Prime Minister Modi pays tribute to Swami Yogananda on the 65th anniversary of his passing
India Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Paramahansa Yogananda ”“ on the 65th anniversary of his passing on March 7, 1952 ”“ by issuing a commemorative postage stamp in honor of the 100th anniversary of Yogoda Satsanga Society of India (YSS), the non-profit spiritual organization he founded on March 22, 1917. Three years later, Sri Yogananda traveled to the West and established, Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF). SRF and YSS together have more than 800 temples, centers, and ashrams around the world today.
Paramahansa Yogananda ”“ the author of the best-selling classic Autobiography of a Yogi and the subject of the award-winning documentary Awake: The Life of Yogananda ”“ is widely regarded as the father of Yoga in the West. On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Paramahansaji’s passing in 1977, the Government of India issued a commemorative stamp in his honor, and stated: “Though the major part of his life was spent outside India, still Paramahansa Yogananda takes his place among our great saints. His work continues to grow and shine ever more brightly, drawing people everywhere on the path of the pilgrimage of Spirit.
Citing the outstanding spiritual achievements of Yogoda Satsanga Society and its founder Paramahansa Yogananda, India Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated during the official postal stamp release function on March 7 at the Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi: “Looking at [Paramahansa Yogananda’s] life, it is evident that he does not merely stress the ways to outer freedom, but focuses on the inner journey”¦.Removing rigid dogma, he made spirituality so approachable and tangible that in these hundred years since he started it, his work has become a world-wide movement, a perennial resource of spiritual understanding.”
Swami Smaranananda, General Secretary of Yogoda Satsanga Society of India, spoke about some of the contributions that Sri Yogananda’s organization has made over the century, and said, “In faithfully safeguarding and carrying forward the 100-year-old legacy of Paramahansa Yoganandaji, YSS is dedicated to continuing to bring peace and light into the lives of millions struggling with the challenges of the modern world, thus serving mankind as our larger Self.”
A message from SRF/YSS President and Sanghamata Sri Mrinalini Mata was presented by Swami Vishwananda, a member of the SRF/YSS Board of Directors based at the international headquarters in Los Angeles, which included the following closing words: “Paramahansa Yoganandaji predicted that an ideal world civilization will emerge by combining the spirituality of India with the material efficiency of western nations. India therefore has an important and necessary role to play in helping elevate human consciousness in its upward evolutionary cycle. It is my ardent prayer that through the practice of the unity-bestowing spiritual teachings exemplified by Sri Sri Yoganandaji and other great masters of India we may move toward an era of global peace, divine harmony, and prosperity for every member of our human family.”
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