Date Posted:07:19 Author: Anonymous - 25 April 2002 Subject: Is Kriyananda a Swami?
Can one who leaves/renounces his vows as a Swami, marries then divorces, become again a Swami?
And if so how? Does one who falls into this category have to receive his/hers re-initiation into the ancient Swami order from another Swami? Or does he/she through what they feel to be a deep connection to God have the authority to make him/herself a Swami again?
"Every Swami belongs to the ancient monastic order which was organized in its present form by Shankara. Because it is a formal order, with an unbroken line of saintly representives serving as active leaders, NO MAN CAN GIVE HIMSELF THE TITLE OF SWAMI. HE RIGHTFULLY RECEIVES IT ONLY FROM ANOTHER SWAMI; all monks thus trace their spiritual lineage to one common guru, Lord Shankara. By vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience to the spiritual teacher, many Catholic Christian monastic orders resemble the Order of Swamis."
Paramahansa Yogananda
Autobiography of a Yogi
Page 218, First Edition
So we see from Master's own writing that one must, at the very least, obtain the initiation from a Swami.
Kriyananda gave himself a kind of re-inititiation which was between "him and God." Therefore if we use Master as our authority on this issue it is clear that Kriyananda is not a Swami. He is like most of Master's disciples, a householder.
