How does a boy from a small town in Canada become a Guru?
For Ramakrishna Ananda, it began not with faith — but with much doubt.
As a young man, he questioned whether God existed at all. Yet that very doubt sparked a longing, a hunger to know. One day, a young chiropractor friend introduced him to yoga, teaching him a few simple postures and lending him Autobiography of a Yogi. The book opened a door to an unseen world — one filled with light, wisdom, and possibility. Meditation soon followed, and with it, a freedom and clarity he had never known.
That first glimpse of inner stillness became a turning point in his life.
In the decade that followed, he immersed himself in the world’s great spiritual traditions — the Eight Main Yogas, Sufism, Christian and Jewish mysticism, Zen, Theosophy, the Tao, and more. Each path revealed a facet of the same eternal truth: that behind all faiths lies the same divine presence, patiently waiting to be known.
Then, in 1966, during a time of deep gratitude, came the experience that changed everything — a moment of cosmic consciousness, or samadhi. He became aware of Spirit day and night. His awareness expanded into infinity. For three months he lived in unbroken ecstasy. Though the experience eventually faded, he knew Spirit as an experienceable reality.
Determined to recapture and live in that awareness once more, he intensified his yoga practice and entered solitude in the Sierra Nevada foothills — five months of silence, reflection, and devotion. There, spiritual awareness returned, filled him completely and never left. His teacher, Swami Kriyananda, told him, “You went into the forest a caterpillar. You come out of the forest as a butterfly.” It was then Ramakrishna Ananda began his life’s work — sharing yoga.
In 1970, following an inner call to go south of Los Angeles and share yoga, he founded the Yoga Center of California in Costa Mesa. It was an unlikely place and time for yoga — but he trusted in Spirit’s guidance. Baba Hari Dass affirmed his mission, saying, “You have come into this world to teach yoga and truth. You are a guru — a true guru.”
Soon after, another prominent yogi, Surath Chakravarty, confirmed this and shared with him the higher teachings of Sri Ramakrishna (1836-1886). He was given the name Ramakrishna Ananda by which thousands would come to know him.
For over 50 years, he has shared the higher teachings of yoga. He has focused on Sri Ramakrishna’s main teachings: that life’s true purpose is to know God, that all sincere paths lead to the Divine, and that there is no end to spiritual realization. His classes and retreats have transformed countless lives — dissolving confusion into clarity, loneliness into love, and turmoil into peace. And many of his students say they opened the door to lives of greater fulfillment.
In recent years, Ramakrishna Ananda has turned his focus to Yoga World, a platform created to bring the higher truths of yoga to people everywhere. His vision is simple yet profound: that each of us can help bring peace and spiritual upliftment to our families, communities, and world — by contacting our true self, finding peace within ourselves and realizing others as spiritual beings.
We ask you to commit two hours a week to selfless service. This service can be anything you choose ranging from helping a family member or neighbor to volunteering at a nonprofit organization.
This commitment is solely between you and your inner self.
NOTE: We will not share your information with third parties.
