About Us
Currently the wonderful and dedicated “team” of people I am collaborating with are not named here formally. For the past ten years after my life in the ashram, my work and service have evolved into what Avahana is today. There’s lots of growth in the horizon. We’ll keep you posted as we grow! —Naren
About Naren
“By some mysterious grace, I started young. As a boy born in Los Angeles, I felt an urgency to begin from where I had left off. Paramahansa Yogananda manifested his grace and his love for me by reaching across the chasm of separation to guide me as my Gurudeva. With that divine aid, I navigated the treacherous waters of adolescence. I joined the SRF Ashram (Hindu monastery) at age 18 where I spent 14 foundational years as a Brahmachari yogi. My next leap of faith was to leave and, as a ‘freelance’ yogi, adopt the world as my new ashram in which, for ten years and onward, I continue my life work, sadhana and worship. Living and serving at the Kali Mandir has been a ballast during these years.
I have been called in to serve various communities in America, Mexico and India. It has been my joy to support their worship, celebrations of life, and to give support during challenging times. I seek to bring people together and my innate sense of equality and universality burns alongside my devotion. I feel a wordless love and kinship with my sisters and brothers. Avahana is part of my life-work to invoke the Divine into all moments of life, to support others in living a spiritual life and to create something lasting, sacred and beautiful for the community and legacy of Sanatana Dharma (Eternal Dharma).”
lineage & diksha
Normally in Hindu life, lineage and diksha (initiation) are very personal and are not publicly stated like a résumé or accreditation. But at present, particularly outside of India, it seems important for those of us in a religious vocation to state our lineage and diksha in order to counter the pervasive trends of cultural misappropriation and the misrepresentations within academia by those who are not initiated nor who represent Sanatana Dharma. It also gives us an opportunity to honor our gurus, our tradition and those who follow it.
I was blessed to grow up with the teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda since I was a boy. Yoga meditation and kirtan were a part of my childhood. My father taught me Ham-Sa meditation. In 1993 I had darshan of Mata Amritanandamayi Ma, and received mantra diksha from her. This sparked my Kriya Yoga sadhana and bond with my Gurus. In 1997 I formally accepted Paramahansa Yogananda as my gurudeva by receiving kriya yoga diksha from Swami Bhaktananda Giri, one of his direct disciples. In 1999 I took my initial vows of brahmacharya (monastic discipline) in the ashram of Self-Realization Fellowship/Yogoda Satsanga Society and there later received advanced kriya yoga diksha. I lived and served as a monastic disciple in that cloistered ashram for 14 years. Desiring to deepen my knowledge and devotional worship of Ma Kālī in the tradition of Sri Ramakrishna (Dakshineshwar), I received mantra-diksha, upanayanam-diksha and namakarana from Swami Bhajanananda Saraswati, mahant of Kali Mandir (Laguna Beach, CA) and disciple of Swami Vishnudevananda of Yoga Vedanta Kutir (Prayagraj, India). The religious name given to me is Kamalakanta. I am ordained by Kali Mandir as an archaka (Hindu priest or pujari) with religious orders. Since 2014 I’ve had the great blessing to live and serve at the Kali Mandir. The life and teachings of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, and his child-mother worship of Kali, were the source of the worldwide movement of Swami Vivekananda, and of great importance to my gurudeva, Paramahansa Yogananda. My immersion in Ma’s worship and my regular interaction with and service to the Hindu community has enriched and broadened my experience and understanding of Sanatana Dharma. I have continued in service to the Divine as listed below:
When I am not traveling, my home is Kali Mandir, where I happily serve Mā and Her devotees. Read more about the Kali Mandir here.
experience
Ordained Pujari (Hindu Priest), Kali Mandir Ramakrishna Ashram, Laguna Beach, CA (2012-present)
Acharya (Spiritual Director) of Centro Jamadi and its Mangala Murati Hanuman Mandir, Querétaro, México (2017-present)
Spiritual Life Council Advisor, Golden Lotus Inc. and Song of the Morning Retreat, Michigan (2019-present)
Teaching faculty in Ritual and Sacred Music for the Ramakrishna Seminary for Applied Theological Studies (2019-present)
Lectures and musical offerings for Hindu, Yoga and Religious programs at Kriya Vedanta Gurukulam, Vedanta Society, The Guibord Center, Global Theological Union Dharma Studies, University of Southern California, Loyola Marymount University, Claremont Lincoln University and more
Brahmachari (Hindu monk) at Self-Realization Fellowship (1997-2011)
Assistant Director & Spiritual Mentor, SRF Postulant Ashram Seminary (2005-2011)
Counselor to SRF Meditation Centers in eleven countries (2001-2005)
Seminary Education in SRF Postulant Ashram (1997-2001)
Mission of Avahana
To support and nourish the spiritual lives of individuals, families and communities through “avahana”, invoking the Divine by sacred ritual, prayer, sadhana, spiritual counseling and guidance.