Realize that you are a part of Spirit and that just behind the spark of your life is the Flame of Infinity; just behind the glimmer of your thoughts is the Great Light of God. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Withdrawing the consciousness from the body and finite world and merging it in the Divine is the only way to liberation in God. Jesus meditated. To the crowds he taught moral and spiritual truths - the necessary first steps toward God; but to his close disciples he taught the higher science of meditation for actual union with God. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

What is Christ Consciousness? Christ is God’s Infinite Intelligence that is present in all creation. That Universal Intelligence, the Kutastha Chaitanya or Krishna Consciousness of the Hindu scriptures, was fully manifested in the incarnation of Jesus, Krishna, and other divine ones; and it can be manifested also in your consciousness. You, too, are a child of God. That same consciousness can be yours. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

The basic law of right human behavior is self-reform. Whenever any trouble occurs with our friends or dear ones, we should inwardly lay the blame on ourselves for getting into an unpleasant situation and then try to get out of it as fast and as graciously as we can. It is fruitless to increase the trouble by loudly, unkindly, discourteously blaming others, even though we find that they are to blame. We can teach quick-tempered dear ones to mend their faults a hundred times better by setting a good example than we can by harsh or self-righteous words. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

See God in everyone, as I see Him. Mentally put yourself in the position of others, and then with the utmost kindness you will be able to understand and help them. There is no greater joy. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Yoga teaches us to know the divine nature in ourselves and others. When by persistence in meditation you realize God through communion with Him, your heart is prepared to embrace all humanity. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

In divine love, you see God not only in your friends, but in your enemies as well. You treat everyone as a child of God. All the great ones that I have seen are humble, because they see God in all, having found the image of God in themselves. That is realization. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

It is God, and God alone, who has encased Himself as the soul in the many human beings He has created. And when one human being loves another with pure divine love, he sees the spirit of God manifesting in that person. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

One thing you must learn here on earth is that you are a child of God. When you know that, you will know that everyone is a child of God even as you are. What a tremendous realization! that all persons are of God that everyone and everything that comes to you comes from God! The more you appreciate the divine image in everyone, the more you are alive with God’s consciousness. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Behind the wave is the ocean. Reverencing the waves of godly lives, we come to behold the ocean of Spirit behind them. That is the role of the guru: God sends someone to show you the way. The whole purpose of such a one is to point your attention toward God. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Many people say it is wrong to worship personalities, but that is not necessarily correct. If you worship only the physical form and characteristics of a great soul without attunement with the meaning and inspiration of his life, then that is idol worship. But how can you develop love for God if you are not first introduced to some of His divine qualities in those who knew and manifested God, such as Lord Jesus and Lord Krishna? - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Divine communion is the criterion of religion. That is what my Guru taught me, and that is why I have followed him unconditionally and wholeheartedly. As a result of his teaching I am enjoying that sacred communion with the Lord every moment of my existence. That is what religion must be. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

The path followed by a saint of Self-realization may confidently be followed by any spiritual aspirant. One who earnestly emulates a guru’s life-example and teachings will certainly reach the same goal of Self-realization. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Scriptural truths that we know only by reading them are like little, insignificant-looking seeds: their power and wisdom-yielding qualities are manifest only when we see them grown into huge trees of saintly human lives, laden with fruits of divine love, in the garden of Self-realization. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

The guru-disciple relationship is the highest expression of friendship, for it is based on unconditional divine love and wisdom. It is the loftiest and most sacred of all relationships. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

What are you afraid of? You are an immortal being. Do not identify your immortality with human habits. Even in the midst of exacting trials, say: “My soul is resurrected. My power to overcome is greater than all my trials, because I am a child of God.” - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Meditation is the greatest way of resurrecting your soul from the bondage of the body and from the shackles of all your trials. Meditate at the feet of the Infinite. Learn to saturate yourself with the consciousness of God. Your trials may be heavy, may be great, but the greatest enemy of yourself is yourself. You are immortal; your trials are mortal. They are changeable; you are unchangeable. You can unleash infinite powers and shatter your finite trials. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Resurrect your soul from all dreams of frailties. Resurrect your soul in eternal wisdom. What is the method? It includes many things: self-control, proper diet, fortitude, an undaunted mental attitude, and relaxation of the consciousness from body identification by faithful daily practice of scientific concentration and meditation principles. - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Trials do not come to destroy you, but to help you appreciate God better. All you have to do to overcome your trials is to resurrect your consciousness from the environment of spiritual ignorance. Ever affirm: “Heavenly Father, I know that Thou art coming to my aid, and that I will see Thy silver lining haloing the dark clouds. In this tumultuous sea of trial Thou art the polestar of my shipwrecked thoughts.” - Paramahansa Yogananda.

Do you ever think that you have been completely unsettled by circumstances - ruffled, shattered, whipped, lacking power? Banish such thoughts! You have power; you do not use it. You have all the power you need. There is nothing greater than the power of the mind. - Paramahansa Yogananda.