The Holy Science

by Yukteswar Giri

This extraordinary treatise explores parallel passages from the Bible and the Hindu scriptures to reveal the essential unity of all religions. Swami Sri Yukteswar is renowned as the revered guru of the great pioneer of yoga in the West, Paramahansa Yogananda (author of Autobiography of a Yogi ). In this remarkable work - composed in the year 1894 at the request of the great Indian sage, Mahavatar Babaji - Sri Yukteswar outlines the universal path that every human being must travel to enlightenment. He also explains the vast recurring cycles of history - the yugas that mark the upward ascent of human consciousness over millenniums - amid the ever-changing panorama of turbulent world events.

Genres: Spirituality, Philosophy, Religion, Hinduism, Mysticism, Nonfiction, Science

128 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1894

About the author

Yukteswar was an educator, astronomer, a Jyotisha (Vedic astrologer), a yogi, and a scholar of the Bhagavad Gita and the Bible.

Yukteswar's teacher guru, who guided his spiritual development, was Lahiri Mahasaya.

In 1894, Lahiri Mahasaya's guru, Mahavatar Babaji, asked Yogteswar to write a book on the underlying harmony between Christian and Hindu scriptures. Yukteswar's book 'The Holy Science' was thus written.

Yukteswar took on many disciples. Most famously, he was the beloved guru of Paramahansa Yogananda, who brought Yoga to the West through moving to America, and through his book, Autobiography of a Yogi , which mentions Yukteswar extensively.

Another of Yukteswar's disciples, Satyeswarananda Giri , also wrote yogic books at the encouragement of Yukteswar.

Reviews

[Vivek V · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant synthesis of Orient and Occident scriptures. It reminds us to keep in mind the real purpose of coming to this world. Read the complete review here https://wp.me/p6rxcY-2N.

[Tenio Latev · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best religious book i ever read.. And i ve read a lot of them.. Had it for 11 years on me..
The most shocking part of it that the swami describes and explains how the human body works and why it looks the way it is by using very modern physics terminology, which wasn't very common in religious books back in 1895..
After all these years i m still very impressed by this master piece and still discover new insights about nature and what that whole life thing we all share is about.. A must read for any one tired of the hamster wheel..

[Nate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a philosophy of religion. Secularism is religion’s greatest barrier to itself. Dharma aligns with yuga when the sun rotates around it’s dual, this constitutes one electric cycle. The development of these times is characterized by the human intellect’s ability to comprehend this electricity or invisible natural force and forms. It’s the shift from the gross to subtle perspective.

In consideration of the problem of harmony amongst religions, there are essentially three parts: (1) Philosophy of a religion sets both its goals, principles and means of reaching it. (2) Mythology is philosophy made concrete. This concretization is through legends of humankind and supernatural or enlightened beings. (3) Rituals also being concrete, but furthermore worldly appeal to the senses.

Differences are the soul of the progress that moves the world forward. There is no equality among us - who ever said with certainty that we can reach a state of equality? We are equal on our basis of humanity only. If there’s no equality, then what of universality, particularly of religion? The doctrine of equality appeals to our hearts because we are all of one humanity. Various are our faces, but we are of one being. Unity and diversity is the plan of the universe. We are simultaneously separate and same. God is the ultimate unity in the universe. But we can never all be the same, because variety is the principle of life. Variation is a natural necessity, which is why truth can be expressed in thousands of ways, each being true as far as it goes. In this way, we should never destroy, but only build up all things.

A universal religion must be equally acceptable to all minds. Karma yoga is the key to work. It’s the ability to remain unattached as a dispassionate giver. It’s about never asking for anything I’m return for one’s labor. It’s in finding the good in the labor itself. Love is the highest goal of love. Jana yoga ultimately teaches that man is divine, from the highest to lowest being, Thou Art That. All are manifestations of the same lord. True religion is about being, about becoming, which never changes. True religion is what embraces all of life. It enters into our very self. Religion is realization.

[Papi · Rating 5 out of 5]

is a very good overview over the past of the spiritual development on earth!
the goal of the book is to reconcile the actual religions by giving examples of common things... there is only one God in the very end so it's not smart to fight each other ...
all are One ...

[Robert Elekes · Rating 5 out of 5]

never read it from p.1 to the end but started to read it over and over a couple of times....


The book reveals unmeasurable amount of Science/Knowledge and is holy itself...

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a remarkable study by the guru of Paramahansa Yogananda. Swami Sri Yukteswar traces the Indian Yugas, arguing that our world is already in Dwapara Yuga (an age of increasing light) rather than Kali Yuga (a darker age). Swami Sri Yukteswar sets out to prove that this mistake in understanding is a result of inaccurately interpreting the duration of the ancient cycles or yugas. This is not easy reading but worth the effort, even though this is a relatively short book.

[Joy-Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, written in the 19th century is a fascinating read for those who like a scientifically bent background on the big bang and how/why we are truly spiritual beings having a human experience.

[Joe Schirtzinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an astrologer this book had a humongous impact on me and explained several mysteries I wasn't so sure about at the time. I'd rank it among my top ten desert island books. It's that good.

[Sharon Doe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Divine Clarity Within

This book is very clear and succinct. It describes the various stages of life (physical and spiritual) from the perspective of the Yoga Sutras in correlation with Christianity. I believe this text can help to eliminate confusion and fear as it relates to the various transitions of life and help close the gap caused by differences in religious beliefs. There is one God, the source from which we all originate.

[Paolo Bagnato · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ineccepibile. Una summa del sapere indiano scritta da uno dei più grandi yogi realizzati e astrologi moderni, condita con passi biblici che esprimono gli stessi concetti. Consigliatissimo

[Tanmay Meher · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been 10 year since I had read "Auto Biography of a Yogi", and there was a mention about this book in the same. Not sure if I waited for 10 years to read this classic piece or I was made to wait for 10 years to get a glimpse of this holy book, what ever it might be, finally I got chosen to get a glimpse of this sacred creation .
I am not qualified enough to write a review for this book, but definitely I will share my opinion about the same.
A master piece which defines Kaivalya with a convincing and realized meaning. It's almost like a crash course on the sacred and ancient indan scripture followed by a warm comparison with the verses from the Bible, it brings out the never discussed similarities between the spiritual belief system of east and the west supported by crisp explanation.
If you have realized the texts depicted in "Auto Biography of a Yogi", then this eternal piece by Swami Shri Yukteswar Giri, the Guru of Shri Paramahansa Yogananda and disciple of the great Lahiri Mahasaya.

[Saurabh Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book. The Yuga Theory put forward by this Jnanavatara is revolutionary and its approach, scientific.

[Nilanjana Haldar · Rating 5 out of 5]

It will send shivers down your spine to read it. Must-read for every spiritual seeker. This book makes one acutely aware of the truth, that whole existence is one consciousness ( sat-chit-ananda, “Existence Consciousness Bliss) and that shame, greed, anger, me-vs-you mentality, “I-and-mine” mentality is all delusion. One can trust the contents of this book fully because this was written by a God-realised ( enlightened) master, upon the direction and guidance of another God-realised yogi.

This is a book that guruji Mahavatar ( who is a 100% God-realised and immortal yogi) asked Sri Yukteshwarji ( who is another God-realised yogi) to write. It describes about the Yugas and how celestial movements over many eons alter human consciousness, which swings in and out of materialism with the shifting of the Sun. This book truly baffled me to grasp the deepest truths of the human world, answers questions like “why the world is full of such ignorance and suffering when humans with such intelligence can live in harmony?” You will recognise how the celestial movements alter
human consciousness from the dimension of materialism to the dimension of electricities. If one practices authentic yoga and recognises the slow unfolding of prana into one’s body, and is seeking liberation from the cycle of birth and deaths, he simply cannot miss this book.

This is a must-read for EVERY spiritual seeker. I don’t recommend any other book before this one. This has to be the first. There are many good spiritual books but this is one of the topmost. To remind everyone, it came down from a saint who has transcended his physical existence and become immortal.

[Josh Mathew · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent comparison on Bible and vedic scriptures..
The depth of the Words in Bible is explained with atmost clarity and inner meaning is revealed with precision in thoughts, parallel to vedic scriptures.

Each part in chapter starts with Slokas and ends with verses in Bible.

People often read one book and claim religious.
I feel thats hilarious...

[Harshit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not finished this book yet, but very tempted to finish it. This book is ultimate truth ever manifested to this planet by yogi. As a science student, you go in shock mode knowing that just through meditation he was explaining things we knew in last 50 year like Gnome, ribosomes and more. But this just the tip of iceburg, as the pages unfolds you transit into deeper mystery of science.

Few chapters later, it goes beyond your understanding, I believe our current time-frame that we live in is not matured enough to understanding his connection. I believe you got lift your consciousness and detach all strings to understand the vibrate and make sense what he is saying through this book.

I bet this book is for those who have deeper I say very deeper understanding to the eternal wisdom, have sense those in deeper relaxation state. I get goosebumps as I unfold pages, as this book talks to you. First few pages takes you super natural understanding how everything around you works.

This book is written and manifested by Guru, ahead of time. I believe if human earn spiritual advancement, in next thousand years, assuming they have telepathy, astral travel or manifestation of lifetron model. They can connect it very well, he has explained it. Striking part of this book is, that his is written in late 1800 and that shows how much he knew and you connect modern science with every page you unfold.

Also, The most shocking part of it that the swami describes and explains how the human body works and why it looks the way it is by using very modern physics terminology, which wasn't very common in religious books back in 1895.

[Jason Gregory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read this book many times, I have noticed that the depth of this book and the layers to be peeled away are immense. For a fundamental understanding of the Kriya tradition one cannot look past this book. Swami Sri Yukteswar's inner wisdom of dharma and its significance in the world when brought forth by an individual is enlightening. Most modern day thesis's that surround dharma and the world age doctrine of the Yugas come the wisdom of this amazing man.

[Stargazer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to read this because Jeff Green credits the whole of his evolutionary soul astrology including the download of his wonderful Pluto books to Sri Yukteswar. It's a bit dense for me in parts, it reminded me of some of the material in Alice Bailey books. One part of a sentence has stuck clearly in my mind which was 'to comprehend something ie to feel it with the heart clearly..' and i re-read some paragraphs such as regarding the different types of electricity using the sensory nerves, the optic nerve carrying light and not the other types of electricity such as the auditory nerve does, but i cannot copy them to here as they are truncated and would take too long to type out. It's some years since i read Yogananda's 'Autobiography of a Yogi' so i think i might go back and re-read that as maybe that spoke more to me personally. I bought this, so i can go back and re-read it after doing so. It's good to read anyone expand on the fact that we all come from one source, how can it be otherwise?

[Andromeda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite my having read the author's reasoning concerning the calculation of yugas, I still cannot understand it.

[Victoria de Vall · Rating 5 out of 5]

the words of Christ

[Ella Crimmings · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful comparison of my two favorite religions, Hinduism and Christianity. It’s amazing how much of the symbolism and language in the Bible is similar to the sutras of Hindi texts.

[Jaime Lucena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro conciso en el cual Sri Yukteswar vuelca todo su conocimiento acerca de como esta hecha la realidad y como se llega a la liberación mediante el Yoga, también comparandolo con partes de la biblia para hacernos ver que se habla de una misma realidad. Al ser sutras debe tomarse con calma, mucho conocimiento en pocas paginas, directo al grano.

[Shrikanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book. It cannot be assimilated in one go. However, the most notable feature is the treatise on yugas and of lokas. you have to read it multiple times before this book shifts your paradigm.

[Paresh Kamat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am too illiterate in a sense to rate this book.

Its an excellent read for those who are spiritually inclined, else for others it may prove to be Latin & Greek.

My favorite part of the book is the introduction section which gives an in-depth explanation on the 4 Yugas (Ages) and their calculations. Just realized that we are in 319 Dwapar Yug ( 2019 completed) (i.e. the yuga sandhi between Kali and Dwapar), unlike general perception that we are in the Kali Yug.

[Joseph Voelbel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scientists and Sages are the same. Swami Sri Yukteswar was both. This book is best for those who have read Autobiography of a Yogi and would like an insight into the enlightened mechanical wisdom of his teacher, who, en route to delineating the steps of a 4-fold spiritual ladder, also ties connections between Revelation and old Hindu Sutras.

Jnanavatar Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri notes:

"In concluding this introduction, we may observe that the different planets, exercising their influence over the various days of the week, have lent their names to their respective days; similarly, the different constellations of stars, having influence over various months, have lent their names to the Hindu months. Each of the great Yugas also has much influence over the period of time covered by it; hence, in designating the years it is desirable that such terms should indicate to which Yuga they belong.

As the Yugas are calculated from the position of the equinox, the method of numbering the years in reference to their respective Yuga is based on a scientific principle; its use will obviate much inconvenience which has arisen in the past owing to association of the various eras with persons of eminence rather than with celestial phenomena of the fixed stars. We therefore propose to name and number the year in which this introduction has been written as 194 Dwapara, instead of A.D. 1894, to show the exact time of the Yuga now passing. This method of calculation was prevalent in India till the reign of Raja Vikramaditya, when the Samvat era was introduced. As the Yuga method calculation recommends itself to reason, we follow it, and recommend that it be followed by the public in general."

Incidentally we are now out of the 200 year calibration period and fully in the 2,400 year long Dwapara Yuga (200yr rise - 2000yr reign - 200yr decline). The Dwapara Yuga is 2/20th of a pair of twin 12,000 year Daiva Yugas. We are on the ascending side of the two 12,000 year Daiva Yugas, which means we get brighter, and cumulatively on that journey we are at 1510 of 12,000 or about 1/8 the way there.

8.24.310 Dwapara Yuga (2010)."

[Kimberly Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The summary of the Bhagavad gita from Master Swami Sri Yukteswar. Short book and nice daily scripture for an advanced student with background of self - realization. Not for a beginner.

Particularly valuable for its description of the decay process from the negation of Yamas and Nyamas. constrasting the base of the yamas and nyamas leading to the ultimate control of the "involunatary nervous system" and therefore the passing from one life to another through a controlled process rather than through decay and disease.

Without the base 2 arms of yoga the top 3 arms are impossible however, the process itself helps to balance the rate of decay while your process proceeds to control ignorance, egotism, attachment, aversion and tenacity to the the material creation.

[Kriti Bhardwaj · Rating 5 out of 5]

कैवल्य दर्शन (The Exposition of Final Truth) or The Holy Science
****
This book by Sri Yukteshwar Giri explains the universal evolution of consciousness, energy and matter- the entire spectrum of experience we call "life". He establishes a fundamental harmony between the Biblical text "Revelation" and the Indian Philosophy of Sankhya Yog. He touches areas that are hitherto unexplained by modern Science. The book was published in 1894, and it was originally written only in form of Sanskrit Sutras. Now we have commentaries and translation available. It is a short book and has amazing information on the structure of universe and space-time along with commentary on evolution of human conciousness.

[Chelsea Jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great book. One of the first that unites science and spirituality, and points out how all religions are at their core the same, and how ridiculous it is for people to let their individual dogmas separate them.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

YOGANANDA’S GURU ARGUES FOR THE ‘ESSENTIAL UNITY OF ALL RELIGIONS’

Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri (1855-1936) was the spiritual teacher of Paramahansa Yogananda (author of the famous ‘Autobiography of a Yogi,’ and founder of the Self-Realization Fellowship

Yogananda wrote in the Foreword to this 1949 book, “My gurudeva… was eminently fitted to discern the underlying unity between the scriptures of Christianity and of Sanatan Dharma. Placing the holy texts on the spotless table of his mind, he was able to dissect them with the scalpel of intuitive reasoning, and to separate interpolations and wrong interpretations of scholars from the truths as originally given by the prophets. It is owing to [Yukteswar’s] unerring spiritual insight that it now becomes possible, through this book, to establish a fundamental harmony between the difficult biblical book, Revelation, and the Sankhya philosophy of India.

“As my Gurudeva has explained in his introduction, these pages were written by him in obedience to a request by Babaji, the holy gurudeva of Lahiri Mahasya, who in turn was the Gurudeva of Sri Yukteswar. I have written about the Christlike lives of these three great masters in my… Autobiography.”

Yukteswar wrote in the Introduction, “The purpose of this book is to show as clearly as possible that there is an essential unity in all religions; that there is no difference in the truths inculcated by the various faiths; that there is but one method by which the world, both external and internal, has evolved; and that there is but one God admitted by all scriptures. But this basic truth is one not easily comprehended. The discord existing between the different religions, and the ignorance of men, make it almost impossible to lift the veil and have a look at this grand verity. The creeds foster a spirit of hostility and dissension; ignorance widens the gulf that separates one creed from another. Only a few specially gifted persons can rise superior to the influence of their professed creeds and find absolute unanimity in the truths propagated by all great faiths. The object of this book is to point out the harmony underlying the various religions, and to help in binding the together.” (Pg. vi-vii)

He explains, “The method I have adopted in the book is first to enunciate a proposition in Sanskrit terms of the Oriental sages, and then to explain it by reference to the holy scriptures of the West. In this way I have tried my best to show that there is no real discrepancy, much less any real conflict, between the teachings of the East and the West.” (Pg. ix-x)

He states in Chapter 1, “The Eternal Father, God… is the only Real Substance… and is all in all in the universe… Why God is not Comprehensible: Man possesses eternal faith and believes intuitively in the existence of a Substance, of which the objects of sense… are but properties… God, the only Substance in the universe, is therefore not comprehensible by man of this material world, unless he becomes divine by lifting his self above his creation of Darkness or Maya.” (Pg. 1-2)

He suggests, “Why man suffers: So long, however, as man identifies himself with his material body and fails to find repose in his true Self, he feels his wants according as his heart’s desires remain unsatisfied. To satisfy them he has to appear often in flesh and blood on the stage of life, subject to the influence of Darkness, Maya, and has to suffer all the troubles of life and death not only in the present but in the future as well.” (Pg. 26-27)

He concludes, “The power of love … has been clearly demonstrate in the foregoing pages that ‘Love is God’… To whatever religious creed a man ayu belong and whatever may be his position in society, if he properly cultivates this ruling principle naturally implanted in his heart, he is sure to be on the right path, to save himself from wandering in this creation of Darkness. It has been shown in the foregoing pages how love my be cultivated, how by its culture it attains development, and when developed, through this means only, how man may find his Spiritual Preceptor, through whose favor he again becomes baptized in the holy stream, and sacrifices his Self before the altar of God, becoming unified with the Eternal Father forever and ever. This little volume is therefore concluded with an earnest exhortation to the reader never to forget the great goal of life.” (Pg. 77-78)

This book will be of great interest to students of comparative religion.

[N · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pleasantly surprised to see there is a very thin line between Abed-like Aspergers and Yogic Apperception. Also pleasantly surprised to see this alternate interpretation of the yugas aligned with the equinoctal procession meaning we’ve entered Dwapara, yay us. Past the cusp of the European Enlightenment, which would explain Kant, Schopenhauer and Jung. If ideas transcend physical bodies, then perhaps colonialism actually went in the opposite direction. In the context of Wolfram's path to the fundamental theory of physics, the Vedic quaternion of Word (rule), Time (progressive application), Space (abstract relations of nodes) and Atom (nodes) becomes truly mindbending.

Notes
First the word, the vibration, Pranava, that causes Kala (time), Desa (Space) and Anu (atom), can be seen as different properties of the same underlying phenom.

Of these, atoms are individually avidya (ignorance), and en-masse Maya, as they prevent comprehending the underlying unity.

Attractive force of Chit on Maya, towards unity. Repulsive force of Atoms away from it. Integrals vs Differentials.

Chit+Atom = Chitta (attention, calm state of mind, consciousness). Chitta polarized into Attractive (seeks integration, abstraction, truth) = Buddhi; Repulsive (seeks individuation, ego) = Manas (ahamkara).

5 aspects, Panchatattwa, manifest either Positive (Sattva: sense organs), Neutralizing energy (Rajas: organs of action - excretion, generation, movement, skill, speech), Negative (Tamas: Objects of sense organs). 15 + Mind + Intelligence = Fine material body sukshmasharira / lingasharira.

5 objects of perception (tamas) combine to form 5 elements: earth, water, fire, air, space: The exact opposite of pre-Socratic monism, ie elements are emergent qualities. 5 elements form sthulasharira, gross material body. Hence 15 + 5 + Manas + Buddhi + Chitta + Ahamkara = 24 elders of Biblical revelation.

Universe of 14 spheres: Solves higher dimension physics by keeping 3 dimensions of outer space, and 3 dimensions of inner space, which become 3 dimensions of outer space of inner sphere.

7th sphere: Satyalok. Anama, unnamed, because this is the sphere you see when you open your eyes as God. 6th sphere: inside God. Tapalok. Agama, inaccessible. 5th: Janalok, separation of self occurs. Alakshya, incomprehensible for those in Maya. 4th: Maharloka, sphere of Atom, gateway between spiritual and material worlds, dasamadwara. 3rd: Swarloka, magnetic aura of the Atoms (Amaravati and Indra). Mahashunya, great Vacuum. 2nd: Bhuvarloka, sphere of electric attributes. Only fine matter, Sunya, Vacuum ordinary. 1st: Bhuloka. Our world.

Bhu, Bhuvar, Swar, are spheres of Maya. Why does Gayatri mantra restrict itself to these 3?

Last 3 are kingdom of light. So Maharlok is the midpoint and doorway.

5 sheaths (Koshas): Anna (gross matter, nourishment) - physical matter. Prana (organs of action) - plants. Manas (perception: mano) - animals. Buddhi (knowledge: jnana) - rational man. Chitta (bliss: ananda) - divine man. Liberate Chitta as well - sannyasi. Lift maya.

Maya has 2 properties: darkening (obfuscation) causing Asmita (tis I) + Abhinivesa (tenacity. This is all there is), and polarization causing raga (attachment) and dwesha (aversion)

Voluntary nerves rest during sleep. Involuntary nerves never rest until death, after which man must be reborn. Pranayama involves control over involuntary, resting them, so achieving control over life and death.

Connection between Yugas and states of consciousness. Kali - identify purely with material world, bhu. Dwapara - Understand external world as sense (perception * objects + action) * mind, bhuvar. Treta - chitta, lift Maya, swarlok. Satyug - comprehend Brahman, maharlok.

The point of a Guru. Facts can be received with openness. But ideas need receptivity. If it is conditional receptivity, then you’re merely receiving those selected ideas you already have a tendency towards, and that forms the outer limit of your knowledge. If however you are to receive ideas you have either no knowledge of, or totally wrong knowledge of, it cannot be proved insitu, and must be received unconditionally. The falsification of falsifiability itself.

[Li Or · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5

This book contains a lot of definitions, categorizations, classifications and theorizing about the Indian / Hindu philosophy of how the spiritual and physical worlds work.

It's written in a complicated way that's difficult to read, and hard to understand, which makes it a little frustrating to read, but possible to understand if you concentrate and persist.

When it comes down to it, I'm not sure if intellectualizing, philosophizing, categorizing and labelling theoretical ideas offers much practical, real value.

In spiritual work, there is the caution of being careful of impressive-sounding spirit guides who offer all sorts of impressive theories and ideas that boost the intellect or egoic parts (feeding the parts of us that like feeling clever, feeling important for understanding). But ultimately, true spirit guides are those that give truly valuable information that can improve your life on a deeper level, in a real way.

Having said that, I did find a few clarifications that I felt were useful. Here is a list of useful quotes I got from this book:

- - -

- "if [man] can direct his organs of sense inward towards his Self, at that time he can satisfy his heart immediately.”

- “When Divine Love becomes well developed, Ignorance (Maya) begins to be withdrawn.”

- “When love appears in the heart, it removes all causes of excitation from the system and cools it down to a perfectly normal state; and, invigorating the vital powers, expels all foreign matters - the germs of disease - by natural ways (perspiration and so forth). It thereby makes man perfectly healthy in body and mind.”

- “Passing through this door [between the material world and the spritual world, by becoming victorious over the powers of Darkness and Ignorance, man] comes above the ideational creation of Darkness, Maya, and entering into the spiritual world, receives the true Light. Thus man overcomes all bondage of Darkness, Maya and becomes possessed by all aiswaryas, the ascetic majesties:

[1] Anima, the power of making one's body or anything else as small as he likes, even as tiny as an atom, anu.

[2] Mahima, the power of magnifying or making one's body or anything else mahat, as large as he likes.

[3] Laghima, the power of making one's body or anything else laghu, as light in weight as he likes.

[4] Garima, the power of making one's body or anything else guru, as heavy as he likes.

[5] Prapti, the power of apti, obtaining anything he likes.

[6] Vasitwa, the power of vasa, bringing anything under control.

[7] Prakamya, the power of satisfying all desires, kama, by irresistible will force.

[8] Isitwa, the power of becoming Isa, Lord, over everything.”

- - -

Overall, having read Autobiography of a Yogi, I expected less theoretical and more practical teachings from a guru who must have had a great understanding of the magical aspects of the spiritual universe to perform the miracles he performed in Yogananda's stories. Perhaps the fact that he wrote this book in 1894 when he was young (long before he met Yogananda in 1910, and long before he performed the miracles described in Yogananda's book) explains some of this discrepancy.