Tyagi Rick Johnston

Each Sunday we read from the Festival of Light, the ceremony written by Swami Kriyananda. In the Festival, its tiny hero, the little bird, completes its journey from a separate awareness of self into awareness of the greater Self reunited with God.  In Essence of Self-Realization, Swamiji quotes his guru, Paramhansa Yogananda: “Self-realization is the knowing in all parts of body, mind, and soul that … Read More

As we begin, the spiritual path can be like talking a flight.  We board the plane, taxi out to the runway, maybe sit for a bit until the flight is cleared for take off.  Then the engines thunder, and we head down the runway, slowly at first, then with increasing speed until suddenly the ground recedes beneath us.  We’re airborne! … Read More

Swami Kriyananda’s humorous song The Philosopher and the Boatman begins with the lyrics “The way to perfection is narrow and steep. The bypaths are many, the pitfalls are deep. By theory alone, many think to arrive. Here’s one who could teach them—if he were alive!” With a deft ear for dialog, and good-natured poking at the philosopher’s puffed-up sense of … Read More