If you are of devotional bent and open-minded, here is guidance and inspiration from a yoga master and meditation teacher who honors and supports the teachings of all the great religions and all true spiritual teachers.

This handly shirt-pocket-sized collection of starting points for meditation also provides a beginner with a simple way to start the practice of meditation. Yogananda speaks from the perspective of one who has total commitment to Spirit and to us, Spirit's bewildered and earthbound creations. Readers of varied religious backgrounds and different spiritual temperaments will all find something to spur them to higher practice of their own paths.

If you resonate with this non-sectarian, universal approach to spiritual growth, be sure also to read Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi for more information on the powerfully liberating advanced meditation methods of Kriya Yoga that Yogananda teaches in his instructions through Self-Realization Fellowship (publisher of this volume). Their web site ( Yogananda-SRF dot org ) provides a beautiful introduction to these meditation methods.