Lahiri Mahasaya
Shyama Charan Lahiri (30 September 1828 – 26 September 1895), best known as Lahiri Mahasaya, was an Indian yoga, yogi and guru who founded the Kriya Yoga (Yoga school), Kriya Yoga school. He was a disciple of Mahavatar Babaji. Lahiri Mahasaya's life was described in Paramahansa Yogananda's ''Autobiography of a Yogi'' as a demonstration of the spiritual attainment that could be achieved by a householder "living fully in the world". A part of Lahiri Mahasaya's face is pictured on the cover of The Beatles' 1967 album ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. Biography Lahiri Mahasaya was born to Bengali Brahmin parents Gourmohan and Muktakeshi Lahiri on 30 September 1828, in the village of Ghurni, Nadia district, Dist. Nadia, West Bengal, India, according to Yogananda. In 1832, a flood killed his mother and destroyed their home, after which his family moved to Varanasi, where he received education in philosophy, Sanskrit, and English. His father arranged for him to be marri ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lotus Position
Lotus position or Padmasana () is a cross-legged sitting meditation posture, meditation pose from History of India, ancient India, in which each foot is placed on the opposite thigh. It is an ancient asana in yoga, predating hatha yoga, and is widely used for meditation in Hinduism, Hindu, Tantra, Jainism, Jain, and Buddhism, Buddhist traditions. Variations include easy pose (Sukhasana), half lotus, bound lotus, and psychic union pose. Advanced variations of several other asanas including yoga headstand have the legs in lotus or half lotus. The pose can be uncomfortable for people not used to sitting on the floor, and attempts to force the legs into position can injure the knees. Shiva, the meditating ascetic God of Hinduism, Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, and the Tirthankaras in Jainism have been depicted in the lotus position, especially in statues. The pose is emblematic both of Buddhist meditation and of yoga, and as such has found a place in Western culture as ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yoga (philosophy)
Yoga philosophy is one of the six major important schools of Hindu philosophy,Maurice Phillips (Published as Max Muller collection), The Evolution of Hinduism, , PhD. Thesis awarded by University of Berne, Switzerland, page 8 though it is only at the end of the first millennium CE that Yoga is mentioned as a separate school of thought in Indian texts, distinct from Samkhya.David Lawrence (2014), in The Bloomsbury Companion to Hindu Studies (Editor: Jessica Frazier), Bloomsbury Academic, , pages 137-150 Ancient, medieval and modern literature often simply call Yoga philosophy Yoga.Knut Jacobsen (2008), Theory and Practice of Yoga, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 100-101, 333-340Mikel Burley (2012), Classical Samkhya and Yoga – An Indian Metaphysics of Experience, Routledge, , pages 43-46 and Introduction chapter A systematic collection of ideas of Yoga is found in the ''Yoga Sutras of Patanjali'',Larson, p. 21–22. a key text of Yoga which has influenced all other schools of India ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Diksha
Diksha (Sanskrit: दीक्षा, IAST: dīkṣā) also spelled diksa, deeksha or deeksa in common usage, translated as a "preparation or consecration for a religious ceremony", is giving of a mantra or an initiation by the guru (in Guru–shishya tradition) of Indian religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Diksa is given in a one-to-one ceremony, and typically includes the taking on of a serious spiritual discipline. The word is derived from the Sanskrit root ''dā'' ("to give") plus ''kṣi'' ("to destroy") or alternately from the verb root ''dīkṣ'' ("to consecrate"). ''Dīkṣā'' can be of various types, through the teacher's sight, touch, or word, with the purpose of purifying the disciple or student. Initiation by touch is called ''sparśa dīkṣā''. The bestowing of divine grace through diksa is sometimes called ''śaktipāt''. Another type of ''dīkṣā'', into a monastic order, involves a vow of celibacy, renunciation of all personal possessions a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri
Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri (also written Sriyuktesvara, Sri Yukteshwar) (Devanagari: ) (10 May 1855 – 9 March 1936) is the monastic name of Priya Nath Karar (also spelled as Priya Nath Karada and Preonath Karar), an Indian monk and yogi, and the guru of Paramahansa Yogananda and Swami Satyananda Giri. Born in Serampore, West Bengal, Sri Yukteswar was a Kriya yogi, a Jyotishi (Vedic astrologer), a scholar of the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads, an educator, author, and astronomer. He was a disciple of Lahiri Mahasaya of Varanasi and a member of the ''Giri'' branch of the Swami order. As a guru, he had two ashrams, one in Serampore and another in Puri, Odisha, between which he alternated his residence throughout the year as he trained disciples. Described by Tibetologist W.Y. Evans-Wentz as being "of gentle mien and voice, of pleasing presence," and with "high character and holiness," Sri Yukteswar was a progressive-minded figure in 19th-century Serampore society; he regula ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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NYU Press
New York University Press (or NYU Press) is a university press that is part of New York University. History NYU Press was founded in 1916 by the then chancellor of NYU, Elmer Ellsworth Brown. Directors * Arthur Huntington Nason, 1916–1932 * No director, 1932–1946 * Jean B. Barr (interim director), 1946–1952 * Filmore Hyde, 1952–1957 * Wilbur McKee, acting director, 1957–1958 * William B. Harvey, 1958–1966 * Christopher Kentera, 1966–1974 * Malcolm C. Johnson, 1974–1981 * Colin Jones, 1981–1996 * Niko Pfund, 1996–2000 * Steve Maikowski, 2001–2014 * Ellen Chodosh, 2014–2024 * Eric Schwartz, 2024–present Notable publications Once best known for publishing '' The Collected Writings of Walt Whitman'', NYU Press has now published numerous award-winning scholarly works, such as ''Convergence Culture'' (2007) by Henry Jenkins, ''The Rabbi's Wife'' (2006) by Shuly Schwartz, and ''The Encyclopedia of Jewish Life Before and During the Holocaust'' (2002). O ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ranikhet
Ranikhet ( Kumaoni: ) is a hill station and cantonment town, near Almora Town in Almora district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the home of the Military Hospital, Kumaon Regiment (KRC) and Naga Regiment and is maintained by the Indian Army. Ranikhet is at an altitude of 1,869 metres (6,132 ft) above sea level, within sight of the western peaks of the Himalayas. Ranikhet is a Class IV town with a civic status of a Cantonment board. History Ranikhet, which means ''Queen's Meadow'' in Kumaoni, gets its name from a local legend, which states that it was here, that Raja Sudhardev, a Katyuri ruler, won the heart of his queen, Rani Padmini, who subsequently chose the area for her residence, giving it the name, Ranikhet, though no palace exists in the area. Ranikhet had been under Nepalese rule after the Nepalese invasion of Kumaon and Doti in 1790, and the Kumaonis won it under the leadership of their able General Kashi Nath Adhikari – after whom the small tow ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Self-Realization Fellowship
Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) is a worldwide religious organization founded in 1920 by Paramahansa Yogananda, the Indian guru who authored '' Autobiography of a Yogi''. Before moving to the United States, Yogananda began his spiritual work in India in 1917 and named the organization Yogoda Satsanga Society of India (YSS). He moved to the West in 1920 and in 1925 established SRF's headquarters at Mount Washington, Los Angeles, California. Before his return visit to India in 1935, he legally incorporated SRF in the United States, designating it as the only organization to carry on his work—to care for and disseminate his teachings. Yogananda's teachings include meditation techniques intended to promote awareness of God and one's soul. SRF conveys these techniques through a home-study course, and they publish Yogananda's books and lectures. SRF also coordinates the Worldwide Prayer Circle, which prays for world peace and those in need. Leadership Paramahansa Yogananda fo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bengali Brahmin
Bengali Brahmins are the community of Hindu Brahmins, who traditionally reside in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, currently comprising the Indian state of West Bengal and the country of Bangladesh. The Bengali Brahmins, along with Baidyas and Kayasthas, are regarded among the three traditional higher castes of Bengal. In the colonial era, the Bhadraloks of Bengal were primarily, but not exclusively, drawn from these three castes, who continue to maintain a collective hegemony in West Bengal. History For a long period, Bengal was not part of Vedic culture. However, North Bengal was a part of the Aryan acculturation during the Mauryan era, as depicted in the Mahasthan inscription. By the end of the 3rd century C.E., the region came under the rule of the Magadha Empire under Samudragupta and remained within this empire until the mid-6th century C.E. According to contemporary historians, Brahmanism was found to have gained prominence in Bengal as early as the four ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band in Western popular music and were integral to the development of Counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture and the recognition of popular music as an art form. Rooted in skiffle, beat music, beat and 1950s rock and roll, rock 'n' roll, their sound incorporated elements of classical music and traditional pop in innovative ways. The band also explored music styles ranging from Folk music, folk and Music of India, Indian music to Psychedelic music, psychedelia and hard rock. As Recording practices of the Beatles, pioneers in recording, songwriting and artistic presentation, the Beatles revolutionised many aspects of the music industry and were often publicised as leaders of the Baby boomers, era's youth and soc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Autobiography Of A Yogi
''Autobiography of a Yogi'' by Paramahansa Yogananda is a spiritual classic published in 1946. It recounts Yogananda's life, his search for his guru, and his teachings on Kriya Yoga. The book has introduced many to meditation and yoga and has been influential in both Eastern and Western spiritual circles. It has been translated into over fifty languages and continues to be widely read. Notable admirers include Steve Jobs, George Harrison, and Elvis Presley. Paramahansa Yogananda was born as Mukunda Lal Ghosh in Gorakhpur, India, into a Bengali Hindu family. ''Autobiography of a Yogi'' recounts his life and his encounters with spiritual figures of the Eastern and the Western world. The book begins with his childhood and family life, then finding his guru, becoming a monk and establishing his teachings of Kriya Yoga meditation. The book continues in 1920 when Yogananda accepted an invitation to speak at a religious congress in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. He then travelled ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Paramahansa Yogananda
Paramahansa Yogananda (born Mukunda Lal Ghosh; January 5, 1893March 7, 1952) was an Indian and American Hindu monk, yoga, yogi and guru who introduced millions to meditation and Kriya Yoga school, Kriya Yoga through his organization, Self-Realization Fellowship, Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) / Yogoda Satsanga Society of India, Yogoda Satsanga Society (YSS) of India—the only one he created to disseminate his teachings. A chief disciple of the yoga guru Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri, he was sent by his lineage to spread the teachings of yoga to the West. He immigrated to the US at the age of 27 to demonstrate the unity between Eastern and Western religions and to advocate for a balance between Western material growth and Indian spirituality. His longstanding influence in the American yoga movement, and especially the yoga culture of Los Angeles, led yoga experts to consider him as the "Father of Yoga in the West". He lived his last 32 years in the US. Yogananda was among th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kriya Yoga (Yoga School)
Kriya Yoga (Sanskrit: क्रिया योग) is a yoga system which consists of multiple levels of pranayama, mantra, and mudra, intended to rapidly accelerate spiritual development and engender a profound state of tranquility and God-communion. It is described by its practitioners as an ancient yoga system revived in modern times by Lahiri Mahasaya, who claimed to be initiated by a guru, Mahavatar Babaji, circa 1861 in the Himalayas. Kriya Yoga was brought to international awareness by Paramahansa Yogananda's 1946 book '' Autobiography of a Yogi'' and through Yogananda's introductions of the practice to the West from 1920. Etymology According to Yogananda, "Kriya is an ancient science. Lahiri Mahasaya received it from his great guru, Babaji, who rediscovered and clarified the technique after it had been lost in the Dark Ages. Babaji renamed it, simply, Kriya Yoga." In his commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, Yogananda further explains that Jaerschky elucidates that ''kab ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |