Saffron-robed monks and long-haired gurus have become familiar characters on the American popular culture scene. Jane Iwamura examines the contemporary fascination with Eastern spirituality and provides a cultural history of the representation of Asian religions in American mass media. Encounters with monks, gurus, bhikkhus, sages, sifus, healers, and masters from a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds and religious traditions provided initial engagements with Asian spiritual traditions. Virtual Orientalism shows the evolution of these interactions, from direct engagements with specific individuals to mediated relations with a conventionalized icon: the Oriental Monk. Visually and psychically compelling, the Oriental Monk becomes for Americans a ''figure of translation''--a convenient symbol for alternative spiritualities and modes of being. Through the figure of the solitary Monk, who generously and purposefully shares his wisdom with the West, Asian religiosity is made manageable-psychologically, socially, and politically--for popular culture consumption. Iwamura's insightful study shows that though popular engagement with Asian religions in the United States has increased, the fact that much of this has taken virtual form makes stereotypical constructions of "the spiritual East" obdurate and especially difficult to challenge.

Born in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, on January the 5th, 1893, Sri Sri Paramahansa Yogananda devoted his life to helping people of all races and creeds to realize and express more fully in their lives the beauty, nobility and true divinity of the human spirit. After graduating from Calcutta University in 1915, Sri Yogananda was initiated into "sannyas" by his guru Sri Sri Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri. Sri Yukteswar had foretold that his life's mission was to spread throughout the world India's ancient meditation technique of "Kriya Yoga". Sri Yogananda accepted an invitation in 1920 to serve as India's delegate to an International Congress of Religious Liberals in Boston, USA. Paramahansa Yoganda founded Yogoda Satsanga Society of India/Self-Realization Fellowship as the channel for the dissemination of his teachings. Through his writings and extensive lecture tours in India, America and Europe he introduced thousands of truth-seekers to the ancient science and philosophy of yoga and its universally applicable methods of meditation. Paramahansaji entered "mahasamadhi" on March the 7th, 1952 in Los Angeles. This autobiography offers a look at the ultimate mysteries of human existence and a portrait of one of the great spiritual figures of the 20th century.

An ancient conversation for a modern audience - anyone who has ever asked 'what is the purpose of life? or 'who am I?' will find something in this book. The Bhagavad Gita has been around a long time, but remains little known outside India. This edition sets out to change that. The ancient Gita is a world text dealing with the mysteries of life. At its heart is a conversation between the soul and God. Ranchor Prime's version adopts a non-sectarian approach, making the Gita relevant to those of all religions or none, and emphasising the link between religion and self-development. It is distinguished by its easy accessibility. His section-by-section commentary opens the text to the spiritual seeker. He never loses sight of the audience for his book, and that he wants his readers to understand the Gita in a personal way.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

An ancient conversation for a modern audience - anyone who has ever asked 'what is the purpose of life? or 'who am I?' will find something in this book. The Bhagavad Gita has been around a long time, but remains little known outside India. This edition sets out to change that. The ancient Gita is a world text dealing with the mysteries of life. At its heart is a conversation between the soul and God. Ranchor Prime's version adopts a non-sectarian approach, making the Gita relevant to those of all religions or none, and emphasising the link between religion and self-development. It is distinguished by its easy accessibility. His section-by-section commentary opens the text to the spiritual seeker. He never loses sight of the audience for his book, and that he wants his readers to understand the Gita in a personal way.

Relax your spirit and reconnect to your authentic voice. Discover the simple magic and mystery that awaits you when you express yourself within the safe space of a circle. In Creating Personal Mandalas, you'll see how this most basic of shapes can open your heart and always leads you back to your center. In each of the 10 chapters, you'll explore two soul-expressing mandala exercises, facts and history on featured symbols, insights for using the confines of the circle for personal and visual storytelling, as well as inspiring art and reflections from contributing guest artists. * 20 exploratory step-by-step mandala exercises--each an opportunity for new self-exploration, beginning with tips on establishing the right mindset * Interesting facts about symbols and sacred geometry, including suggestions for using them in your mandala projects * Practical art-making direction on the elements of design, watercolor tips, composition prompts, seeing color as a storytelling element and more Use Creating Personal Mandalas to start expressing your life stories with the infinite possibilities of the circle.