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Sunday Service at Ananda Village
Hosted by Ananda · EN
Live Broadcast of Sunday Service
Every Sunday, 11:00 am Pacific time • 18:00 GMT • 23:30 IST
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11:00 am Sunday Service
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Past Sunday Services
33episodes
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Finding Balance on the Spiritual Path
2w ago00:34:13Tap to summarizeWatch this inspiring Sunday Service with Nayaswami Devi recorded at Ananda Village on May 17th 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is Activity vs. Inner Communion Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. Last week we contemplated the well-known story of Martha and Mary. Traditionally, this story has been offered to show the two classic approaches to salvation: the first, through action, and the second, through prayer. The excuse of the Marthas of this world has always been, “The church needs its Marthas, too.” Treatises, moreover, have been written to justify the Martha approach to piety, praising her self-sacrifice as, perhaps, an even higher demonstration of devotion. (Thus do the unmeditative workers in religion try to justify themselves!) Yet the fact remains that Jesus rebuked Martha. Elsewhere, moreover, he spoke of the virtue of feeding the hungry, curing the sick, and housing those who were homeless. It wasn’t that he disapproved of serving people. Wrong attitude was the object of his criticism. What he was criticizing was forgetfulness of the true goal of right, spiritual action. Good deeds, outwardly, without inner communion with God, will result in good karma but will not bring final freedom from all karma. The Path to inner freedom was described by Paramhansa Yogananda in these words: “Be always calmly active, and actively calm.” As it says in the Bhagavad Gita, the second Chapter: He who is not shaken by anxiety during times of sorrow, nor elated during times of happiness; who is free from egoic desires and their attendant fear and anger: Such an one is of steady discrimination. Do your duty in life – so counsels this great Scripture elsewhere – but never lose sight of Him to whom all action should be dedicated. Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →Getting in Tune with Divine Flow
3w ago00:26:45Tap to summarizeWatch this inspiring Sunday Service with Nayaswami Narayan recorded at Ananda Village on May 10th 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is The Secret of Right Action Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. One of the most famous stories in the Gospels is that of Martha and Mary. Jesus, visiting the home of Martha, was teaching while her sister Mary sat at his feet absorbing his divine love and wisdom. Martha, meanwhile, busied herself with serving her guests, and was upset with Mary for not helping her. “‘Lord,’ she cried, ‘doesn’t it matter to you that my sister has left me to do all this serving alone? Please ask her to help me.’ “‘Martha, Martha,’ Jesus answered, ‘thou art careful and troubled about many things. “‘But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.’” This story is classic, for Martha’s complaint is very understandable, and not, on the surface of it, spiritually wrong. Jesus might well have told Mary to get up and help her. Nor do we really know that he didn’t, considerate as he always was of others’ needs. But the teaching here doesn’t concern the obvious dilemma of devotees: to work for God, or to spend all one’s time in prayer. It concerns, rather, the attitude of the mind. Jesus didn’t tell Martha: “Martha, you are doing too much.” He told her, rather, “You are letting your work affect your inner peace.” That was the contrast: not work vs. contemplation, but restless preoccupation vs. peaceful absorption under all circumstances. As it says in the Bhagavad Gita, the second Chapter: Actions performed under the influence of desire are greatly inferior to those which are guided by wisdom. Happiness eludes people when they act from self-interest. Seek shelter, therefore, in the equanimity of wisdom. Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →Healing Strokes of the Divine Sculptor
4w ago00:35:31Tap to summarizeWatch this inspiring Sunday Service with Nayaswami Jaya recorded at Ananda Village on May 3rd 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is Perfection is Self-Transcendence Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. We begin this week with a passage from the Gospel of St. Matthew, Chapter 5: Love your enemies; bless them that curse you; do good to them that hate you; and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; . . . If ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the tax collectors the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? Do not even pagans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. This teaching is a continuation of last week’s lesson. To love all equally is possible only by seeing God everywhere – in others as well as in oneself. See whatever comes to you unasked for as a manifestation of His will. Be grateful for the pains you experience, for they are healing strokes of His love. Sometimes, healing is effected only by strong measures, but His love for you is manifested in the very attempt to heal. Strive always to be impersonal, as though whatever happens to you were happening to someone else. Persecution gives us the supreme opportunity to deny the thought, “This is happening to me,” and to affirm our inner freedom from the thought of ego. Don’t allow the negative perceptions of others to become your own self-definition. Seek God: This is the true goal of life – though how difficult to cling to in the midst of hatred, spite, and persecution! The Bhagavad Gita tells us in the seventh Chapter: Out of thousands, one strives for spiritual attainment; and out of many blessed true seekers, who strive assiduously to reach Me, one, perhaps, perceives Me as I am. O truth seeker, be one, among all those thousands, who seeks the supreme goal! Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →Taking the Path of Highest Aspiration
Apr 2600:34:26Tap to summarizeNayaswami Parvati explores how high we should aspire spiritually, emphasizing that the ultimate goal is complete union with God. While this goal may seem distant, we should aim as high as possible and steadily grow through practice, devotion, and service. Spiritual progress is personal, requires persistence, and deepens over time through experience, not just understanding. By staying committed, trusting the path, and responding to life’s challenges with awareness, we can move toward inner freedom and realization. Watch this inspiring Sunday Service recorded at Ananda Village on April 26th 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is How High Should We Aspire? Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. The passage this week is from the Gospel of St. Matthew, Chapter 5: I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. The easiest explanation for these words is that they were spoken in criticism of the scribes and Pharisees, particularly since Jesus was often verbally attacked by them, and stood up to them fearlessly. However, it wouldn’t have been much of a challenge to the disciples, who aspired to spiritual perfection, to tell them, “Don’t be like those who lack any such aspiration.” Jesus in fact says only a few verses later, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” What Jesus was referring to here, then, was the self- righteousness of the priests. Don’t seek perfection, he was saying to his disciples, in the image you project toward others. Don’t be satisfied with a goodness born merely of ego-definitions. The highest virtue is to transcend the very thought of personal virtue in the realization of God alone as the Doer. Before this realization, even the thought, “I am kind,” or, “I am truthful,” is self-limiting. As it says in the Bhagavad Gita, the seventh Chapter: Yet hard the wise Mahatma is to find, That man who sayeth, “All is Vasudev!” Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →"Bring Me Thy Failure"
Apr 1900:30:51Tap to summarizeNayaswami Gyandev emphasizes that the spiritual path doesn’t require perfection—only sincere effort and devotion. The Bhagavad Gita offers many ways to grow, meeting us where we are. Even our failures and small intentions can be offered to God. By letting go of mistakes, staying devoted, and keeping our focus on God, we gradually find inner freedom and joy. Watch this inspiring Sunday Service recorded at Ananda Village on April 19th 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is To Each According to His Faith Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. In the Gospel of St. John, Chapter 3, we read: Everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. It is a common experience, shared by most people, that when a person errs he experiences a desire to hide that error from his conscience instead of holding it up for purification. Error clutches its misdeeds to itself, and resists correction, though it is only in the state of purity that we can achieve perfect freedom. It requires an act of will to offer that awareness up to the light, and to hold it there until one’s inner darkness is completely dissipated. For every state of consciousness has its own attractive power. And the more we allow that attraction to act upon us, the more we attract to ourselves the objective circumstances and experiences natural to it. Our faith is the attractive power of our underlying state of consciousness. Goodness attracts goodness; it takes goodness even to see goodness. Evil attracts evil, and it takes evil even to see evil – that is, to take special note of its existence. Whatever there is in you of darkness or light, offer it up to the heights. In the Supreme Light alone will we find salvation. Accept nothing less in yourself as your lasting reality. As the Bhagavad Gita says, in the twelfth Chapter: Cling thou to me! Clasp Me with heart and mind! So shalt thou dwell Surely with Me on high. But if thy thought Droops from such height; if thou be’st weak to set Body and soul upon Me constantly, Despair not! give Me lower service! seek To reach Me, worshiping with steadfast will; And, if thou canst not worship steadfastly, Work for Me, toil in works pleasing to Me! For he that laboureth right for love of Me Shall finally attain! But, if in this Thy faint heart fails, bring Me thy failure! Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →The Power of Intention Lived
Apr 1200:27:41Tap to summarizeWatch this inspiring Easter Sunday Service with Nayaswami Maria, recorded at Ananda Village on April 12th 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is Deeds vs. Intentions Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. Jesus Christ emphasized repeatedly the spirit, not the letter, of the law. In Chapter 5 of the Gospel of St. Matthew he speaks of the sin of killing, and of the legal punishment attendant on that sin, but says that more important than the act is the desire to kill, or to do harm. He shows that the sin of harmful desire goes beyond merely wanting to kill. “My message to you,” he said, “is this: Whoever is angry with his brother without cause already stands condemned; whoever contemptuously calls his brother a fool shall answer for it to the Supreme Council; and whoever calls his brother an outcast of God shall be in danger of hellfire.” “Brother,” here, means any other human being. For all of us in the highest sense are brothers and sisters – children of our one Father-Mother, God. The true self of one is the Self of all. To hurt another is, even if one doesn’t realize it, to hurt oneself. Swami Kriyananda in The Path recalls an episode in which the Master, Paramhansa Yogananda, revealed his sense of identity even with the plants. “One day,” Kriyananda wrote, “we were moving a delicate but rather heavy tropical plant into position on the hillside. Our handling evidently was too rough, for Master cried out, ‘Be careful what you are doing. Can’t you feel? It’s alive!’” To wish death to anyone – to wish even harm to another creature – is to deny in oneself the reality of that divine life of which all of us are manifestations. It is, in short, to deny the eternal truth, proclaimed by the Bhagavad Gita in the second Chapter: This Self is never born, nor does it perish. Once existing, it cannot ever cease to be. It is birthless, eternal, changeless, ever itself. It is not slain when the body is slain.
Transcribe →Resurrection for Every Soul
Apr 500:40:14Tap to summarizeWatch this inspiring Easter Sunday Service with Nayaswami Jyotish, recorded at Ananda Village on April 5th 2026. It begins with the Easter story, beautifully narrated by Peter Kretzmann. Nayaswami Jyotish explores the events of Holy Week as a roadmap for spiritual transformation, moving from the "darkness" of the crucifixion to the triumph of the resurrection. He explains that Jesus’ sacrifice was an intentional act of tapasya (spiritual labor), designed to transmute the karma of his disciples and cleanse the world for a higher message of divine love. Beyond the historical narrative, the talk offers a metaphysical view of Christ consciousness. The Last Supper and the resurrection are presented as symbols of the soul’s eternal nature and the presence of God within all matter. Ultimately, listeners are encouraged to move beyond external worship to reclaim their true identity, attuning their own wills to the Divine to experience the "living light" within. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is Resurrection for Every Soul (Easter) Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. In the Gospel of St. John, Chapter 20, we read the inspiring account of Jesus’ resurrection: The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord! . . . Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in their midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. The resurrection of Jesus, doubted by many but affirmed by those who were close to him, was a miraculous event, though one not unique in history. For many great saints of other religions have appeared to their disciples after death. Sometimes their appearances have been, as that of Jesus was, in flesh-and-blood form, and not only in vision. Paramhansa Yogananda relates in Autobiography of a Yogi the account of his guru Sri Yukteswar’s resurrection after his earthly passing. Miracles of this type are revealed only rarely to the masses, but accounts of them, related by men and women of reputed truthfulness, have inspired many devotees with faith in the reality of subtler-than-material states of existence. Resurrection, Yogananda explained, means transformation, ultimately, from any lower state of being to a higher one. Worldly consciousness cannot imagine such transformation except in terms of, perhaps, an improvement of the present mess of potage with the addition of a new flavoring. Divine consciousness, however, is capable of taking the base metal of worldliness and transforming it into the spiritual gold of divine wisdom and love. In keeping with this truth, the Bhagavad Gita, in the ninth Chapter, tells us: Ah! ye who into this ill world are come – fleeting and false – set your faith fast on Me! Fix heart and thought on Me! Adore Me! Bring Offerings to Me! Make Me prostrations! Make Me your supremest joy! and, undivided, unto My rest your spirits shall be guided. Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →The Essential Key to Achieving Self-Realization
Mar 2900:32:05Tap to summarizeWatch this inspiring Sunday Service with Nayaswami Sagar, recorded at Ananda Village on March 29 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is Who Is This Son of Man? (Palm Sunday) Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. On Palm Sunday, the throng joyfully acclaimed Jesus Christ as he entered Jerusalem, casting palm fronds before him and singing, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! The Lord bless the king of Israel!” (John 12:13) Jesus Christ had told the people, “The son of man must be lifted up.” His reference – so we are told – was to the mode of his impending crucifixion. Some persons on that occasion had asked, “Who is this son of man?” Was Jesus a human being, merely? Those who, on Palm Sunday, called him king little realized the actual nature of his kingdom. He was far more than what they imagined. Yes, of course he ate, drank, walked, slept, and talked like others. His consciousness, however, was centered in infinity. Yes – again – he laughed like others: But his laughter expressed divine joy, not mere merriment. Again, he wept like them: But never with human grief. The tears he shed were for the sufferings of unenlightened human beings: Never were they shed in self-pity. Jesus Christ was wakeful in God. Most people, by contrast, are asleep spiritually. How strange to reflect that less than a week from that entry into Jerusalem – so joyfully acclaimed – he would be arrested, condemned, and crucified! Such is the bitter-sweetness of human existence: smiles of welcome one day – insults, even persecution the next. How few realize that Christ’s suffering would not be for himself, but for people’s ignorance – for those who had not yet understood the deeper reality that dwelt also in them! Everyone is born “trailing clouds of glory,” as the poet Wordsworth put it. Even the meanest beggar has lived a story, or will eventually have lived it, more magnificent than the greatest epic ever written. In the Bhagavad Gita, this dichotomy between the “son of man” and the inner “Son of God” is beautifully described. Sri Krishna, representing God in human form, reveals his true nature in infinity. In the eleventh chapter of that great scripture, his chief disciple Arjuna exclaims: O Infinite Light! Thy radiance, spreading o’er the universe, Shines into the very darkest abyss! Thy voice o’erwhelms the roar of cosmic cataclysms! Lo! the myriad stars are Thy diadem; Thy scepter radiates power everywhere! O Immortal Brahman, Lord of all: Again and again at Thy feet of Infinity I lie in prostration before Thee! Thus, through holy scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →Practicing the Presence of God
Mar 2200:32:59Tap to summarizeIn this Sunday service talk from Ananda Village, Nayaswami Amrita explores our true identity as "children of light" and shares practical ways to reclaim that divine memory in a distracted world. Drawing on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda, she discusses the power of practicing the presence of God, meditating on the eight divine aspects, and cultivating a sincere yearning for the Infinite. Her message serves as a beautiful reminder that while the world may reinforce our limitations, our true homeland is eternity and our natural state is one of radiant joy. Recorded at Ananda Village on March 22 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is We Are Children of the Light Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. It is common for people to perceive themselves according to their present realities. A person in ill health says, “I am ill.” Few say, “I am well; it is my body that is suffering.” People in a low income bracket say, “I am poor.” Only the unusual person will say, “Though outwardly I live in poverty, inwardly I am wealthy.” Thus, when it comes to moral and spiritual development, people commonly identify themselves with their weaknesses and their mistakes. They consider it almost a sign of humility to say, “I am a sinner,” though in effect what this means is that they identify themselves with their sinfulness, not with the soul’s power to transcend all limitations in God. The great masters, including Jesus Christ, have always emphasized the divine potential of mankind. To encourage us, they address us as children of light, not of darkness. The Bible, in the Gospel of St. John, Chapter 3, makes the point that our true home is not the mud of this Earth, but the light of heaven. “No man hath ascended up to heaven,” it tells us, “but him that came down from heaven.” This passage continues: “[even so] the Son of man who is in heaven,” emphasizing that Jesus, though he lived on earth, is perceived by the eye of wisdom as conscious, even in human form, of his true reality in heavenly spheres. The way to know God is to live in godly consciousness, and not to bewail our imperfection and our distance from God. Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” And the Bhagavad Gita states, Seekers of union with the Lord find Him dwelling in their own hearts. But those who, lacking in wisdom, seek Him with impure motives, cannot perceive Him however much they struggle to do so. “If you want to know God,” Paramhansa Yogananda said, “live in the thought that you have Him already.” Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →Solutions from the Center of Calmness
Mar 1500:26:54Tap to summarizeSundara reflects on a poem by Paramhansa Yogananda describing the soul’s search for God, showing how we often look outward for lasting joy but feel frustrated when it remains elusive. It explains that this “veil” of delusion lifts through moments of inner clarity, revealing that the divine has always been present. He emphasizes that true guidance comes from intuition—not restless emotion—and that this intuition can be developed through meditation, calm awareness, and conscious living. By cultivating inner stillness and attuning ourselves to the divine presence, we can make wiser decisions and experience deeper, lasting joy. Watch this inspiring Sunday Service with Sundara Traymar, recorded at Ananda Village on March 15 2026. The reading for this week from Swami Kriyananda's book Rays of the One Light is Reason vs. Intuition Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. Jesus, when addressing his critics, appealed to reason and common sense. In his training of the disciples, however, he, like all great masters, encouraged in them the development of a higher faculty: soul-intuition. For it is only by intuition that spiritual perceptions are achieved. In Chapter 16 of the Gospel of St. Matthew we find Jesus drawing on the intuition of his disciples by asking them who they thought he was, in reality. They immediately understood that what he wanted from them was a subtle answer, not some obvious reply based on his nationality, sex, and the like. Peter it was, at last, who understood and answered the question on its intended level: the spiritual. “Thou art the Christ,” he said, “the son of the living God.” “And Jesus turned to him, saying, ‘Blessed art thou, Simon, son of Jonah: for not by human nature was this truth revealed to thee, but by my heavenly Father. And I tell thee this also: Thou art Peter, which is to say, a rock, and upon this rock will I build my church, and never will the powers of darkness overwhelm it.’” Jesus was pleased with his disciple for relating to the question on its deepest level. Reason could not have given Peter that answer. The answer came through the faculty of soul intuition, and proved him thereby to be a spiritually advanced disciple. It was his intuitive perception – that insight which cannot be shaken by tempests of reasonable doubt – that Jesus praised in referring to him as a rock. The “church” he referred to, next, was the edifice of cosmic consciousness. Any outer church institution would have to depend, as in fact the Christian churches have always done, on the level of understanding of its individual leaders and members. Peter’s intuitive perceptions could never have been passed on to an outward succession of prelates. Clarity comes by direct soul-perception. Confusion results from excessive dependence on reason as the guide to understanding. As the second Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita states: When your intellect, at present confused by the diversity of teaching in the Scriptures, becomes steadfast in the ecstasy of deep meditation, then you will achieve final union with God. Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Transcribe →