Here we are in the second decade of the 21st-century. It just seems like yesterday that we were celebrating N'SnycThe Backstreet Boys and Christina Auguilera, not to forget Britney Spears either. The 90s was a transitional period for me in more ways than one, I discovered meditation I saw my independence and the 90s seem to be a year of growing up for myself. I was attending Trent University as a part-time student and left before the year started to go to a Hindu monastery in California, well in all honesty it was part Christian as well I know that might sound a little bit confusing. There is a new movie out called the "Awake" on the life of Paramahansa Yogananda which is currently playing on Netflix. In the 1990s I believe that I needed a guru. I had some friends in Peterborough and one of the friends had similar thoughts as myself so we went out on a spiritual quest sort of. My quest took me to California. Before I left for California I had read a book from self-realization fellowship called autobiography of a Yogi. Yoga was not as popular as it is now back then and there was something called the New Age movement that was similar to the yoga movement of today. Regardless I bought a one-way ticket to an ashram in Escondido California called hidden Valley ashram.
I don't remember the name of the airlines that I took but it was a category of Air Canada. Unfortunately this airline doesn't exist anymore it went out of business. But this was the cheapest ticket that I could find so after saying goodbye to my family my mom my dad and my brother, I made my way to the airport to embark on a spiritual quest not a reference to one of Yogananda's books Man's Eternal Quest. My first night in the ashram was a very comforting night, although I didn't realize that the kitchen was open all night long I went to bed hungry that night for the first time in my life. I woke up the next morning and had a spiritual experience as I was waking up. I remember saying the words get thee behind me Satan and feeling as though something within my own spirit was being purified. People talked about going to one of self-realization fellowship's retreat facilities at leaving there feeling like they were washed or like they were cleansed. Whatever happened to me prepared me to experience the ashram life in a more deeper spiritual level.
Even though I was there as a guest I felt like I was part of the community. Realistically I knew I had to leave but there was a part of me that didn't want to go after my stay there. I was told by a resident who lived on the ashram that it would be best if I go home and pay off my student loans before considering living on the ashram myself. So that's what I did. I went home. I have a very strong memory of my very first group meditation. Almost to sacred to divulge in paper, however it was a result of that men's group meditation that my desire to meditate was fulfilled. I no longer had any questions about the Mystery of it because I was actually doing it now. Before I left the ashram I paid a visit to their small little bookstore and basically bought almost every single book written by Paramahansa Yogananda. I also bought numerous cassette tapes with his teachings on them. The man calculating the cost of my purchased items told me that because of my purchase that day I had most likely meet their entire budget for the year for the bookstore!
I remember meeting a homeless man as I waited on the outskirts of the San Diego airport waiting for a bus to take me into the airport to take me home. Besides the luggage that I was taking with me I had a big bag filled with SRF material it was a plastic bag so I was holding onto it with the greatest caution. I remember having a conversation with this homeless man and actually offering him one of the books that I had purchased. It was a book from a direct disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda called God Alone. At first he thought it was an evangelical Christian trying to convert him to Christianity, he said yeah I know about all that stuff about excepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior but when I . it in the book I had to explain to him that this was something a little different! He politely refused to take the book saying he didn't want to get in between the messenger so I put the book back in my bag and I continued to sit next to this homeless man. I eventually caught my plane back to Toronto using my credit card to purchase a return ticket because I came to California with a one-way ticket.
My journey with Yogananda or SRF didn't end there. I eventually joined the Toronto meditation group and this was my home for a very long time relatively speaking. And all those books and tapes I eventually gave over to a charismatic Catholic who is keen on seeing me improve my life in other ways. Over the past couple years I've been trying to regain that lost inventory at somewhat of a pathetic speed because the writings of Yogananda still hold the sacredness and a Mystery to the meaning and sanctity of human life, and one of those lives in which he touched was my very own life. We live in a world right now where humans are killing humans at an unprecedented rate, ahimsa or nonviolence to any living creature was something that drew me to the teachings of Yogananda. When we have peace of mind or peace in our bodies and souls we will not want to kill another human being. Something Yogananda knew very well. He called it the science of religion. Indeed it doesn't take a scientist to realize that human beings have souls and human beings have spirits and that we as human beings should treat each other with the dignity and love and respect that we treat our own bodies. The light of the Christian gospel realizes this truth and I believe that Yogananda had at the heart of his teachings this truth of dignity for all living beings. And I respect him for that teaching and many other teachings that he taught. I continue to pray that the world would see the light of the truth maybe the universal truth that mankind was created to love one another I believe self-realization fellowship and their founder wanted to see a world where human beings would live in harmony with each other.
This is Mike.
I don't remember the name of the airlines that I took but it was a category of Air Canada. Unfortunately this airline doesn't exist anymore it went out of business. But this was the cheapest ticket that I could find so after saying goodbye to my family my mom my dad and my brother, I made my way to the airport to embark on a spiritual quest not a reference to one of Yogananda's books Man's Eternal Quest. My first night in the ashram was a very comforting night, although I didn't realize that the kitchen was open all night long I went to bed hungry that night for the first time in my life. I woke up the next morning and had a spiritual experience as I was waking up. I remember saying the words get thee behind me Satan and feeling as though something within my own spirit was being purified. People talked about going to one of self-realization fellowship's retreat facilities at leaving there feeling like they were washed or like they were cleansed. Whatever happened to me prepared me to experience the ashram life in a more deeper spiritual level.
Even though I was there as a guest I felt like I was part of the community. Realistically I knew I had to leave but there was a part of me that didn't want to go after my stay there. I was told by a resident who lived on the ashram that it would be best if I go home and pay off my student loans before considering living on the ashram myself. So that's what I did. I went home. I have a very strong memory of my very first group meditation. Almost to sacred to divulge in paper, however it was a result of that men's group meditation that my desire to meditate was fulfilled. I no longer had any questions about the Mystery of it because I was actually doing it now. Before I left the ashram I paid a visit to their small little bookstore and basically bought almost every single book written by Paramahansa Yogananda. I also bought numerous cassette tapes with his teachings on them. The man calculating the cost of my purchased items told me that because of my purchase that day I had most likely meet their entire budget for the year for the bookstore!
I remember meeting a homeless man as I waited on the outskirts of the San Diego airport waiting for a bus to take me into the airport to take me home. Besides the luggage that I was taking with me I had a big bag filled with SRF material it was a plastic bag so I was holding onto it with the greatest caution. I remember having a conversation with this homeless man and actually offering him one of the books that I had purchased. It was a book from a direct disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda called God Alone. At first he thought it was an evangelical Christian trying to convert him to Christianity, he said yeah I know about all that stuff about excepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior but when I . it in the book I had to explain to him that this was something a little different! He politely refused to take the book saying he didn't want to get in between the messenger so I put the book back in my bag and I continued to sit next to this homeless man. I eventually caught my plane back to Toronto using my credit card to purchase a return ticket because I came to California with a one-way ticket.
My journey with Yogananda or SRF didn't end there. I eventually joined the Toronto meditation group and this was my home for a very long time relatively speaking. And all those books and tapes I eventually gave over to a charismatic Catholic who is keen on seeing me improve my life in other ways. Over the past couple years I've been trying to regain that lost inventory at somewhat of a pathetic speed because the writings of Yogananda still hold the sacredness and a Mystery to the meaning and sanctity of human life, and one of those lives in which he touched was my very own life. We live in a world right now where humans are killing humans at an unprecedented rate, ahimsa or nonviolence to any living creature was something that drew me to the teachings of Yogananda. When we have peace of mind or peace in our bodies and souls we will not want to kill another human being. Something Yogananda knew very well. He called it the science of religion. Indeed it doesn't take a scientist to realize that human beings have souls and human beings have spirits and that we as human beings should treat each other with the dignity and love and respect that we treat our own bodies. The light of the Christian gospel realizes this truth and I believe that Yogananda had at the heart of his teachings this truth of dignity for all living beings. And I respect him for that teaching and many other teachings that he taught. I continue to pray that the world would see the light of the truth maybe the universal truth that mankind was created to love one another I believe self-realization fellowship and their founder wanted to see a world where human beings would live in harmony with each other.
This is Mike.
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