Sandra Kumari de Sachy - A Vision of Peace: The Interfaith Teachings of Sri Swami Satchidananda

a Vision of Peace

the Interfaith Teachings of
Sri Swami Satchidananda

Rev. Sandra Kumari de Sachy, Ed.D.

Other Titles Available from Integral YogaPublications

Books by Sri Swami Satchidananda

Adversity and Awakening

Beyond Words

The Breath of Life

Free Yourself

Gems of Wisdom

The Golden Present

The Healthy Vegetarian

Heaven on Earth

Integral Yoga Hatha

Kailash Journal

The Key to Peace

To Know Your Self

The Living Gita

Meditation

Overcoming Obstacles

Pathways to Peace

Satchidananda Sutras

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

Books from Other Authors

Awakening: Aspiration to Realization through Integral Yoga by Swami Karunananda

Bound to Be Free: The Liberating Power of Prison Yoga by Rev. Sandra Kumari de Sachy, Ed.D.

Enlightening Tales As Told By Sri Swami Satchidananda edited by Swami Karunananda

Hatha Yoga for Kids by Kids by the Children of Yogaville

Inside the Yoga Sutras by Rev. Jaganath Carrera

Lotus Prayer Book edited by Swami Karunananda

Sparkling Together by Jyoti Ma

ISBN 978-1-938477-18-8

Copyright 2014 by Satchidananda AshramYogaville Inc.

All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher or the copyright holder.

Printed in the United States of America on recycled text stock.

Integral Yoga Publications, Satchidananda AshramYogaville, Inc.
108 Yogaville Way, Buckingham, Virginia, USA 23921
www.yogaville.org

the Interfaith Teachings of
Sri Swami Satchidananda

Rev. Sandra Kumari de Sachy, Ed.D.

Buckingham, Virginia

This book is dedicated to Sri Swami Satchidananda
on the 100th anniversary of his birth.
The yogic teachings and interfaith service
of Swami Satchidananda, a beloved spiritual teacher,
have inspired and continue to inspire people
from all over the world, individuals from diverse backgrounds
and faiths who seek to experience inner peace
and to share that peace with one and all.

I take this opportunity to express my heartfelt appreciation for the talented people whose generous support and effort have ensured that this project would be the joyful undertaking that it has been: Peter Petronio, our brilliant cover designer; Coleen Vimala Patterson, a talented graphic designer; Judith Prabhavati Sonntag, a superb copyeditor; Rev. Prem Anjali, a gifted production manager; Snehan de Sachy, a willing reader and perceptive critic; Swami Hamsananda, Marla Bhagavati Moffet, Karen Karuna Kreps, Becky Pushpa Ryan, our keen-eyed proofreaders.

We would also like to express our deep gratitude to Shankara Bookoff and Reverend Sivani Alderman for their generous support of the Global Garland projects in honor of the 100th Birth Anniversary of His Holiness Sri Swami Satchidananda.

In remembrance of Eric Michael Margid,
beloved son, delightful friend, superb humorist,
and amazing repository of knowledge.

Raghu Pati Raghav Raja Ram
Patit Pavan Sita Ram
Ishwar Allah tere Naam
Sabko Sanmati De Bhagwaan

King Ram! Lord of the Raghus!
Purifier of the fallen, O Sita, O Ram!
Your names are Ishwar and Allah!
Give us all your blessings, O Bhagavan!

~ A favorite of Mahatma Gandhi,
this Hindu hymn expresses the concept that God is One,
whom people call by different names.

The goal of Integral Yoga, and the birthright of every individual, is to realize the spiritual unity behind all the diversities in the entire creation and to live harmoniously as members of one universal family.

This goal is achieved by maintaining our natural condition of a body of optimum health and strength, senses under total control, a mind well disciplined, clear and calm, an intellect as sharp as a razor, a will as strong and pliable as steel, a heart full of unconditional love and compassion, an ego as pure as a crystal, and a life filled with Supreme Peace and Joy.

~ Sri Swami Satchidananda

Sri Swami Satchidananda dedicated himself to serving humanity. Tirelessly, with unconditional love and by personal example, he taught thousands of people around the world how to use the teachings and practices of Yoga to develop physical and emotional well-being, how to achieve the yogic goal of living a peaceful, easeful, and useful life, and how to experience unity in diversity.

He was a visionary who envisioned a peaceful planet, a heaven on Earth. A guide to those who came to him seeking the way to inner peace, he also served as a dynamic advocate for the advancement of world peace, not in the least through his multifaceted involvement in the interfaith movement. An interfaith pioneer, he participated in and organized interfaith gatherings and seminars; he created innovative interfaith programs, retreats, and worship services; and he founded communities where people from all backgrounds and diverse traditions could come to live and serve together. With the creation of the Light Of Truth Universal Shrine (LOTUS), he also realized his dream of a place where people of all backgrounds and traditions could meditate or pray together. In that sacred temple, countless visitors have experienced, firsthand, the principle that truth is one, paths are many.

When he arrived in the United States in 1966 as a visitor and shortly thereafter as a permanent resident, Swami Satchidananda recognized that the time had come for the East to progress materially and for the West to advance spiritually. Interacting with Western students who were eager to learn the ancient wisdom of the East, he foresaw that humanity was poised to integrate the advantages that both worlds had to offer. He also perceived that after thousands of years of human conflictoften perpetrated in the name of religionmany people, including young people, were traumatized by the pattern of senseless death and destruction that had characterized the human condition for centuries. They longed for peace, harmony, and unity.

Swami Satchidananda observed, too, that whether they identified with an established religion or whether their spiritual impulse took them on a different path, the students who sought his guidance sensed that it was time to let go of the egocentric fallacy, the delusion that we are separate, unconnected beings. They came to discover their innermost selves; they came with the sincere desire to transform themselves, to refine themselves, to grow spiritually, and, ultimately, to gain and sustain the knowledge that would lead them to experience the unity that underlies the diversity of creation.