Aug 03, 2003 02:46 PM
8026 Views
(Updated Aug 09, 2003 10:21 AM)
Jai Gurudev
This was one of the first books I ever read. When I read it for the first time I was only 14 years old. At that time the book was more like a fairy tale than something to gain knowledge or spirituality from. After that when I read it as a mature person much later I was filled with gratitude and cosmic awareness.It was next to the feeling of being enlightened.I have by now read the book a number of times and never seem to tire of it. The picture of Shri Yoganand on the cover page always had a mesmerizing effect on me. Each time I saw his picture on the book I was drawn towards it and was tempted to read it. I have now started to regard him as my Guru.
Guru is formed by two words of Sanskrit origin: gu and ru. Gu means darkness and Ru means light. So a Guru is a person who guides you from the darkness of ignorance to the light of the divine. Though my Guru is no longer with us, I can always feel His presence. His Autobiography has been like a lighthouse in my life.
I know that the title demands me to review the book but I would like to be excused to first write something about the author .
About Shri Yoganand: Swami Paramhans Yoganad(1893-1952) was born as Mukunda Ghosh in an upper class family in Bengal. His father was an employee in the Indian Railways. Both his parents were very spiritual and disciples of Lahiri Mahasaya. Swamiji from his very childhood craved for spiritualism and a Guru. In his young days he made many unsuccessful attempts at fleeing to the Himalayas to take Sanyas(a lifestyle in which you free yourself from all material aspects of the world and seek divine through meditation and prayers).He finally found hid Guru in Swami Yukteswar Giri who was many years before told by Sri Lahiri Mahasaya that a disciple would be sent to Him. From His Guru Swami Yoganand learnt Kriya Yoga and was later told by Sri Yukteswar Giri that He was the chosen one to spread this great knowledge in the west. Swamiji with all odds against Him went to the west and in 1920 founded the Self Realisation Foundation in California and a sister body was later founded in India known as The Yogoda Satsanga Society of Indiawhich still has very active branches all over India (one of them that I have visited is in Ranchi, Jharkhand).He took a Mahasamadhi (a yogic phenomenon by which great yogis are able to give up their souls) in 1952 in U.S.A at a banquet arranged in the honour of the Ambassdor of India to U.S.A. The people who were present there have given an account of how the smile remained on Swamiji's face hours after he had entered the Samadhi. Today millions of people world wide are His followers and continue to receive His blessings.
About the Book: The book starts with Swamiji's memories of His previous life as a Yogi in the Himalayas. He gives a detailed account of his childhood, parents, and his brothers and sisters. The very presence of divine power that he experienced since his very childhood is beautifully explained in form of the several instances in his life. His search for the truth and a Guru lead Him to various people and places. He met extraordinary men with extraordinary powers in his search but none of them were able to quench His divine thirst. His prayers were answered in the form of Sri Yukteswar Giri who had been pre destined to be His Guru. Under the loving guidance of his Guru Swamiji entered the Swami order and chose for himself the name of Paramhans Yoganand. How Swamiji experienced the Cosmic Divine and gained Enlightment are explained with great details .The book lays a lot of importance on Kriya Yoga a long lost form of Yoga, spreading the knowledge of which was a responsibility assigned to Shri Yoganand. The essence of this form of Yoga and its effect are systematically defined. Swamiji's realisation of Lord Krishna and Lord Jesus, His comparision of Christianity and Hinduism is simply beautiful. In the book Swamiji has also written about the great people (of the likes of Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindra Nath Tagore) He met during His lifetime.
The book is filled with knowledge and we are lucky to have Swamiji's teachings laid so beautifully in the form of His Autobiography. The effect of this book is such that I feel like reproducing His whole Autobiography in my review but I know thats not possible.
Note: The book does not profess Hinduism in any way. People of all faiths can read it. The book is available in several languages and is easily available at all bookstores.
