{"id":224,"date":"2021-08-08T17:51:53","date_gmt":"2021-08-08T17:51:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/?page_id=224"},"modified":"2021-08-08T17:51:53","modified_gmt":"2021-08-08T17:51:53","slug":"1980-world-predictions-and-yoganandas-work","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/1980-world-predictions-and-yoganandas-work\/","title":{"rendered":"1980: World Predictions and Yogananda’s Work"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
The Expanding Light \u2014 built by the members of Ananda Village. Shown here awaiting roofing.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once again we celebrated Master\u2019s birthday in San Francisco,<\/strong> returning to the Palace of Fine Arts Theater for a gala evening event. Ananda House easily absorbed the dozens of people who came from the Village to help. An audience of five hundred people sat in rapt silence for more than two hours listening to Swamiji talk about his life with Master, and the Guru\u2019s message for our times, which included a sober warning:<\/p>\n

\u201cHistory shows us that whenever life is ready to produce a new birth of consciousness, things first get really bad, until it looks like there is no hope. We are living in that kind of time. Always, though, the divine element comes in and shows us solutions we literally could not imagine before.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhenever there is an impulse toward the Light, there is also a wave of resistance to that Light. What we see now is a rising surge of energy, seeking to embrace a greater reality, coming into conflict with a powerful force clinging to old forms. Some people, feeling these conflicting waves of energy, are trying to gain control through their egos. Instead of cooperating with a greater reality, they are separating themselves from it, grappling for power in materialistic ways: fanaticism, drugs, sensuality, violence.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaster spoke of a coming \u2018terrible cataclysm,\u2019 of financial disasters, war, and other disruptions. But there is no divine will saying it has<\/em> to happen that way. Mankind generated that karma; if mankind changes its consciousness, then the karma can change, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I don\u2019t think that is going to happen. We have come too far down the path of egotism, materialism, and selfishness not to reap at least some of the consequences. Master said that the world as we know it will be radically changed. But what comes after, he said, will be much better.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the meantime, what should we do? Passively surrender to our fate? Or is there some positive way to influence the outcome? God brought the universe into existence out of His own consciousness. All of creation is one ocean of Spirit expressing as many little waves. We are manifestations of the Infinite; there is no other reality. When we shrink our awareness down to the little ego, we suffer. When we expand our awareness to embrace a greater reality, we find fulfillment. It is as simple as that.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe solution, then, is to live in the thought that God is with you<\/em>. That He can and will take care of you if you attune yourself to Him. You will be protected, and you can draw that protection down to those whose lives you touch. The greatest boon you can give to your fellow beings is to live in tune with the Divine Light. The more people who live in this way, the more the darkness will be mitigated.<\/p>\n

\u201cLive in the Light. Live in Love. Live in the compassion of God. He loves you and wants to take care of you. Meditate. Sing His name. Serve your fellow man, and serve God in your fellow man.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the changes needed to usher in a new age can only come through suffering\u2014so be it. But it doesn\u2019t have to come that way. We don\u2019t need to suffer if we have learned the lessons suffering has come to teach.<\/em> Live in the Light and you will live in joy. God bless you.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Developing Ocean Song was proving problematic. Even though the couple had invited us there to build a community, Swamiji knew it wouldn\u2019t be easy for them to break their attachment to the land and to their way of doing things. That\u2019s why he urged them to move to the Village, at least for a time. But instead of moving, they stayed on to supervise what we were doing. And they didn\u2019t always approve.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has to be an Ananda <\/em>community,\u201d Swamiji said. \u201cOtherwise we aren\u2019t interested. But it wouldn\u2019t be right to try to persuade<\/em> them to give the land to us. It has to come happily, of their own free will, or I won\u2019t take it.\u201d Despite the difficulties, the Ananda people living at Ocean Song loved it there, and were thrilled by the possibilities. They asked for more time to see if it could work out.<\/p>\n

Swamiji\u2019s parents now lived in Menlo Park, thirty miles south of San Francisco. East West Bookshop, <\/em>one of the best metaphysical bookstores in the country, was right around the corner from their home. Whenever Swamiji visited, he would drop into the store to chat with the owner and to see how his books were selling.<\/p>\n

When he came by in January, the owner said to him, \u201cI\u2019m getting old and having trouble with my eyesight. I can\u2019t keep running this store. But it is like my child; I don\u2019t want to give it to just anyone. Would you buy it?\u201d<\/p>\n

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East West Bookshop in Menlo Park, CA, at the time when Ananda acquired it. East West has since moved to Mountain View, CA. (Click photos to enlarge.)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Silently, Swamiji prayed, \u201cLord, what should we do?\u201d We had no money, and no personnel to run it. \u201cYes,\u201d he said. In the next few weeks, money came from an unexpected source, and several people from Ananda House and the Village agreed to move to Menlo Park to work at East West. At first, the employees lived in rooms above the store. Then they rented a large house where they could live together and also hold classes and Sunday services.<\/p>\n

Swamiji planned to spend February at the Village, renewing his body with rest and his spirit with seclusion. But he had been away so long, many things in the community needed his attention. And some people had been waiting for months to see him. When he was finally free to start his seclusion, a telegram came from Italy.<\/p>\n

A castle was for sale at a very good price. It could be ideal for a community but the devotees didn\u2019t feel they could make such a big decision without Swamiji\u2019s input. On February\u00a020, he left for two weeks in Europe. About one hundred people gathered at the castle and raised $100,000 toward its purchase. When the owner saw American dollars, he kept doubling the price! In the end, Swamiji felt it wasn\u2019t for us. But the Italian devotees were so sincere, Swamiji decided to send two people from the Village to live in Rome.<\/p>\n

In the middle of March, Swamiji was finally able to go into seclusion. He stayed six weeks, not even coming out for Easter\u2014although for the early morning meditation, he slipped into the temple, sat in the last row, then silently returned home.<\/p>\n

Making money and getting along with others are often challenging areas for people. Those topics weren\u2019t specifically addressed in Superconscious Living<\/em>, but they matched the intention of the course: using the teachings in everyday life. Swamiji now wrote two small books, The Art of Creative Leadership <\/em>(later retitled The Art of Supportive Leadership<\/em>) and How to Use Money for Your Own Highest Good<\/em> (later retitled Money Magnetism<\/em>).<\/p>\n

To expand the repertoire for the Gandharvas, <\/em>he wrote arrangements for nineteen more of his songs.<\/p>\n

In Europe, Swamiji had spoken with several publishers, and was disappointed to find that few were willing to take on The Path\u2014<\/em>among other reasons, because it was so long: a big job to translate and expensive to print. During his seclusion, he created a condensed version, The Shortened Path. <\/em>When he finished, he walked the quarter mile uphill to my trailer and silently handed me the manuscript. I knew he had been working on it, so no explanation was needed. He patted me on the head, as he often did, the way a father pats his child, and then walked back down the hill.<\/p>\n

Having typed the full book repeatedly, I knew it well. I steadfastly put that out of my mind so I could read The Shortened Path<\/em> on its own terms. I hadn\u2019t favored the project, but to my surprise, I liked it, and wrote Swamiji accordingly. The return note from him was both pleased and dismayed. \u201cSuch a wealth of material was omitted, I was half expecting you to scream in protest, \u2018Oh, no, you can\u2019t leave out that, or that<\/em>, or THAT<\/em>!\u2019 It is rather humbling to find that none of it is missed!\u201d<\/p>\n

We published The Shortened Path <\/em>in the United States. It didn\u2019t sell well, and no foreign publisher was ever interested, so we soon dropped it in favor of the full book.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Just after his birthday, Swamiji left for a month-long tour of Australia. He visited Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Cairns, giving retreats, lectures, and seminars. In the progression of Ananda around the world, Australia came between Europe and India. But Swamiji never imposed his ideas on a situation; rather, he would ask \u201cWhat is trying to happen?\u201d<\/p>\n

Although some people in Australia were eager for Ananda to start a community, Swamiji felt there wasn\u2019t enough receptivity in the country as a whole for it to succeed. When he returned to the Village in June, he wrote an open letter to Friends in Australia.<\/em><\/p>\n

First he spoke of the coming hard times. \u201cAustralia is young enough, and her population small enough, to adjust relatively easily to the changes sweeping over the world. The purification process will be less painful for those countries, and those individuals, who cooperate with the new vibrations rather than cling doggedly to the old.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then he took up the subject of Australia\u2019s spiritual future. \u201cI was happy to see growth in the general spiritual awareness of Australians. I am particularly pleased by the tendency there to take personal responsibility for one\u2019s own life. Years ago a student in one of my yoga classes asked, \u2018Which is the most important yoga posture to practice?\u2019 \u2018That one,\u2019 I replied, \u2018which has you standing squarely on your own two feet!\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAustralians, I am happy to see, understand this. I would be even happier if I found more understanding of discipleship, which demands not a spirit of weak submissiveness, but of openness<\/em>, of concentrated receptivity, and a focus on inner<\/em> unfoldment.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if one must err between too much egoic independence and weak-willed submission, I prefer the former. For until one determines to make truth his own<\/em>, it will forever elude him.<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps in future we shall be able to send a group of Ananda members to Australia to found a branch there. Meanwhile, God\u2019s joy to you, dear friends. Thank you for your hospitality. May you prosper in your spiritual life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swamiji spent the rest of the summer teaching at the Retreat. On the weekends, he gave Saturday morning classes, invited the guests to his house for afternoon tea, and led the Sunday service. He also gave seminars on Superconscious Living, <\/em>held Kriya Initiations once a month, and during the week, taught classes for the month-long training programs. There were special events: a Fun Faire <\/em>in town, an International Faire <\/em>in the community, Spiritual Renewal Week in August. The same energy Swamiji had put into the Joy Tours, he now put into teaching at Ananda.<\/p>\n

Since the second groundbreaking, work had progressed on the World Brotherhood Retreat. <\/em>We held many small fundraisers, and gradually inched forward. In August, we started holding Sunday service there. We met in the dining room, which was just a shell; the large classroom we planned to use as a temple wasn\u2019t even that far along. We always had lunch afterward, but the new kitchen, too, was just a shell. So we cooked at the old Retreat and brought the food down in the back of a pick-up truck, covered with a thick blanket to protect it from the dust.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

In Los Angeles, Swamiji had met the well-known mystery writer, John Ball. His wife was interested in Ananda and invited Swamiji to their home. Somehow John became convinced that he was the one who could bring SRF and Ananda together.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the Hollywood scene with which John is associated,\u201d Swamiji said, \u201cmuch is promised that is never delivered. Still, he is a friend, and I don\u2019t weigh our friendship on a scale of favors given and favors received.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even the remote possibility of a closer alliance with SRF caused Swamiji to consider the terms on which Ananda could participate with integrity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe word that\u2019s come back to me, probably reliable, is that SRF would insist on a price should I be readmitted to the fold,\u201d Swamiji said. \u201cThat price would include such absurdities as our sending all our publications to Mount Washington for editing; that I no longer give Kriya, and everyone who has ever gotten it from me be initiated officially by SRF; my giving up the title Swami and being called either \u2018Brother\u2019\u2014which is the SRF equivalent\u2014or more likely just \u2018Kriyananda.\u2019 All these possibilities rather dampen my interest in working with them until they decide to work with <\/em>us, rather than over <\/em>us.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The Expanding Light foundation forms.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Whatever the likelihood of success, Swamiji felt that if John was even going to try, he should have the full picture of why the separation occurred in the first place. And so should the people of Ananda; we were all equally involved. The result was a twenty-five-page document called My Separation from Self-Realization Fellowship.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPeople have often asked me the reason for my separation,\u201d Swamiji wrote. \u201cIn reply I have been moved by two considerations: first, the fact that the issue remains, even after so many years, controversial, and in fairness ought not to be presented only from my side; and second that, being controversial, it presents my Guru\u2019s work misleadingly\u2014in other words, in a political context, rather than in its true, spiritual light. Besides, even if both sides were heard, once you have two hands clapping all you get is noise anyway. Ideally, then, the way to handle this subject would be to remain silent about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s how Swamiji dealt with it in the The Path. <\/em>\u201cBecause the separation caused pain not only to me, but also to others, I prefer not to dwell on the attending circumstances\u2026. I know now Master wanted me out of the work\u2026. There were things he had for me to do that I could not have done had I not been on my own.\u201d<\/p>\n

But now, four years later, Swamiji wrote, \u201cI have learned that in this matter, as in the science laboratory, \u2018Nature abhors a vacuum.\u2019 For lack of a satisfactory explanation, people have invented explanations of their own. And the rumors they\u2019ve spread have done more harm than the true story ever could. Moreover, there are times when I\u2019ve had to tell this story, though when doing so I\u2019ve always tried to present it fairly. And I\u2019ve found that, far from turning people against Master or SRF, the explanation has removed what had long been a hurt in their hearts, and has actually strengthened them in their loyalty.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow it seems to me that the time has come to put this account into writing\u2014not for the general public, but primarily for the sake of Ananda members, potential members, and friends. These people have, after all, a certain right to know what happened between me and SRF in the early 1960s, and why\u2014particularly since those events led to the founding of Ananda.\u201d<\/p>\n

He tells the story in terms of the tension between a creative individual and the organization he serves. \u201cAll my life, I have schooled myself to draw a step back from every new situation, in order to understand it for myself, and in itself, <\/em>without reference to what others thought, or to how similar situations may have been handled by others. I have always included in my perception the testimony of others\u2019 experience, in case that experience was greater than mine, but I have had to reach the point where I could honestly say, \u2018Yes, I understand.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing that type of person myself, I appreciate eccentricity in others, and attract people of that type.\u201d When he finds creative, energetic people who are yet unable, or unwilling, to conform, \u201cI do everything possible to foster their talents, encouraging them to work on special projects, where creativity, rather than teamwork, is needed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking from SRF\u2019s point of view, \u201cI can sympathize with the dilemma of one who isn\u2019t constituted as I am, and who sees the eccentric subordinate as more of a trial than a blessing. It would be natural for one in charge of such a subordinate to explain his eccentricity away as mere \u2018stubbornness and egotism.\u2019 Which sometimes it is. (One way I differentiate between creativity and ego is to see whether the person is presenting positive solutions of his own, or is merely trying to block others from effective work.)\u201d<\/p>\n

The protagonists in the story of his separation were himself and another SRF Director named Tara Mata. \u201cTara was much senior to me in the work\u2014senior, in fact, to everyone at Mount Washington\u2014and a woman of strong personality. I loved and admired Tara. But I always knew we would clash someday. We stood for completely different, and incompatible, views of the work: I for reaching out to people, and she for protecting the work from their diluting influence.\u201d<\/p>\n

He described his efforts in India in 1961 to obtain for SRF a piece of property in the heart of New Delhi on which to build a temple and an ashram. Because of the unique political situation of India at that time, he was told he needed personal permission from Prime Minister Nehru to get the land he wanted. \u201cIt was like one of those impossible tasks appointed to the hapless prince in a fairy tale.\u201d But the miracle happened, and permission was granted. \u201cAll my thoughts were directed at the Indian government. It never occurred to me that our own directors would negate the idea.\u201d<\/p>\n

Led by Tara Mata, the directors vehemently rejected the project and imputed to Swamiji the worst of all possible motives. Daya Mata knew what Swamiji was doing and had given her approval, but now she made it seem as if he had acted entirely on his own. \u201cDaya has a great weakness as a leader. In private, she will support you. But if others disagree, she won\u2019t stand by you, but will instead try to placate them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The directors became convinced \u201cthat there was no way to \u2018manage\u2019 me. The blame for the entire \u2018problem of Kriyananda\u2019 was placed on Kriyananda. Once it was accepted that it was my<\/em> fault for being \u2018unmanageable,\u2019 it naturally followed that I must always<\/em> have been motivated by a whole series of personality traits quite different from the dedication that at first seemed to explain all my creative energy\u2014\u2018duplicity, megalomania, insincerity, unscrupulousness, treachery,\u2019 and many more such denunciations, all delivered with absolute conviction by Tara.\u201d<\/p>\n

In July 1962, he was summoned to New York City for a private meeting with Daya and Tara where he was dismissed without the opportunity to answer the charges, or to do penance.<\/p>\n

The members were never told that he was dismissed<\/em>. Mostly SRF refused to comment, but when they did, they said he had resigned<\/em>. Swamiji did sign a letter of resignation from the Board of Directors, to confirm his willingness to serve in any capacity, no matter how humble. But he did not, and never would have, resigned from SRF itself.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany are the rumors that I\u2019ve heard purporting to give the true story of my leaving. Some say I was kicked out for embezzling money. Others say I was having affairs with Indian women. Still others say I tried to get Daya Mata to let me create a cooperative community, and when she wouldn\u2019t agree I left SRF in a huff. No one, so far as I know, except a few directors, knows the true story, and even they know it primarily through Tara\u2019s eyes; they certainly don\u2019t know my side.\u201d<\/p>\n

Master had predicted that Tara would live a long life. But in 1968 \u2014 the same year Swamiji started Ananda \u2014 she had a massive stroke, which left her greatly debilitated. Four years later she died. \u201cIt is my belief,\u201d Swamiji said, \u201cthat she paid with her life for the way she treated me \u2014 not, indeed, in payment for my<\/em> pain, but for the disharmony she created in herself <\/em>by the way she treated me. After her stroke, she herself made the statement, that she knew it had happened \u2018to teach me compassion.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat made this test so difficult for me was not only the fact that SRF was my entire life, but that the people who had thrown me out, and who had nothing whatever good left to say about me, were those in the world to whom I most looked up.<\/p>\n

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Ananda Village volunteers help build The Expanding Light.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe devotee learns to accept whatever comes to him as coming from God. I accept the trauma of my dismissal in this light. I am even grateful that He considered me worthy to receive so great a test. And I am perfectly willing to serve Him again with<\/em> SRF, should that be His wish. In my heart, indeed, I have never left SRF. Rather, I decided long ago that it takes two to make a divorce, and that I simply would not accept my side of this split, but would go on as if it had never happened.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have never allowed the way people treat me to intrude on my opinion of them. I hold all the directors in the highest regard. I am perfectly convinced they acted for what they conceived as the best.\u201d<\/p>\n

My Separation from Self-Realization Fellowship<\/em> was not published even as a pamphlet until years later. But a manuscript version was made available for Ananda members to read. If visitors expressed interest, they were shown a copy. If we received a serious inquiry, a copy might be mailed, but mostly it wasn\u2019t distributed, even within the community. It was kept at Pubble and you had to come there to read it. It was for the benefit of Ananda, not yet to be shared with the world.<\/p>\n

John tried to arrange for Daya Mata to visit Ananda. When that proved impossible, he tried to bring the Gandharvas<\/em> to Mount Washington to sing for her. When that didn\u2019t work\u2014SRF has a rule against singers performing there\u2014he tried to set up a meeting at his home in Los Angeles, which never had a chance.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

An anomaly at the Farm was a forty-acre parcel that extended into the middle of our community but was owned by someone else. Finally it came on the market and we managed to buy it. But when we tried to add it to our master plan, our neighbors vehemently objected. We were used to their opposition; it began right after Swamiji bought the Retreat and had never abated.<\/p>\n

Although we had some values in common, we differed from our neighbors in our fundamental attitude toward the land. We felt it was there to be used respectfully, in harmony with Nature, to serve human<\/em> values. Many of our neighbors felt that the highest value was the land itself; man was, by definition, an intruder. One of our neighbors calculated appropriate maximum usage by how much dead-fall an acre of forest produced compared to how much wood was required to heat one household\u2014population limits far below what we felt was appropriate.<\/p>\n

What we did on our land had virtually no impact on our neighbors. So it wasn\u2019t what we were actually doing, or even what we proposed to do, that upset them; it was what they feared we might do<\/em> without their constant vigilance to prevent it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Many of our neighbors were anti-authority on principle. In that rural area, there was no authority to oppose\u2014except \u201cAnanda and its \u2018resident dictator,\u2019 Kriyananda.\u201d Few had even met Swamiji. They just assumed that being a strong leader meant he was an abusive leader. Any effort to explain was taken as further proof that we\u2019d been brainwashed!<\/p>\n

Another complicating factor was that Nevada County was a premier area for growing marijuana\u2014completely illegal at that time. The San Juan Ridge where we lived was the center of the industry. Walk a mile down the road from Swamiji\u2019s house and you\u2019d come to a closed gate with a sign, No Trespassing Without an Invite or a Warrant.<\/em> Most of our neighbors wanted to drop out from society. We invited the whole world to come and visit. They feared Ananda\u2019s high profile would eventually cause them trouble.<\/p>\n

We tried for years to work with our neighbors, but there was no end to their negativity. To them, their fears were facts and they behaved accordingly.<\/p>\n

Worst of all, many ex-Ananda members, who still lived in the area, were now part of SRF and felt it was their holy duty to oppose Swami Kriyananda as the enemy of Master\u2019s work.<\/p>\n

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Young Luke Rodgers helps build The Expanding Light.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the loudest voices against us was Jim, the one who had tried to take over the Farm. He lived in Nevada City, worked as a Realtor, and was the leader of the local SRF group. Jim was also the seller\u2019s agent on the forty-acre parcel and worked hard to make sure Ananda could buy it. Now he warned against \u201cKriyananda\u2019s megalomania, trying to take over the San Juan Ridge!\u201d<\/p>\n

Because we lived in an unincorporated area, land use was governed by the county Board of Supervisors. By law, public opposition had to be taken into account in any decision they made. It might not be the deciding factor, but at the very least, strong opposition could trigger a plethora of expensive studies and limiting conditions. A municipality<\/em>, however, could control its own land use. An attorney, Dallas Atkins, had recently joined the community. Swamiji asked her to look into the possibility of Ananda becoming a California city.<\/p>\n

After careful research, Dallas concluded that even though Ananda Village didn\u2019t look<\/em> like a city, under California law we qualified. After much discussion, and many community meetings, we decided to go ahead. Swamiji asked Dallas to set the wheels in motion.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

In Kali Yuga,<\/em> the Age of Matter, to live a dedicated spiritual life you had to separate yourself from the world, in a cloistered monastery, desert hermitage, or isolated cave. In Dwapara Yuga, <\/em>the Age of Energy, it is easier to be in the world, but not of it. The lifestyle of the future, Master said, would be small, spiritual communities where not only monks and nuns, but also householders, could dedicate their lives to God. He called them World Brotherhood Colonies<\/em>.<\/p>\n

In the first edition of Autobiography of a Yogi<\/em>, Master says, \u201cA project I have long considered is beginning to take definite form. In these beautiful surroundings [Encinitas] I have started a miniature world colony. Brotherhood is an ideal better understood by example than precept! A small harmonious group here may inspire other ideal communities over the earth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the colony did not flourish. \u201cEncinitas is gone!\u201d Master lamented at the end of his life. The monastery was still there, but the colony had failed. \u201cIt was too soon after the depression,\u201d Swamiji said. \u201cMost householders couldn\u2019t think beyond \u2018us four and no more,\u2019 as Master put it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ananda was the first world brotherhood colony to succeed. But the development of the householder side lagged behind that of the monastery. One-third of the community was monastic: sixty monks and nuns. They set an essential example of selfless dedication to God. Their freedom to serve was the foundation of Ananda\u2019s success. But their very zeal undermined the confidence of the householders, who had responsibilities for marriage and family life, and couldn\u2019t serve in the same way. Many householders began to feel less worthy in the eyes of God.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople were embarrassed to be married, and ashamed to have children,\u201d Swamiji said. He was deeply concerned. \u201cIt is not enough for Ananda to succeed as a monastery. To fulfill Master\u2019s ideal, it must also succeed as a spiritual village, where householders live happily and harmoniously together, their lives guided by spiritual principles.\u201d In an effort to give more dignity to the householder life, and a deeper understanding of its divine potential, Swamiji began writing a book, Spiritualizing Your Marriage<\/em>.<\/p>\n

In a community meeting he said, \u201cThere are two basic aspects to the community. One is to reach out to people everywhere; the other is to nurture the community as a family. For the last few years, I\u2019ve been working on the outreach.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was never my intention, though, to build an empire. My purpose was to insure that Ananda would be broad enough to provide an open channel of service for everyone. I think we\u2019ve done that. Now let\u2019s make what we have vibrant with God\u2019s presence.\u201d<\/p>\n

When some people thought this meant lowering our goals for Ananda, Swamiji issued a corrective. \u201cIt is not how much <\/em>we work, but how<\/em> we work that I would like to see changed. More devotion, more surrender to God, more joy in the doing, more detachment from the fruits.\u201d<\/p>\n

In September, Swamiji did seminars on Superconscious Living <\/em>in Sacramento and San Francisco. In November, he went to Europe for three weeks of classes and lectures. By the time he returned to Ananda Village, his blood pressure was dangerously high.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou must<\/em> rest!\u201d the doctor told him. \u201cNot seclusion\u2014rest. <\/em>A cruise would be ideal.\u201d Swamiji agreed. He would have to go alone\u2014if friends were there they would just talk about Ananda. And without his typewriter\u2014if he had it, he would work. \u201cIt will be so boring,\u201d he said, \u201cI\u2019ll have no choice but to rest!\u201d Generous friends made the trip possible.<\/p>\n

It was boring, and he did rest, which brought his blood pressure down, but not enough. He spent December in seclusion, and when he emerged on New Year\u2019s Day, declared that he was on sabbatical with no plans for the coming year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Once again we celebrated Master\u2019s birthday in San Francisco, returning to the Palace of Fine Arts Theater for a gala evening event. Ananda House easily absorbed the dozens of people who came from the Village to help. An audience of five hundred people sat in rapt silence for more than two hours listening to Swamiji … 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-224","page","type-page","status-publish"],"yoast_head":"\n1980: World Predictions and Yogananda’s Work - Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A 51-year disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda records the growth of Ananda and insights on Ananda and SRF.\" \/>\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\/1980-world-predictions-and-yoganandas-work\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"1980: World Predictions and Yogananda’s Work - 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