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Summary: A Modern Judas
Comment: Donald Walters (formally known as Kriyananda) is a modern Judas.
Here you have a man, who only spent 3 years with Paramahansa Yogananda.
He joined the Self-Realization Fellowship (the organization Yogananda founded) Monastic Order in 1949 (Paramhansaji went into mahasamadhi in 1952).
He attains great spiritual heights, and even became a vice president for a short period of time.
Unfortunately, he felt he was better than disciples who were with Yogananda in the early 20's.
Walters was secretly trying to take control of the organization Yogananda founded (Self-Realization Fellowship). During in India, he was having sexual relations with women (as a monk he had taken a vow of celibacy) and was getting into big trouble with the Indian government. He also sold Sri Yukteswars ashram secretly.
Why would you take spiritual instruction from such a person? Even Kamala (Yogananda's Kriya Archarye since the 20's) said Kriyananda modified Yogananda's teachings.
So Walters was kicked out of SRF, and formed his own group called Ananda in the image of Self-Realization Fellowship. Now he is claiming the only way to get to God is through him, and the only way to get to Yogananda is through him.
This guy even now is having trouble with the law. He was banned from America and went to Italy. In Italy, the police were after him so he is now in India.
Did I mention he was married 6 times?
Even now, hundreds of his followers have taken him to court for sexual assault.
If you wanted Yogananda's teachings, where better to go? Why not go to the source. Why not go to the true place where Yogananda's teaching is being taught (The Self-Realization Fellowship)?
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Summary: An Essential Guidebook to the Study and Practice of Yoga
Comment: This course is jam-packed with helpful insights into every aspect of the study and practice of Hindu yoga. No matter where you are in your yoga practice-beginner, intermediate, or advanced-this book and audio set will enhance your enjoyment and understanding. The Art and Science of Raja Yoga was drafted and produced by someone who really knows his business. Mr. Walters presents the history and essential teachings of yoga, the postures themselves, and even yogic dietary information in a clear and comprehensive manner. No other yoga handbook that I have seen comes close to this one. It contains everything one needs to master the subject. This is an essential guidebook for anyone interested in yoga.
Richard Salva--author of Soul Journey from Lincoln to Lindbergh [UNABRIDGED]
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Summary: A superb guide to yoga....
Comment: This book is divided into 14 steps and each step is further divided into 7 subjects. The subjects are philosophy, yoga postures, breathing, routine, healing, diet and meditation. This enables the reader to understand the philosophy and purpose of the yoga postures more deeply. The only complaint I have about this book is that it was unable to go into a deeper detail about the yoga postures! But I guess that the author was forced to keep his book "short" because of space constraints.
The author's guru, Paramhansa Yogananda (who is also my divine guru) gave little emphasis on hatha yoga and more emphasis on kriya yoga. This is understandable because Yogananda simply did not have the time to dive deeper into the practices of hatha yoga. When J. Donald Walters told his Guru that there is nothing much more to write about, our Guru told him "There is MUCH MORE to be written!" Thus kriyananda has been following his Guru's advice and has written over seventy books which compliments Yogananda's teachings.
It is a grave mistake to think that the books published by SRF is the ONLY true teachings of Yogananda. This will undoubtedly lead to dogmatism. Books by Kriyananda, Norman Paulsen, Roy Eugene Davis and other disciples of Yogananda complements the books published by SRF. Yogananda never intended SRF to be an exclusive sect and Kriyananda(who is a very sincere disciple) has taken the teachings of Yogananda to a deeper level.
This book is highly recommended to those who are interested in living a more spiritual life and are not recommended to people who are filled with hatred over the author. SRF students who are open-minded, would find this book useful for their own spiritual development.
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Summary: A First Rate Personal Investment w/ Big Dividends!
Comment: This is a very helpful, and enlightening manual on the art of yoga - more specifically, "Raja Yoga" which is a balanced and comprehensive approach to yoga practice. Knowing very little about yoga, but wanting to blend meditation with physical exercise on my own at home, I found an old record called "Yoga for Self Awareness" by Sri Kriyananda. It's a four sided set that includes a full hour and a half of yoga postures, meditation, and chants. It was pretty easy to follow along at first, but I realized that I desired to learn more and wanted to be sure I was doing the postures correctly. I was pleasantly surprised to find "Raja Yoga" by Kriyananda (aka Donald Walters) on Amazon, and ordered it right away.
The manual is divided into 14 chapters, each chapter into 7 subsets: Philosophy, Postures, Breathing, Routine, Healing, Diet, and Meditation - all treated with equal gravity, although meditation does figure prominantly throughout Raja Yoga. Yoga is rooted in religion, and so if meditation and religious sentiment don't appeal to you, you might just want to go find a local "hatha" yoga class at the YMCA, or gym. However, I will say that if you open yourself up to the basic philosophy presented here, and surrender skepticism towards Kriyananda's medical advice (which seems rather incredulous at times) you'll find yourself believing instead of doubting. The world is full of mystery (travel and see for yourself!), and to perpetually wrap oneself up in self-protective doubt is unproductive, and ultimately, harmful to spiritual (and physical) growth. Skepticism, okay; but yoga teaches one to trust, and open oneself up to incredible possibilities, and I think this lesson in itself makes Raja Yoga invaluable. I too didn't think I'd be able to do half of these postures when I first listened to the record (the cd that comes with the book is its one mediocre flaw, as it only contains an abbreviated version of the Yoga Postures record I found, along with a lecture by Kriyananda that you may or may not find inspiring. You don't need an audio supplement to do yoga, but it really helps to hear Kriyananda's magnetic voice. I suggest contacting the "student support" e-mail address provided in the introduction for records and cds).
Once you begin reading and practicing you'll quickly became impressed with just how comprehensive and easy to use "The Art & Science of Raja Yoga" is. I was able to jump right in and start making yoga a part of my daily routine. Ever since doing so, I've been amazed how my health and overall mind-set has strengthened to the point that I feel more balanced, positive, and in tune with nature. You will be too - enjoy!
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Summary: Best Yoga Book I've Ever Read....
Comment: ....and I've read alot of them.Art and Science of Raja Yoga has everything from easy beginner routines, to more advanced postures. And this book doesn't make you feel like some couch potato just because you can't do advanced pretzel poses.
I also enjoyed the pranayama breathing exercises and meditation practices. I had never 'got' meditation until I began practicing some of the simple meditation techniques in this book.
You can also contact the publishers of the book for followup support with your practices- everything from retreats, to other books, and more. I've never, ever heard of anything like this. Check it out!
