Quotes by Paramhansa Yogananda

• Ø As soon as your consciousness is right, God is there. He is not hiding from you, you are hiding from Him.
  
• Ø Whether a man is born in India or in America, he someday has to die. Why not learn how to 'die daily' in God, like St. Paul?
  
• Ø It is all right to enjoy life; the search of happiness is not to become attached to anything. Enjoy the smell of the flower; but see God in it.
  
• Ø FOLLOW the path of truth steadfastly. Remember that out of thousands, only a few seek God, and out of those seekers perhaps only one really knows Him.
  
• Ø He who is persistent will realize God. So try your best to make meditation a regular experience in your life.
  
• Ø I have realized by searching for lasting love, that it was someone else who cared for me through all human loves.
  
• Ø The divine has loved me as mother, as father, and as friend, behind all friends. I searched for that one Friend behind all friends, that one lover whom I now see glimmering in all your faces. And that friend never fails me.
  
• Ø LOVE Him. Talk to Him every second of your life, in activity and in silence with deep prayer, with the unceasing desire of your heart, and you shall see the screen of delusion melt away.
  
• Ø I pray that God gives you the imperishable gift of His love.
  
• Ø Most people consider the course of events as natural and inevitable. They little know what radical changes are possible through prayer. Every morning I offer my body, my mind and any ability that I posses, to be used by Thee, O infinite creator, in whatever way Thou dost choose to express Thyself through me. I know that all work is Thy work, and that no task is too difficult or too menial when offered to Thee in loving service.
  
• Ø Glory of God is great. He is real, and He can be found in this life. In men's heart there are many prayers--for money, health---prayers for all manner of things. But the prayer that should be first in every heart in the prayer for God's presence.
  
• Ø PRAY is... Go to your room and shut the door...make no fuss. Sit down and talk to God. Practice meditation. Let your mind become so intense that the next time you sit to meditate you won't have to make effort. Pray to him: Lord you are the master of creation, so I come to you. I will never give up until you talk to me and make me realize your presence. I will not live without you...
  
• Ø WHEN you have found it impossible to fulfil some urgent wish by your own effort, you turn to God in prayer. Thus every prayer that you utter represents a desire. But when you find God, all desires vanish, and there is no need for prayer. I don't pray. In fulfilment of the wish or prayer for Him lies joy eternal..
  
• Ø GOD made this earth as it is on purpose; in His plan it is man's part to make the world better.
  
• Ø THOSE who do not give time to their RELIGION can not expect to know all at once about God and the hereafter.
  
• Ø It is important to develop intuition, for he who is God-conscious is sure of himself. He knows and he knows that he knows . We must be sure of God's presence, as sure as we are that we know the taste of orange. It was only after my Guru had shown me how to commune with God and after I had felt His presence everyday that I assumed the spiritual duty of telling others about Him.
  
• Ø Every day undertake something that is difficult for you and try to do it. Though you fail 5 times, keep on, and as soon as you have succeeded in that direction, apply your concentrated will on something else. You will thus be able to accomplish increasingly greater things. Will is the instrument of the image of God within you.
  
• Ø Between the eyebrows is the door to heaven. The centre in the brain is the seat of will. When you concentrate deeply there and calmly, whatever you are willing shall come about.
  
• Ø Never do anything that taints your mind. Wrong actions cause negative or evil mental vibrations that are reflected in your whole appearance and personality . Engage in those actions and thoughts that nurture the good qualities you want to have.
  
• Ø To meditate truly is to concentrate solely on spirit. This is esoteric meditation. It is the highest form of activity that man can perform, and it is the most balanced way to find GOD.
  
• Ø To be able to concentrate is essential for spiritual progress; without concentration you shall never find God. Learn how to shut out of your consciousness all sounds and other earthly distractions.
  
• Ø IT is important to develop intuition, or some direct knowledge, for he who is God conscious is sure of himself.
  
• Ø THOSE who go deep enough in their concentration will penetrate that 'third' eye and see 'God'.
  
• Ø I condemn no man - only man's BELIEF and oblivion of God. He can be known by using the technique of meditation. Then he shall throb as wisdom in your mind, and as joy in your heart, and you will be more active and more successful than you have ever been before. You must believe in the possibility of what you are praying for.......
  
• Ø IF you dive really deep you will find pearl of His presence. Unless we apply definite methods of science in practicing RELIGION, it becomes little more than a slave for our conscience.
  
• Ø THE true practice of RELIGION is to sit still in meditation and talk to God.