{"id":214,"date":"2021-07-28T18:13:43","date_gmt":"2021-07-28T18:13:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/?page_id=214"},"modified":"2021-07-28T18:13:43","modified_gmt":"2021-07-28T18:13:43","slug":"1978-the-joy-tours","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/1978-the-joy-tours\/","title":{"rendered":"1978: The Joy Tours"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
The Gandharvas sing in the Temple of Leaves at the Ananda Seclusion Retreat. L-R: Agni, Matri, Parvati, Arati, Sananda, Durga, Ram, Nalini, Vasudeva, Uma<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Joy Tour went from Los Angeles to New York City and back again<\/strong>\u2014four months, fifty cities. Swamiji gave a seminar, The Practice of Joy. <\/em>The Gandharvas <\/em>sang. If there was a piano, Swamiji played the sonata. They showed slides of Ananda and answered questions about the community. I arranged the tour, but didn\u2019t travel with the group.<\/p>\n

Everyone but Swamiji would come to each rented hall hours before the program was scheduled to start. They had a beautiful painted backdrop of a mountain scene, suggestive of the Himalayas, that had been made for Jewel in the Lotus. <\/em>They would hang the backdrop, arrange the chairs, and set up tables for books, recordings, and free literature. Sometimes set-up meant moving massive amounts of furniture, even cleaning the hall, to create the right ambience. Then the Gandharvas <\/em>would rehearse, and everyone would change clothes in time to welcome the first guests.<\/p>\n

Attendance varied from city to city\u2014from more than a hundred, to a few dozen, to times when the Ananda crew outnumbered the locals. It didn\u2019t matter; everyone gave their all. They were there to serve God, and to serve God in whomever He sent. In almost every city, at least one person came who later joined Ananda. Many became leaders. Swamiji had heard their souls calling, and arranged his tour accordingly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the long run, the results will be very good,\u201d Swamiji wrote at the end of February. \u201cPeople will buy books, visit the Retreat, and join Ananda. In the short run\u2014well, we are pretty tight on funds. If we hadn\u2019t added that seminar in Reno at the last minute, we\u2019d be out of money by now. We have $140 left in petty cash, with food and gas to buy, and some hall rentals still to pay.\u201d Somehow, though, they eked it out.<\/p>\n

The big group was \u201ca graphic illustration of what otherwise would be just a theory.\u201d They gave people a much fuller picture of Ananda than if Swamiji had come alone. Whenever there was enough interest, a meeting was held about The Circle of Joy<\/em>, and starting an Ananda Outpost in that city.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Southern California was a hard start. SRF had escalated their campaign against Swamiji with a Publishers Note <\/em>in their books and magazine: \u201cThere are now a number of other publishers, organizations, and individuals claiming to represent Paramahansa Yogananda\u2019s teachings. Some are borrowing the name of this beloved world teacher to further their own societies or interests, or to gain recognition for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

They wrote as if there were a plethora of others. In fact, SRF had a virtual monopoly on Master\u2019s teachings. Swamiji was the only other voice. Everyone knew the Warning Against False Teachers <\/em>was directed at him.<\/p>\n

The professional we hired to help with publicity in Southern California told us that several people tried to dissuade her from working with Ananda because \u201cSwami Kriyananda is evil.\u201d Posters were taken down; many who did come said they were warned against us. \u201cI could feel the tension in the audience,\u201d Swamiji said.<\/p>\n

During question and answer sessions, \u201cI\u2019m being forced to say more than I\u2019d like\u2014and sometimes, under pressure, more than I should\u2014like the comparison between Master\u2019s original Whispers from Eternity<\/em> and the much-edited version issued by SRF after his passing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s something I have to confront as delicately as possible, but nonetheless openly. SRF keeps attacking, and if I remain silent, I end up looking shamefaced and guilty, rather than considerate,<\/em> which is in fact the case.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many people, after meeting Swamiji and those traveling with him, said, not only were their doubts allayed, but they liked Ananda\u2019s approach better than SRF\u2019s. Two older women, obviously loyal SRF members, clearly disapproved of everything they saw before the lecture.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think they came to see how bad we were and then report back to their SRF friends,\u201d Swamiji said. \u201cBut during the talk, they gradually warmed up, and in the end were quite receptive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one thing I can\u2019t <\/em>accept,\u201d one of the women said to Swamiji afterward, \u201cis you giving Kriya Initiation without Daya Mata\u2019s approval.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rule in SRF now is that only the president is authorized to give Kriya. Others who initiate are not authorized as individuals, but act only as her stand-in.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was never <\/em>the policy when Master was alive,\u201d Swamiji said, \u201cNor for the ten years <\/em>after. That rule was put in place after I was dismissed.\u201d The women were astonished; they had been told it was Master\u2019s own rule.<\/p>\n

\u201cGive Kriya to everyone you think is qualified,\u201d Master told Peggy Deitz, a disciple who had lived for a time at Mount Washington, until Master sent her to live on her own. Peggy was surprised, and asked, \u201cWhat will the organization say?\u201d<\/p>\n

Master\u2019s stern reply was, \u201cAre you following an organization<\/em> or are you following me<\/em>?\u201d Even during Master\u2019s lifetime, the office at Mount Washington had its own ideas.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will be difficult,\u201d Swamiji said, \u201cbut I\u2019d like to get a foothold in Southern California. Maybe start with a weekly radio program. It will heat up the SRF opposition, but in time that has to melt, and the sooner the better. Even when I went out on a limb in saying more than I intended, I did so with love and respect. We\u2019ve made lots of friends here.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the end of the second month, Swamiji wrote from Texas. \u201cI thought we\u2019d be out of the SRF vibe by now, but almost everywhere we\u2019ve had to face it. Come to think of it, I\u2019ve had the same problem in Europe and India! I\u2019ve looked at the Publisher\u2019s Note<\/em> and I\u2019m thinking about making a formal statement in reply.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swamiji returned to Ananda just before his birthday in May. A month later, he\u2019d written a small pamphlet, Ananda Cooperative Village & Self-Realization Fellowship. <\/em>We published it in our magazine and put it out on the table with our free literature. It was the most public statement Swamiji had made since he was expelled sixteen years earlier.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth organizations recognize Paramhansa Yogananda as their Guru\u2026.Ananda is not a subsidiary of SRF, but autonomous in its government\u2026.We consider it important to balance institutional with spontaneous, individual activities in the name of God\u2026.Those ready for the path of inner <\/em>enlightenment generally felt drawn to a more personal form of service.<\/p>\n

\u201cHumanity during Dwapara Yuga <\/em>will seek more fluid definitions of its ideals. Religion used to be identified with church affiliation and formal statements of belief; now it is becoming identified with inner Self-realization.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpiritual truths are kept exact through the written word, intact through institutions, but alive<\/em> through individuals. It is the disciples, each one reflecting the teachings in his own way as he has experienced<\/em> them, who keep flowing the life blood of religion. People go where they find inspiration. As long as they find inspiration at Ananda they will continue to flock here.<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps someday Master will make it possible for Ananda and SRF to work together cooperatively. We hope so. It is in the fitness of things that there be teamwork among members of the same spiritual family.<\/p>\n

\u201cMay peace and charity reign everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

In the summer, Swamiji gave classes and Sunday service almost every weekend. He bought high quality recording equipment and made a series of five-minute radio programs, Techniques for Joyful Living,<\/em> that aired every Sunday morning on a Sacramento station. On tour, people kept asking for recordings of the music. Swamiji did a solo concert, including the sonata, and recorded it live\u2014Music of Divine Joy.<\/em><\/p>\n

His expansive efforts would put Ananda on a sound footing over the long-term. Immediately, though, the financial crisis created by the fire continued unabated. The master plan had finally been approved, but we were still struggling to get back to where we were when the fire hit. To earn money, people went out in teams and planted trees for the Forestry Service. Another group spent two months working in a processing plant for the rice harvest. Everyone was doing their part, but the lion\u2019s share of responsibility still rested on Swamiji. At the end of August, he went to Hawaii\u2014alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cI came to a crisis point,\u201d he said later. \u201cI had been supporting the community for eleven years. I felt so hemmed in by the pressure I wanted to run off to a cave! I have no grand illusions about the importance of what I\u2019m doing. I could leave at any time. But when I meditated on leaving, I felt no inspiration to do so.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome people serve Master through their meditations. What I have to offer is my creativity. Master often praised me for the creative way I served him. Perhaps I will live long enough also to have a life of meditation. Perhaps I won\u2019t. When I was living with Master, he asked me to use my evenings to write magazine articles. \u2018That will interfere with my meditation time,\u2019 I said. Master responded, \u2018Living for God is martyrdom.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cMany people think of martyrdom as some kind of suffering. It isn\u2019t. Master said the saints who were martyred didn\u2019t even feel pain. All they felt was the joy of giving everything <\/em>to God. Thinking of it this way, I felt deep inspiration, and it was not difficult to come back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swamiji called a community meeting to address the financial crisis. He suggested we adopt a five-year plan to bring our net income to one million dollars. We could stop building for a while and put whatever we earned into money-making enterprises, to really get them off the ground.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s expand our thinking to include the whole county,\u201d he said. \u201cBusinesses that don\u2019t have a chance out here could do well in town. We could start an ashram there where the employees could live. Maybe even get a church.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe may have several businesses, so better not to call them Ananda. <\/em>We don\u2019t want it to seem like we\u2019re taking over the town.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shraddha von Tobel took on the project of starting a health food store. She poured her heart into it, and a few months later opened Earth Song Health Food Store and Cafe. Some people complained about Shraddha\u2019s \u201ccaustic ways.\u201d She was delicately built, but feisty; Swamiji called her his bantam rooster. They praised the store, but criticized Shraddha.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery enterprise is the reflection of the leader,\u201d Swamiji said to those who complained. \u201cWhen you praise Earth Song, you are praising Shraddha. Without her, there would be no Earth Song.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking for projects that could be launched without much capital, Swamiji suggested a music school. Several talented musicians were already giving lessons. Rather than teaching on their own, it would be more magnetic to bring all the students to one location.<\/p>\n

Perhaps our singers could give concerts. \u201cNevada City attracts a lot of tourists who need something to do in the evenings,\u201d Swamiji said. \u201cWe could rent a set location, and rotate two or three shows on different nights of the week. Most tourists stay only a few days, so you would always have a new audience. Hotels could sell tickets in exchange for a percentage. I\u2019ve taken hundreds of slides in some of the most beautiful places in the world. You could show some of them while you sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The music school ran for a few years; This Holy Earth<\/em>, an illustrated concert, only lasted a few performances. But we were learning: the secret of prosperity is creativity.<\/em><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

The second Joy Tour started at the end of September, returning to the cities where they got the best response, plus adding a few new ones in Canada. Even in Southern California, Swamiji faced almost no challenges from SRF\u2014\u201cI think because I faced it so boldly last time.\u201d He was dismayed to hear that SRF had summarily dismissed a number of renunciates, some after years of service, without explanation or recourse; just what happened to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt makes me rethink the whole question of whether I should tell the story of my dismissal,\u201d Swamiji said, \u201cso they will stop treating people that way.\u201d He said he would meditate on what to do.<\/p>\n

In his pamphlet, Swamiji said \u201cIn SRF, only a few people, relative to the large number of members, are in a position to serve actively. Yet divine service is important for the spiritual development of every devotee. Ananda is a place where disciples of Master can serve him individually, with freedom and spontaneity.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Southern California, a man who used to live at Ananda, but left \u2014 at his wife\u2019s insistence \u2014 to be part of SRF, came to see Swamiji. \u201cHe is much less magnetic now,\u201d Swamiji said sadly. \u201cAt Ananda, he was a man, with real responsibility for the work. At SRF, he is just a boy, having religion spoon fed to him on Sunday. Master\u2019s work needs <\/em>Ananda.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swamiji had the inspiration to make a slideshow of Autobiography of a Yogi<\/em>. From his time in India, he had photographs of many of the places mentioned in the book, including Master\u2019s home and some of his relatives. What was missing were pictures of the SRF sites. All these years he had complied with Tara Mata\u2019s edict, forbidding him to set foot on SRF property. Whatever personal desire he may have had to return to the places where he had lived with Master, he willingly sacrificed for the possibility of reconciliation. The slide show, however, was not personal; it was a way to serve his Guru.<\/p>\n

Very early one morning, so no one else would be around, the whole tour group went to Master\u2019s desert retreat at Twentynine Palms. Swamiji took photographs, then they parked the motorhome with the house visible out the window, meditated together, and had breakfast.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaster\u2019s presence is so strong,\u201d Swamiji said. \u201cHe is right here. I expect him to step out the door and speak to me. It makes me so homesick.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

In Encinitas, when the group went to the SRF temple for Sunday service, Swamiji walked alone on the retreat grounds. He was recognized, but no one interfered with his visit. He walked the grounds also at the San Diego Church and Lake Shrine. When they got to Mount Washington, though, the others went through the gate, but Swamiji said, \u201cI couldn\u2019t, not after what they have done to Master\u2019s work.\u201d Standing on a nearby hill he used a telephoto lens to get the pictures he needed for the slideshow.<\/p>\n

In December, when Swamiji returned to Ananda after the second Joy Tour, he had traveled a total of twenty-five thousand miles in the motorhome, spoken to almost ten thousand people in eighty cities, and given more than two hundred lectures on the same subject, The Practice of Joy.<\/em><\/p>\n

Maitri Jones went on both tours. \u201cWhen it was time for Swamiji to speak, I always picked up a pen and opened my notebook to write down any ideas I\u2019d never heard before. Every <\/em>lecture, I would have several pages of notes. Even when he was explaining something I\u2019d heard before, he always had an interesting new way of saying it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swamiji said, \u201cI never say to myself after a lecture, \u2018That part went well, I\u2019ll use it again.\u2019 Instead, I mentally wipe the slate clean, so I can approach the next talk as if I\u2019ve never spoken on the subject before. And I haven\u2019t\u2014because I\u2019ve never talked in that moment to those people. Before every lecture I pray to Master, \u2018Use me as your instrument to share what you want this audience to hear.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The more he talked on the subject of joy, the more convinced Swamiji became of its central importance. \u201cBut it doesn\u2019t attract people, because they don\u2019t understand what it means. They think of joy in a worldly way. First we have to get them meditating; then they\u2019ll have some inkling of what we are talking about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swamiji had tried to build the tour around Ananda as a whole. With the Gandharvas<\/em> and the slideshow of the community, sometimes he didn\u2019t even speak until after the intermission. \u201cPeople didn\u2019t like that,\u201d Swamiji said. \u201cThey enjoyed meeting the others, but they came to see me. I find it repugnant to focus a tour around my name. But I have to accept that Kriyananda is the draw. Even if we do go in that direction, though, it won\u2019t become a personality cult. People may come for the teacher<\/em>, but they will also get a teaching.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

When he got home, Swamiji said wryly, \u201cI\u2019m tired<\/em>, but most of all I\u2019m tired of<\/em>\u2026.\u201d Meaning so much outward energy, so many responsibilities. His heart was skipping beats, which fortunately was corrected with potassium supplements.<\/p>\n

Soon after Ananda started, Swamiji began to develop arthritis in both hips, which had now progressed to the point where it affected his gait. He didn\u2019t like to take anything that dulled his awareness, so never considered pain medication. But if someone was skilled in massage, he accepted that as a treatment, especially at the end of a long day. It relieved some of the pain and made it easier to meditate and sleep.<\/p>\n

Tapasya <\/em>means austerity. <\/em>From the outside, it can look like suffering, but a better understanding is \u201cdisciplined self-offering for the sake of a higher goal.\u201d Tapasya <\/em>builds inner strength. Swamiji defines it as \u201cpatient, steadfast refusal to alter one\u2019s course in the face of a challenge,\u201d whatever form that challenge takes\u2014physical pain, financial stress, natural disaster, persecution, betrayal. Nothing great in this world is ever accomplished without tapasya.<\/em><\/p>\n

A well-known teacher from India came to visit Ananda. After touring the community he said to Swamiji, \u201cSomeone <\/em>did a great deal of tapasya <\/em>to make this community happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Swamiji said, \u201cme.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Swamiji stayed in seclusion until December 23, when he led the all-day meditation. Over two hundred people crowded into the Retreat temple. It was so still and deep, we didn\u2019t even take a break until late in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

The leader of the\u00a0 rock and roll band, who had bought Swamiji the motorhome, came with some of his band members to spend Christmas at Ananda. Their album was number one in the world; they regularly performed before thousands of fans. It was touching to see them in our Common Dome on Christmas Eve, humbly gathered around Swamiji singing Christmas carols. \u201cSuffer little children to come unto me, for of such is the Kingdom of God.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the party, we all went to the Farm where a live creche, complete with animals, had been set up in the barn. Earlier in December, we sent to our mailing list the community family photo with a message from Swamiji. Standing next to him, silently gazing at Joseph, Mary, and the baby Jesus, I remembered his words.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet your prayer be, \u2018How can I give myself to You more completely? I don\u2019t want anything but the blessing of loving You.\u2019 Think not of what you may get, but only of the great privilege of giving to God. Surrender yourself to God. That is the path true joy.\u201d<\/p>\n

A few hours later, on Christmas morning, the monks and nuns went early to Swamiji\u2019s house for breakfast. He had put his mind again to Meaning in the Arts, <\/em>publishing a revised version as a small book. To each of us he gave a personally inscribed copy.<\/p>\n

Then it was back to the Retreat temple to listen to a recording of The Messiah<\/em>. Seeing Swamiji, eyes closed, blissfully absorbed in the music, surrounded by so many angelic faces, I was moved to tears.<\/p>\n

After the banquet, Swamiji talked, as he did every year, about the State of the Union (with God).<\/em> \u201cIf being part of Ananda cuts us off from the world, what good is it doing? It becomes an obstacle<\/em> instead of a blessing. The family we have here are like windows through which we look at the whole world, and recognize all of humanity as our own.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat joy it is for me to see a community of people who feel that God is loving God, God is giving to God, God is receiving from God. This is the true spirit of Christmas that Master brought to the world.\u201d He paused, too moved to speak. Finally, in a whisper he said, \u201cThank you all for your love and your friendship. You know you have mine.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Joy Tour went from Los Angeles to New York City and back again\u2014four months, fifty cities. Swamiji gave a seminar, The Practice of Joy. The Gandharvas sang. If there was a piano, Swamiji played the sonata. They showed slides of Ananda and answered questions about the community. I arranged the tour, but didn\u2019t travel … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-214","page","type-page","status-publish"],"yoast_head":"\n1978: The Joy Tours - Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A 51-year disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda describes a year of high-energy expansion at Ananda.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/1978-the-joy-tours\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"1978: The Joy Tours - Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A 51-year disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda describes a year of high-energy expansion at Ananda.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/1978-the-joy-tours\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/gandharvas-temple-leaves-ram-Dscn1235fix-1024x618.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"16 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/1978-the-joy-tours\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/1978-the-joy-tours\\\/\",\"name\":\"1978: The Joy Tours - Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/1978-the-joy-tours\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/1978-the-joy-tours\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/gandharvas-temple-leaves-ram-Dscn1235fix-1024x618.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-28T18:13:43+00:00\",\"description\":\"A 51-year disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda describes a year of high-energy expansion at Ananda.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/1978-the-joy-tours\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/1978-the-joy-tours\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/1978-the-joy-tours\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/gandharvas-temple-leaves-ram-Dscn1235fix.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\\\/story\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/gandharvas-temple-leaves-ram-Dscn1235fix.jpg\",\"width\":1300,\"height\":785,\"caption\":\"The Gandharvas sing in the Temple of Leaves at the Ananda Seclusion Retreat. 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