Held in the Ray of the Masters

Two great spiritual teachers appear together in this painting — an image that may feel unexpected at first glance.

Does it feel surprising to you — or perhaps strangely comforting?

For some, seeing traditions reflected together may feel unsettling. Others may light up at the sense of unity in purpose.

A saffron-robed monk beside a familiar Christian figure may feel unusual to Western eyes. And for some today, the very image of Jesus can stir complicated feelings because of painful experiences connected to religious institutions.

All of these reactions are welcome. Each one can be an invitation to notice what arises within us and explore it with curiosity.

In many ways, this painting reflects the kind of spiritual bridge our world is rediscovering today — where wisdom traditions meet, overlap, and illuminate one another rather than compete.

As you may recall from an earlier post, I was recently inspired by Buddhist monks who completed a Walk for Peace across the United States, ending with a multi-faith gathering in Washington.

A century earlier, something similar began unfolding when Paramahansa Yogananda first arrived in America.

You may know him through his spiritual classic Autobiography of a Yogi, which has sold millions of copies, been translated into more than 50 languages, and is widely regarded as one of the most influential spiritual books of the twentieth century.

For many Americans at the time, hearing a Hindu yogi speak about Christ, meditation, and direct experience of the Divine must have sounded just as unexpected as this painting might appear to some today.

And yet that meeting of traditions planted seeds that continue unfolding in our increasingly multi-faith world.

When Yogananda arrived in America in 1920, he first spoke at the International Congress of Religious Liberals — a gathering devoted to exploring the shared spiritual foundations of different traditions.

At a time when few Americans had encountered yoga or meditation, he soon filled auditoriums across the country speaking about a living experience of God and the deeper meaning of Christ’s teachings.

Yogananda believed that all true religions share a common source and lead toward the same ultimate truth: direct experience of God.

According to the spiritual lineage he belonged to, this mission began when the Himalayan master Mahavatar Babaji received a request from Christ that these universal teachings of self-realization be shared more widely in the West.

In other words, the bridge between East and West was intentional from the beginning.

Christ spoke of the kingdom of God within.

Yogananda described that same realization as Christ Consciousness — the awakening to our unity with the Divine.

Different language. Same invitation.

For me, discovering these teachings did not take me away from Jesus.

In many ways, they have brought me closer.

This painting is called Held in the Ray of the Masters (15″ x 30″), and it emerged during the final days of an eight-week spiritual course I had been taking online with my Ananda community, founded by a direct disciple of Yogananda.

As I prepared for the closing ceremony, creating the painting became part of my own integration process — weaving together the questions, insights, inner shifts, and readiness that had unfolded along the way.

The title Held in the Ray of the Masters refers to both the Light and to a spiritual lineage — a stream of wisdom carried forward through teachers who dedicate their lives to helping others realize their connection with the Divine.

In the painting, the central figure rises upward, lifted in a movement of awakening. Her heart is open, receiving this ray of light, wisdom, and the healing OM vibration from two self-realized masters: Jesus and Yogananda.

For me, they represent two teachers who have profoundly shaped my own spiritual journey and who, through their lived example and my growing attunement beyond time and space, continue to show the way.

Sharing this painting during the season leading toward Easter feels especially meaningful.

For Christians, Easter tells the story of resurrection — the victory of divine life over suffering and limitation. Yet beneath the historical story is also a spiritual teaching: that human consciousness can rise into union with God.

In that sense, Christ was not only revealing what he could do. He was showing what is possible for all of us.

The practices Yogananda helped bring to the West — kriya yoga, meditation, devotion, spiritual discipline, and philosophy — are meant to support that same awakening.

Not everyone will resonate with this path, and not everyone will resonate with this painting.

That’s perfectly okay.

There are many ways people come to experience the sacred.

This one simply happens to be part of mine.

May we each follow the inspiration that calls us forward and upward—along whatever ray we are called to follow—toward greater peace on earth and a rising of consciousness for our shared human family.

Om. Peace. Amen

P.S. If you’d like to spend a little more time with Held in the Ray of the Masters, you’re welcome to visit my shop for a few more photos and details. It’s also available there if it feels like it’s meant for you.  If you’d rather a print, on canvas or paper in your choice of size, you can order prints here.