A friend recently shared a story about some high-powered women lawyers—acquaintances of hers—who had been trying to get their children accepted into prestigious colleges. Though the children were good students and had scored well on the entrance exams, they were not accepted into the top-tier schools. This rejection left their mothers devastated, but the students took it in stride and looked for other alternatives.

“Look, Mom,” they told their mother in a variety of ways, “this is actually a great opportunity. I’ll take a gap year off between high school and college and explore things that I’ve always wanted to do.” Some volunteered in service projects around the world, while others worked on farms, or took jobs that helped them develop new skills. Along the way, they met people from vastly different backgrounds, gaining insights and experience beyond anything they’d previously encountered.

At the end of the gap year, they had become more self-confident, self-directed, and happy. Even their mothers had to admit that the year had been a blessing in disguise. When they reapplied for acceptance to college, it was often in very different directions from what they had chosen the year before—and they were accepted. By taking time off, the students had stepped off society’s conveyer belt and discovered their identity and interests.

This is a good lesson for all of us. It’s important to take time out to experience our own nature—not as defined by our body, mind, or personality; nor by our desires and attachments; nor yet by socially accepted goals and personas. This search is aided by using the dictum of gyana yoga, the yoga of discrimination: “Neti, neti,” or “Not this, not that.” We must make an effort to discover who we really are, apart from outer self-definitions, until we begin to feel like our authentic self.

Our own “gap year” can be our daily practice of meditation—a time to connect with our inner Self, free of any outer labels. In meditation we can touch a deeper reality, which is our oneness with God. In a simple prayer, Master said, “What is this life flowing through my veins? Could it be other than divine?”

Take time after you’ve practiced your meditation techniques to sit in stillness and feel that divine life. You’ll find it’s a joyful experience that brings calmness, peace, and strength to deal with whatever you face in life. In his talks over the years, Swami Kriyananda would often say, “I want to convert you to who and what you really are.” This is the greatest goal for which we can strive.

If possible, take a spiritual retreat—disconnecting from your habitual patterns to deepen your Self-awareness. An enlightened saint of modern India, Ramana Maharshi, gave great emphasis to self-inquiry. The primary method of meditation that he gave to his disciples was to quiet the mind, and then repeatedly ask the question, “Who am I?” When Master traveled to India in 1935, he visited Ramana Maharshi and his highly evolved disciple, Yogi Ramiah, recognizing their profound state of Self-realization.

There is a story from India about a great sculptor whose marble statues seemed to be truly lifelike. When asked how he was able to create such remarkable figures, he replied, “It’s quite easy. If I’m carving an elephant, I just chip away everything that doesn’t look like an elephant.” In our search to discover who we really are, don’t be afraid to chip away anything that distorts or confines your true essence.

“Know Thyself.” This timeless dictum inscribed on the Temple of Apollo at Delphi reminds us that Self-discovery is the foundation stone of true knowledge. Socrates echoed this truth: “To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom.” As we determinedly chip away the façade of false self-identity, we uncover the joy of knowing our true Self as but a reflection of God.

What is the answer to the mystery of who we are? Master said, “When this ‘I’ shall die, then shall I know who am I.”

Towards the one true Self,

Nayaswami Devi

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“You are the light of the world. . . . Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14–16) These beautiful words of Jesus Christ are important to remember now in today’s uncertain world.

We’re currently in the middle of our annual Inner Renewal Retreat at Ananda Village. Many guests have come to attend in person, and more than three thousand others are joining us online. This year’s theme is “How to Be a Channel for the Light.” I’d like to share with you some thoughts from Tuesday’s class, “Strengthening Our Inner Light.”

The teachings that Paramhansa Yogananda brought to the world include powerful tools for raising our consciousness. He gave us the deepest of meditation techniques, and shared them in practical, magnetic ways that hold the positive expectation that we can succeed in attaining our spiritual goals. He said he loved the attitude that he found among Americans about finding God: “Eventually? Eventually? Why not now?!”

Here are some of Master’s techniques for healing and strengthening the light of our body, our mind, and our soul.

The Body

The Mind

The Soul

View from the Moksha Mandir at Crystal Hermitage.

The world is in desperate need now of divine light. I’ll close with this beautiful prayer of Yogananda’s: “Beginning with the early dawn each day, I will radiate joy to everyone I meet. I will be mental sunshine for all who cross my path. I will burn candles of smiles in the bosoms of the joyless. Before the unfading light of my cheer, darkness will take flight.”

With joy in the divine light,

Nayaswami Devi

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“That car and trailer ahead of us don’t look very stable. Let’s pull over into the next lane.” Swami Kriyananda quietly made this suggestion to a friend who was driving us back to Ananda Village. It was the summer of my second year living in the community. Shivani (now Nayaswami Shivani) and I had gone to Sacramento for a few days to help Swamiji with some projects. On Sunday afternoon we were all driving back to Ananda on a four-lane highway packed with heavy traffic.

At Swamiji’s comment, Shivani and I glanced up from the back seat. Directly in front of us was a car towing a small, flatbed trailer with an old, shaky hitch. The trailer was empty and swaying dangerously from side to side.

As we moved into the adjacent lane to pass the vehicle, a shocking thing happened: the trailer hitch broke. We watched in silent horror as the trailer veered wildly across multiple lanes, causing a massive pileup. There was nothing we could do but drive on; stopping would only have added to the chaos behind us.

Had God not prompted Swamiji to see the potential danger, and had we not pulled into the adjacent lane, we would have been the first car the trailer hit, receiving its full impact. For the rest of the two-hour drive, we all remained silent, offering our gratitude to God for protecting us, as well as our prayers for those caught in the accident.

Over the years, I’ve witnessed or heard many stories of miraculous protection. Yet there’s another, subtler form of divine intervention. One example is from Babaji’s life, recounted in Autobiography of a Yogi. He and his disciples were sitting around a huge fire which was blazing for a sacred Vedic ceremony. Babaji suddenly picked up a burning log and lightly struck the bare shoulder of one of the disciples.

One of those present cried out, “Sir, how cruel!” Babaji replied, “Would you rather have seen him burned to ashes before your eyes, according to the decree of his past karma?” Babaji then put a healing hand on the burned shoulder, and said, “I have freed you tonight from painful death. The karmic law has been satisfied through your slight suffering by fire.”

This kind of divine protection often goes unnoticed. Though we may endure a small amount of suffering, we’re not aware that the guru has taken away the bulk of what might have come. There have been a number of times in my life when I faced a small challenge and yet had an inexplicable feeling that something much more difficult was supposed to have befallen.

There’s yet another, even less perceptible, form of divine protection—one that may be the most profound of all. Not all suffering can be removed from our life or from the lives of others, particularly in the unstable, violent times in which we live. How we deal with the suffering that comes can be another form of God’s protecting presence.

I’ll share with you a personal story that changed my life forever. In 1976 a forest fire roared through Ananda Village, burning virtually the entire community to the ground. Our son had been born eleven days before the fire struck, and we found ourselves with our home and community reduced to ashes. All we had left were the clothes on our back and a box of sacred objects we’d salvaged from our altar.

At first I was overwhelmed with shock, unable to imagine how we could possibly carry on. Then it was as though I was protected from downward-spiraling thoughts of despair, and my understanding was guided to a higher level. I could see that as a mother, what I wanted for our son was a sense of security, nurturing, and love. Even though we had no physical home in which to shelter him, we could still give him the sense of love and security from our own heart. Nothing—no fire, no disaster—could ever destroy these.

Over time we moved forward and rebuilt our home, our community, and our lives. This understanding—that all we need to overcome difficulties already lies within us—has helped me deal with a number of challenges that have come over the course of my life.

I pray that the countless individuals around the world—whether in Ukraine, Gaza, Los Angeles, or elsewhere—who have lost everything can also receive this kind of understanding and strength.

For God’s protection in all its many forms, Master wrote this beautiful prayer. Let it be ours as well: “Teach me to feel that I am enveloped always in the aureole of Thine all-protecting omnipresence: in birth, in sorrow, in joy, in activity, in meditation, in ignorance, in trials, in death, and in final emancipation.”

In His love,

Nayaswami Devi

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There’s a delightful joke we once heard from a friend in India. A wealthy merchant, who had spent his entire life accumulating riches, learns that if one thinks of God during their final moments, they will go to Him. Seeing this as a convenient shortcut, the merchant decides to name each of his children after a different divine incarnation, hoping that when the time comes, their presence would remind him of God.

At last, the moment of his passing arrives. Summoning his children, he looks at them with satisfaction and says, “Ah, here are Rama, Sita, Krishna, Radha, Vishnu, Shiva, and Parvati—all gathered around me.” Then, after a pause, he asks anxiously, “But wait—who’s minding the store?”

Though humorous, the story carries a deeper truth: There are no shortcuts on the spiritual path. God cannot be deceived by outward gestures when the heart remains entangled in worldly attachments. A sincere seeker must strive to rise above external distractions and desires, placing God at the center of their life.

A story from the life of Jesus beautifully illustrates this lesson. At the age of twelve, Jesus and his parents traveled to Jerusalem, a tradition for Jews at that time, to celebrate the Passover holiday. When the festivities ended, Joseph and Mary began their journey back to Nazareth. A day later they discovered that Jesus was missing from their caravan. Frantic with worry, they returned to Jerusalem, and began searching for him everywhere.

Finally they found him in the temple, and to their amazement he was answering with deep wisdom the spiritual questions posed by the elders. Mary, overwhelmed with emotion, asked, “Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? Behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing.”

Jesus replied, “How is it that ye sought me? Know ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?”

This moment marked a turning point in Jesus’ life. He gently reminded his parents that his mission came from God and required him to rise above familial obligations. According to ancient manuscripts discovered in a monastery in Ladakh, soon after this episode took place Jesus traveled to India. There he spent the next eighteen years before returning to Israel at the age of thirty to fulfill “his Father’s business.”

This challenge of worldly ties competing with higher callings is one every devotee encounters. When we begin seeking God sincerely, the world often pulls us with greater intensity toward distractions. It could be from family or friends questioning our journey: “Are you crazy to give up a good life for something you aren’t even sure exists?” Or perhaps it’s the tempting offer of a job we’ve been wanting, or a promising relationship, or the new apartment for which we’ve been looking.

In these moments, it’s important to see such distractions as tests—or even indirect gifts—from God to strengthen our resolve. Each time we affirm, “I must be about my Father’s business,” our commitment grows firmer. Eventually, we reach a point where no further tests are needed, because both we and God know where our heart lies. At that stage, the world’s pulls become as insubstantial as wisps of smoke, easily blown away.

And what is our Father’s business? Simply put, it is the discovery of God’s bliss, peace, and inner freedom within ourselves—and the sharing of that joy with all. Here are excerpts from Master’s beautiful poem, “When Will He Come?,” which encapsulate this truth:

When every heart’s desire pales

When no inclinations or unfulfilled cravings

When He shall be sure nothing else can claim you,

Even if you are the sinner of sinners,

We are all His children, engaged in some aspect of our Father’s business. United in dedication, devotion, and service, let us come together as one family to share His spiritual riches with the world.

With joy and divine friendship,

Nayaswami Devi

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As I write this, it’s January 5, the anniversary of Paramhansa Yogananda’s birth. In meditation this morning, as I offered myself as his disciple, I thought about Master’s discipleship to Sri Yukteswar, and how it transformed his life. When we follow Yogananda’s spiritual journey in Autobiography of a Yogi, it can be a guide to our own discipleship.

“The characteristic features of Indian culture have long been a search for ultimate verities and the concomitant disciple-guru relationship.” With these words Master begins his story, and this is the central theme that weaves its way throughout the Autobiography. Each of us will reach the point in our life when we realize that the world around us is not the ultimate reality, and that our personality is not our true nature. Then the search for what is real and who we really are begins.

At first the Divine Hand offers books to guide us. Then, when we hunger for more, teachers come to help us along. Finally, as our yearning deepens in intensity so that nothing else can satisfy our soul’s longing, we are led to the safe harbor of a true guru. The fulfillment of our search is inextricably bound with the guru-disciple relationship.

In the Autobiography, Master tells how after graduating from high school, he entered the ashram of a saintly yogi, Dyananda. As time passed, Master realized that he had not yet found what he was seeking, and he became increasingly unhappy. He writes:

“Torn by spiritual anguish, I entered the attic one dawn, resolved to pray until answer was vouchsafed.

‘Merciful Mother of the Universe, teach me Thyself through visions, or through a guru sent by Thee!’

“The passing hours found my sobbing pleas without response. Suddenly I felt lifted as though bodily to a sphere uncircumscribed.

“‘Thy Master cometh today!’ A divine womanly voice came from everywhere and nowhere.”

It was on that day that Master met Sri Yukteswar, who at that poignant moment uttered these words to him: “O my own, you have come to me! How many years I have waited for you!”

His words reveal the truth that the guru-disciple relationship is both eternal and personal. When an individual soul separates as a spark from the infinite consciousness of God, a divinely ordained guru is designated to guide him back. So we do not choose our guru; it is rather part of God’s plan for our ultimate reunion with Him. And the guru waits until the disciple is ready.

Once we’ve found our guru, the next stage in the journey is to develop deeper self-offering and attunement to him. Master tells us that Sri Yukteswar was a strict taskmaster who minced no words in correcting his disciples. Few were able to endure his discipline, and most left. At first it was hard for Yogananda to bear the brunt of his guru’s criticisms and corrections. When he stopped resisting, however, and offered himself fully to Sri Yukteswar’s wisdom-guided discipline, he found great blessings.

He wrote: “In time I demolished every wall of rationalization and subconscious reservation behind which the human personality generally shields itself. The reward was an effortless harmony with my guru. . . . Quietly sitting beside him, I felt his bounty pouring peacefully over my being.”

To receive this “bounty,” we need to accept every test and challenge to our ego as coming from the guru, and respond with openness and gratitude. For the final stage of the journey requires nothing less than complete surrender of everything that keeps us bound to the ego. Then we realize that God is the ultimate reality, and herein lies the culmination of the guru-disciple relationship. The guru’s thoughts become our thoughts; his will, our will; his path to God, our journey; and finally his realization, our realization.

Swami Kriyananda wrote a vow as part of a discipleship initiation ceremony which reflects the thoughts we’ve shared. For those of you who follow Yogananda as your guru, you might repeat aloud these words with which it begins:

Divine Mother, I come before Thee today

With loving faith now I seek Thee

The “ultimate verities” realized through the guru-disciple relationship finally resolve themselves into one reality: the infinite love of God. This is the treasure that lies before us at journey’s end.

With joy and eager anticipation,

Nayaswami Devi

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The Roman God Janus is depicted as having two faces—one looking forward, and one backward. In mythology he represents new beginnings, transitions, and time. As we approach the new year, it’s a good opportunity for us, like Janus, to look backward to review the past, and also forward to set new goals for ourself.

We are all “works in progress,” and while we need to build on our successes, let’s not be discouraged about where we fell short. Take some time now to introspect and see in what ways you have succeeded; analyze where you could have done better; and decide on the goals you want to set for 2025. Let’s look at these three components.

First, look at your successes in accomplishing your goals from last year. A friend of mine told me, “A goal I set for myself in 2024 was not to speak negatively about a person at work with whom I had a hard time getting along. At first it was really difficult, and sometimes I had to walk out of a room when I felt myself about to spew negativity. Little by little, I began to feel an inner strength developing. As the year progressed, whenever I felt tempted to criticize this person, I could feel a wave of energy supporting me not to fall into that trap. Finally it seemed very natural to remain silent, or even to say something positive. I was so happy with the results that this year my goal is not to speak negatively about anyone.” Her success in achieving last year’s goal is giving her the confidence to keep building on what she was able to accomplish.

Next, it’s also important to look at where we fell short in what we set out to do. Guilt and self-blame are not helpful emotions, and we should not identify with our mistakes. Rather, simply analyze where you have a weak area, and then try to apply the energy of your successes to that behavior. In other words, learn both from where you succeeded in your goals and where you failed, and move forward with changing yourself.

Sometimes people say, “But I can’t change, because my past karma is too strong.” To the question, “How much free will to change ourselves do we really have?” Yoganandaji had a very helpful answer. He said that there is no such thing as fate, but rather destiny, determined by our past actions, or karma. And that about seventy-five percent of who we are is set by past karma, but the other twenty-five percent can be created through our free choice and effort of will.

Thus, we do indeed have the ability to transcend our weaknesses through self-effort. That quarter of who we are, representing our free will, can determine whether we remain bound by past habits, or move forward instead in freedom.

“Samadhi,” by Nayaswami Jyotish.

Finally, as 2025 approaches, set new goals for yourself, but not too many. There are a number of ways to approach this. Some people like to make a list of physical, mental, and spiritual goals. Others like to choose only one goal and focus on it. Whatever approach you prefer, take time now to apply everything we’ve talked about. Look at your successes and build on them; see how you could have done better in your weak areas; and, using free will, decide who you want to become in the year ahead.

Paramhansa Yogananda wrote: “Picture the new year as a garden you are responsible for planting. Sow the seeds of good habits in this soil, and weed out worries and wrong actions of the past. If you are not a good gardener, you will have to come back on earth to try again.” His implication is that if we are good gardeners, we will be treading the sure path that leads to liberation.

A wonderful spiritual portal opens before us with the beginning of each new year. Continued effort and determination help us to achieve our goals in life. In Sanskrit, the term, siddha, means one who has attained Self-realization, but literally it means “one who is successful.” Let us work towards this kind of success that leads to true happiness and freedom in God.

Wishing you a new year filled with attaining your highest goals,

Nayaswami Devi

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Every sincere devotee occasionally gets discouraged with their spiritual progress. For the beginner, who may sense no results from practicing meditation, it’s easy to think, “I must be doing something wrong,” or, “Maybe I’m just not good enough to meditate.” For the more mature devotee, who may have had some inner experiences, the thought can still arise, “But I don’t feel God’s presence after all my efforts. Maybe I won’t be able to achieve the goal I’m seeking.”

Recently after meditation I found myself grappling with such discouraging thoughts about my own progress. At that moment an uplifting realization entered my mind and changed my perspective: “Once you realize that the material world can never provide the happiness you seek, you have crossed a threshold that inevitably leads to soul freedom.”

Yoganandaji talks about the “anguishing monotony” we experience after countless incarnations of thwarted attempts to find lasting happiness in the world. Once we sincerely begin to seek higher realities and remain steadfast, our goal of finding God will itself help guide us toward fulfillment. Though we may not perceive any progress or changes in ourself, every effort we make breaks down inner barriers and moves us closer to God.

I recall a memorable moment when we were taking Swami Kriyananda to an appointment. Jyotish was driving, Swamiji sat in the passenger seat, and I was in the back. Swamiji was talking about the spiritual growth that he had observed in some Ananda members. Though we rarely talked about ourselves in his presence, I surprised myself by blurting out: “I don’t think that I’ve changed all that much.”

Swamiji turned around in his seat, looked me squarely in the eyes, and said with great conviction, “How can you say that? You’re an entirely different person than when you came ten years ago!” His unexpected response filled me with hope. Though I couldn’t perceive any changes within myself, his words reminded me that spiritual growth is often subtle and imperceptible.

Unlike worldly goals, where success is measured by tangible results, spiritual progress requires faith that every effort brings us closer to the source of true happiness. Crossing the threshold of seeking union with God sets us on a journey where each step, no matter how small, carries us forward.

Yogananda said that Christ consciousness, or Kutastha Chaitanya, God’s Infinite Presence, can be more readily perceived at this time of the year, if we but lift our hearts to receive it. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Diwali, Chanukah, or any other tradition doesn’t matter, for God’s consciousness embraces all paths.

To help us attune to this Divine Presence, Yogananda started the tradition of having an eight-hour meditation on December 23rd. If you’re near an Ananda community or center, we warmly invite you to join us. For those at a distance, we offer an online meditation on December 21st.

I’ll close by sharing a beautiful poem by Master called, “If You Want His Answer.” May it fill you with encouragement and hope for your spiritual journey. (One of our members has put it to music.)

Whether He replies or not,

With joy and blessings,

Nayaswami Devi

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One of the most useful truths taught by Paramhansa Yogananda is: “The greater the will, the greater the flow of energy.” By pouring our energy into everything we do, we draw even more energy to accomplish it. Over time we discover that this increased energy flow comes from a higher source and enables us to succeed at whatever we’re doing.

But there’s a catch here. When we exert our willpower, there will be a continual demand to put out more energy with the next task before us. This makes some people hesitate and think: “This never-ending demand to put out more energy is too much for me. I won’t be able to sustain it. I’ve done enough already.”

Swami Kriyananda was an amazing example of someone whose ability to channel energy seemed limitless. He taught us that on the spiritual path there is no treading water—we are either moving forward or moving backward.

Swamiji wrote: “Sooner or later we have to discover that we either progress or regress, but that there’s no standing still. As devotees, we should never complain at having to work hard. We must reach the point where it’s fun to work hard, where we experience the flow of energy as a manifestation of divine joy. We should feel that it’s a privilege to work as hard as we possibly can for God, and to be able to look back and say, ‘I gave it my all.’ This is victory.”

One of my first lessons along these lines happened during my early years at Ananda when I worked at the Meditation Retreat. Its facilities were quite simple (if not to say, primitive), and it was our only retreat center at the time. There was no electricity and no phone, and computers had not yet come onto the scene. The only way we learned that guests were coming was through mailed-in reservation forms, but mostly people just showed up. For housing we could offer them tent platforms and campsites, along with an odd variety of much-used sleeping bags and pads.

Late one evening after a busy day of checking in many guests, I looked at our supply room and saw that all of the sleeping bags had been lent out.  Thinking that it was unlikely for anyone else to arrive, I began locking up the office. Just then a car pulled up,;a man got out and said that he was here for the weekend. “Did you bring your own tent or sleeping bag?” I asked him with concern, because we had nothing to give him. “No,” he replied, “I didn’t know that I needed to.”

What a predicament! Then the thought occurred, “I can run back to my trailer, get my own sleeping bag and pad, and give him those.” This I did without letting him know, and spent that night sleeping on a hard wooden platform covered with my coat. (It wasn’t that bad.) It felt right to keep what I’d done to myself.

The next morning Swami Kriyananda was scheduled to give a class in the temple. Before entering, he came up to me and said with a sweet smile, “Now you’re getting the idea.” His words at first puzzled me, and then I understood his meaning: Give your all, and don’t think about yourself. I realized that I felt very free and joyful that morning.

“Half Dome,” by Nayaswami Jyotish. Inspired by Nayaswami Devi in meditation overlooking this winter scene in Yosemite.

Over the years, Jyotish and I have been asked to serve in many ways and increasingly to give of ourselves. We’ve seen that the more we’re willing to do whatever is asked and put out our best effort, the more we feel an increased flow of energy sustaining us. And the essence of that flow of energy is freedom and joy. This I first felt from my experience at the Meditation Retreat.

Swamiji does give us this reassurance: “God doesn’t expect you to do it all at once. There is at least that comfort. Take one step at a time. But always remember that whatever energy you’re putting out, you’re doing it so that you can develop the strength to put out more, and not so that you can say, ‘Oh, good, now I’ve done it. Now I can retire and sit in my rocking chair.’”

His song “The Hill That Was Tara” ends with these lines:

Ev’ry effort we spend

Onwards and upwards, dear friends.

With joy,

Nayaswami Devi

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“You will never be able to walk again.” This decree was delivered to our friend by a doctor after she’d survived a terrible car crash. She’d been driving on a narrow road in a remote part of Mexico when a truck coming around a curve crashed into her jeep, leaving her with a crushed pelvis and shattered legs. She knew it would be hours before medical help could reach her. Being a doctor herself, and though in great pain, our friend used all her will power to remain conscious so she could instruct those helping her about how to remove her body from the wreckage without causing further damage.

Many hours passed before medical help arrived, and she was finally airlifted to a hospital. After hours of surgery, she awoke to find herself in a full-body cast with both legs in traction. It was at this point that the doctor delivered his seemingly inescapable verdict that she would be in a wheelchair for the rest of her life.

Our friend was a disciple of Master, however, and refused to accept this as a final decree. For three months as she remained bound in her cast, she constantly prayed and sent energy to her pelvis and leg bones. Using the technique that Yoganandaji taught in his energization exercises, she mentally tensed and relaxed these body parts, even though at first she could feel nothing. Keeping her mind focused throughout the day, every day, on this process, she gradually began to feel a flow of energy in her lower body.

Finally, when the doctor removed the cast, he was amazed to discover that her crushed pelvis and legs had actually healed. Gradually she regained the ability to walk, and now, though she has a slight limp and uses a cane, she has full mobility. She is a living testament to the power of determination and faith to rise above seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

I share this story with you because many people have told me how oppressed they’re feeling now by what’s happening in the world. War, political divisiveness, religious fanaticism, climate change, financial uncertainty—there are many reasons to feel crushed by things that seem out of our control.

Now is the time to remember our innate power to rise above whatever challenges lie before us. Perhaps we can’t change the world, but then again, united in faith in God, perhaps we can. Swami Kriyananda said that those seeking God have chosen to incarnate at this time for a purpose—to balance the downward-flowing energy around us with light and faith in a higher reality.

How do we do this? Just as our friend did, we need to keep our mind constantly focused on sending God’s energy, love, and light to ourselves, to those we know, and to the entire world. Day after day, meditate, pray, and consciously try to draw divine consciousness and grace into the world.

Remember, too, that God and His saints are all very active in helping humanity now. Master said, “Perhaps you have wondered sometimes if great souls such as Jesus are lost to the world. Not at all. The great ones are all active; it is the mission of some to try to strengthen the good in this world. And to the extent that they are able to do so, through receptive minds, the devil’s power weakens and God’s power becomes stronger.

“When a great saint is resurrected in Spirit, and takes a form in responding to sincere, receptive devotees, it means he has some part to play in the world’s destiny. I know that Christ, in flesh and blood, is in communion with Babaji in India. Together they are watching over the destiny of the world.”

We have a battle before us if we want to break free from the downward pull of the events happening around us. Let us become those “sincere, receptive devotees” who draw the grace of the great ones to help the world now. Don’t allow naysayers like that Mexican doctor to crush your spirit. And never lose hope that there will be a new dawn of unity, peace, understanding, love, and compassion for all.

Your friend in God,

Nayaswami Devi

Listen to Devi as she first reads the blog, then expands on its meaning and messages for readers with behind-the-blog commentary. Subscribe to the podcast or download the audio recording by right-clicking here. Or listen to it here (08:04):

On March 7, 1952, Paramhansa Yogananda left his body as he concluded a speech in honor of the Indian Ambassador at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. Swami Kriyananda, who was present that evening, describes what occurred in his book, The New Path:

Master was scheduled to speak after the banquet. His brief talk was so sweet, so almost tender, that I think everyone present felt embraced in the gossamer net of his love. Warmly he spoke of India and America, and of their respective contributions to world peace and true human progress. He talked of their future cooperation. Finally he read his beautiful poem, “My India.”

Throughout his speech I was busy recording his words, keeping my eyes on my notebook. He came to the last lines of the poem:

Where Ganges, woods, Himalayan caves, and men dream God.

“Sod” became a long-drawn-out sigh. Suddenly from all sides of the room there came a loud cry. I looked up.

“What is it?” I demanded of Dick Haymes, seated beside me. “What happened?”

“Master fainted,” he replied.

Oh, no, Master! You wouldn’t faint. You’ve left us. You’ve left us! the forgotten playwright in me cried silently. This is too perfect a way for you to go for it to mean anything else! I hastened to where Master lay. A look of bliss was on his face.

March 7, 1952, just before Paramhansa Yogananda left his body as he concluded a speech in honor of the Indian Ambassador at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles.

Jyotish and I are now in the last few days of two months in India during which we shared Master’s teachings in many different cities throughout this wonderful country. We’ve connected with a great number of dear friends, some of whom we’ve known for years, and made many new friends of people discovering Master’s work through Ananda. What a joy it has been to bathe in the spiritual vibrations of India.

We want to take this opportunity to thank all those with whom we’ve connected. The kindness and heartfelt appreciation that you showered on us will remain forever as a radiant warmth in our heart. Everywhere we went, we were greeted with such loving respect, not for ourselves, but for the great master and his teachings that we follow. It was like a great dance of love in which God was showering His blessings down on His children as they gathered together in devotion and service to Him.

As I think lovingly of the depth and subtlety, the personal closeness and acceptance of others, the spiritual wisdom and teachings of this glorious country, my mental vision expands beyond India’s boundaries. Like a film camera panning back, I begin to see a family of souls with joined hands and hearts circling the globe.

I see those with whom we connected throughout Europe in the month before arriving in India—from Italy, Germany, Estonia, Serbia, Belgium, Holland, France, Latvia, England, Russia, and Ukraine. Expanding back further, I see the many souls in America who gathered together with Swami Kriyananda beginning some fifty-eight years ago and continue to this day to help him build Ananda in dedication and devotion to our Guru.

And yet, India is the starting point for human upliftment during this cycle of time. It was here that the science of yoga was born. It was from here that our line of gurus sent Paramhansa Yogananda to America to begin uniting East and West. During our time spent in India this year, I caught a tiny glimpse of God’s plan to help His children everywhere awaken from delusion. I began to understand Master’s power to create magnetic spiritual families to carry forward his work. I see that work growing in purity of heart, clarity, and strength throughout Ananda globally. Swamiji describes this expansion in The New Path:

The stronger the family, spiritually speaking, the greater its attractive pull on new souls that may still be wandering in search of an identity of their own. A family evolves with its individual members; at last it, too, becomes a “star” in the firmament of humanity, and begins to produce great souls of Self-realization.

As spiritual “stars,” such great families become powerful for the general upliftment of mankind. Like stars, too, they then draw “planets” of less-evolved families into their beneficial auras, vitalizing them with rays of divine truth. Such families are like mighty nations. To them is given the real task of guiding the human race—not in the way governments do, by official ordinances, but by subtler, spiritual influence.

So, my friends, my brothers and sisters in God, let us not limit our vision to our individual spiritual search, or to the challenges in our daily life. We are a part of a great family of God, come together to help others, too, to find their way to truth. Master closed his Autobiography of a Yogi with these words: “Lord, Thou hast given this monk a large family!” United in his love, let us carry his banner forward.

With love and blessings in God,

Nayaswami Devi

Listen to Devi as she first reads the blog, then expands on its meaning and messages for readers with behind-the-blog commentary. Subscribe to the podcast or download the audio recording by right-clicking here. Or listen to it here (09:10):