About SRF

Paramahansa Yogananda rendered a great service to humanity through his prayers for world peace and for the healing of others’ physical, mental, and spiritual afflictions. The monks and nuns of the Self-Realization Fellowship Order also participated in this endeavor to serve the world through prayer, and have continued to do so throughout the years. In daily services each morning and evening, they pray for those in need, as well as for world peace. Their efforts are augmented by the thousands of SRF members and friends throughout the world who belong to the Worldwide Prayer Circle, creating a spiritual union of sympathetic hearts – a worldwide circle of prayer.

Charitable Activities

In addition to responding to the needs of those who request spiritual guidance and prayers, Self-Realization Fellowship is dedicated to offering material assistance to alleviate the suffering of the disadvantaged in our community and throughout the world.

We support many local and national organizations that provide food, clothing, shelter, medical attention, and educational opportunities to, among others, the poor and homeless, the elderly and disabled, and victims of natural disasters. These organizations include the American Red Cross, Feed the Children, L. A. County/USC Medical Center CARES Volunteer Service, Salvation Army, Goodwill Industries, House of Ruth (shelter for battered women in L.A.), United Negro College Fund, American Indian College Fund, and a number of others.The SRF Voluntary League also collects and distributes items such as clothing, food, and toys for special needs that arise.

Our sister organization in India, Yogoda Satsanga Society of India (YSS), offers a wide variety of charitable services – maintaining free medical clinics and providing basic education to thousands of underprivileged children through Yogoda Satsanga Society of India’s schools. The society actively supports a number of projects including a tubercular hospital, an eye bank, aid to leprosy victims, and famine and disaster relief.

YSS has also worked closely with the Missionaries of Charity, established by Mother Teresa of Calcutta, on several projects involving medical assistance, housing, and new wells to provide clean water to "the poorest of the poor." At right is one of the letters received from Mother Teresa expressing gratitude for the assistance and support given by YSS.

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Tribute from the State of California

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In 1993 the Senate of the State of California issued a resolution in honor of the hundredth anniversary of Paramahansa Yogananda’s birth, as a tribute to the spiritual and humanitarian work he established. The resolution refers to his efforts to promote greater harmony and cooperation among all religions, races, and nationalities; to the retreats and sanctuaries he established, which offer spiritual solace and tranquillity for hundreds of thousands of visitors each year; to the SRF Voluntary League, which has served those in need through distribution of food, clothing, and toys, and through material assistance to relief and charitable organizations; and to the work of the Worldwide Prayer Circle.