This book is a diary of the author's experience in the presence of Sri Ramakrishna 125 years ago. To the modern mind, Ramakrishna would seem like a schizophrenic or epileptic but after reading this book and hearing his explanations of Hindu concepts you realize that although he had no formal education he was a very knowledgeable and loving man. I love that he always says - do not follow anything I say blindly, work it out for yourself, take what's useful to you and leave the rest. He says a lot of people forget to do this where religion is concerned. They don't assimilate the information - they just repeat the pretty words.
His relationship to Narendra, who later was known as Vivekananda, is an awesome love story. Very beautiful. My favorite part was when Ramakrishna asked Narendra a significant question about God and Narendra says, "I'm currently studying the views of the atheists." He was completely able to be himself with Ramakrishna and Ramakrishna loved him for it. He didn't have to put on a "holy-holy" act with Ramakrishna. They didn't have any of that you'd better obey and agree with everything I say attitude going on.
Something that struck me as interesting is I think the author added some comments in the 1940's while translating the book to English. The events took place near Calcutta, India in 1885 but there are statements describing the connection to God as being like having the gas company hooked up to your house. Did they have a gas company in Calcutta, India in 1885? There are other statements relating peoples beliefs in the righteousness of their religion to everyone thinking his watch has the correct time. Were watches a widespread item in India in 1885? I don't particularly think so... But the allegories work.
I don't agree with everything Ramakrishna says. For instance, I don't believe bhakti or devotional religion is the key for this day and age. I think you should keep your bhakti a personal thing tucked away in your heart otherwise you'll wind up looking like a nut. I don't agree with worshipping the divine as a parental figure. I think it adds to the emotional immaturity that we already experience - but I'm glad Ramakrishna mentions other modes of relating to God and acknowledges their validity. I also don't believe that bliss is an important factor in anyone's relationship to God. Hell with the availability of street drugs today - bliss is just down the alley. But joy - joy is something different. You can't find real joy in a pill or in a drink.
Towards the end of his life things get a little weird. It's almost as if someone else has taken over his body or something. He starts emphasizing being a paramahansa (incarnation of God) and expounding on how paramahansas and ishvarakotis (pure souls) are different from everyone else. It really doesn't seem to follow how he used to talk before that. Plus he starts letting yes-men, like that Ghirish Ghosh guy, hang around. I didn't like that part but it happened so what can you do?
So, whether you agree with what Ramakrishna says or not, you can't help but love and respect him after reading this book. It's a very intimate encounter with a man totally devoted to God and you gotta respect his honesty and willingness to be himself no matter what anyone else thought.

With Ramakrishna, the custom started, that disciples write down every word of a guru and publish it in a book. However troublesome that usually is, in the case of Ramakrishna it was a great blessing to mankind. Ramakrishna was a god-man with deepest spirtual insights, and an enormous richness of spritual diversity. At the same time, in this book, human ascpects are shown as well. The book does not pretend a perfect world or a perfect Ramakrishna. The time one invests into spiritual development is obvously lost from investing into other things, like presentig oneself in an optimized way. I'm sure, Ramakrishna wore no tie and would fail in a modern management school. This is no joke, because many people do not beleive certain enlightend people, because they behave not quite propperly according to social standards. A reader of this Gospel has to be prepared to be confronted with a strange, but extremely spritual, environment.

Sri Ramakrisna was the 9th incarnation of Vishnu. He praticed many religious paths because in the end he saw God (not to be confused with just the male aspect) He was also a Tantric and he was a very open minded annd ecclectic man. He served as a priest in the Dakashineswar Kali temple in Calcutta India. He was a priest of Kali. He died of lung cancer. In this gospel there is history about the man-god Sri Ramakrishna and his teachings. Although I personally dont agree 100 percent on everything he said, not because he was wrong or right, its because I have my own beliefs. But his teachings are very much alive today as they were back then. His teachings are spiritually uplifting. Im attracted to him because I had some of his experiences and if he were alive today in the flesh he would totally understand where Im comming from. This is a book I wont ever give away. Ever.

I first read this book in the '70's. It knocked my socks off. I recently recommended it to someone and thought, "Hmm. Maybe I should read it again." It blew my socks off again. Play of Consciousness is the spiritual autobiography of Sw. Muktananda, an Indian meditation master who died in 1982. In POC, he breaks Hindu tradition by talking about his experiences. He does this for one reason: To serve and guide his students. This is a handbook for meditators, in many ways a survival manual. Muktananda had many of the experiences recounted here -- some of which were terrifying-- without knowing what they were. Here, he lets his students know what to expect in advanced meditation. The book is written in sections. The book opens with a tightly written and comprehensive guide to Hinduism and kundalini yoga. Muktananda lays out the turf-- quoting many major Indian saints and scriptures. This alone is worth buying. The second part describes his spiritual experiences, his sadhana. If you ever thought that meditation was a passive, dopey thing popularized in California, this will change your mind. Muktananda's experiences were big. Explosive. Gorgeous. They read like sci-fi, but you have the sense of their utter authenticity. The final section explains what Muktananda wants from his students. How he sees the universe, and how a good yogi/yogini should live. This is a masterpiece in mystical writing. POC is not an easy read. First, it may induce culture shock. This is not a Western book. It was translated from Hindi or one of the Indian languages and written by an older man, a Hindu monk. The language sounds it-- flowery, exquisite, complex, and somewhat antiquated. Muktananda talks about gurus and disciples. The word "guru" has been maligned in the West. For thousands of years, Indian people have had gurus the way that we have accountants. "Guru" means "teacher", with the root meaning, "bringer of light, taker of darkness." The guru's function. POC is a hard read for another reason: Muktananda's experience roars through it. If you do not know what devotion and love are by the end of this book, there's no hope. His energy permeates POC. You may find yourself nodding off or falling into meditation. You may only be able to read a page to two at a time. That's fine. Just keep reading.

A must read for anyone seeking spirituality. It changed my view on life and took my meditation to a new level. Startling secrets, which I have not seen anywhere else, were revealed.

Truly this is the greatest work of liter- ature of any kind I have ever been exposed to. The immense power of Swami Muktananda's state of realization seems to have infused each word with an amazing spiritual force, so that I can usually only read a paragraph or two before I have to put the book down and revel in the presence of his Shakti (spiritual energy). If I were to be left on a deserted island, I often reflect, I would only need this book with me to be completely happy for all time. This is not really a book, it is a doorway God has opened into the mystical realm of His Presence. I have heard of people reading it, and becoming immediately transformed beyond measure...

Swami Sri Yukteswar (1855-1936), whose westernly-known disciple was Paramahansa Yogananda, was a quiet, demanding Bengali teacher of Kriya Yoga, the advanced form of raja (meditative) yoga that Yogananda has made so popular in the west. Sri Yukteswarji, however, did not have the effusive, entertaining style of his popular disciple, nor did he write in as easily accessible manner. This slender volume is nevertheless to be highly recommended to the serious student of yoga philosophy or raja practice, and especially to students of Kriya Yoga, for whom Sri Yukteswar's penetrating insights will fit together important puzzle-pieces of the yoga spiritual path. (Beginners to yoga philosophy and practice would be well advised first to read Yogananda's "Autobiography of a Yogi" -- perhaps a few times and taking in even the technical footnotes -- before tackling "The Holy Science." )

The swami defines his volume's purpose to be: showing the essential unity of *all* religions. It is, but the emphasis definitely centers on parallels between John's gospel and Revelation and the yoga principles of India's Sankhya philosophy "Sanatan Dharma." Some of the most arresting parallels presented concern the way both teachings present concepts of "The Word", "Holy Baptism", and "Messiah/Satguru". Sri Yukteswarji does not expend extra words attempting to make unity persuasive to those who have a dogmatic conviction that their religion (Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, or whatever) has the "true" hold on "truth," so those who are so persuaded can safely skip this work. If, however, you have always had a nagging intuitive sense that there ought to be One Truth behind all versions of religious truth, time spent to assimilate the swami's realizations will be well repaid.

As a bonus there is a fascinating introductory chapter which explains India's macro-astrology and the astronomical progression of the equinoxes ( the phenomenon which leads western astrologers to speak of the coming "age of Aquarius"). This introduction to the Indian astrological system reveals it to be remarkably sophisticated -- offering reason to pause and reflect on the implications of a possible cyclical nature of *spiritual* ages ("yugas" to India) -- and new hope that humanity's spirituality will start to catch up with its technology... providing we attend to our dharmas!

Not an *easy* read -- but if you think you're ready for it, it can be an extremely rewarding one.

PS: Although as of this writing the Amazon photo of the jacket makes this appear to be the Spanish translation of the work, this ISBN ( 0876120516 ) is actually correct for the English language edition.

Swami Sri Yukteswar's only book stands alone in that it was commissioned by the great Babaji for a specific purpose.(see Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda). It is difficult to grasp in many places but his wisdom and clarity are unmatched. His message rings out across the ages. It needs to be read in the context of Yoganada's Autobiography because it then becomes evident what a great being he was in that incarnation.

The Jnana Avatar (Incarnation of Knolege) Swami Yukteshwar has a very insightfull way of looking into the Vedas as well as the Bible. I had learned of him from Paramahansa Yogananda's book "Autobiography of a Yogi".
Sri Yukteshwar in my opinion has been severly under-praised. He is a brilliant soul, who never sought out any type of publicity. This book explains the Yugas (eras) in a very different way than commonly understood, and I have to agree with this author.
This book isn't very long, but it is packed with allot of usefull information. The author died somewhere between 1920-1940, and its hard to beleive it was so long ago, his vibrations come alive while reading the book.

Sincerely,

Eric Lloyd

If a person is able to comprehend this book well, then the principle of non-duality can be understood. All other books talk about what is non-duality, this book talks about how is non-duality existing in this apparently dual appearance.
This is the speciality of this book.

is the summary of the message of Sage Vasistha.

For the scientific reader, Vasistha's travels thru time and space may be fascinating. He describes Other Universes and beings that he visited, but states that he lost interest in this after a while when he realized that it is all Brahman.
His thoughts on the quality of food (that it be fat free) and that Cholera is an Organism. These facts from him before 5000 yrs ago is fascinating and demonstrate the knowledge of top down approach.

He describes Pranayama techniques such as the recaka-kumbhaka that can let Humans see celestials.

For the Spiritual, the essence of Ego and its play in Brahman is
explained very clearly. Vasistha says that one must let go of ego 100% for a direct connection with the infinite.

Greatest Book on Earth of All times..

This book is not for everyone. It is written about The Consciousness of the Self, (Brahman) from the awareness of Brahman.
Without the conscious awareness of the Self the intellect will have a difficult time translating the essence of the material, some may find it boring and even intellectual.
From the mind the self cannot be interpreted.
IF you have taken the time to find the reality that underlies all things and have stabilized that experience, Vasisthas' Yoga will help you make the next step to let go of the dream.
Total surrender and the willingness to give up your individuality combined with the wisdom that is given from the Teacher that is "That" as Vasistha has directed Rama in the book through the discipline of one pointed Focus, will help to enliven the "Transcendental State" if it has already been stabilized in Union.
In reality a book is a book and falls far short of giving anyone anything other than just expanding the intellect. This book I find gives one who is ready for more than just knowledge and edge, a tool to crack the door a little more.

I bought the set of eight volumes when I was in school. I went to a Ramakrishna Mission School and may be that's why I collected those books. Those days, lectures on teachings of Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda were more a matter of routine. I had not read the books then. It took another ten years for me to return to these books and I am glad that I did so. I keep them with me and with every passing year in my life they have new messages and I rediscover them. It is a matter of personal experience what I gained from those pages. It left me more rested and confident to face life as it comes.

It's difficult for me to put in words what the book did for me and I think, it would be irrelevant for another reader. Best way is to find it out for oneself. The complete works may be viewed from innumerable perspectives. It is a book on eastern religion, Hinduism and Vedanta and at the same time it is a book on personal spirituality and psychology that can help anyone to find renewed meaning in life. I would recommend any reader to approach the book with no expectations. Let it be a journey of deep fulfillment as it suits you.

I was 7 years old when I heard the name Swami Vivekananda for the first time. And I never took interest to know more of him for the next 15 years. When I was 21, I started with a small book as big as a pocket telephone diary. It contained the important extracts from the The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. And then I decided to buy this book. And I came to know that it is 8 volumes. I read all of them. This man has an answer for everything. The whole book is full of answers to any difficult question that exists in the world. I believe that, any problem that has no solution, makes us weak and discouraged. We become strong the moment we find the solution. I found many answers in this book and I am sure any person who reads this book will find his answers. And the consequence, we become strong. We become happy. I have been refering to this book for 7 years now. I could not find a better book. More than the Holy Bible, or the Bagavad Gita, this book seems to be more useful. The concept of Universal Religion is a terrific idea. The idea of religion, its real meaning, its need. The idea of God, the idea of work, everything is clearly explained. Finally, you will know the purpose of life on this earth: Knowledge!! Do you have any question that starts with 'Why', you'll find the answer in this book.

My boyfriend introduced me to Advaita and Visishtadvaita concepts of Vedantic thought. Since then I have less and less time for my boyfriend! This series shall wet your feet thoroughly in the cosmic waters of universal philosophy.

This thoughtful and profound rendering of a foremost ancient classic of Divine Mother must be approached with reverence, and indeed, love. Swami Satyananda gives any person with sincere love of God and devotion to spiritual practice a true gift--a way to the heart of God, and therefore to the heart of our true selves.

First of all, Swami Satyandanda's deep grasp of Sanskrit, and his wonderful translations, (with clear and useful transliterations in the roman script), gives us in the West a greater clarity of the path of the Divine Mother than perhaps we have ever had. Our task, then, with our teachers, is pure devotion to the deeper meaning of the text of Chandi Path: discovered through reading of the text, through chanting the transliteration (and one day, perhaps, the actual Sanskrit), and through study and meditation upon text and meaning.

The grace comes through these actions of pure devotion to this practice: an awakening and surrender to the Divine and to balance in our lives, destruction of the illusions of ego and attachments in this world, uncovering of Truth or True Knowledge, stillness beyond thought, and union with the Divine. She becomes our very own. This is the path of Divine Mother, ancient and eternal. The Chandi Path is the story of Divine Mother, and that then becomes our own story.

Deep thanks to Swami Satyananda for this knowledgeable and loving gift, definitely of work of pure devotion in itself.

The Chandi Path shows us how to be close to God by cultivating a relationship with the Divine Mother Chandi and purifying ourselves to be able to see and accept Her infinite blessings. Ancient Rishis chanted the mantras of the Chandi and gained self realization, and it will work for us as well if we are sincere in our desire to know and love the Goddess. Swami Satyananda says the one who understands it completely is Lord Shiva. When we regularly recite the mantras with devotion we become Shiva--"the consciousness of infinte goodness". It is truly a divine gift to have a translation of this timeless scripture. The more you study the English and practice the Sanskrit mantras the more you become absorbed in the bliss of Divine Union. You begin to fall in love with that which has the capacity to offer unconditional love in return. In this world of chaos and darkness we can call on our Mother and she will come and carry us towards the light. The Chandi Path is like the arms of Divine Mother. I am sincere in my desire to know and love God and from my own experience I would be lost without the Chandi Path. Swamiji has also translated many other books and Pujas to help us along our path. Find what touches your heart and go all out for God. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.

Chandi is the Goddess who tears apart thought. When the thoughts are gone, the mind is still and in that we experience our true state of being as perfect bliss. The Chandi Path (also called the Durga Saptashati and the Devi Mahatmyam) is more than a translation of an ancient Hindu text, it is the story of our lives. From an intellectual standpoint, it is a practicle guide to spritual transformation as we can offer all our diffuculties to her and one by one, she will take care of them all. She brings Too Much and Too Little into balance, cuts down the generals in the great army of the Ego, destroys Self-Conceit and Self-Deprication, makes us free from desire and offers endless blessings of pure love. She is Durga, Kali, Saraswati, Lakshmi and all the Goddesses waging a battle against the forces of duality to bring us into union with the divine. Along with the Sanskrit mantras, Swami Satyananda offeres a beautiful English translation of this magical scripture. To even be inspired to study the Chandi Path is the blessing of the Goddess.

Vivekananda's book, Raja-Yoga, is one of the best books on the subject; beautifully written in a clear and concise manner. Although, like most books on Raja-yoga which discuss philosophies as well as practices, what is most beneficial about Vivekanada's book is his emphasis upon the effects of Raja-Ygoa. According to Vivekananda, when one masters the powers of concentration, then reads the experiences of the enlightened, then one will then take on that same state. When one knows in which direction to go, and can predict the state one is about to enter, then one has mastered concentration.

I read this book about 2 years ago. it was my first introduction to any aspect of this religion or any yoga.. I read this in a time of my life where I was confused, I had experienced things that would be considered "religious experiences" but I had no path to follow, no light in my road. I was a confused young man. I picked up this book in my school library for no reason whatsoever really.. I think the reason today was destiny/fate/ whatever you want to call it. this book gave me direction. I can't ever say how much I love Swami Vivekananda, his writing style appeals to the open minded scientist. And puts Science into religion and as Einstein said, "Religion without science is blind." and that it is. this is about as scientific as religion will ever be presented. I don't know what this book can do for you, all I can say again what it did for me. The teachings gave purpose to a my life they helped make me a man. My goal in life now is to follow the path to enlightenment. Thus, this books teachings helped show me the only thing I could be truly happy and satisified with myself doing.

This book is very well written. This book might be little difficult for people who are not too familiar with Dharma and Vedic teachings. Over all the book is very well written and very informative. This book shows you what a human can achieve if he/she sets their mind to it. The book doesnt tell you to follow blindly but actually tells you to expierence it out yourself.

This is definately a highly recommended book

This book is one of the most well written books I have read in a while. It covers the entire life of Lord Krishna in one place while also covering all relevant aspects of the War (the precursors leading upto the war, the conduct of the war and the aftermath of the war). The information contained in the book is nothing new, (people familiar with the great epic of Mahabharata already know the plot, the principal characters, etc.). Yet, when I was reading it, as I finished each chapter, I could not wait to read the next chapter (knowing very well what would happen next). That is how powerfully this book is written.
However I give it 4 and not 5 stars because, the final few chapters are more abstract (indeed as can be expected of any profound discourse material, as the chapters contain) and do not maintain the same tempo or grip as the earlier chapters do.
Familiarity with (at least) the principal names and characters of the Mahabharata is highly recommended before reading this book.

It irks me to have to give any book about lord Krishna just 4 stars. Especially when written with such skill and poetry by a saintly and wonderful devotee. I am forced to drop a star simply because the author has fallen into the Diety is utimately formless trap. Yet again another aspirant who hasn't yet grasped the unbecomming nature of absolute reality. (Ie does not change, devolve or evolve). God in the supernal realms did not become form, nor were the eternal realms constructed or created.

Nevermind I am sure that the Author Devi Vanamali will achieve the highest spiritual heights, her devotion to the wonderful primal Lord Krishna is clear and unmistakable. There can be no fault in such a person, they are already liberated.

This is an excellent book and I recommend it to others. It's written in a very emotional way, which reflects the love the author has for Bhagavan Krishna. It also has a good glossary in the back for those who are unfamiliar with specific terms.
I'm a strong devotee of Bhagavan Krishna and I adhere to His words in the Bhagavad Gita. I wanted to find out about His life and this book has given me an excellent background.

This book is a potential life changer and will make you rethink the way you think about health. Breath as discussed by Rama and the others is revealed as THE center to all life, our life, Yoga, and to how "happy' we are in both body and mind (i.e., OM). What's great is getting a nice Western emprical discussion of the physiology of breath, and then getting Rama's discussion of breath in the context of Yoga. Another cool part is understanding how important the nose is to breathing and health. A very practical and fascinating book and a great beginning to Yoga.

The book is excellent and a good introduction to the basis beginning of Yoga. The current offering of the book is a very bad copy of the original book and is marginal for reading. The original book was obviously copied on a copier and the pages inserted into a soft cover book. Do not buy this book.

I am a lifelong yogini and yoga teacher and originally bought this book when it was first published. In the years since have probably bought at least a half dozen other books on this topic and can honestly say this one is still the best. I recommend it regularly to my students because it's both jam-packed with information and completely accessible and direct in its approach. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

This is a good book based on a totally erroneous premise, that Shree Maa is a "saint" or an "enlightened" being and that the path she followed will bring you to enlightenment. This is nothing more than propoganda for the dogma of the salvationistic ascetic world hating Hindu Caste System. If you want to end up a skinny celibate like the author and the so-called enligntened Shree Maa, this is a great path to follow. If you're actually interested in your own enlightenment, and creating anything wonderful in your life, this path is total trash.

A very well written account of an indian she saint which arrived at deepest spritual insights and here american friend, who seems to have no problems with year long spritual practices. Both lived the extreme, but in the most noble way. The book inspired me in my own spiritual practice and was a great reading.

This is a very special story about one of India's most beloved saints, written by an American who fully adopted a Hindu path and became Shree Maa's close partner as a spiritual teacher and leader of worship. Written with great respect, Swami Satyananda tells the many stories that have grown up around this Indian incarnation of the Mother Goddess and her complete devotion to God, which she lives out in both deeply joyful worship and in the exquisite care of those around her. Woven into the warmly good humored and inspiring stories are quiet lessons in Hindu philosophy and religion, reflecting Shree Maa's graceful blending of the various Hindu traditions into Oneness. Recollections by American devotees and delightful Sadhu teaching stories complete the volume. A joy of a book! -A.M.

NAPRA Review Vol. 9, No.5