The Mystic of a Book Long Forgotten

A book that has been on my TBR list since I was 7-8 years old. This book was prominently displayed on a shelf for years in my household. The face on the cover page would make me pause in contemplation. Is he really a Yogi? My younger self only knew Yogi as a practitioner of Yoga. What could he write in a such a voluminous book? But, I did realise that the topic was far too advanced for my tiny self. Years passed and the yearning to read this book stayed with me.

After starting college, I realized that I do not have a penchant for reading non-fiction book. The likes of Sherlock Holmes, Sidney Sheldon and Harry Potter enthralled me. I put this book on the back burner for an indefinite time. Later, I joined a book club and a library. What a world of opportunities it opened for me! I started to read beyond my comfort zone. I got access to books beyond the free PDFs. At that point, I still couldn’t develop the skill to sit through a non-fiction book. I would get stuck at 30-70% completion and then forget about it. I got pulled into new genres of young adult, romantasy books and historical fictions.

Last year, after starting my MBA, it required me to read a lot of non-fictitous content. Slowly, I got over my inertia. Even today, I am not as fast a reader as compared to reading fictions. However, I do not shy away from attempting to read non-fictions. I gave in to my long waitlist of getting a Kindle. I was able to use the Kindle for reading my coursework, fiction and non-fiction. It was a yet another new world with the lightweight device, anytime, anywhere, anything to read.

Years later, I came across the book title “Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramhansa Yogananda again. This time on my Kindle instead of my home shelf. With my newfound interest to read non-fiction and the ease of my Kindle device, I decided to give it a shot. I started the book more than 3 months ago now. The progress was painstakingly slow. Many a day, the book was de-prioritized for fiction. Many a day the Kindle lay forgotten under a pile of course books and papers. Yet I did not feel the need to forget the book completely. Even if it was a mere 5 pages a day, I did read it. Usually, before bedtime.

And this journey of reading has been in a way perfect. I started the book when my anxiety was peaking. The book helped me get back into meditation. Having spent a few months in Calcutta, the locations mentioned in the book no longer felt distant but of somewhat familiarity. I could envision young Yogananda walking through the streets of Calcutta. I felt more connected to the book through my own experiences of world travel and my interest in Yoga and meditation. While travelling is a relatively new word in the dictionary of my life, Yoga and meditation have been a part of me since 1st grade. I was innately involved in activities that centered on these themes.

The book was an anchor as I navigated through the troubled waters of my mind. It provided me with clarity on things which I questioned for long. It also raised questions that for long I had avoided to poke at. It has also inspired me to read more on Kriya Yoga. I recently got the opportunity to visit the Dakshineshwar Kali temple. It felt surreal to walk the same grounds as the guru who had a vision of the Goddess Kali herself. As I have couple of more months in Calcutta, a visit to the places that the book mentioned would be a delightful. I am glad that today I have been able to close this book. Someday, I will find its physical copy and maybe read it again. For now, I leave you with this thought from the book.

“Seeds of past karma cannot germinate if they are roasted in the divine fires of wisdom.”