I thought it might be helpful to talk about things I have learned from my Guru, Paramhansa Yogananda.
1. With Master, learning was a form of recognition; it was not intellectual. He would state truths so as to reach your soul, and your soul would rise in recognition to whatever level it could. In a group, each person might understand him differently.
Those who teach others should remember this truth: People will understand according to their own maturity. Don’t feel you have to hammer your points. Touch on them lightly. Those who are ready to learn will understand, and those who aren’t will let it pass.
(Photo: Yogananda with Indian and American disciples. He was always kind, accepting of everyone, encouraging them to grow where they stood on the spiritual journey.)
2. In everything Master said or did there was a deep message. He didn’t explain himself; he expected us to intuit his meaning. Over the years, I’ve come to understand his meaning on deeper and deeper levels.
Once, for example, I asked one of the monks if Master was doing things in certain ways to teach us organization. “Organization, heck!” He replied. “All he ever does is dis‑organize!” Well, that attitude took the monk off the path. But I felt that he must be teaching us something, and I later understood that he was teaching us you don’t organize things; you go by an intuitive flow. This is how I built Ananda.
3. Master said, “Don’t focus on this personality.” He never would tell his age, and he urged us not to tell our age to others. He said, “I have no age; I feel timeless.”
I never focused on his personality. I would look into his eyes and see no ego there. He was the infinite consciousness in that form. But he was also a person, and it was through the guru’s humanity that we could begin to understand the different aspects of God – love joy, peace – and what we needed to become.
The highest octave of human love is the unconditional love a guru gives to the disciple, which means that he’ll hang on to you until you find God. To find God, we must learn to love Him the same way, unconditionally.
4. He never gave us a “blueprint” for his work. He said again and again, “The blueprint is in the ether.” It was through my attunement with him, and by having to understand his will from within, that I knew what to do. He would sometimes give little suggestions or hints, but he didn’t tell me.
When people ask, “What is the blueprint for Ananda?” I reply, “God will show us.” Each step of the way he shows us what we should do. God’s will is not fixed and determined; it depends on many things.
Yogananda himself would sometimes look for signs of God’s guidance. For example, I was to go to India with him in 1951, but he said, “Don’t tell anybody.” One of the monks tricked me into telling him, and he complained to Master, who took it as Divine Mother’s sign that he shouldn’t go that year.
5. A monk once said to him, “Whenever I see you, I see Divine Mother.” Master said, “Then behave accordingly.” He always knew that it was Divine Mother working through him.
It’s important that we, too, in working with people, learn to allow the Divine to work through us. For teaching and leadership, that’s very important. Be in the Self; let God do it through you.
The most important thing you can do in any work is to put your vibrations into it. Master told us when we lectured, not to think only in terms of words, but to put our vibrations into the words. Your vibrations will change people more than anything else.
6. Through Master I learned that the answer to everything is to have a positive attitude. Some disciples have described him as a stern disciplinarian, intolerant of anything being done wrong.
He wasn’t that way at all! Once he entered the monks’ dining room on a day when it was an absolute mess. He sat down and said, “Well, it might be worse.”
Whenever he encouraged us to strive to be better, it was always in a positive way. I once behaved very judgmentally toward a devotee. This man loved to visit Master, but he would never kept his appointments with me to learn meditation. When he visited Master the next time I was present, I wouldn’t even look at him.
Master said to me later, “How dry you were with him! How many people would still be here if I had treated them that way?”
He taught me to be loving, forgiving, and to always look for the good in people. When you look for the good, you see God there. You can help them better if you focus on their goodness. If you criticize them, they just put up defenses.
7. He taught me to listen to others. One time, he was telling me a story, and I anticipated the ending and blurted it out. He calmly went on and stated it himself – it was a little different from what I’d said. Then he looked at me, and I understood: I should not be bristling with my own opinions.
Always listen to what other people have to say before you answer them. Don’t jump in, bristling with your ideas.
8. Master was so humble and childlike. He sometimes spoke with firmness, but he never put himself above anybody. He was completely capable of saying, “Well, I was wrong.” That was his greatness.
9. Master gave all credit to his line of gurus. Somebody asked him once, “Why are you teaching the Bhagavad Gita and the Bible, especially?” He answered, “This is what Babaji wants.”
In the chapter, “The Resurrection of Sri Yukteswar” in Autobiography of a Yogi, Master describes himself as awestruck by what he learned from his guru in 1936. In 1932, however, Master had written an article giving those same descriptions of the astral world. He already knew it all, yet he gave credit to his guru.
10. Many times I noticed that he would leave the last word with other people. For example, when he discussed Mahatma Gandhi and nonviolence in Autobiography of a Yogi, he left the last word with Gandhi, even though he didn’t fully share his views. Master believed in nonviolence as an inward attitude, but he said there are times when you must do certain things for a higher motive.
11. It was wonderful how he had respect for everybody. Once there was an Indian man who was a bit drunk and being too familiar with Master. Debi, one of the monks, said something deprecating about the man in Bengali. Master signaled to Debi to stop. Master viewed the man with complete respect as a child of God.
Always have that little distance of respect for those closest to you. Respect will endure under all circumstances.
12. He allowed me to be true to myself. Some of my fellow disciples would say to me, “Don’t you think you should be such and such a way?” Master never said that to me. He told me what he thought I should do, and I did it. But he allowed me to be true to myself.
It’s important for a teacher to allow each person to be himself. An institution will try to mold you into a form and make you toe that line. I don’t ever want Ananda to do that.
13. Master always saw us in our highest potential. He said, “A saint is a sinner who never gave up.” No matter how many faults a person had, he would always try to help them aim for the highest.
This was perhaps the most important thing he gave me. There were times when I felt discouraged, but I would always remember that saying and keep trying. We should always see ourselves as potential saints.
14. What Master emphasized most with the disciples was, “Be in tune.” He wanted us to open our hearts to him and ask him to take charge of our lives. We have to act, but we should always ask the guru to guide our thoughts and show us what he wants.
Ask him even in little things, “What should I do?” If you make a mistake, say, “God, I want to be good, help me to be good.” His help will be there.
15. One time, he had been away, and I felt a deep longing to see him. I drove down to Encinitas, and he welcomed me with great love. He said, “I have missed you.”
That same night, I was with the monks and we were discussing a book one of them had read. In the light-minded discussion I lost a little of that attunement. The next day, at the San Diego church, Master blessed me and said, “I have missed you.” It was a slight reprimand. I had fallen a little in my attunement, but his love was always there.
How often I have remembered that occasion, to help me understand that he loves me, no matter what. He loves everyone that way.
16. Master said if you use money for the welfare of others, then you grow spiritually and it’s a great blessing, but if you use it only for yourself, then it becomes a misfortune.
I once saw a group of gypsies begging outside Calcutta. One of them was a young girl whose look said, “What am I doing here?” She appeared to be a reincarnated queen who had lost everything through selfishness.
17. There were two prayers Master said were the greatest. One was, “I will reason, I will will, I will act. But guide Thou my reason, will, and activity to the right path in everything.” The other was, “Give me Thyself, that I may give Thee to all!”
I believe the truest disciples of Master are those who try to share the blessings they’ve received with others. That was the essence of his life.
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To learn about the teachings of Swami Kriyananda and Paramhansa Yogananda, we invite you to visit the website of Ananda India. There, you will find free online books, videos of Swami Kriyananda, resources for study, news of public events, and opportunities to meet with other seekers. You can also phone: 98992 67698 or 98992 00605.
Watch Swami Kriyananda’s wonderful Gita videos on YouTube.
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