Ananda is a worldwide movement based on universal spiritual teachings of East & West. It was founded in 1968 by Swami Kriyananda, who was a direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda, who came to show the same underlying truths between The Bible and The Bhagavad Gita. 

Ananda is located and well established in many countries, but has yoga communities dedicated to sharing the teachings of Yogananda in Assisi, Italy and Nevada City, California, USA. 

Ananda in Australia is officially recognised as a not-for-profit charitable organisation of religious nature. Its official name in the country is Ananda Sangha Australia Limited. 

Ananda shares yoga, meditation, and a sense of spiritual community both in person and online. 

Paramhansa Yogananda defined self-realisation as:

"...the knowing in all parts of body, mind, and soul, that you are now in possession of the kingdom of God; that you do not have to pray that it come to you; that God's omnipresence is your omnipresence; and that all that you need to do is improve your knowing.”

Learn more about Yogananda's book, Autobiography of a Yogi.

Yoga simply means divine union. It is not just asana poses that we may recognise from social media or TV, but rather it is a state of mind in which we unite our soul with Divinity or Spirit.

Paramhansa Yogananda called this moment of unity self-realisation. That state of union is true yoga or Ashtanga Yoga. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali that describe Ashtanga Yoga address many aspects of meditation and spiritual growth. 

Ananda studies such major yoga  works including Patanjali & The Yoga Sutras, along with The Bhagavad Gita, and Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi.

"Those who join us on this path of Self-realization are not connected to some printing press, but to a line of God-realized masters. God Himself, through them, overshadows this work. All who follow it sincerely, with devotion, will be brought to Him."
—Paramhansa Yogananda

Ananda was founded in 1969 by Swami Kriyananda, a direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda. Paramhansa Yogananda was the last in a line of Self-realised gurus starting with Jesus Christ. Before his passing, Swami Kriyananda named Nayaswami Jyotish as his spiritual successor. He and his wife Devi serve as Ananda’s spiritual directors today.

Ananda's Line of Gurus:

Paramhansa Yogananda (1893 –1952)

• Yogananda was the first great master of yoga to make his home in the West, coming to the U.S. from India in 1920 and living there until his passing. Ananda is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda and his line of gurus.

Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri (1855 - 1936)

• Swami Sri Yukteswar is the guru of Paramhansa Yogananda and a disciple of Lahiri Mahasaya. He met Babaji in 1894, who told him that one of his disciples was to be sent to America to share the teachings of yoga with the West. He did not have many disciples as he was known for his strictness, however, he had two ashrams, one in Serampore and one in Puri. He is author of The Holy Science. 

Lahiri Mahasaya (1828 - 1895)

• Lahiri Mahasaya is a disciple of Mahavatar Babaji and known for making Kriya Yoga widely available. He met Babaji in 1861 when he was 33 and received the technique of Kriya Yoga from him. He wished to become a monk, but he was married with children and Babaji told him that his mission was to be a householder yogi. He had many disciples, including Swami Sri Yukteswar and the parents of Paramhansa Yogananda.

Mahavatar Babaji 

• Mahavatar Babaji is the guru of Lahiri Mahasaya and the one who re-introduced the ancient science of Kriya Yoga, which was lost during the Dark Ages. Paramhansa Yogananda’s Autobiography of a Yogi first introduced the world to this mysterious master. Still alive and residing in the Himalayas for centuries or even thousands of years, Babaji has been a guide for great spiritual teachers carry out their special dispensations. For this reason he is called a mahavatar, a great incarnation of God. 

Jesus Christ & Krishna

• "In the divine plan, Jesus Christ was responsible for the evolution of the West, and Krishna (later, Babaji), for that of the East. It was intended that the West specialize in developing objectively, through logic and reason, and that the East specialize in inner, intuitive development. But in the cosmic plan the time has come to combine these two lines into one. East and West must unite."
  —Paramhansa Yogananda, Autobiography of a Yogi
  
  The presence of Jesus on the altar is more than just a courtesy to Westerners. Yogananda said it was Jesus himself who appeared to Babaji and asked him to send this teaching of Self-realisation to the West. At that meeting, Yogananda tells us, Jesus said, “My followers have forgotten the art of divine inner communion. Outwardly they do good works, but they have lost sight of the most important of my teachings, ‘to seek the kingdom of God first.’”

Most of our offerings are online as well as in person when possible. We have smaller meditation groups and devotees across Australia, including Brisbane, Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, and Canberra. We are here to connect you with other devotees and support you on your journey. When you connect on our group on WhatsApp, we can offer to connect you with others in your area.

This is a great question. There are many great books explaining the formation of Ananda, but essentially, SRF, wanted to continue with a more monastic community built around the origins of the early 1900s when Yogananda first established the SRF communities. In the few years before his passing, Yogananda expressed his vision for the necessity of world brotherhood communities where people could build energy around high thinking and simple living, whilst protecting themselves from the coming predicted catastrophes of the world in this new Yuga. We encourage you to reach more if you are interested, here.