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Program

Sunday, August 4

 
10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. Video on the life of Paramahansa Yogananda Pasadena Ballroom

   
2:00 – 5:00 p.m. Open House Patio Area (4th level)

Prior to our opening event, an Open House will be held outdoors in the Bonaventure Hotel's patio area (fourth-level) and inside on the fifth-level atrium, in the Photo Gallery area, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m.
Monastics from our Guru's ashrams will be present to greet everyone, and refreshments will be served.		  
3:00 – 4:00 p.m. Newcomers' Welcome Catalina Ballroom

If you are attending Convocation for the first time, please join us at the Newcomers' Welcome Class in the Catalina Ballroom (third floor) at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday. This class will feature general information as well as suggestions about some of the activities available during Convocation week. Following the class you may join one of the walking tours of the Bonaventure Hotel (the tours are offered in Spanish, German, Italian, and Japanese, in addition to English).  
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. "Deepening Your Convocation Experience"  

Paramahansa Yogananda started the SRF Convocation to give each one of us an opportunity — a very special spiritual opportunity — to step aside from the material world and its thoughts, cares, and responsibilities, to focus just on God. This opening class will show how each of us can gather greater spiritual strength, sense of direction, soul-motivation and inspiration, divine joy and love, and a better understanding of how we can carry these qualities into our day-to-day world.  
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. Meditation   

   

Monday, August 5

Morning Pilgrimages to the Mother Center, Lake Shrine, and Hollywood Temple/Forest Lawn
8:00 – 11:00 a.m. Meditation with Kirtan (Devotional Chanting) California Ballroom

   
2:30 – 3:30 p.m. "Recharging the Body With Cosmic Energy"    

Learn to revitalize the body and mind with cosmic energy at will, to eliminate tension, and to purify and strengthen the body in order to more easily direct the energy inward during meditation to reach higher states of consciousness. Student or Kriyaban card needed for single event tickets.  
4:30 – 5:30 p.m. "Mastering the Techniques of Meditation – Part I"  

The art and science of Kriya Yoga meditation employs physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual methods to bestow an ever-deepening consciousness of infinite, unconditioned Bliss.

Participants in this two-part meditation class will receive step-by-step instruction in two of the essential techniques of the Kriya Yoga path: the Hong-Sau Technique of Concentration and the Aum Technique of Meditation. The class will show how these are integrally related to mastery of the highest Kriya technique (taught separately), and will benefit first-time students as well as longtime Kriya practitioners.

Using periods of guided meditation experience, the class will present a comprehensive overview of the essentials for creating a successful personal practice, including: physical techniques of relaxation and asana (right meditation posture), using the breath and life force (prana) in the most effective ways, intensifying the heart's devotion and divine yearning to lead the consciousness into ever deeper states of God-communion.

Student or Kriyaban card needed for single event tickets. 		 
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. "Meditation: The Soul-Satisfying Journey to Spiritual Freedom"  

This class will focus on the tremendous experiential value and power of meditation — which loosens the ties of physical, mental, and emotional limitations, and reveals within our own being a more satisfying life, a joy greater than anything we can experience through the senses. It will show how we can make our spiritual efforts at meditation more fruitful and more fulfilling, enabling us to carry the awareness of deep peace and happiness into our lives and all of our daily activities.

 
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. Meditation  

   

Tuesday, August 6

Morning Pilgrimages to the Mother Center, Lake Shrine, and Hollywood Temple/Forest Lawn
8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Meditation California Ballroom

   
10:30 – 11:30 a.m. Satsanga (Questions and Answers) California Ballroom

Convocation participants will have the opportunity to submit questions, in writing, about the Self-Realization Fellowship teachings, which will be answered at three satsangas, to be held Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and Wednesday afternoon.  
2:30 – 3:30 p.m. "Mastering the Techniques of Meditation – Part II"    

The art and science of Kriya Yoga meditation employs physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual methods to bestow an ever-deepening consciousness of infinite, unconditioned Bliss.

Participants in this two-part meditation class will receive step-by-step instruction in two of the essential techniques of the Kriya Yoga path: the Hong-Sau Technique of Concentration and the Aum Technique of Meditation. The class will show how these are integrally related to mastery of the highest Kriya technique (taught separately), and will benefit first-time students as well as longtime Kriya practitioners.

Using periods of guided meditation experience, the class will present a comprehensive overview of the essentials for creating a successful personal practice, including: physical techniques of relaxation and asana (right meditation posture), using the breath and life force (prana) in the most effective ways, intensifying the heart's devotion and divine yearning to lead the consciousness into ever deeper states of God-communion.

Student or Kriyaban card needed for single event tickets. 		 
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. "Achieving Your Material and Spiritual Goals"  

To achieve our material and spiritual goals in life, we must structure our lives in a way that meets our spiritual needs and fulfills our material obligations, while at the same time preserving the spontaneity and freedom that are natural expressions of the soul. This class will show how Paramahansa Yogananda's teachings bestow material and spiritual success through using creativity, discrimination, and initiative to attune ourselves with the full potential of our souls.  
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. Meditation  

   

Wednesday, August 7

Morning Pilgrimages to the Mother Center, Lake Shrine, and Hollywood Temple/Forest Lawn
8:00 – 11:00 a.m. Meditation with Kirtan (Devotional Chanting) California Ballroom

   
2:30 – 3:30 p.m. Teen/Young Adult Class: Living Spiritually in Challenging Times  

In Self-Realization Fellowship, we often receive questions from our teens and young adults. In this class, the minister will answer many of these written questions and will cover a variety of subjects.  
4:30 – 5:30 p.m. Satsanga (Questions and Answers)  

Convocation participants will have the opportunity to submit questions, in writing, about the Self-Realization Fellowship teachings, which will be answered at three satsangas, to be held Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and Wednesday afternoon.  
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. "Allowing God to Be a More Meaningful and Personal Friend"  

God is playing a game of "hide-and-seek" with each devotee. But Paramahansa Yogananda said, "God is not hiding from you; you are hiding from Him." As we learn to inwardly open ourselves to God, each one of us begins to discover a secret inner intimacy with the one true Divine Friend. New perceptions unfold as our unique relationship with God expands. How is it that we are hiding from God? What are the new perceptions that God reveals to us and how do they manifest? Paramahansaji has the answers, and these will be presented and discussed in this class.  
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. Meditation    

   

Thursday, August 8

Morning Pilgrimages to the Mother Center, Lake Shrine, and Hollywood Temple/Forest Lawn
8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Meditation   California Ballroom

   
10:30 – 11:30 p.m. Satsanga (Questions and Answers) California Ballroom

Convocation participants will have the opportunity to submit questions, in writing, about the Self-Realization Fellowship teachings, which will be answered at three satsangas, to be held Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and Wednesday afternoon.  
4:00 – 5:30 p.m. Kirtan (Devotional Chanting)  

   
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. "The Guru: God's Perfect Reflection"  

Why is the guru-disciple relationship at the heart of every successful search for God? Because in that sacred relationship, we find a divine love and caring that ceaselessly guide and support us through all the struggles, blessings, and learning experiences we undergo on the spiritual path. This class will show how to cultivate the attunement that reveals – behind the unceasing and very personal guidance of the guru – the infinite, liberating love and grace of God.  
9:00 – 9:30 p.m. Video of Paramahansa Yogananda: "The Lake Shrine Dedication"  

   
9:30 – 10:00 p.m. Meditation    

   

Friday, August 9

8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Meditation Pasadena Room (today only) 

   
8:00 – 11:00 a.m. Kriya Yoga Ceremony California Ballroom

All Kriyabans attending this year's Convocation will have the opportunity to participate in a Kriya Yoga initiation. Advance registration required.  
10:30 – 12 noon Meditation Techniques Review Class Pasadena Room

   
1:30 – 4:30 p.m. Kriya Yoga Ceremony  California Ballroom

All Kriyabans attending this year's Convocation will have the opportunity to participate in a Kriya Yoga initiation. Advance registration required.  
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. "Living a Spiritually Balanced Life in Today's Complex World"  

Cultivating a spiritual perspective toward our daily experiences in these challenging times enables us to identify more and more with our real nature—the joy and wisdom of the soul. This class will focus on ways in which we can rightly respond to the difficult and seemingly "unsolvable" circumstances that confront us in the "school of life," and how each of us can personally experience the tremendous power of right attitude created by a balanced and God-centered life.  
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. Meditation    

   

Saturday, August 10

8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Meditation  California Ballroom

   
10:00 – 11:45 a.m. Kriya Yoga Review / Kriya Yoga checking (for new initiates only) Pasadena Ballroom Only

New initiates who have attended the Kriya Yoga initiation the week of Convocation are welcome to participate in the review of the Kriya Yoga techniques. New initiates will be given an admittance card.

Note: As a part of the Kriya Review class, new initiates will have the opportunity to have their practice of Kriya checked by monastics. 		  
10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Kriya Yoga Review for Kriyabans   California Ballroom Only

Kriyabans (who have received the Kriya Yoga initiation prior to this year's Convocation) are welcome to attend the review of the Kriya Yoga technique. Kriyabans are asked to bring their Kriyaban card for admittance.

Note: Kriyabans may have their practice checked during the week at the spiritual counseling areas.		  
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. "Spiritual Happiness: Tapping into the Soul's Storehouse of Peace, Love, and Joy"  

The saints of every age attest that God's plan is beautiful and full of joy; and by spiritualizing our lives we tune in with the all-accomplishing Divine Will. This class will examine how our everyday thoughts, decisions, and actions can expand our perception and experiences of inner happiness, and how we can move closer each day toward fulfilling and expressing the infinitely joyful potential of our soul.  
2:00 p.m. Informal reception with monastics on fourth-level patio  

   
7:00 – 8:30 p.m. Meditation California Ballroom

   

Sunday, August 11

7:00 a.m.– 6:30 p.m. Pilgrimages to Encinitas Temple, Hermitage, and Ashram Center  

 

All classes and meditations are held in the California Ballroom and Pasadena Room
unless otherwise specified.




PLEASE NOTE:
Doors open 1 hour before the start of the evening classes, and 1/2 hour before other events.