

The importance of deep relaxation in meditation • Visualizations for relaxing the body • Sitting completely still • Visions of America while Yogananda was at Ranchi school in India • How to develop humility • “I killed Yogananda long ago. No one dwells in the temple now but God.” (Conversations with Yogananda: 326-329)

Trying too hard to meditate • The importance of relaxation • The right balance of relaxation and will power (Conversations with Yogananda: 325)