Chapter 41 Autobiography Of a Yogi Hindi

Dr. Pradeep Yogi, Yoga, Meditation, spirituality, Yoga Philosophy, Ayurveda and Gurukul,

This is about Paramhans Yoganand ji Paramahansa Yogananda (born Mukunda Lal Ghosh; January 5, 1893 – March 7, 1952) was an Indian monk, yogi and guru who lived his last 32 years in America. He introduced millions to the teachings of meditation and Kriya Yoga through his organization Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) / Yogoda Satsanga Society (YSS) of India. A chief disciple of the Bengali yoga guru Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri, he was sent by his lineage to spread the teachings of yoga to the West, to prove the unity between Eastern and Western religions and to preach a balance between Western material growth and Indian spirituality. His long-standing influence in the American yoga movement, and especially the yoga culture of Los Angeles, led him to be considered by yoga experts as the "Father of Yoga in the West."

Paramhansa Yogananda was the first yoga master of India whose mission it was to permanently live and teach in the West. In the 1920s, as he criss-crossed the United States on what he called his "spiritual campaigns", his enthusiastic audiences filled the largest halls of America. His initial impact was truly impressive. But his lasting influence is greater still.

This audiobook, the version of which was first published in 1946, helped launch a spiritual revolution in the West. Only rarely does a sage of Paramhansa Yogananda's stature write a firsthand account of his life experiences. Followers of many religious traditions have come to recognize Autobiography of a Yogi as a masterpiece of spiritual literature. Yet, for all its depth, it is full of gentle humor, lively stories, and practical common sense. Now, with this audiobook, the 1946 edition is again available, with all its inherent power, just as the great master of yoga first presented it.

Yogananda was the first major Indian teacher to settle in America, and the first prominent Indian to be hosted in the White House (by President Calvin Coolidge in 1927); his early acclaim led to him being dubbed "the 20th century's first superstar guru," by the Los Angeles Times. Arriving in Boston in 1920, he embarked on an successful transcontinental speaking tour before settling in Los Angeles in 1925. For the next two and a half decades, he gained local fame as well as expanded his influence worldwide: he created a monastic order, went on teaching-tours, bought properties for his organization in various California locales, and initiated thousands into Kriya Yoga.By 1952, SRF had over 100 centers in both India and the US; today, they have groups in nearly every major American city. His "plain living and high thinking" principles attracted people from all backgrounds among his followers.

He published his book Autobiography of a Yogi in 1946 to critical and commercial acclaim; since its first publishing, it has sold over four million copies, with HarperSan Francisco listing it as one of the "100 best spiritual books of the 20th Century". Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs had ordered 500 copies of the book for his own memorial, for each guest to be given a copy.The book has been regularly reprinted and is known as "the book that changed the lives of millions."A 2014 documentary, Awake: The Life of Yogananda, won multiple awards at film festivals around the world.