Paramhansa Yogananda was the first yoga master of India to take up permanent residence in the West.⁠ ⁠ Before embarking on his mission to America, Yogananda received this guidance from his teacher, Swami Sri Yukteswar:⁠ ⁠ “The West is high in material attainments, but lacking in spiritual understanding. It is God’s will that you play a role in teaching mankind the value of balancing the material with an inner, spiritual life.”⁠ ⁠ It was as Swami Yogananda that he arrived in America in 1920 and p