march 1970, second semester, sophomore year, Age 20

autobiography of a yogi
 

Yogananda described a universe I found very intriguing.  First he discussed a Hidden World that exists beyond the realm of human sight.  Then he explained the concepts of Reincarnation and Karma, adding that these are not theories, they are fact. 

Karma is the law of moral causation, an eastern variation of the Christian idea that 'as ye sow, so shall ye reap.'  Due to the law of cause and effect, whatever one does has consequences, be it in this lifetime or the next lifetime. 

The concept of Karma implies that each life has certain events that are 'Fated' to happen whether we like it or not.  During a 'Fated Event', the only choice we have in the matter is our attitude and how we decide to react to our Fate.  Not all Karma is bad.  Sometimes it involves a lucky break or the granting of a heartfelt wish.  Other times it might involve sickness or hardship.  The idea of Karma and Reincarnation intrigued me greatly because it suggested there might be justice behind all this suffering I was currently undergoing at Hopkins. 

I do not wish to offend my Readers, but intellectually I have long objected to the Christian principle of One Life.  While I respect the teachings of Jesus, my problem with Christianity lays in the obvious unfairness of the 'One Life to Get it Right' system. 

The God I prefer to believe in would create a level playing field.  Some are born into good Christian homes and receive the training necessary to live a spiritual life.  Others are born into squalid conditions and are taught to lie, steal, and kill if necessary to survive.  One has a clear path to Heaven while the other is seriously handicapped.  However, what if the roles are reversed in the next lifetime?  That would be the fair thing to do.

What is the Golden Rule of Education?  If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.  To me, it makes perfect sense that an All-Knowing God would give us the chance to try as many times as necessary to get it right.  Therefore I was pleased to find the concepts of Karma and Reincarnation as described by Yogananda satisfied my sense of justice.  In this system, nothing happens to a person that he does not deserve for some reason.  As Yogananda explained, any unexplained suffering in this lifetime was probably the result of a misdeed in a previous lifetime.  Considering the Edgar Cayce book I had during the summer of 1968 had said essentially the same thing, it was reassuring to see Yogananda and Cayce on the same page. 

Yogananda spoke of the 'Spirit World' and the 'Material World'.  His description suggested there is a world that exists side by side with what we refer to as Reality.  I had long wondered if Invisible Beings were responsible for some of the weird things that kept happening to me.  Therefore I was very curious about the Yogi's 'Spirit World'.  Who lives there?  Ghosts?  Angels?  Leprechauns?

From there Yogananda moved onto a discussion of Fate.  The way he explained it, we do have Free Will, but it comes with an asterisk.

Every terrible thing that happens to us is something our Soul agreed to before rebirth.  Our human consciousness may not like what happens to us, but at the Soul level, we have chosen these experiences as lessons to be learned in this lifetime.

Although previous Karma determines certain things are Fated to take place, we are given Free Will as well.  Predestination and Free Will are present side by side throughout every person's life.  Due to Karma, some things are more probable than others, but as long as there exists Free Will, new outcomes are possible.

Each soul incarnates with a general plan for the life to be experienced.  This implies that a certain life script, or 'Destiny', exists at birth.  It is the responsibility of the individual to deal with at least some Karma from previous lifetimes.  In addition, some souls choose a positive mission to fulfill.  Others who have made many mistakes in the past have a debt to pay.

Individual souls tend to renew relationships with familiar souls from previous lifetimes.  Spouses, siblings, parents, friends and mentors frequently turn out to be souls with whom one has had previous associations.  Sometimes one interacts with troubled souls while others are past friends and benefactors.  The concept of the 'Soul Mate' originates from Reincarnation.
 

If Yogananda was right about the Hidden World and Fate, then perhaps I had finally found an explanation for some of the weird things that kept happening to me.  For example, what if I was meant to see Emily get out of the cab with Eric?  Maybe the acne attack took place because it was my Karma to experience a lifetime of problems with women.  Maybe I was meant to struggle in my Senior Year of high school.  For that matter, maybe Connie Kill Shot entered my life for a purpose.  Suddenly I began to see my problems in a different light.  If a person's life is shaped by past Karma, then there is a reason for everything after all.  If so, there is Order to the Universe.

The problem with believing in Fate is that it contradicted my concept of Free Will.  For a while there, I was convinced I had no free will.  I am not sure why but I lost interest in studying.   If everything is predetermined, then what difference does anything I do make?  However, the moment my grades began to fall, I snapped back to Reality.  I decided I did not understand the nature of Free Will deeply enough to assume everything is predestined.  In other words, until I achieved further enlightenment, the smart move was to continue running my life as if I was the captain of my own ship.  So I put down Yogananda's book and began studying for my next test.

What do I mean by 'Asterisk'?   We all have a credit card payment due at the end of the month.  Karma is God's credit card payment.  We are going to have to pay it whether we like it or not.  Is the requirement to pay a credit card debt a violation of our Free Will? 

To me, it all boils down to Reincarnation.  I am blind in my left eye because I cut it in a freak accident when I was 5.  That handicap kept me from being a member of my high school basketball team.  Is that fair?  No!  I didn't do anything to deserve that accident.  Or did I?  According to Yogananda, our memory of previous incarnations is erased at birth.  Consequently we have no idea what baggage we carry into each new lifetime.  If we can believe Yogananda, I very well may have put someone else's eye out in a previous incarnation. 

Personally speaking, I approach every day as if I have Free Will.  I put on my seat belt, I avoid fattening food, I exercise, I get regular health checkups.  I make my decisions based on what modern science has taught me just like I would if I were an atheist.  That said, I also believe certain things will happen to me and there is nothing I can do to prevent it. 

Why do think this way?  There was a chapter where Yogananda was told by his guru he was about to get sick.  I remember the story well enough to retell the incident.  Yogananda had a master named Swami Sri Yukteswar.  One day Sri Yukteswar handed Yogananda a special arm band and told him to wear it.  Yogananda asked what it was for.  The Swami replied that his astrological Fate predicted he would become sick in one month.  Yogananda's liver was about to develop a serious problem.  However, if Yogananda were to wear the armlet, the length of the illness would be shortened from six months to one month.  Sure enough, Yogananda got sick just as predicted and recovered just as predicted.  From that story, I gathered that even yogis and saints are not immune to the dictates of Fate and Karma. 

Please do not expect me to talk about these matters as certainty.  I am simply reporting my impressions of things I read.  The sense I got from Autobiography of a Yogi is that we have Free Will most of the time.  However, obstacles will be placed in our path from time to time.  Since character cannot be developed in times of ease, it is through trial and suffering that the soul can be strengthened.  Yogananda said that each soul incarnates with a general plan for the life to be experienced.  This implies that a certain life script, or 'Destiny', exists at birth.  From that passage I assumed my blind eye and scarred face might be the result of unpaid debts. 

Yogananda said individual souls often renew relationships with other souls from previous lifetimes.  Spouses, siblings and parents frequently turn out to be souls with whom one has former associations.  Sometimes one interacts with troubled souls while others may become friends and benefactors.  The concept of the 'soul mate' originates from Reincarnation.  After reading this, I began to wonder if Mr. Salls and Mrs. Ballantyne were my soul mates.  It was very strange how all three of us had identical difficulties growing up and how closely the three of were connected in this lifetime.

babaji
 

I am well aware that most people do not believe in Reincarnation.  I might add that a belief in Reincarnation is unnecessary to lead a successful life.  However, a belief in Karma is a different story.  Look no further than the thought that Santa Claus is keeping a List.  To me Karma is the same thing.  The belief that God is keeping a List certainly had a sobering effect on me. 

So who was Paramahansa Yogananda?   Was he the real deal or was he a charlatan?  Can we trust him?  For that matter, what about the Bible?  Do you have any idea how many times the Bible has been translated and retranslated?  How much can we trust the skill of the translators?   What if some monk saw a Greek word and decided it meant 'Celibate' instead of 'Celebrate'? 

Is there really a Hidden World?  How should I know?  I've never seen it.  Does Reincarnation exist?  How should I know?  I don't remember any past lives.  Much of my belief system is based on the words of people I have never met.  And the same goes for you.  Your belief in Heaven is based on something you have read.  For that matter, how much can you believe about the so-called Supernatural Experiences that I report?  When it comes to spiritual matters, who do you trust?  Who do you have confidence in? 

On a day-to-day basis, I am no different from a Reality-oriented person.  I run my life based on the principles of Reality.  I never fail to put my seat belt on.  I assume if I jump off a cliff, I will die.  I would never dream of asking God to save me if I break the rules of Reality.  That said, I want to know the truth, so I continue to ask questions.  In my case, I find the possibility of a Hidden World to be both fascinating and scary.  But I have no proof.  I have no direct experience.  But I believe in it!  Why?

Circumstantial Evidence, that's why.  Why did Bob walk in at the perfect time to catch me cheating?  Why did Mrs. Ballantyne show up at the perfect time to intervene in my crisis?  Why did Cheryl appear at the perfect time to grant me a wish upon a star?  Why did Jake knock on my door at the perfect time so I could see Eric and Emily get out of the taxi at the train station?  The probability of any one of the incidents is so remote it defies credulity.  Sure, we all know coincidences happen.  But four of them?  At some point I decided these so-called accidental meetings were not accidents at all, but rather meetings coordinated by Unseen Beings from the Hidden World.  In other words, I do not trust blindly, I do everything in power to verify. 

So what does Yogananda mean by a Hidden World?  In his book, Yogananda told the tale of Babaji, an immortal saint who never dies.  Yogananda claimed Babaji is a real-life entity.  He is a deathless avatar who exists as Divinity in physical form in the same way that Jesus was Divinity in physical form.  Let me introduce Babaji with a series of questions which I will answer myself.

"What is Divinity in physical form?"

"I assume that means Babaji has a flesh and bones body here in the Material World just like Jesus did."

"Is Babaji related to Jesus in some way?"

"Yes.  As a way to emphasize Babaji's immortal nature and great importance, Yogananda claimed that Jesus Christ once traveled to India to meet with Babaji.  Yogananda said that great prophets like Jesus and Krishna come to earth for a specific and spectacular purpose, then depart as soon as their purpose is accomplished.  Meanwhile other avatars such as Babaji undertake work behind the scenes.  They are concerned with the slow evolutionary progress of man over the centuries.  Such masters veil themselves from public gaze and have the power to retreat to the Hidden World by becoming invisible at will.  For these reasons, and because they generally instruct their disciples to maintain silence about them, a number of towering spiritual figures such as Babaji remain unknown to the outer world."

"And Rick Archer believes all this?"

"Yes and no.  Yes, I would like to believe all this, but I am not completely gullible.  I am well aware this could all be someone's fantasy.  The way I look at it, the stories Yogananda writes about are no weirder than stories I have read in the Bible.  If someone can believe in Jesus, then what is so wrong about the possibility there could be a different Christ figure?"

"Where does this Babaji fellow live?"

"Babaji is said to reside deep in the mountains of Tibet.  He is ageless.  The secluded master has retained his youthful physical form for centuries, perhaps millenniums.   So let's read Yogananda's story about the Hidden World."