Lahiri Mahasaya
Template:Short description Template:EngvarB Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox Hindu leader Shyama Charan Lahiri (30 September 1828 – 26 September 1895), best known as Lahiri Mahasaya, was an Indian yogi and guru who founded the Kriya Yoga school. He was a disciple of Mahavatar Babaji.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref> Lahiri Mahasaya's life was described in Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi as a demonstration of the spiritual attainment that could be achieved by a householder "living fully in the world".<ref name=":1" /> A part of Lahiri Mahasaya's face is pictured on the cover of The Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Biography
Lahiri Mahasaya was born to Bengali Brahmin parents Gourmohan and Muktakeshi Lahiri on 30 September 1828, in the village of Ghurni, Dist. Nadia, West Bengal, India, according to Yogananda.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 1832, a flood killed his mother and destroyed their home, after which his family moved to Varanasi, where he received education in philosophy, Sanskrit, and English. His father arranged for him to be married to Kashimoni in 1846, and he taught her how to read. In 1851, he began working as a clerk and tutor.<ref name=":0" />
On 27 November 1861, Lahiri Mahasaya met Babaji in the mountains near Ranikhet.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">Template:Cite book</ref> Babaji taught him a meditation technique called Kriya Yoga,<ref name=":1">Template:Cite book</ref> which Lahiri Mahasaya then taught to many others, including his wife,<ref name=":0" /> Paramahansa Yogananda's parents, and Sri Yukteswar Giri, guru of Yogananda.<ref name=":1" />
Hundreds of people sought initiation from Lahiri Mahasaya, who would often gather his devotees for discussions on the Bhagavad Gita. Lahiri Mahasaya preferred to teach in secret and without forming an organisation, but he eventually allowed his disciples to form the Arya Mission in Kolkata to spread his teachings. Some disciples copied down his talks and compiled them into books. He died in 1895.<ref name=":2" />
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- 1828 births
- 1895 deaths
- 19th-century Bengali people
- Bengali Hindus
- Bengali Hindu saints
- Indian Hindu religious leaders
- 19th-century Hindu religious leaders
- Hindu ascetics
- Indian Hindu yogis
- Hindu mystics
- 19th-century Indian monks
- Indian Hindu monks
- Modern Indian yoga gurus
- Kriya yogis
- Paramahansa Yogananda
- People from Krishnagar
- Religious pluralism
- Scholars from Varanasi