Self Mastery

by Paramananda

This edition is the only one that has been prepared and updated at Swami Paramananda’s own center, the Vedanta Centre in Cohasset, Massachusetts, by those carrying on his work.

Self-Mastery was written by Swami Paramananda, a Vedanta spiritual teacher. It includes practical guidelines for spiritual aspirants of all faiths. Topics include control of body and mind, the lower nature and how to conserve energy. It also features important chapters dealing with the mind which often serves as our own greatest enemy, when it can be transformed into a friend, as well clarifying the, apparent contradiction between the dual imperatives of self-effort and self-surrender.
Swami Paramananda was a senior monk of the Ramakrishna Order of India who served in the United States for 34 years. He was Swami Vivekananda’s youngest monastic disciple. Swami Vivekananda brought Hinduism to the West at the World’s Parliament of Religions in 1893. Swami Paramananda, as a young monk, served as an assistant to Swami Abhedananda at the first Vedanta center founded in New York City. He went on to establish major Vedanta centers in Boston, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles, along with large Vedanta study groups in Ohio, Kentucky, Germany and Switzerland. He also founded two ashrams which continue to this day; the first in La Crescenta, California (Ananda Ashrama) and the second in Cohasset, Massachusetts (now called the Vedanta Centre). In addition, he established an ashram and school for girls in Dacca, East Bengal which re-located to Kolkata, India and now has two expanded branches. Swami Paramananda taught Vedanta all over the world. He and Sister Devamata founded a women’s religious order and Sister Devamata, an American, became the first woman ordained to teach Vedanta in 1910. Swami Paramananda was a dedicated Swami, spiritual teacher, lecturer, writer and poet.

39 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1912

Reviews

[Judy Croome · Rating 5 out of 5]

Self-discipline has always been something I've, perhaps foolishly, rebelled against. It's a word that reeks of oppression and limitation. And yet, without self-discipline, where does one find the structure and stength to meet goals?

So, when I came across a thin little book called SELF-MASTERY in an old book sale, I was intrigued. Written by yoga master Swami Paramananda (5th Edition, Vedanta Centre, 1961) this book begins with the statement that "the thirst for happiness is a common instinct in all mankind; but every one does not possess the secret of acquiring it, nor the power to retain it when it comes...perhaps for this reason the great men of all countries and ages have laid such tremendous emphasis on a life of self-discipline."

Yearning for that happiness, yearning for the strength of will that great men & women possess I paid the required donation and was reading the book before we got home. The index lists the chapters:
* mastery of self
* man: his own friend and foe
* control of body and mind
* how to conserve our energies
* self-help and self-surrender

Each chapter contains a wealth of wisdom that, as I read it, felt like a light-bulb had gone off in my head. My view of self-discipline has been changed forever. Where the word self-discipline triggered a knee-jerk reaction against a perceived oppression of my soul, I now eagerly seek to master my soul. (Sounds like William Henley's "Invictus" poem: ... I am the master of my fate/ I am the captain of my soul)

Every page is packed not only with the spiritual importance of learning self-mastery, but also with practical advice on how to apply self-mastery to mind, body and soul. The book ends with paragraph that says "surrender to God is the greatest sign of wisdom ... the (wo)man who surrenders himself to God, s/he alone finds peace ... and his(her) doings are filled with Divine Love and Wisdom."

The path to happiness SELF-MASTERY reveals is not an easy path, but it is a life changing one. Whatever your religion or spiritual beliefs, this book will offer a way to bring you closer to that Divine Peace, the peace of God, which is beyond understanding or knowing and merely is. How lucky I was the day that I was guided to find this book of wisdom.

[Kathy Amores · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short book yet full of wisdom. I feel quite enlightened after reading this piece. It takes the readers on to a spiritual experience starting by living life in a balance or doing everything in moderation, culminating to how self-help leads to self-surrender.

[Ted Nealon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Guide to self mastery - why we should rather than how - the path to self realisation requires such mastery and, indeed, does happiness. Good gentle advice - moderation is key - worth a read for sure