Self-Realization Fellowship (Paramahansa Yogananda)
International Hindu-derived organisation founded by Paramahansa Yogananda (1920) and best known for his 'Autobiography of a Yogi'. Operates monastic order (SRF Monastic Order). Sister Indian organisation Yogoda Satsanga Society of India.
CLCI radar
BITE breakdown
0 — long-established yoga lineage; mostly low control with some monastic-life concerns.
Profile facts
In context
SRF teaches Kriya Yoga meditation as a sequential discipleship taught through correspondence courses and at Mt. Washington (Los Angeles) headquarters. The monastic order (SRF Monastics) has produced some ex-monk accounts of difficult conditions; for lay students the practice is largely voluntary and self-paced. Internal succession disputes followed Daya Mata's 2010 death.
Key control doctrines
- Kriya Yoga lineage from Mahavatar Babaji
- Six gurus (lineage masters)
- Monastic discipline for ordained members
Recovery resources
- ICSA (International Cultic Studies Association) — General referral and cult-aware therapist directory.
- INFORM (Information Network on Religious Movements) — LSE-founded UK research-based information service covering new religious movements.
- Sarlo's Guru Rating Service — Long-standing publicly-maintained guru-assessment site including critical material.
- Reclamation Collective — Religious-trauma-aware therapist network; relevant for post-exit identity-rebuilding.
- Freedom of Mind Resource Center — Steven Hassan's organisation; BITE-model resources and family-side exit guidance.
See the full curated list at /resources.
Legal cases & controversies
- SRF v. Ananda / Swami Kriyananda copyright disputes (1990s–2000s)
This profile is in progress — history, deeper BITE evidence and survivor voices are still being added. Contributions welcome via GitHub.
Timeline
- 1920Yogananda arrives in USA; founds Self-Realization Fellowship
- 1946'Autobiography of a Yogi' published
- 1952Yogananda dies
- 2010Sri Daya Mata (third successor) dies; succession disputes follow
Sources
- Paramahansa Yogananda, 'Autobiography of a Yogi' (1946) search ↗
- Various former SRF monastics' accounts search ↗
We cite sources by name and outlet rather than fabricating links. Where a source includes its own URL, the open ↗ link opens it directly; otherwise search ↗ runs a Google Scholar query for the cited title — useful for verifying academic sources. For news outlets, search the outlet's own archive.
Change history
Substantive edits logged per the score-updates policy.
- 2026-05-29Phase 1 Batch J corrective: Moderate-band (CLCI 14) entry upgraded from Mainstream-comparator lighter palette to Eastern guru-led palette — Batch J's clci<21 fallthrough was too lean for the documented control vector of this category.
- 2026-05-29Phase 1 Batch J: per-group recovery resources applied via programmatic palette (closest-fit by category + subCategory + score). Palette: Mainstream-comparator lighter.
- 2026-05-20Score band scheme migrated from 4 bands to 5 (Minimal 0–5 / Low 6–12 / Moderate 13–20 / High 21–30 / Extreme 31–40). No CLCI value changed; the new Minimal band was carved out of the bottom of the previous Low band.
Relevant hubs
Curated entry points on CLCI Hub for situations connected to this group.
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