"To me there is no difference between
one person and another;
I behold all as soul-reflections of the one God. I can't think
of anyone as a stranger,
for I know that we are all part of the One Spirit."—Paramahansa
Yogananda
“The real celebration of Christmas
is the realization within ourselves of Christ Consciousness.
It is of utmost importance to every man, whatever his religion,
that he experience
within himself this ‘birth’ of the universal Christ.
" . . . In that land of everlasting Christmas you will find
Jesus, Krishna,
the saints of all religions.”—Paramahansa Yogananda
"Very few of us know how much we
can put into life if we use it properly, wisely,
and economically. Let us economize our time—lifetimes ebb
away
before we wake up, and that is why we do not realize the value
of the immortal time
God has given us."—Paramahansa Yogananda
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" . . . How I love the dreams of Paramahansa Yogananda, my
brother. And how I see them appearing in the faces of the Masters
of the Himalayas who come to rejoice in the flowing stream, the
mighty river of the Yellowstone."
Paramahansa Yogananda (b. Jan. 5, 1893, Gorakhpur, India; d. Mar.
7, 1952, Los Angeles, California): Founder of Yogoda Satsanga Society
in India (1917) and the Self-Realization Fellowship in America (1920);
author of Autobiography of a Yogi.
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Lanello
December 31, 1984 |
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" . . . the twentieth-century yogi Paramahansa Yogananda
wrote:
"The cumulative actions of human
beings within communities, nations, or the world as a whole constitute
mass karma, which produces local or far-ranging effects according
to the degree and preponderance of good or evil. The thoughts
and actions of every man, therefore, contribute to the good or
ill of this world and all peoples in it." *
* Paramahansa Yogananda, Man’s Eternal Quest (Los Angeles:
Self-Realization Fellowship, 1975), p. 474
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Elizabeth C. Prophet
October 11, 1991 |
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" . . . Understand, where there is
quickening there is fire. And where there is fire, some on the
left will be burned, some on the right will enter into that fire
and rejoice in the coming of the Saviour’s all-consuming
love.
"Bear well your office, beloved hearts.
Bear well all that comes to you as controversy or darkness. For
we hasten your path of the bodhisattva and to our retreat. Let
us test you. And expect the tests. Be unmoved. Greet the adversary
with joy and the adder with the 'cluck, cluck' of the joyous yogi."
*
* The joyous yogi:
In his autobiography, Paramahansa Yogananda tells the story of
his guru Sri Yukteswar’s joyous confrontation with a deadly
four-foot cobra. As it raced toward him, ready to strike, the
master simply chuckled and rhythmically clapped his hands. A cobra
will normally strike at any moving object within its range, yet
this serpent became motionless before Sri Yukteswar, then slithered
between his feet and disappeared into the bushes. See Paramahansa
Yogananda, Autobiography of a Yogi (Los Angeles: Self-Realization
Fellowship, 1975), pp. 131-32.
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El Morya
October 14, 1985 |
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" . . . This is the Divine Science
of which we speak, the Divine Science of God whereby you know
God and you know God face to face; and every time you say the
word 'I AM,' it is with profound love and reverence. And you may
take now the lei of flowers and toss them about your neck, * knowing
that the Inner Guru is able to raise you up, knowing that the
Inner Christ is there, yet knowing that the little one of God,
[the soul that is] the shorn lamb, yet needs the Shepherd, yet
needs the Messenger and the Teacher in embodiment."
* See Paramahansa Yogananda, Autobiography
of a Yogi (1946; reprint, Los Angeles: Self-Realization Fellowship,
1988), p. 91, paperback, available through Summit University Press;
and Christopher Isherwood, Ramakrishna and His Disciples, 2d ed.
(Hollywood: Vedanta Press, 1980), pp. 69-70, 146-47, paperback,
available through Summit University Press.
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Goddess of Liberty
July 8, 1990 |
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" . . . Jesus entered his final incarnation retaining just
enough karma to keep him tethered to this world. (For those who
are karma-free do not long remain.) So, he tells us: 'My yoke,
i.e., the yoke of my karma, is easy; therefore I can help you
carry your karmic yoke.'
"Jesus’ burden of Light is the 'burden
of the LORD' spoken of by the prophet Jeremiah. This is the burden
of the avatar, the God-man, or God-manifestation, that Jesus was.
This burden was also borne in part by the patriarchs and prophets,
the disciples and holy men and women of all ages. It is in fact
the burden of the Light of God (depicted in the Chart of Your
Divine Self as your Causal Body) and the burden of the calling
of the LORD (the Mighty I AM Presence) in that Light. This calling
is one’s dharma *, or one’s duty to fulfill one’s
reason for being."
* dharma [Sanskrit, literally ‘carrying’,
‘holding’, ‘that which holds one’s true
nature’, akin to Latin firmus ‘firm’]: In Hinduism,
dharma is defined as that which determines our true essence; righteousness;
morality; the religious and moral law governing individual conduct;
that which holds the world together; the lawful order of the universe
and the foundation of all religion; religious duty; the way of
life to be followed according to one’s nature and station
in life; conformity to one’s duty and nature; an individual’s
duty fulfilled by observance of custom or law. As defined in Man’s
Eternal Quest by Paramahansa Yogananda, dharma is the “eternal
principles of righteousness that uphold all creation” and
“man’s inherent duty to live in harmony with these
principles.”
The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy
and Religion says: “For the individual, dharma is inseparable
from one’s karma, since dharma can be realized by the individual
only to the extent permitted by one’s karmic situation.”
In Buddhism, dharma has many of the same connotations as in Hinduism
but also specifically refers to the universal doctrine, the teaching
of the Buddha, and the way of life that is consistent with this
teaching. The Messengers teach that one’s dharma is one’s
duty to fulfill one’s reason for being. It is the divine
plan, which runs as a thread through all lifetimes, culminating
in the mission fulfilled and the soul’s liberation from
the round of rebirth. This takes place only when one balances
at least 51 percent of one’s karma and attains ultimate
reunion with God because the dharma has been fully self-realized
and fully accomplished.
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Elizabeth C. Prophet
October 11, 1991 |
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" . . . Blessed ones, they allow their fear to overtake them.
And they are no longer willing to fight, as Arjuna was not willing
to fight until the Lord Krishna gave to him the vision of the
dharma, the duty to fulfill one’s reason for being.
"Will you allow it to be taken from you?
Will you allow it to be snatched from you at the hour of victory
after a million years of dealing with these conditions? I tell
you, nay! You will not, not if I know you as the Lightbearers
and Keepers of the Flame of Liberty upon earth! [18-second applause]
"You will not roll over and say die, convincing
yourself that you will go on in another octave and it matters
not whether you have a physical body or not. Blessed hearts, I
say [as] with Babaji, if it does not matter, then keep that physical
body * and use it that the earth might see a greater victory than
has ever come about on this planet and many systems of worlds
in the face of such odds!"
* Babaji on keeping the physical body.
Paramahansa Yogananda, Autobiography of a Yogi (Los Angeles: Self-Realization
Fellowship, 1946), paperback ed., pp. 352-53.
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Saint Germain
May 21, 1989 |
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" . . . Everything you do is lawful when you do it to the
glory of God, when you do it through sacrifice, surrender, selflessness
and service. But there comes a time when if you do not have a
teacher, if you cannot weigh the pros and cons of everyday matters
and balance the issues of your life, you can, without even realizing
it, stray from the central purpose of your life: why you are here,
what is the flame of your calling and what you are trying to prove
according to Maitreya’s formula.
"Maitreya desires to see a community of
those who pursue the Path either as sannyasins on a celibate path
of nonmarriage or as devotees who marry and have children. He
desires to see balance in every walk of life and in each of the
castes * that are set according to the Hindu tradition."
* The four major castes according to the
Hindu tradition: (1) Brahmins: priests, religious leaders, philosophers
and scholars, (2) Kshatriyas: warriors, generals and officers,
politicians and civil authorities, (3) Vaisyas: farmers and merchants,
(4) Sudras: servants and laborers. Paramahansa Yogananda points
out in his book The Second Coming of Christ: “There is an
esoteric significance about the four castes which consists in
the four states of consciousness of a devotee who aspires to know
God . . . Any individual who remains identified with the Supreme
Spirit should be called Brahmin . . . The spiritual caste system
does not prevent any low caste or any individual from being called
a Brahmin if he qualitatively proves himself to be one.”
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