Self-Realization Fellowship Blog

This spring Brother Chidananda, president and spiritual head of Self-Realization Fellowship/Yogoda Satsanga Society of India, traveled to Virginia and Georgia in order to meet with SRF members and friends in those locations. In this post you can read about and see images from his recent trip.

Dedicating a New Meditation Hall at SRF Greenfield Retreat

On April 25, 2026, Brother Chidananda officially inaugurated the newly constructed meditation hall at the SRF Greenfield Ashram Center and Retreat in Front Royal, Virginia. In the fall of 2023, he had presided over the groundbreaking event for this special location, located in the Blue Ridge Mountains about an hour’s drive west of Washington, D.C., at which time he promised to return when the hall was completed.

The new meditation hall includes a beautiful chapel; a bookroom for SRF publications; a classroom for children’s programs; meeting rooms and offices; as well as space for dining and fellowship for those on retreat. This much-welcome addition to the retreat facility was designed in a way that will fulfill the current needs for this still-developing spiritual center, providing a wonderful place for seekers to gather in divine communion and fellowship.  

Making a True Spiritual Portal

Brother Chidananda, who was accompanied from the Mother Center by Brother Kartikananda and Brahmachari Anttoni, arrived at the Greenfield Retreat to a warm welcome from the SRF nuns in residence and by SRF devotees who had long served, supported, and attended events at the retreat. 

In his opening remarks, he invited all in attendance “to invoke, with the help of our great lineage of Gurus, the presence of God — to infuse this physical building with divine Spirit.” He explained that in doing so, “we make it a spiritual center, a living link with the spiritual network of SRF/YSS temples, meditation groups, and ashrams all around the world — a true portal of divine communion for all who will come here in the years ahead.”

Hives for the Honey of God’s Presence

A short talk by Sister Brahmani followed the opening invocation. She shared an overview of the Greenfield Retreat’s history and the special role Sri Daya Mata had in its inception. Brother Chidananda then spoke about the significance of the chapel in terms of Paramahansa Yogananda’s mission to build “spiritual hives” throughout the world where seekers could experience the “honey” of God’s presence — a key aspect of the world mission that was instilled in him as a young monk by his guru, Swami Sri Yukteswar. 

Throughout his talk Brother Chidananda encouraged those in attendance to see the new chapel not merely as a physical space but a manifestation of the divine consciousness and intent of Paramahansaji and his lineage of exalted gurus. He urged the attendees to be receptive to that powerful flow of divine power and grace in the days and years ahead, through their meditations and other dedicated spiritual efforts. Addressing those in attendance with great appreciation for what they had done to make this meditation hall possible, he asked them to think of themselves not just as visitors when they come to this chapel, but as “co-creators” of a meditative environment imbued with divine magnetism. This powerful idea, enhanced by a guided visualization led by Brother Chidananda at the close of his talk, became a tangible reality deeply felt by all.

The program closed with the SRF/YSS president personally greeting and giving prasad (a blessed offering) to everyone.

A First Visit to the SRF Atlanta Center and Public Program

After the events at Greenfield, Brother Chidananda, Brother Kartikananda, and Brahmachari Anttoni traveled to Atlanta, Georgia, for two days of events with SRF members there on May 2 – 3. 

This was Brother Chidananda’s first visit to the SRF Atlanta Center. He was joyfully greeted by members who had long served as volunteers in various roles at the center, before being ushered into the large chapel. There Brother Chidananda spoke about the bond of fellowship uniting those who serve and meditate together, and how all SRF centers are beacons of light serving the worldwide dissemination of the Kriya Yoga teachings that Mahavatar Babaji envisioned in sending Paramahansa Yogananda to the West.

The following day Brother Chidananda led a public program in the spacious ballroom of a local hotel. The event began with a meditation accompanied by kirtan chanting by members of the Atlanta Center. Afterward the SRF president gave an inspiring talk to the hundreds of SRF members attending, who had traveled from various states in the South, Midwest, and Northeast of the U.S., with some from as far away as Arizona and California.  

A Farseeing Vision for Our Times

In his talk, Brother Chidananda referred to Paramahansaji’s farseeing vision for the times we are living in. “All the way back in 1934 he publicly stated this: ‘There will come a day, after I have left this physical form, when there will be a great surge of spiritual enthusiasm and interest in God. The message of India, the spiritual leader of the world, will sweep the earth.’”

Brother Chidananda went on to say: 

“We hear a lot about yoga in today’s world. But what is yoga, really? Many think of yoga in terms of postures, the physical aspect, Hatha Yoga. Yes, posture is important; but what the world really needs is to learn one posture in particular — the one in which you can ‘stand unshaken midst the crash of breaking worlds.’

“The turbulence of our times is not only a practical challenge — it is a spiritual one. Because the world, in its confusion and chaos, is constantly broadcasting a message to each one of us. That message is this: You are a victim. You are helpless. Surrender your peace. Join the panic.

“That message arrives through the news, through social media, through the anxiety of people around us, and all too often through our own unguarded thoughts. It is persistent. It is loud. And it is — I say this with complete conviction — a lie.

“The entire purpose of the spiritual path is to rise above that kind of limiting thinking and victim consciousness, and completely expunge it from our sense of self — and from the inner roadmap by which we navigate our daily lives.”

Updating Our Maps

“What map do you use to navigate life? If you wanted to go to a location on the other side of the city, and you were using an incorrect or incomplete or out-of-date map, you would get hopelessly lost and maybe not ever reach your destination. The same goes for our lives. Most people are using incomplete and out-of-date maps that do not give them a reliable guide of the landscape and the twists and turns that must be correctly navigated in order to reach our destination. 

“‘Out of date’ means a map that was drawn in Kali Yuga. We should be using updated maps now that we are in a new ascending age of spiritual evolution. And ‘incomplete’ means it may show the way to navigate the material and social pathways of outer life, but does not give the most important guidance: How to reach God, the Goal of life.

“That is why our Guru said: 

‘As you march along the twisting and branching pathways of life, seek foremost to discover the path that leads to God. In the time-tested methods of India’s illumined rishis, the universal way has been shown how to conquer uncertainty and ignorance by following the trail of light divine they have blazed, straight to the Supreme Goal. The teachings of Self-Realization Fellowship are the voice of India’s masters, the voice of truth, the voice of scientific God-realization, through which the new world will find understanding, emancipation, and salvation…. 

‘If you follow the Self-Realization teachings I have brought to you from the Masters of India, you can find God in this life.’ 

“You see, what our Guru is offering to us — what he is lovingly urging us to awaken to — is the 180° opposite of the victim consciousness that our modern world is trying to impose upon us. He offers us a completely different identity: not as a victim, but as a master — a master of consciousness. That is what yoga means: to be a master of consciousness.”

Brother Chidananda’s complete talk will be shared at a later date.  

Before leaving the hall, Brother Chidananda spent more than an hour greeting each attendee, bestowing a personal blessing to each one — a scene of true divine fellowship with which to close this special visit to the East Coast.