Meditation & Yoga Center:

CSE south county meditation center

July 31, 2022

In Harmony with Higher Purpose

Paula Whang-Ramos

"Life is an ongoing expression of our moment-to-moment choices. How we think, speak, and act
in this or any moment influences the next. When we learn to live with a higher purpose in harmony
with universal principles that support the well-being of all, our consciously lived moments flow together into a life well-lived.”
~Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian, CSE Daily Inspiration, 02/22/2022

As BLC continues its journey into Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda, I was reflecting on Chapter 5 “A Perfumed Saint Displays His Wonders”. In it, Yogananda describes his encounter with a man who uses his advanced Yogic consciousness to display fantastic powers that Yogananda describes as “…spectacular but spiritually useless…digressions from a serious search for God.” (Autobiography of a Yogi, 1969, p. 50). I appreciated Yogananda’s cautionary tale to avoid distractions from spiritual powers (ours or another’s) that do not serve our Self- and God-realization. And, then I quickly forgot his warning.

Instead, I became captivated with another man Yogananda described in the same chapter, a Sadhu, a spiritually disciplined man who dedicated his life to living simply and deeply in God. His inspirational teachings incisively named and transcended egocentric ways of living that promote our suffering. In contrast to the Perfumed Saint, this man’s wise and humble presence was so much more powerful to me. If I met this man, I could have sat in his presence and listened to him for hours.

And yet, through his direct experiences with these two Yogis, Yogananda was appreciative, but not distracted by the powerful presence of either man. Yogananda remained steadfast in his heart, clearly knowing that neither man was the eternal Spiritual Teacher, the Guru, that he sought. And, I realized that, although I was personally more impressed with the humble Sadhu than the Perfumed Saint, I was also just as distracted by his presence, and almost missed the deeper lesson that Yogananda sought to reveal. In equal parts of humility and gratitude, I appreciated this reminder of the importance of clearly knowing, living, and remaining steadfast on our own divinely blessed paths into freedom in this lifetime. Thank you, Yogananda.

Join us at Blue Lotus Center. Experience a time of meditation and spiritual contemplation. Study, meditate and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wisdom. Contribute to the realization of peace in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

July 24, 2022

Enlivened By The Yogic Path

Paula Whang-Ramos

“Things are what they are. What they are to us, is up to us.”
~Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian, CSE Daily Inspiration, 07/21/2022

Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda is the intimate heart story of a sincere spiritual seeker in search of a Spiritual Teacher and a life in Divine Wholeness. For more than 75 years, this classic Yogic text has inspired thousands of readers to live spiritually conscious, more fulfilling lives. Captivated by his amazing life stories, a reader can easily overlook the deep grief that Yogananda held for years, after the sudden death of his beloved mother when he was a child.

In over 500 pages, Yogananda references his long-held grief for this life-altering loss only one time, in one brief sentence, “Years passed before any reconciliation entered my heart.” (Autobiography of a Yogi, 1969, pg. 16). As I listen into the energy of that sentence, I realize how the power of a significant, singular life loss could change the entire trajectory of a young child’s life. Instead of being an inspirational Spiritual Teacher for readers around the world, a child in his place could have instead grown to write a book on how to cope with lifelong wounds that arise from deep childhood loss and grief. And yet, while that significant loss deeply affected him, Yogananda did not allow it to define him.

How was Yogananda able to live through this long-held loss, and remain steadfast on his path of Yoga? Join BLC as we read Autobiography of a Yogi this summer and find out. Let this beloved Spiritual Teacher's life story break your heart open into the soul wholeness that waits to be realized within us all.

Join us at Blue Lotus Center. Experience a time of meditation and spiritual contemplation. Study, meditate and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wisdom. Contribute to the realization of peace in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

July 17, 2022

The Truth About Yoga

Paula Whang-Ramos

"Yoga is a method for restraining the natural turbulence of thoughts,
which otherwise impartially prevents all men, of all lands,
from glimpsing their true nature of Spirit."
~Paramahansa Yogananda,
Autobiography of a Yogi (1969), pg. 232

In 1920, Paramahansa Yogananda was one of the first Yogis to come to the United States and offer teachings on classical Yoga and superconscious meditation. Over 100 years ago, Yogananda's public talks drew 1000s of seekers of peace and Truth. Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian's Spiritual Teacher, Mr. Roy Eugene Davis, is a direct disciple of Yogananda. As such, the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment and the Blue Lotus Center are blessed to be part of the direct teaching lineage of Swami Yogananda.

Although Yogananda was a prolific writer, his best-known book is Autobiography of a Yogi. It is ranked as one of the top 100 most influential spiritual books in the 20th century. Mr. Steve Jobs was said to read this book annually. Prior to his passing, Mr. Jobs arranged for hundreds of copies of Autobiography to be given to all attendees of his memorial service.

This summer, I will be offering inspirations from this classic spiritual text and sharing stories of Yogananda from Teachers in our lineage. For a more enriching experience, join me and the BLC community as we read Autobiography of a Yogi this summer. In the true practice of Yoga, experience the life and teachings of this beloved Yoga Master for yourself. Let his wisdom, humor, and Divine Love transform you from the inside out.

Join us at Blue Lotus Center. Experience a time of meditation and spiritual contemplation. Study, meditate and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wisdom. Contribute to the realization of peace in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

July 10, 2022

A Special Gift

Paula Whang-Ramos

"The thoughts of most persons are restless and capricious;
a manifest need exists for yoga: the science of mind control."
~Paramahansa Yogananda,
Autobiography of a Yogi (1969), pg. 232

At the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment and the Blue Lotus Center, we are blessed to have three sacred texts to help quiet the distracted mind so we can live authentic lives in Yoga Wholeness. These texts include: The Bhagavad Gita, Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, and Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda.

The Bhagavad Gita is an ancient story of the universal spiritual journey of all sincere seekers yearning to live in the inner wisdom of the True Self. If you would like to learn more, join BLC every Tuesday afternoon at 1:00pm for meditation and Gita study. The Yoga Sutra is an ancient, very practical spiritual manual that describes Yogic philosophy and clear descriptions of ancient Yogic practices to live in our essential Yoga Wholeness. Autobiography of a Yogi is a special gift from Paramahansa Yogananda, a beloved Yoga Master in this teaching tradition. Filled with Yogic teachings and inspiration, Yogananda generously offers stories from his own life to exemplify his own journey of spiritual awakening.

This summer, I invite you to join the BLC community as we read Autobiography of a Yogi. Yogacharya O'Brian encourages us to read this inspirational text annually. Whether it is your first time or a return visit into the heart of this beloved Yoga Master, Autobiography offers peace to our minds, spiritual nourishment for our souls, and inspiration into the Divine Wholeness that indwells us all.

Join us at Blue Lotus Center. Experience a time of meditation and spiritual contemplation. Study, meditate and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wisdom. Contribute to the realization of peace in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

July 3, 2022

Follow Inner Wisdom

Paula Whang-Ramos

“Do what you know you should do.”
~Mr. Roy Eugene Davis

Mr. Davis is the well-loved Spiritual Teacher of Yogacharya O’Brian. On many occasions, Mr. Davis offered this quote in response to questions we would ask him. Over the years, these seven words have inspired and, at times, even challenged me to live in the highest way, to the best of my ability.

Mr. Davis’ words inspire me because, inherent in his message, is the Truth that the divine wisdom we seek already indwells every one of us. We do not need to go searching outside ourselves for inner clarity to live peaceful, joy-filled lives. Regardless of our educational, financial, or social status, we all already have within us the soul wisdom to know what we should do.

And, when my ego’s fear or discomfort obfuscates soul wisdom, these seven words challenge me to step out of my small-minded thinking. I hear his call to live into the integrity of our soul wholeness. In our essential wholeness is the spiritual maturity and courage needed to listen into and live from a higher, more deeply fulfilling way of living and being. We already know what we should do. Now, we are called to surrender into the courage and integrity to do it.

During these ever-changing times, we may be confused about how to navigate through tricky life circumstances. Or, we may be faced with difficult choices that take us beyond our ego's comfort zone. If we hold Mr. Davis’ advice in our hearts and silently listen within, we can hear the divine remembrance of what we are and how to live into the deepest peace, greatest love, and highest good - not just for ourselves, but for the benefit of all beings.

Join us at Blue Lotus Center. Experience a time of meditation and spiritual contemplation. Study, meditate and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wisdom. Contribute to the realization of peace in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

Blue Lotus

“If anything disturbs your peace, practice having faith that divine grace is already actively at work restoring wholeness and well-being.

Then make any necessary adjustments in harmony with that insight.”
Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian, Spiritual Director, Center for Spiritual Enlightenment

Inspirational Messages