Self-Realization Fellowship Blog

Sri Daya Mata, the third president and spiritual head of Self-Realization Fellowship/Yogoda Satsanga Society of India, was interviewed in 1992 and was asked a number of questions about the life and mission of Paramahansa Yogananda in anticipation of the Centennial Anniversary of his birth on January 5, 1993. Her answers were published during 1992 and 1993 in special issues of Self-Realization magazine celebrating that anniversary. The compilation of those answers will be published as one chapter in the forthcoming Journey With Paramahansa Yogananda, the third collection of talks from Sri Daya Mata. Here we present one of the questions she was asked and the deeply encouraging answer she gave.  

Question: The concept of the balanced life — meditation plus right activity — seems to be an important principle in Self-Realization Fellowship. Paramahansa Yogananda certainly lived that ideal. He traveled, he spoke in cities all over the country, he met thousands of people. Yet he had that inner life of divine communion. Is this possible for the average person in the midst of the intense pressures faced today?

Part of Paramahansa Yogananda’s message is that the experience of God is not reserved for those who live in ashrams and monasteries. It is intended for all of humanity. You don’t have to fly away to a Himalayan cave! You can find Him wherever you are. The more chaotic your life is, the more you need to find Him.

If you balance your active life with a time for meditation, you can make God your own even as the great saints and masters have done. What is important is to hold on, during your activities, to the awareness of His presence attained in meditation. This simply means that no matter what you are doing, you try not to forget Him. You bring Him into your life, make Him a part of your life, so that He becomes the unifying principle, the silent love flowing through all of your thoughts and actions.

Though it is not necessary to renounce the world in order to seek God, there does have to be a slowing down — an effort to live a calmer, more interior life. I don’t think we realize how keyed up we are in this world. When things pile up — too many responsibilities, too much pressure — people begin to think, “It’s impossible!” You have to say to yourself, “Be calm.” And then let go. Be calm. In my own life, I see that I can accomplish much more, because I try to practice this, than if I allowed myself to become tense. There is no point in doing that; you just make yourself a nervous wreck.

When you are seeking God, there must not be any sense of rush, rush, rush. If you take a hurried attitude into meditation, you might as well forget about feeling the presence of God. You can meditate daily like that for twenty years and not get anywhere. You are just going through the motions of meditating. You have to learn to slow down and give your loving attention to God. That is so vital.

We think we can’t live without food or sleep or other perceived necessities, so we find time for them. Similarly, we must realize that we cannot live without God — He who is supplying us with the energy for our minds, for our bodies, for all of our activities. If we ignore Him, we divorce ourselves from the very One who is the creator and sustainer of our lives.

There’s a time for work; there’s a time for meditation. Guruji taught us to be very active for God; but while working, every now and then to stop and ask ourselves, “Where is my consciousness? Is my mind silently watching God within, or is it lost in these outer concerns?” If you meditate and then try during activity to keep the mind centered in the Divine, you automatically begin to express balance in your life. And you become a calmer human being — operating not from emotion but from a deeper state of inner quietude.

We invite you to learn about the inspiring life of Sri Daya Mata, beloved third president of SRF/YSS — a life of love, humility, and devoted service to God and her guru, Paramahansa Yogananda.