Paramhansa Yogananda is on of those names which shiver you from the toe to head only by thinking! His life, his books and his teachings – all are the sources of immediate inspiration and a life-long impression if you are serious about your life. Without going into the details of his life (birth, events, death etc), we will directly focus on Paramhansa Yogananda’s author identity. Much has already been written about the life of this great sage, born in Gorakhpur, UP.

Out of the many books written by this saint, the major ones, which still cast a spell upon the readers, are Autobiography of a Yogi and The Bhagwad Gita. Autobiography of a Yogi has been the source of motivation and spirituality and a respite from the worldly pains for many a great person of the world! The list includes Steve Jobs as well who ‘downloaded the book on his i-pad’.

Autobiography of a Yogi, first published in 1946, was on the list of the major spiritual books of the twentieth century, which was out in 1999. This book has kept the author Yogananda among the most influential authors of India and that’s why we have decided to begin our literary journey with him only. Although the years after World War I were the years when authors have already started making money through their works, this author took on the writing for the purpose which it truly possesses since the beginning – to enlighten and educate others on a certain topic over which the author has a mastery. Yogananda has elucidated his journey as a beginner and then his marching towards becoming a spiritual learner and eventually becoming a ‘yogi’ in his work. In his other work, The Bhagwad Gita, the author has explained the philosophic knowledge in the words of Lord Krishna. He has wonderfully explained the much explained which makes his work stand apart from the rest. Paramhansa Yogananda has certainly left a legacy behind him to be followed by other authors from India who wish to make a ground in the spiritual writing.