Chapter 16: every tradition · Hinduism
Self-Realization Fellowship
A Self-Realization Fellowship temple: SRF, founded in 1920 by Paramahansa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi, with its Mother Center on Mount Washington in Los Angeles since 1925, teaching Kriya Yoga meditation through a line of gurus that begins with Jesus Christ and Krishna and ends with Yogananda. SRF doesn't call itself Hindu: among its aims is to reveal "the complete harmony and basic oneness of original Christianity as taught by Jesus Christ and original Yoga as taught by Bhagavan Krishna"; it welcomes those of every faith, and its students needn't leave their own church. Scholars class it among the Hindu traditions, and the game lists it under Hinduism for that reason, with this note. SRF owns its eight American temples, seven of them in California, and assigns their ministers, monastics of the SRF Order, a Brother or a Sister; about 150 lay-led centers, groups and meditation circles meet in chapels and homes, a variant here, where a member conducts by reading Yogananda's words. The Sunday service at eleven is an hour of readings from Yogananda, chanting, silent meditation and prayer, with the Prayer Circle for healing and the minister's talk, in a quiet, church-like chapel with a Sunday school and sometimes a choir; there's little Hindu ritual, and no puja, murtis or priests. Members belong not to a temple but to the SRF Lessons, a home-study course of about nine months; the real commitment is Kriya Yoga initiation, asked for after about eight months of them. The year is on fixed Western dates, the gurus' births and mahasamadhis, Easter and Christmas, and above all the all-day Christmas meditation each December, begun by Yogananda in 1931. Temples charge for nothing: money comes from donations, the bookroom, the Lessons' suggested fees, and bequests. Monastics take no salary, and women have led the society as its president. SRF guards its name and teachings closely, and sued the breakaway Ananda in 1990. The pews, the lay centers' rules, and how Kriya is conferred in person today are less certain than the rest.
All 80 traditions · its profile in Faiths and traditions, with how to play it and what sets its faith apart; How people feel, what every factor is.
At a glance
| Faith | Hinduism |
|---|---|
| Its words | temple, temple, chapel; the minister leads the service; the talk; Sunday; the Bhagavad Gita and the Bible |
| Worship | word focus, reserved, low formality (0.33 of 1); seated on chairs |
| Music | organ discouraged; gospel organ discouraged; band discouraged; brass discouraged; handbells discouraged; chant expected |
| The room's sound | likes a ringing room (organ and choir) |
| Its year | srf; full observance; fasts none |
| Leans | neutral on moral questions, neutral on economic ones |
| Polity | hierarchical; leaders come by appointment; property denomination |
| Leaders | one leader, full time, trained by in house; marriage any |
| Belonging | moderate commitment, none discipline, admitted by clergy |
| Giving | tithing not emphasised; collected by plate, online |
| Way of life | alcohol moderation, dress modest, sabbath relaxed, meat vegetarian |
The week's services
| Day | Time | Service | Led by | People look for it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 8:00 am | Sunday morning meditation (group meditation, short, and plays quickly: people come 10% as often as to a main service) | the laity | expected |
| Sunday | 11:00 am | Inspirational Service | the minister | expected |
| Thursday | 7:00 pm | Thursday meditation and Prayer Circle (group meditation, short, and plays quickly: people come 10% as often as to a main service) | the laity | expected |
- Leader: a minister. With none (a vacancy, or no one hired), the temple holds a Reading service in place of its own, led by the laity, which costs everyone at it 0.04; on sabbatical a supply minister stands in ($800 a month). The short daily services go on whether or not anyone leads them, and move no one's satisfaction.
- Its table: vegetarian: meals cost 0.85× as much.
Rites
- Kriya Yoga initiation (on request, +0.05 to those there, asked for 0.02 times a year by a household, 90 minutes): After about eight months of the home-study Self-Realization Fellowship Lessons, a student applies to the Mother Center to receive Kriya Yoga, the technique at the heart of Paramahansa Yogananda's teaching; it comes in the printed Kriya Lessons, and has been conferred in a ceremony led by a monastic authorised by SRF at the temples and at Convocation. Kriyabans carry a card, and may join the temple's Kriyaban service group.
Joining
- Joining: a content regular is received as a member after about 8 weeks.
- Joining age: 18.
- Kinds of belonging: Lessons students (may hold office); received by the minister.
- What it means: being received is worth +0.1 to the person, +0.05 to family there, and +0.03 to everyone else at the service. It roots them: a rooted household drifts away only 0.6 times as often, and if it does fall away, it has a 25% chance of coming home each Christmas Eve and Easter for ten years.
Giving, and what goes up
How its people give and what else comes in, as Money explains it for every faith.
- How it's given: the offering, by a plate passed at each main service, and giving online. A visiting household puts $5 to $25 in the plate. Those who give online give whether or not they come (8% more a month).
- Tithing isn't emphasised: people give 10% less.
- Fundraisers: only the modest ones (below).
- Funded from above: each month the offerings go up to the Self-Realization Fellowship (the Mother Center), and a budget comes back, $25 for each active person and the building's costs; its clergy are paid from above.
The minister, the staff, and who decides
- How the minister comes: sent by the Self-Realization Fellowship (the Mother Center), which moves them on; you can't advertise for or dismiss one, but can ask for a move.
- Paid: full time, at the wider body's scale; housed by the congregation.
- Who they are: trained in-house (they ask 90%); women among them (about a third); never married (celibacy is required).
- Tenure: settled, then may be called elsewhere.
- Staff it can hire or name (see Staff and volunteers):
- Bivocational minister ($22,000–$38,000; cares for 75)
- Minister ($55,000–$85,000 + $18,000 benefits, full time; cares for 150)
- Associate minister ($42,000–$62,000 + $15,000 benefits, full time; cares for 100 more)
- Resident monk or nun (up to $2,400; cares for 40 more)
- Sunday School coordinator (unpaid; from the members; up to +0.08 for households with young people)
- Caretaker ($18,000–$30,000; slows the building's wear)
- Temple secretary ($20,000–$35,000; runs the office (+50 to the leader's reach, once))
- Youth director ($20,000–$40,000; up to +0.08 for households with young people)
- Temple manager ($40,000–$70,000 + $12,000 benefits, full time; runs the office (+50 to the leader's reach, once); cares for 30 more)
- Renovations: The Self-Realization Fellowship (the Mother Center) decides, consulting the minister.
- New construction: The Self-Realization Fellowship (the Mother Center) decides, consulting the minister.
- Who votes: no kind of belonging votes, so what would go to the members goes to the board.
Life together
What its Community screen offers it, with the dilemmas only its own faith or family meets; see The congregation in its community.
- Ministries of its own: Seva meals.
- Ministries every tradition can run that it's offered: Blood drive, Food pantry, Health clinic, Preschool, Youth group.
- Shared fundraisers it may hold (only the modest ones): Bake sale, Car wash, Raffle, Rummage sale.
- Tenants it can take: A Masonic lodge, A scout troop, A twelve-step group, Dance classes, Parties and receptions.
- Auxiliaries: Kriyaban service group.
- Outreach: literature (from a reading room or an office), invitation Sunday (Community → Evangelism).
- Places beyond the congregation: the SRF World Convocation.
- Dilemmas its code of life brings: A raffle for the roof, A recruiter asks for the hall, Champagne at the reception.
What the building needs
- required PulpitPreaching is the center of worship, so the pulpit stands at the center of the platform.
- discouraged BannerBanners are not part of this tradition's worship space.
- discouraged Drum kitA band and drum kit do not belong in this tradition's worship.
- discouraged Hammond organA gospel organ doesn't suit this tradition's worship.
- discouraged Pipe organAn organ doesn't suit this tradition's worship.
What people here feel
- Architectural style: Colonial brick +0.052; Modern synagogue +0.034; Gurdwara +0.028; Japanese temple +0.016; Islamic +0.01; Shinto shrine +0.01; Chinese temple +0.004; Dravidian temple -0.002; Nagara temple -0.002; Thai temple -0.002; Jain marble -0.008; Gothic -0.014.
- Building fit: up to ±0.15 for everyone, the average fit of the characterful items in its worship rooms (the table below).
- Acoustics: it wants a ringing room, about 2.8 seconds of reverberation: stone, plaster, a high ceiling. Up to ±0.05.
- The talk lands by its topic and the tradition's leaning (below); the minister's preaching adds or costs up to 0.08 more.
- The daily services move no one's satisfaction: no offering, sermon, or welcome; people come one by one, the retired twice as often, those of working age half as often on a weekday from nine to five.
How each talk lands
The topics its leader can choose from (some are only for one faith or family), and what each is worth.
- Gratitude+0.015
- Hope & Comfort+0.015
- Karma and Dharma+0.015
- Service as Worship+0.015
- Stewardship & Generosity+0.015
- The Bhagavad Gita, Chapter by Chapter+0.015
- The Guru's Grace+0.015
- The Upanishads+0.015
- As Many Faiths, So Many Paths-0.02
- Care for Creation-0.02
- Faith & Family-0.02
- Faith of Our Fathers-0.02
- Healing for All-0.02
- Interfaith Understanding-0.02
- Reading Scripture in Context-0.02
- Resisting Temptation-0.02
- Swords into Ploughshares-0.02
- Welcome the Stranger-0.02
- Racial Justice & Reconciliation-0.03
- Radical Inclusion-0.03
- Sanctity of Life-0.03
- Social Justice Call-0.03
Every item, for this tradition
Fit runs from −1 (jars) to +1 (just right); the building fit is the average over the characterful items in the worship rooms. An item with no character (a table, a toilet) has no fit. A rule applies wherever the item is.
Variants
Chosen when you found the temple:
- A lay-led meditation center: its own services: Reading service, sunday at 10:30 am; Thursday meditation and Prayer Circle, thursday at 7:00 pm; its own preaching, without clergy; its own leaders
Sources
- Self-Realization Fellowship, Wikipedia (link)
- Frequently Asked Questions, SRF (link)
- Aims and Ideals, SRF (link)
- Locations map, SRF (link)
- Description of Services, SRF Hollywood Temple (link)
- Regularly Scheduled Services 2026, SRF Encinitas Temple (link)
- Kriya Yoga Lessons, SRF (link)
- Hollywood Temple Service Group (link)
- Temple Fellowship Activities, SRF Hollywood Temple (link)
- Special Services, SRF Dallas-Fort Worth (link)
- Christmas Meditation resource page, SRF (link)