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Yogananda
on Kriya Yoga
The most succinct explanation of Kriya, by Paramhansa Yogananda
From The
Essence of Self-Realization by Paramhansa Yogananda, Copyright
1990, J.Donald Walters
"My guru,
Sri Yukteswar, liked a chant that I have translated, two lines from
which go, 'Pranayama be thy religion. Pranayama will give thee salvation.'
"Pranayama
means control of the energy in the body, and its direction upward
through the spine to the brain and to the Christ center between
the eyebrows. This alone is the pathway of awakening. It isn't a
matter of dogma or belief. It is simply the way we were all made
by God.
"The consciousness
enters the body by way of the brain and the spine. When the sperm
and ovum unite to create the physical body, they do so at what becomes
the medulla oblongata, at the base of the brain.
"From this
medulla, the life force moves out into the brain, down the spine
and into the nervous system, then on to the muscles, etc., creating
the body.
"The way
out of the body, then, is to reverse this process. The difficulty
in doing so lies in the fact that the life force is already conditioned
by birth to continue its outward direction-through the senses and
onward to the environment as it is perceived through the senses.
Thus, we think to possess the world and to enjoy it through the
body.
"We can
never experience anything outside ourselves, however, except vicariously,
as the senses report their impressions to the brain. We may try
to expand our understanding of the world by study, or our enjoyment
of it through sense pleasures. The fact remains, we can never know
anything except through the medium of the senses, so long as the
life force remains trapped in the body.
"There
is a way out, however. It is for the life-force to merge with the
cosmic energy; for the consciousness to merge in the infinite consciousness.
"The way
to accomplish this end is to withdraw the life force from the senses,
and center it in the spine; to direct it upward through the spine
to the brain, and thence out through the Christ center between the
eyebrows.
"The ego
is centered in the medulla oblongata. This is the negative pole
of self-consciousness. The positive pole is situated at the Christ
center. Concentration at this center-in the spiritual eye, the seat
of spiritual vision-projects the consciousness beyond the ego into
Infinity.
"The spine
is the highway to the Infinite. Your own body is the temple of God.
It is within your own self that God must be realized. Whatever places
of pilgrimage you visit outwardly, and whatever outward rituals
you perform, the ultimate 'pilgrimage' must be within. And the ultimate
religious rite must be the offering of your life-force on the altar
of inner God-communion...
"This is
the path of Kriya Yoga."
Next: The
Science of Kriya Yoga
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