Paramahansa Yogananda
(1893–1952)
Paramahansa Yogananda
Author of the best-selling spiritual classic Autobiography of a
Yogi, this beloved world teacher came to America in 1920 from his native
India, and was the first great master of yoga to live and teach in the
West for an extended period (more than 30 years). He is considered one
of the preeminent spiritual figures of modern times.
He is now
widely recognized as the Father of Yoga in the West. He founded
Self-Realization Fellowship (1920) and Yoga Satsanga Society of India
(1917), which continue to carry on his spiritual legacy worldwide under
the leadership of Sri Mrinalini Mata, one of his closest disciples.