FAQ: About Kriya Yoga & Initiation
Can I learn the complete Kriya Yoga technique from your book?
Lahiri Mahasaya's Kriya Yoga can only be given from authorised (and therefore self-realised) Guru to disciple, on a one-to-one basis. Footsteps to Freedom gives information about the technique and will enable seekers to recognise the original Kriya Yoga.
Why can Kriya Yoga only be taught by an authorised Guru / Kriya master? Why can I not learn the method from a book?
No genuine book on Kriya Yoga will ever claim to disclose the full method of practice. The following analogy will illustrate this point: suppose you have a piano at home and want to master the instrument. Do you buy a book entitled "How to Play the Piano" and expect it to be sufficient to become truly proficient? Of course not. You need a teacher. Why? Because there is technique involved. A book cannot tell you if you are playing too fast or too slow, or if your posture is incorrect. It cannot point out your mistakes, false timing or missed notes.
Likewise, the original Kriya Yoga as taught by Lahiri Mahasaya is a highly complex meditation technique which, being a scientific method, cannot be learned from a book.
The various 'limbs' of the method have to be practised and polished under the guidance of a teacher. Correction is essential for progress. The teacher's role is also to judge when a disciple is ready to advance in practice, and to provide the next step.
It is very rare indeed that a book is sufficient to make a master in any field, and Kriya Yoga is no exception. As the path of the spiritual masters, it has always been passed on personally from self-realised spiritual master to chosen disciple. Another reason for the Guru-disciple tradition is the fact that the self-realised Guru is aware of the disciple's previous lives and karma, which determine inner readiness for this path. Not everybody can be initiated. The timing of initiation is also of prime importance, which can only be stipulated by an authorised master. This subject is dealt with in more depth in Footsteps to Freedom.
I wish to receive Kriya initiation - is there an authorised master in my country? What is the best way to go about seeking initiation?
If you are serious about seeking Kriya initiation, please get all the facts first. Kriya is priceless - don't settle for less than the real thing at a time when many teachers are passing on a changed method. Find out what Kriya is all about: the commitment and discipline it involves, and its benefits. Understand the principles which Lahiri Mahasaya deemed inseparable from the practice and find out if this path is really what you are looking for. Footsteps to Freedom will not only provide you with the facts, it will also give you the tools to recognise Lahiri Mahasaya's Kriya. Footsteps to Freedom contains discussions with an authorised Kriya Yoga master (Yogi Prakash Shankar Vyas - "Guruji"), who migrated from Varanasi, India, to Australia in 2007. No directory exists which divides the false gurus from the true Gurus, although this is another topic which is dealt with in some depth in Footsteps to Freedom.
When you have read the book, and if you still feel drawn to apply for Kriya initiation from Guruji, please see more information about the process of applying www.kashikriya.com/seekers
I am a Christian / Jew / Buddhist / Hindu / Muslim et al. How does your book relate to my religion?
The spiritual masters written about in the book were all born in India, therefore they were Hindu by birth. However, since they were self-realised, their teachings and example were not exclusive to any particular religion. People of all faiths were drawn to them. The truths they taught are at the cornerstone of every major religion.
The author of Footsteps to Freedom relates her experiences as a beginner in yoga from a Western-Christian viewpoint, and aspects of Hinduism are raised in discussion with her teacher, Guruji. Examples and stories in the book are drawn from the lives of Jesus, the Buddha and a Sufi saint, besides those of Indian yogis and the spiritual Kriya Yoga masters in Lahiri Mahasaya's lineage. Therefore, Footsteps to Freedom was written for people of all religions - especially those with an open mind who wish to know more about spiritual masters.