Using Sacred Photographs for Healing and  Upliftment   

The eyes are the windows of the soul, and a photograph cap-  tures some of the magnetism expressed through the eyes. Think for a moment of the times that you have seen the photograph of  a criminal in the newspaper. Don’t you instinctively turn your eyes away so as not to be drawn into the negative vortex of energy in his gaze? Then think of the eyes of a saint, or of any noble person who has served humanity in a selfless manner. Don’t you want to gaze upon that face and momentarily bask in the love and wisdom in those eyes? Recently, I saw a magnificent poster of Albert Einstein; I could have gazed into those eyes for an hour,  if time had allowed. Indeed, gazing into Einstein’s eyes would be a wonderful practice for anyone who would like to have a greater attunement with the cosmic awareness he experienced. 

In the Divine Will Healing workshops, we often measure the effect of certain energies on the aura, through the assistance of an individual who is both sensitive to subtle energies and skilled at using dousing rods for this purpose. We have found repeatedly that, if an individual sits with a photograph of Paramhansa  Yogananda and gazes into the master’s eyes, that person’s aura will expand greatly in size (from twenty percent to double its normal circumference), even if he knows very little about Yogananda.  If we give the individual a copy of Yogananda’s Autobiography of a Yogi, concealed in a brown paper bag, still we see the aura expanding to almost the same degree. Conversely, if we give the individual a book (also concealed in a bag) dealing with a very dark or depressing topic, the aura shrinks down to almost nothing. The same shrinking of the aura also happens when we ask the individual to dwell momentarily, for the sake of the experiment, on a sad or depressing time period of his life. (This  experiment graphically demonstrates the weakening effect on  one’s self of holding negative thoughts and emotions!) 

Every major religion has stories of saints whose lives were filled with the presence of God. This holy energy shines through the eyes; to behold a photograph of such divine eyes is a bless-  ing indeed. Most devotees of Paramhansa Yogananda display a  photo of him that they find particularly comforting or inspiring. I  have found it very important to not only have the photos displayed (I have one in my office and several in my home) but also to remember to honor consciously the light that is there, as in a  living presence. I honor this light by mentally saying “Om Guru”  or, when I am alone, by bringing the hands together in prayer position briefly as I pass the picture. This simple practice has given me a sweeter attunement with the guru and a deeper receptivity to blessings that flow through those sacred photos. 

Sometimes people call the healing prayer ministry in great distress, and I realize that they need an immediate source of inner strength. If they have a picture of Paramhansa Yogananda,  or of any other master or great saint, I will ask them to get the photo and gaze at it receptively as I pray with them over the phone. This practice is very helpful and sometimes leads to a  very deep healing during that phone conversation. Swami  Kriyananda offers this helpful advice for those gazing at a photograph of the guru: “Try to love the guru with the same love that  you feel coming to you through his eyes.” In other words, as you look into the eyes of the guru, to the best of your ability tune in to that expansive and sacred energy, and let some of that same quality flow through you back to God, Christ, and guru.  It is also helpful to gaze into the eyes in a photo of a saint when you want to increase your spiritual energy and magnetism, or if you want to build the light and strength in your aura.

But it  is also helpful to gaze into the eyes in a photo of a saint who embraces a particular quality that you need to strengthen in yourself. For instance, sometimes I have gazed long and deeply into the eyes of Swami Sri Yukteswar, a saint of great wisdom,  when I have felt a particularly strong need to pray for wisdom and guidance in order to face certain challenges in my life. Normally his gaze feels too dry and austere to hold much appeal for me, but in those moments I want the cold, hard truth, and I  know he will give it to me, and guide me clearly toward the right understanding and choices. I have found this clarity to be extremely beneficial. However, in a recent instance, he answered my prayer in a very sweet way that was in accordance with my feminine heart and nature, confirming through a special grace that I had done the right thing in a challenging spiritual test. His inner blessing was gentle, and I felt no inner scolding or correction, though I was willing to receive whatever was necessary for my spiritual growth. Indeed, after having felt this sweet response several times in prayer, I see that hiding behind that austere and wise persona is Divine Love itself. 

In his book, Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramhansa Yogananda tells the story of a profound healing that came to him through the sacred photograph of Lahiri Mahasaya, the guru of his mother and father.  Lahiri Mahasaya left this world shortly after I had entered it.  His picture, in an ornate frame, always graced our family altar in the various cities to which Father was transferred by his office.  Many a morning and evening found Mother and me meditating before an improvised shrine, offering flowers dipped in fragrant sandalwood paste. With frankincense and myrrh as well as our united devotions, we honored the divinity which had found full expression in Lahiri Mahasaya.  His picture had a surpassing influence over my life. As I grew,  the thought of the master grew with me. In meditation I would often see his photographic image emerge from its small frame and, taking a living form, sit before me.

When I attempted to touch the feet of his luminous body, it would change and again become the picture. As childhood slipped into boyhood, I found  Lahiri Mahasaya transformed in my mind from a little image,  cribbed in a frame, to a living, enlightening presence. I frequently prayed to him in moments of trial or confusion, finding within me his solacing direction. At first I grieved because he was no longer physically living. As I began to discover his secret omnipresence, I lamented no more. He had often written to those of  his disciples who were over-anxious to see him: “Why come to  view my bones and flesh, when I am ever within range of your kutastha (spiritual sight)?”  I was blessed about the age of eight with a wonderful healing through the photograph of Lahiri Mahasaya. This experience gave intensification to my love. While at our family estate in Icha-  pur, Bengal, I was stricken with Asiatic cholera. My life was despaired of; the doctors could do nothing. At my bedside, Mother frantically motioned me to look at Lahiri Mahasaya’s picture on the wall above my head. 

“Bow to him mentally!” She knew I was too feeble even to lift my hands in salutation. “If you really show your devotion and inwardly kneel before him, your life will be spared!”  I gazed at his photograph and saw there a blinding light, enveloping my body and the entire room. My nausea and other uncontrollable symptoms disappeared; I was well. At once I felt strong enough to bend over and touch Mother’s feet in appreciation of her immeasurable faith in her guru. Mother pressed her head repeatedly against the little picture.  “O Omnipresent Master, I thank thee that thy light hath  healed my son!“  I realized that she too had witnessed the luminous blaze through which I had instantly recovered from a usually fatal disease.  One of my most precious possessions is that same photograph. Given to Father by Lahiri Mahasaya himself, it carries a  holy vibration. The picture had a miraculous origin…. 

It is also of great benefit to gaze into the eyes of a photograph of Paramhansa Yogananda’s mother, Gyana Prabha Ghosh. Yogananda referred to her as a very great saint, indeed, a vessel of the Divine Mother. In her eyes we behold the balance of love and wisdom, a balance that can be a great gift to those who need to increase that consciousness within their souls. Gaze into her eyes for twenty to thirty minutes; allow the holy vibrations to enter your bodily temple through your own eyes and then to travel through your brain and nervous system. This practice can be especially helpful to wives and mothers wishing to increase their ability to serve as instruments of the Divine Mother in daily life.  These sacred photos can also be used to heal emotional injuries left by abuse, neglect, or other inadequacies of one’s earthly mother or father, who ideally should have reflected in some way the wisdom and love of the Heavenly Father and Divine  Mother.

But because life is not always ideal, we sometimes need healing! Look into the eyes of Paramhansa Yogananda or his mother: receive the perfect Father/Mother God deeply into your being; bring divine healing light into those psychological nooks and crannies that all too often have left an individual unable to embrace life with love and joy. Remember also that no injury is permanent, though some can be very convincing for a while!  God is Infinite Love, and it is our birthright to realize and identify with that love.