Ellen Grace O’Brian

Author of
The Jewel of Abundance (New World Library, November, 2018)

Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian is a meditation teacher, award winning poet, writer, and the spiritual director of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment—a Kriya Yoga Meditation Center with headquarters in San Jose, California. She has taught Kriya Yoga retreats and workshops nationally and internationally for more than three decades. She is on the Faculty of 1440 Multiversity in California and has keynoted and presented at prominent conferences and venues around the world including the Symposium for Yoga Therapy and Research in the United States, Universal Foundation for Better Living in the Bahamas, Sambodh Society in India, the Kriya Congress in Italy, and the GDT Nonviolence Conference in South Africa.

She has received many community service awards, including the prestigious Mahatma Gandhi Award for the Promotion of Religious Pluralism from the American Hindu Foundation. Ordained to teach in 1982 by Roy Eugene Davis, a direct disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda, her message is “engaged enlightenment” – an invitation to live an awakened, creatively inspired, and fulfilled life, now.

Along with her service as a meditation teacher and esteemed Yogacharya, Ellen Grace O’Brian is the Founder of Carry the Vision, a community nonviolence education project bringing meditation instruction to staff and children in schools, the prison population, and other segments of society. Her work on behalf of global peace through interfaith cooperation includes several years of service as Vice Chair of the Parliament of the World’s Religions and Chair of their Partner Cities Program, supporting collaboration between interfaith groups in cities around the world. She is the founder and President of Meru Institute, providing healthy lifestyle education and leadership training in yoga studies, Ayurveda, and community service.

Yogacharya O’Brian’s published works include Living the Eternal Way: Spiritual Meaning and Practice in Daily Life and Living for the Sake of the Soul, as well as three volumes of poetry including the award-winning 2017 release: The Moon Reminded Me. She is editor of Enlightenment Journal and host of The Yoga Hour, a weekly podcast with listeners in over 130 countries. Her latest book The Jewel of Abundance: Finding Prosperity through the Ancient Wisdom of Yoga, was recently released by New World Library.

Although millions of Westerners practice yoga simply for its health benefits, the philosophy and wisdom behind the multifaceted discipline have far more to offer. In The Jewel of Abundance, award-winning author and Kriya Yoga teacher Ellen Grace O’Brian reveals an overlooked aspect of yoga: its powerful teachings on prosperity. She draws upon the ancient Vedic tradition of yoga philosophy and practice and shows how spirituality and earthly success can complement each other, leading to realization of the higher Self. O’Brian presents a clear explanation of both the philosophy of yoga and the nuts and bolts of practice, such as setting up a daily meditation routine, incorporating mantras, discerning how to cooperate with universal principles for complete well-being, and cultivating mindfulness in action.

Along the way, she illustrates her lessons with personal stories and timeless sayings from great sages, both Eastern and Western. With O’Brian’s insightful guidance, readers will discover an inexhaustible source of abundance that is available to them whenever they look within.

Praise

“Yoga is the science of the self. It is a practical science that validates the knowledge that the self of the individual is the self of the universe. When you are one with the Source of existence, you are one with infinite abundance and with the unlimited potential of all manifestation. This jewel of a book will show you how to tap into your inner intelligence, the ultimate and supreme genius that mirrors the wisdom of the cosmos. Cultivate wealth consciousness, and affluence and prosperity will effortlessly flow toward you in all their manifestations.” -Deepak Chopra, bestselling author of The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and You Are the Universe

”The Jewel of Abundance will inspire, challenge, and motivate readers to discover and express their innate potential to experience excellence in all aspects of life. Having known Ellen Grace O’Brian for almost four decades, I am pleased to affirm her good character and total commitment to living the principles she so clearly explains.” —Roy Eugene Davis, founder and director of Center for Spiritual Awareness and author of Paramahansa Yogananda as I Knew Him

”The Jewel of Abundance lays out a well-defined perspective on prosperity, wealth, and abundance. It presents a balanced view that takes into account common human needs and shows us simple ways to find happiness and satisfaction that lie beyond the accumulation of material objects. Ellen Grace O’Brian carefully and simply presents ancient wisdom so that one can easily begin to make the necessary changes to one’s lifestyle. One does not have to be a saint to follow the path of righteousness; one simply has to learn the ways of dharma, kama, and artha and apply them to one’s daily life. The Jewel of Abundance is a very valuable book containing gems of wisdom. It can help the world change its course from the present crisis of materialism to a sustainable lifestyle.” —Ela Gandhi, peace activist and founder of the Gandhi Development Trust