{"id":1066,"date":"2023-04-11T20:37:43","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T20:37:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/?p=1066"},"modified":"2023-04-11T20:37:43","modified_gmt":"2023-04-11T20:37:43","slug":"conversations-with-ananda-ch-25-devamuni-hall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/conversations-with-ananda-ch-25-devamuni-hall\/","title":{"rendered":"Conversations With Ananda — Ch. 25, Devamuni Hall"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Devamuni lays electrical conduit for the Temple of Light at Ananda Village.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Devamuni runs an electrical contracting business at Ananda Village.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Q:<\/strong> Can you tell us how you got into business?<\/p>\n

Devamuni:<\/strong> When my father died, I left college and took over the family\u2019s hardware store in San Francisco. My brother had little desire to keep the store going, so I took it over and began remodeling it. It was a big store in the city, and it was fairly popular and had done well for a long time, but it had declined. It was about that time that I also discovered yoga and started visiting Ananda Village. I ended up spending a month at Ananda, and then I took a two\u2011month yoga teacher training course. So I\u2019d only been at the hardware store a few months when I left it in someone else\u2019s hands.<\/p>\n

We\u2019d just begun to pull the store out of a hole, and when I got back from Ananda it had gone completely dead. The guy who took over had done his best to fill my spot, but it hadn\u2019t gone well. And when I returned I had the gall to get everybody together at the end of the day to sit in the office together and visualize the store being surrounded by white light, and see lots of people coming in.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t know what God\u2019s will was for the business, but I thought, \u201cThis place needs prosperity, and we\u2019re going to visualize it surrounded by energy. We\u2019re going to visualize the store being prosperous.\u201d And it was amazing \u2013 we all sat in the back room, and I mean one of the employees was a Jehovah\u2019s Witness. I can\u2019t believe I had the gumption, or whatever it was, to make that happen, but we got everybody doing it together, and right away we had our best day and our best week ever \u2013 the best in the history of the store.<\/p>\n

We had our best day, best week, and best month, and we began hiring people. It was incredible how well we were doing with these visualization techniques. But then I got to thinking that perhaps I was pushing God with my prayers to make it happen, and that maybe you shouldn\u2019t do that. Maybe I should be asking for God\u2019s will to be done instead. So I started praying, \u201cYour will be done \u2013 whatever You want to have happen with this business, I want that to happen, too.\u201d And we had our worst day, our worst week, and our worst month ever. We eventually ended up selling the store. It had gone up, then down again as soon as the prayer changed, but it turned out to be the right thing \u2013 it was right for me, and it was right for my mom who needed to get out of the business.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/strong> Did it free you to do something else?<\/p>\n

Devamuni:<\/strong> I was still in the \u201choneymoon stage\u201d of the spiritual life. I was twenty-four when this happened, and I had moved into a big Ananda group house in the Pacific Heights section of San Francisco with a bunch of other people. I was meditating a lot and trying to spiritualize my life, but I began to realize that my life was getting sluggish and my energy was decreasing because I didn\u2019t have a direction. I had always dreamed of having time to do anything I wanted, but all of the freedom I now had wasn\u2019t doing much for me, and I thought that maybe it was time to go back into business.<\/p>\n

I liked the hardware business. It was fun, because it\u2019s basically about helping people, so I thought I would try it again. It turned out that there was a hardware store just nine blocks away that needed someone with my experience. I didn\u2019t want to run the place, because I still wanted to have lots of time for meditation and yoga, so I started working my ideal hours, ten to two. But then two things happened. The first was that I was feeling sluggish again because I wasn\u2019t using my time wisely. I would get up early and put out lots of energy, but there was a certain magnetism that was missing.<\/p>\n

The other thing was that the store had a new owner, and he didn\u2019t understand the business. He was from Ethiopia, and he was trying to draw lots of money out of the business to send back to his family.<\/p>\n

The store was in a beautiful area of San Francisco, an up-energy area, and the owner wanted to remodel it. So I was able to fulfill a desire I\u2019d never been able to realize with our family\u2019s store, because my mother hadn\u2019t wanted to put any money into it. I was young and I had the energy and desire to create something special, so I got into the business full time. But I didn\u2019t want to get into the management side, because I wanted to be able to keep a very good spiritual life going.<\/p>\n

It turned out to be a very special time for me and the other people who worked in the store. Everyone appreciated my presence, and they gave me a huge going\u2011away party when I moved to Ananda\u00a0Village. They expressed their thanks to me for opening a door to what a person can do by living the spiritual life in business.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/strong> They recognized the value of your spiritual interests?<\/p>\n

Devamuni:<\/strong> Yes, they were very aware of it, because I had a closet in the store where I would meditate during the lunch hour. It was the romance period that beginners experience in the spiritual life, but nevertheless, the manager said that he\u2019d never seen anyone actually living their spirituality as I was.<\/p>\n

I loved construction \u2013 it was my thing, and I had wanted to be a custom home builder, but I\u2019d never been able to fulfill that desire. And when I moved to Ananda, I got a job right away doing construction. I loved that job, and I was very taken with carpentry. But then Muktan Knowles asked me to do some electrical wiring on a commercial project in Nevada City, and I really liked that, too. Electrical contracting seemed like a smart way to make a living, because you aren\u2019t beating yourself up as much but you\u2019re still working with your hands.<\/p>\n

Muktan was expansive \u2013 he would take on jobs that he didn\u2019t know how to do, and then he\u2019d hire people who knew how to do them. For a long time, Ananda Electric was one of the biggest electrical contractors in the area. We did a big shopping center and some waste water treatment plants, banks, and nearly all the new elementary schools.<\/p>\n

Anyway, we were doing these big jobs, and at some point we started doing solar electric installations. We did one for a lady who lived near Ananda, and we thought it was interesting and intellectually stimulating. So we began to think that maybe it would be a good field for us, because hardly anyone else was focusing on it.<\/p>\n

The more solar installations we did, the more we realized that the technology was in a very funky state, and that contractors were doing installations that didn\u2019t meet the national electrical codes or the UL requirements. And that\u2019s how Ananda Power Technologies was born \u2013 we started making boxes that incorporated all of the disconnects, fusing, and metering you need for a solar installation, and that met the national electrical code and UL standards.<\/p>\n

The company took off like wildfire. It employed many people, and it was eventually sold and moved to Grass Valley. Meanwhile, the electrical contracting business was slowing down. We kept it going in order to raise funds for the solar business, but I finally pulled out, because I could see that we were going into debt to start the solar business, with nothing to show for it and only more debt in sight.<\/p>\n

I had been haunted by the thought that I had never really asked God, \u201cIs this what You want me to do?\u201d I had gone into the electrical business because I was excited about it, and now I thought, \u201cAnanda Electric has a high reputation, but it has never been financially successful.\u201d So I was praying very hard, \u201cWhat is it that You want me to do, God? All I want is You! Just tell me what You want, and I\u2019ll do it. If You want me to do electrical work, I\u2019ll do more of that, even though it\u2019s been eight years and I came to Ananda to be a devotee, not an electrician. I didn\u2019t come here to be a career person. I came just for God.\u201d<\/p>\n

I had gotten myself caught in a career position, and it wasn\u2019t really what I wanted. I wanted to have my mind clear of the jumble that goes with owning and running a business, so I could direct it toward my spiritual pursuits, just keeping my mind on God as much as I could.<\/p>\n

I had been a foreman at Ananda Electric since day one, even though I hadn\u2019t done much electrical work, and there had been lots of trials and tests. But I was praying hard, and after a two\u2011 or three\u2011hour meditation I got the thought, \u201cBuy Ananda Electric.\u201d And I was amazed. I thought, \u201cYou\u2019re nuts! I\u2019m not buying Ananda Electric, and I\u2019m not taking on that huge responsibility! I just want to love You. I just want to do something where I don\u2019t have to think so much all the time. I\u2019m always thinking, and I\u2019m always planning and being responsible. I just want to think about You.\u201d<\/p>\n

But anyway, the thought kept coming, and I was thinking, \u201cOkay, God is going to have to make this really clear to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Devamuni and Satyana Hall, disciples of Paramhansa Yogananda.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Two years earlier I had installed power protection systems for some big local hardware and lumber companies, and on my last day at the Ananda Builders Guild I got a note that said, \u201cSomeone from X hardware store called you. Please call him about installing an emergency backup system.\u201d And I went, \u201cThis is pretty funny,\u201d and I tossed the note. But two or three weeks later, I prayed and got this thought to buy Ananda Electric, and I said, \u201cOkay, God, I\u2019m going to test it. I\u2019ll call this guy after three weeks and I\u2019ll say, \u2018I got your note but I don\u2019t have a company, and I don\u2019t belong to Ananda Electric. I don\u2019t have a license and I don\u2019t have insurance. I\u2019ve quit all that stuff. I\u2019m not working for anybody. Are you still interested?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

I thought, \u201cOkay God, if he says yes I\u2019ll take it as a sign that maybe I should consider doing this.\u201d So I called the man, and he said, \u201cYeah, come on down.\u201d So the first thing that\u2019s looking me in the eye is a big, major, multi\u2011thousand\u2011dollar electrical system which is a fun thing to do. So that was definitely a sign.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/strong> A bolt of electricity?<\/p>\n

Devamuni:<\/strong> Yeah, and it gets better. I talked with the Ananda Business Guild, and we worked out a deal. I wanted to buy just a little part of the business, but they offered me all the equipment at an extremely reduced price \u2013 tools, inventory, everything, and they didn\u2019t want to hassle with selling just part of the business. I had planned to do Ananda Electric on the side, so it would be nice and mellow. But that wasn\u2019t what God had in mind. He made me buy it all, and I ended up spending about $45,000. Also, I had to get a new truck, plus this, that, and everything. Anyway, I bought the business and the next morning I got six calls. Six calls, six jobs \u2013 after the business had received maybe one or two calls the whole month.<\/p>\n

I thought, \u201cWow! Yogananda really did want this to happen. I prayed hard this time to make sure it was what he wanted for my life, and he answered.\u201d And the business has been going like gangbusters ever since.<\/p>\n

I started with the big job for the hardware store, and since then I\u2019ve hardly been able to keep up. I don\u2019t even seek work anymore, because there\u2019s more than I can do. I went to Assisi on pilgrimage this winter, and I said, \u201cGod, please don\u2019t make all hell break loose while I\u2019m gone, so that when I come back there are five million emergencies to take care of and I can\u2019t keep this wonderful feeling of centeredness.\u201d And it was so sweet, because when I got back it was just very mellow, and I was able to kind of soft\u2011step back into it.<\/p>\n

This has been a special year for me spiritually. Lots of times God has pushed me to the limit, what with working weekends and late at night, but I\u2019ve felt good. I\u2019ve always wanted to be able to overcome and not be crushed by things like that. I wanted to be victorious. Not that I\u2019ve always been victorious, but I always wanted to make it happen.<\/p>\n

I think part of my spiritual growth has come through learning to accept and embrace what comes from God. Lots of times I don\u2019t want to do this business, because I\u2019d rather be thinking of God more. I\u2019ve always had this problem with balancing my desire for God and my business desires.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had lots of drive and zeal for being successful, but I remember going down to Los Angeles one year for a Yogananda convocation, and when I came back I only wanted to work six hours a day. Yogananda said six hours a day is a good amount of time to work, and I felt it would give me time to meditate and be with my family. But God just made it very difficult, and finally someone pulled me aside, and he\u2019s the most mellow, easy\u2011going guy in the world, and he said, \u201cYou\u2019ve got to stop doing this! This is killing us. We can\u2019t count on you when we need you, and it looks bad to the customers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Q:<\/strong> It sounds like maybe Master was making business a monastic life.<\/p>\n

Devamuni:<\/strong> Oh, yeah! And it\u2019s funny, too. I\u2019m really torn, because part of me wants to go deeper, but I think that until I matured spiritually I wasn\u2019t really able to keep the spiritual and business sides together. I was kind of pulling them apart, and I got lost there for awhile.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/strong> I\u2019ve talked with business people at Ananda who said that they reached a point where they could have big financial success, but that God had subtly pulled them back, and they felt it was because there were other issues that God was working on, and that He was defining success in a different way.<\/p>\n

Devamuni:<\/strong> At one point a couple of people got together here at Ananda and started holding gatherings for the business managers. And I was so into it, because so much of my life revolved around business, and I really wanted to spiritualize it. I felt like it was my life\u2019s mission to learn to spiritualize business and help others spiritualize their businesses. I felt strongly that this would be an important thing in America, where so much energy goes into business, even though spirituality is still the most important aspect of people\u2019s lives. It\u2019s so hard to integrate the two, and I feel a real drive to help people make that happen.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/strong> Your experiences seem to be saying that maybe it isn\u2019t so hard, but it can be hard to see how.<\/p>\n

Devamuni:<\/strong> Yes, it\u2019s an area we spend so much time in, working and doing business. And if we could feel that there was major spiritual growth in it, even as much as when you\u2019re sitting in meditation, it would be more deep and real for us. Things have changed a lot for me this year, and I feel it\u2019s moving in a direction where I\u2019ll learn how to do this.<\/p>\n

I read a book called Many Mansions<\/em>, about Edgar Cayce, the \u201csleeping prophet,\u201d and his life readings for people. It reminded me that it\u2019s all about working to serve people, and that that\u2019s all you need to think about, and then the money comes of itself. With this business I have to look at my watch all the time, because I\u2019m charging people for my time, and I\u2019m becoming aware that I have to think totally that I\u2019m just doing it for service, just for God, and that I have to forget about the other stuff and let it come. And that\u2019s my latest challenge.<\/p>\n

I helped design the Yogananda museum at the Crystal Hermitage. The budget was real tight, and I wanted to put in nice lighting, a fire alarm system, and this and that, with all of these nice extras. So I submitted the bid, and they said, \u201cGosh, Devamuni, we can\u2019t afford this. Could you take out $1000 or maybe $1500? And I thought, \u201cI\u2019m going to do it anyway. This place is going to look great!\u201d<\/p>\n

I thought, \u201cWhat if I just did this for the cost of materials, and I\u2019ll do the labor for free?\u201d It was a big job, and I would have made a couple thousand dollars, and our business was having kind of a hard time, but I decided, \u201cNo, this feels like what Yogananda wants.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, you know what happened? I couldn\u2019t believe it. The next week I made a sale for the whole $2000, and after that it was just one big sale after another. I probably made more from doing that one thing that I felt like doing, than I\u2019ve made in any other month. I felt, \u201cThis is the best thing I\u2019ve ever done.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Devamuni runs an electrical contracting business at Ananda Village. Q: Can you tell us how you got into business? Devamuni: When my father died, I left college and took over the family\u2019s hardware store in San Francisco. My brother had little desire to keep the store going, so I took it over and began remodeling … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nConversations With Ananda — Ch. 25, Devamuni Hall - Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer<\/title>\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\/conversations-with-ananda-ch-25-devamuni-hall\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Conversations With Ananda — Ch. 25, Devamuni Hall - Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Devamuni runs an electrical contracting business at Ananda Village. 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