The Creation of a Yogi Guru Persona

Abstract

In this chapter, Yogananda’s ministry is evaluated through the lens of modern consumer religion, mass marketing, and religious branding. The early portion investigates the religious products he touted, most centrally, his systematic, practical method for God-realization through yoga—in the innovative form of a correspondence course. Yogananda’s instruction inculcated a larger Hindu worldview, not just a set of meditative techniques. His East-West magazine was a promotional tool designed to highlight his brand’s distinctiveness. The chapter also explores the way the yogi, like evangelists of the time, promoted his message to a modern American audience saturated in savvy advertising and modern products. The final section considers the hazards of the religious market, including negative press attention and several lawsuits that threatened his brand image as well as his solvency just as the Depression arrived.