Loving and Divine Soul,

Let the choicest blessings of God and the masters be upon all of you. I take this opportunity to pray for you as we celebrate the Festival of Light. This festival falls on the new moon day in the month of November. The night is dark, and we celebrate by decorating houses with lamps and colorful lights. We dispel darkness with lamps and lights.

Loving and Divine Soul,

Let the choicest blessings of God and the masters be upon all of you. I take this opportunity to pray for you as we celebrate Vijaya Dashami, the Day of Victory. This day of victory is dedicated to Lord Rama who conquered the evil force represented by King Ravana. For success, Lord Rama worshipped the Divine Mother. Since that time, the Day of Victory is dedicated to the worship of the Divine Mother.

Excerpt from a talk by Paramahamsa Prajnanananda at Central Missouri State University in Kansas on International Yoga Day, 21 June 2015.

What is Yoga?

Yoga is a Sanskrit word. Sanskrit is a beautiful and the most ancient language in the world. The Sanskrit word yoga has 32 meanings. The simplest meaning of yoga is union. Union is possible when there are two. You are sitting here listening to me as I am talking to you. The talk from me is entering you — this is union. In India the two hands are brought together to greet each other (i.e. joining palms in pranam or prayer).

Loving and Divine Soul,

Let the choicest blessings of God and Masters be upon all of you. I greet you on a special day of dual significance. First, it is the summer solstice, and second, it is the first International Day of Yoga.