Atman Goering

International travel has been an integral part of my life for the last 45 years. I have travelled to numerous countries on five continents and lived for extended periods on three different continents and become fluent in three languages. I have always enjoyed experiencing the great diversity of cultures and environments that share this planet. Travel has helped me to better know myself. One’s own character, assumptions, and habits, the good and the bad, come into focus when faced with new ways of being. My globe trotting led me to pursue in earnest the spiritual search and the regular practice of yoga and meditation. As I grew in understanding, my travels focused more and more on pilgrimage: visiting places to tune into, through meditation and silent contemplation, the sacred vibrations that remain in places made holy by beings of higher consciousness, and the subsequent visitors who have sought to attune themselves to those vibrations. I have also found places of great natural beauty, especially mountain wilderness, to be a source of great inspiration and attunement to the Divine.

For the last thirty years my wife, Bhaktimarg, and I have made Ananda Village in California our home and we raised our son here. I have served as manager of both Ananda retreats and for the last twenty years as manager for the village. I also serve as a minister an Ananda Lightbearer and enjoy giving talks and classes sharing the incredible gift of Yogananda’s spiritual teachings, illuminated by the inspiration and humor I have experienced in my own life. I am looking forward to smoothing the way for pilgrims joining us in the Holy land through both my experience on the spiritual path and my familiarity with meeting the surprises and adventures of pilgrimage. I am sure we will share an unforgettable experience. Please join us.