This collection debates the path and purpose of life. The author discusses such topics as whether it is possible to hasten human evolution, the possibility of a scientific method to ensure a pathway to life's highest fulfilments and what guidelines help mediators find genuine spiritual progress.

The autobiography of Paramahansa Yogananda (1893 - 1952) details his search for a guru, during which he encountered many spiritual leaders and world-renowned scientists. When it was published in 1946 it was the first introduction of many westerners to yoga and meditation. The famous opera singer Amelita Galli-Curci said about the book: "Amazing, true stories of saints and masters of India, blended with priceless superphysical information-much needed to balance the Western material efficiency with Eastern spiritual efficiency-come from the vigorous pen of Paramhansa Yogananda, whose teachings my husband and myself have had the pleasure of studying for twenty years."

Mystical Verses of Lalla is a rich introduction to Lalla, the great 14th centuries. Also known as Lallesvari and Lal Ded, she defied social conventions and proceeded on the journey of self-realization. Her verses speak across cultural boundaries and traditions and are as relevant today as they were six centuries ago. Jaishree Kak has beautifully translated the verses from Kashmiri into English. Joseph Singer's prints and drawings complement the verses, providing visual pathways into Lalla's verses. The fourteenth-century mystic poet Lalla, also known as Lallesvari and Lal Ded, is an integral part of Kashmiri language, literature, and culture. Lalla-Vakh or Lalla's verse-sayings have resonated orally for centuries in the valley of Kashmir. Lalla has been compared to Shakespeare, Hafiz, Kabir and Tulsidasa. And, she has been honored as the first Kashmiri poet who modernized Kashmiri language as well as literature. Her richness of language, turn of phrases, and metaphors are now standard expressions in modern Kashmiri.

Transitioning into Womanhood-Journey to Self-Realisation sparkles with the truth of what demotivates, inspires, destroys and elevates us, as women. It is that moment of self-discovery and self-exploration where you learn to harness the innate gifts that we, as women, are born with. The author draws a crystal-clear roadmap on how to find, heal, love and build yourself; and challenges your old perspectives on the definition of womanhood and encourages you to seek your own truth. Gift-wrapped between these pages, you will find a piece of yourself you never knew, as you realize the woman within, and discover the strength and courage to grow and bloom as you were intended to.

In this first volume of the collected talks and essays of Paramahansa Yogananda, readers will journey through some little-known and seldom-explained aspects of meditation, life after death, healing, and the power of the mind.