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Why Read
the First Edition of Autobiography of a Yogi?
A Comparison of Editions
 Contents:
Introduction
Ananda Sangha
has recently published in India the original, 1946, first edition
of Paramhansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi. The positive
public response to the republication of this spiritual classic has
been overwhelming. Some people ask, "Why republish the first edition
of a book which is now being published in a 13th edition?" In the
following pages we offer the answer, in the form of a look at the
history of this wonderful book, before and after its author's mahasamadhi.
One of the most
insightful observations about the first edition, in contrast to
the more recent ones, is made by David Frawley, Director, American
Institute of Vedic Studies, who stated, "In the original edition,
published during Yogananda's life, one is more in contact with Yogananda
himself. While Yogananda founded centers and organizations, his
concern was more with guiding individuals to direct communion with
Divinity rather than with promoting any one church as opposed to
another. This spirit is easier to grasp in the original edition
of this great spiritual and yogic classic."
It is interesting,
in this context, that Sri Yogananda stated that the book carries
his vibrations. And certainly the powerful vibrations of the illumined
master must be the real reason behind the great success of the world-beloved
book. People's lives have been transformed. Yoganandaji knew this:
with reference to its publication, he predicted that it will "change
the lives of millions."
Our concern
for the integrity of this book, and our motive in publishing the
first edition, stems from the fact that through all these years
since the death of Sri Yogananda in 1952, Autobiography of a
Yogi has undergone continuous change under the editorial control
of Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF). SRF is a corporation of Los
Angeles, California founded by Yogananda. The original copyright
was in the name of Paramhansa Yogananda. SRF bought the publishing
rights from the original publisher in 1953, after the author's death.
SRF holds the copyright to the changes they have made in the book,
but not to the original edition of the book itself.
The information
contained herein is taken from a much larger study of word-by-word
comparisons of virtually every U.S. edition of this book published
since 1946. The inescapable conclusion is that literally thousands
of changes have been made to Autobiography of a Yogi since
its author's passing-many of them not true to its original intent.
SRF has never
stopped editing this book. They have made changes to the text, as
well as adding, deleting, and editing photographs, captions, end
pages, footnotes, and publisher's notes. These include changes radically
altering Paramhansa Yogananda's spiritual teachings and spiritual
concepts; changes altering the history of events in Yogananda's
life as he told them, changes to direct quotations as he gave them,
and insertions of statements of institutional authority which directly
contradict Yogananda's own statement of his vision for the spread
of his teachings. Even charming examples of his humor have been
deleted from text, and his name was given a new spelling seven years
after his death.
The premise
of the discussion which follows is that, when the content of the
book is so obviously changed, so also is the original vibration
which it contained. We encourage you to seek out these changes for
yourself and reach your own conclusions. We cannot directly quote
the changed text in recent editions of Autobiography of a Yogi,
as SRF is the copyright holder of that text. So simply place side
by side your copy of the original edition and any one of the most
recent editions, and make your own observations: Has there been
change in the meaning of what you're reading? What we offer in the
following pages are some historical facts on the background of what
you're observing for yourself . . . what was changed,
when it was changed, and an attempt to answer, why?
Next: Preparation
of the Book
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