01/04/2024
Dear Divine Ones
We wish you and your families a Happy Holiday and a Very Happy New Year 2024. May this New Year be full of joy, happiness, material success and spiritual progress. May all enjoy good health, and may there be peace in our communities. We pray that the blessings of God and Gurus endlessly grace all of us and the entire creation also.
Time is marching on, and one more year is almost over. While the material world brings us our share of good and difficult moments, we are always secure in the care of Shri Gurudev and Shri Guruji. As we look back over the year, Shri Guruji's presence - both in our midst and in our hearts - has been leading us, guiding us, and teaching us, which has made this year a very fulfilling one for all of us. We will recount some of the accomplishments from the year.
The highlight of this year was the start of a special celebration that has become the focus of all in our organization. Speaking of Shri Gurudev, during His Birthday celebrations on May 27 2003, Shri Guruji set the context for this celebration, saying:
He first left his beloved India to embrace the world with his divine love in 1974. 2023–24 is the 50th year of his coming to the West. 1996 was his last visit to India, and 1998 was his last visit to Europe. This year is the 25th year after his last intercontinental travel. He worked tirelessly serving humanity with his sadhana and teachings.
Let us all follow his teachings, intensify our sadhana, and contribute our time and other resources to spreading his universal message for the betterment of the world.
Since then our ashrams and centers have taken the lead in organizing every event on our calendar for "Commemorating 50 Years of Shri Gurudev in the West" and our teachers have been spreading "The Vision of the Great Master" by sharing Shri Gurudev's stories and teachings in their sessions. We have also been putting out short videos of Shri Gurudev on our YouTube Channel, Kriya Yoga International, every week - search for videos with "Commemorating 50 Years of Shri Gurudev in the West" in the title to watch these precious videos. Moreover, Shri Guruji has been speaking on this theme in all his programs across the world, since June, and you can find those videos in the "Live" section of the YouTube channel.
Shri Guruji completed and published the last of the five volumes of In the Company of the Master. It contains the daily teachings and guidance of our beloved Gurudev to disciples at different places and times.
In addition, consecrated padukas of Shri Gurudev were sent to all centers, as part of these celebrations. Centers performing a paduka puja, as a means of welcoming them to their centers, and also focusing on Shri Gurudev's teachings has surely given kriyavans the divine feeling of welcoming Shri Gurudev to their own cities and homes. This celebrations will continue till June 2024 and Shri Gurudev's formless presence and his teachings will continue to bring joy and bliss to all.
With the grace of the Gurus, we have had a very successful year spreading the message of Kriya Yoga and the teachings of our Gurus, across the continents of North and South America. Here is a short summary:
In North America:
Shri Guruji visited all our ashrams in May, and the Homestead Ashram and Temple of Compassion in September and October.
92 Initiation programs, 21 Intensives, 12 Retreats, and 2 Higher Kriya retreats were held.
1,103 new seekers were initiated in the year.
5 new centers were started [Des Moines (IA), La Verkin (UT), Moline (IL), Monroe (CT), and Montreal (QC, Canada)].
1 new group was started in Philadelphia (PA).
In South America
Shri Guruji visited Brazil in April.
In Brazil: 35 Initiation programs, 19 Intensives, and a total of 113 programs were held across 26 centers and groups.
660 new seekers were initiated in Brazil.
In Hispanic Countries: 15 Initiation programs and 42 intensives were held in 12 centers across 5 countries.
231 new seekers were initiated in Hispanic countries.
4 new centers were started (2 in Brazil, and 2 in Argentina),
4 Online classes were held in each of the 52 weeks on the themes of Portuguese Satsanga, Spanish Satsanga, Gita Study and Life and Teachings of Kriya Masters.
4 of the books of the Masters were translated to Portuguese and Spanish.
8 new books were released worldwide, and more than 100 online discourse videos were posted on our second YouTube Channel, Spiritual Programs of Kriya Yoga.
On March 24 this year, our beloved Swami Gurupriyananda Ma, peacefully left her body, keeping her mind on God and gurus. Her life was a perfect example of seva, svadhyaya, and sadhana. Her life truly was The Road Less Travelled - as she lived the four ashramas of brahmacharya, householder, vanaprastha, and sannyasa with distinction. Hers was an ideal life and she will forever be an inspiration to all of us.
We move forward into the New Year 2024 with purpose, optimism, joy and love. You can refer to the full schedule of programs in 2024 in our Events Calendar. We invite all of you to be with us, participate in these programs, and share about our path and your experience with friends and family members who would benefit from learning Kriya Yoga. We are ever grateful to you and humbly thank you for all your loving donations throughout the year - without your help and support it would not have been possible for us to keep the gurus' mission going. We also humbly appreciate those who are looking to donate still in this Holiday Season - you can visit our Donation Site and donate to the mother center or the ashram in your region.
Our beloved Shri Guruji continues to travel all over the world, spreading the message of Kriya Yoga and his Gurudev tirelessly. You can watch all his videos that have been broadcast, on our YouTube channel, and of course you can study his elaborate and priceless metaphorical interpretations of the scriptures and spirituality on our Subscription Site. This is an amazing opportunity for us. Under his guidance and, in his presence, let us deepen our practice and transform our lives - that is what the path of Kriya Yoga is all about.
We end this mail with Shri Guruji's own words about how we should live and lead our lives.
Dedication to individual practice.
Collective spiritual life and practice - mutual love, respect, acceptance, and interacting with openness and humility.
Humble service, peaceful cooperation, and a shared way of working.
Living a life of love and freedom from fear.
Respect for all faiths, nature, and the environment.
May God and Gurus bless us all.
The Mother Center
Kriya Yoga Institute
24757 SW 167th Ave
Homestead, FL 33031
Tel: 305-247-1960