Kriya Yoga is an ancient spiritual science that was revived in the modern age by Lahiri Mahasaya in 1861 after his initiation by the mysterious Himalayan master Mahavatar Babaji.
This sacred technique was said to have been practiced in earlier ages by great sages like Krishna, Patanjali, and even spiritual figures beyond Indian tradition. Babaji instructed Lahiri Mahasaya to bring this practice to the world, emphasizing its power to accelerate spiritual evolution through control of breath and energy within the spine.
From Lahiri Mahasaya, the tradition was passed to Sri Yukteswar Giri and later to Paramahansa Yogananda, who introduced Kriya Yoga to the West in 1920. Yogananda’s book, Autobiography of a Yogi, became a spiritual classic and brought worldwide recognition to the Kriya path. Yogananda maintained that this technique was not newly invented but rediscovered after being lost in time.
The lineage continues through disciples of Sri Yukteswar such as Satyananda Giri and Hariharananda Giri, and organizations like Self-Realization Fellowship and the Kriya Yoga Institute carry on the transmission today. Despite its global spread, the essence of Kriya Yoga remains rooted in direct initiation from teacher to student, preserving the sanctity of the ancient Guru-disciple tradition.