“Is there a power that can reveal hidden veins of riches and uncover treasures of which we have never dreamed? Is there a force that we can call upon to give health, happiness, and spiritual enlightenment? The saints and sages of India have taught that there is such a power. They uncovered truths that we have overlooked or forgotten, and these truths will work for you, too, if you give them a fair trial.
Your success in life does not depend only upon natural ability; it also depends upon your determination to grasp the opportunity that is presented to you. Opportunities in life come by creation, not by chance. They are created by you, either now or at some time in the recent or distant past. Since you have earned them, use them to the best advantage. You can make your life much more worthwhile, now and in the future, if you focus your attention on your immediate needs and use all your abilities and available information to fulfill them. You must develop all the powers God gave you, the unlimited powers that come from the innermost forces of your being.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda from How to Be a Success
This is our second Note on one of Yogananda’s books.
As I mentioned in our first Note on a little booklet called The Law of Success, I bought a bunch of books by Yogananda after I read a line from one of Michael Singer’s books thanking him for his “unending flow of inspiration.”
This book is a collection of articles that appeared in Yogananda’s magazines in the 1920s and 1930s. It repeats some of the wisdom covered in The Law of Success, so if you want to get one book from Yogananda on success, this is the one to get. (Get a copy here.)
As I read it, I was struck by the parallel practical wisdom between Yogananda and other teachers of his era. In many ways, he reminds me of an Indian, often more spiritual version of old-school Western teachers like Orison Swett Marden, James Allen, Ernest Holmes, Dale Carnegie, and Napoleon Hill.
Yogananda arrived in the United States in 1920 at the age of 27. It’s fascinating to see him bring his ideas from the East into our culture in the West.
To put it in perspective, Orison Swett Marden created Success magazine in 1891, James Allen published As a Man Thinketh in 1903, Ernest Holmes created Science of Mind magazine (and churches) in 1927, Dale Carnegie wrote How to Win Friends and Influence People in 1936, and Napoleon Hill wrote Think and Grow Rich in 1937.
If you’re interested in seeing what a yogi who inspired Steve Jobs has to say about success, I think you might enjoy the book as much as I did. It’s packed with Big Ideas and I’m excited to share some of my favorites, so let’s jump straight in!
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