Secret of happiness

HYDERABAD: It is a universally accepted fact that each one of us, irrespective of our rank or social status, aspire for happiness. Don’t we all want to be happy? Yes, we do, but the billion-dollar question is not whether we want to be happy but how to be happy. How many of us have a foolproof answer to this simple question? We all come to realise sooner or later that our search for happiness in this worldly world ends in a labyrinth of disillusionment and suffering.

Here we may pay heed to the great masters who have held out the magic key to eternal, blissful happiness. One such god-realised master was Paramhansa Yogananda, the great Kriya Yogi of the 20th century, who not only spread the ancient art and science of yoga to the west, but also taught the art of living well by following a life of meditation and inward poise, and outward, focused activity.

He had said: “The most important condition for lasting happiness is even-mindedness. Remain ever calmly centered in the self, within. As a child’s sand castle disintegrates before invading waves, so does a restless mind, lacking strength of will and perseverance, succumb to the pounding it receives from the waves of changing circumstance. A diamond, however, retains its strength and clarity no matter how many waves crash down upon it. The man of inner peace, similarly, his consciousness made crystalline by inner calmness, retains his equanimity through even the storms of mighty trials.”

But how do we achieve the inner peace that will lead us to happiness — the buried treasure of our soul, the greatest divine birthright — a wealth beyond the dream of kings? For that the city of Hyderabad has some good news. An event is coming up — a free public talk ‘How to be Happy Always’ hosted by Ananda Sangha Kriya Yoga Meditation Group — on December 11, 2022, from 5.30 to 7 pm at Filmnagar Cultural Centre.

The speakers for the event are Nayaswami Dhyana and Nayaswami Shankara. Both have decades of experience in transmitting the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. As the beacon lights of Ananda Sangha India – part of a global spiritual movement that emphasises the ‘fellowship of divine joy’ — they promise to bring to us in palpable, practical ways Yogananda’s vision of how we can achieve true happiness that can enhance every aspect of our lives.

Ananda Sangha is a global movement founded by Swami Kriyananda, a direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda, in 1968. The teachings emphasise ‘Self-realisation’ as direct experience of god. Non-sectarian, they are based on India’s timeless universal truths and offer practical solutions to the challenges of modern life.

Nayaswamis Dhyana is the co-spiritual director of Ananda Sangha India. She has shared the teachings of Yogananda in the US, Europe, Africa, Australia and India and has helped in the founding of several Ananda Sangha communities and centres. Nayaswami Shankara met Swami Kriyananda in 2003 and lived with him until his passing in 2013. Through his public lectures, meditation classes and personal counsel, he has taught thousands how to meditate and transform their lives. The talk thus promises to bring deep spiritual insight and practical solutions to our universal aspiration to be happy.

The speakers for the event are Nayaswami Dhyana and Nayaswami Shankara. Both have decades of experience in transmitting the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda.  As the beacon lights of Ananda Sangha India – part of a global spiritual movement that emphasises the ‘fellowship of divine joy’ — they promise to bring to us in palpable, practical ways Yogananda’s vision of how we can achieve true happiness that can enhance every aspect of our lives.