PARAMHANSA YOGANANDA, a God-realized master of yoga, came to America in 1920 and lived here until his passing in 1952. Yogananda is the author of Autobiography of a Yogi, a book that millions worldwide treasure as a classic of spiritual literature.

A “Practical Religion” Based on Personal Experience

Yogananda stated that he had been sent to the West by God and Christ, in response to a silent yearning among many souls for a “practical religion” that would be free of blind belief and rigid dogmas.

It was not his intent, he said, to convert Christians to Hinduism, or to create a new religion, but to reveal the underlying teachings of “Original Christianity,” which include techniques for finding direct, personal communion with God.

In the last 200 years, religion has lost a great deal of its former respect. The impressive achievements of modern science have persuaded many to adopt a philosophy of atheistic materialism. Yogananda showed people how they can make their religion scientific, based on their own actual experience of the Divine. “At the inner end of the human nervous system,” he said, “the mind, interiorized, communes with God.”

Swami Kriyananda — Resources for Making Religion Relevant

Yogananda appointed his direct disciple, Swami Kriyananda, to help him complete his mission. To that end, Kriyananda has written more than 80 books in which he helps readers understand why faith is the most practical approach to life’s challenges, and how to make religion relevant to every aspect of life.

This website introduces books, videos, audio, and music that will uplift your spirit and help you discover your own relationship with God and Christ. Visit the Articles Archive.

May the Eternal Christ bless you! Follow the links at left to books, videos, and audio for transforming blind belief into direct experience. (Sample here: a video performance (4 minutes) of “The Last Temptation of Christ,” from the Oratorio, Christ Lives, by Swami Kriyananda.)