According to ancient Hindi scriptures, the Katha Upanishad, and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Kriya Yoga was revealed by Adinath to Vivaswat, the first King of the solar dynasty in ancient India. Vivaswat taught it to Vaivashvat Manu, and Manu in turn taught it to Ikshwaku Ram, and the teaching continued to be passed down through the ages. Later, it was taught by Lord Krishna to Arjuna and many others.

Then, many centuries later Mahavatar Babaji taught Yogiraj Lahiri Mahasaya Baba who passed it on to his disciples. It is a system of Indian yoga that was brought to the west in the middle of the twentieth century by Paramahansa Yogananda. The system consists of a number of yogic techniques that purportedly hasten the practitioner's spiritual evolution and help to bring about a profound state of tranquility and god-communion within one's own self.

As said above, Kriya Yoga goes back to some of the oldest vedic scriptures. It is a form of Raja Yoga, as laid out in Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, and is mentioned there: tapah-svadhyaya-ishvara-pranidhana kriya-yoga, which means 'asceticism, study of scriptures, and surrender to god, that is kriya yoga, the practicable yoga'. Since these

According to Paramahansa Yogananda's , kriya yoga was well-known in ancient India, but was eventually lost. In 1861 however, the book continues, the immortal yogi Mahavatar Babaji initiated Lahiri Mahasaya into Kriya Yoga. Lahiri Mahasaya then revived the practice, and it soon spread throughout India. Paramhansa Yogananda, a disciple of Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri who was himself a disciple of Lahiri Mahasaya, then brought Kriya Yoga to the United States and Europe during the 20th century. Since that time it has spread throughout the world through various lineages, most of which claim descent from Lahiri Mahasaya.

Numerous modern accounts including Romila Butalia's In the Presence of the Masters, Mahayogi Pilot Baba's Himalaya Unveils Mystery, and Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath's Wings to Freedom: Mystic Revelations from Babaji and the Himalayan Yogis, to name a few, point out that this science has been practiced, and held secret by the Nath Mahapurushas (Lords of Irrandiant Splendor) and yogis of the Himalayas since time immemorial, despite its being lost to the masses at various times throughout human history. These lofty souls can still be found in the hidden caves near BadriNath, KedarNath and throughout, lost in their thousand year long samadhis of God-communion. In their estimation, Mahavatar Babaji, Shiv-GorakshaNath Babaji, and AdiNath are

Lineages

There are numerous organizations that teach Kriya Yoga throughout the world.

Western organizations that have their origin in the seminal teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda include:

• Self-Realization Fellowship, founded by Yogananda;
• Kriya Yoga Institute, founded by Paramahamsa Hariharananda (a direct disciple of Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri);
• Ananda, founded by Swami Kriyananda (a direct disciple of Yogananda);
• Center for Spiritual Awareness, founded by Roy Eugene Davis (also a direct disciple of Yogananda);
• Song of the Morning Retreat Center, founded by one of Yogananda's chief disciples, Yogacharya Oliver Black.

Modern Indian Gurus and lineages that teach Kriya Yoga throughout the world:

• Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath, a living Himalayan Siddha Master in the modern age, claims to travel the world at the behest of Mahavatar Babaji, initiating sincere seekers into Babaji's Kriya Yoga and Hamsa Yoga, The Way of the White Swan. He can be reached through his organization Hamsa Yoga Sangh.
• Marshall Govindan, a Westerner, also claims to have a form of Kriya that came directly from Babaji, through his Indian Guru Yogi S.A.A. Ramaiah
• The lineage of Lahiri Mahasaya also continues in the person of , the great-grandson of Lahiri Mahasaya. He is based in Benares but travels around the world, initiatiing people into the yogic science of Kriya.

All these Kriya Yoga lineages claim to have the same root within the guru param-para; i.e. Mahavatar Babaji, who gave the technique to Lahiri Mahasaya through personal initiation and instruction to teach Kriya Yoga to other "worthy" humans. Lahiri Mahasaya's most famous disciples were Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri, Swami Pranabananda, Swami Kebalananda, Swami Keshabananda, Bhupendranath Sanyal (Sanyal Mahasaya), and Paramahamsa Hariharananda (among many others).

• Includes information about learning Kriya from Ananda, and testimonials from Kriya Yogis

• is an online Kriya Yoga Publication that is published quarterly by the which was founded by Paramahamsa Hariharananda.

• - a rich online compilation of original texts about Kriya Yoga, translated into English, and written by various disciples of Lahiri Mahasaya, 'The Fountainhead of Kriya Yoga'

• If Earth Peace is to Herald the Dawn of the New Age, Let us All Realize that: Humanity is one's only religion, Breath one's only prayer, and Consciousness one's only God.

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