** Shyama Charan Lahiri** (30 September 1828 – 26 September 1895), best known as Lahiri Mahasaya, was an Indian yogi and guru who founded the Kriya Yoga school. He was a disciple of Mahavatar Babaji. According to the book America's Alternative Religions by Timothy Miller, Lahiri Mahasaya's life was described in Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi as a demonstration of the spiritual attainment that could be achieved by a householder "living fully in the world". A part of Lahiri Mahasaya's face is pictured on the cover of The Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Biography

Lahiri Mahasaya was born to Gourmohan and Muktakeshi Lahiri on 30 September 1828, in village Ghurni, Dist. Nadia, West Bengal, India, according to Yogananda. In 1832, a flood killed his mother and destroyed their home, after which his family moved to Varanasi, where he received education in philosophy, Sanskrit, and English. His father arranged for him to be married to Kashimoni in 1846, and he taught her how to read. In 1851, he began working as a clerk and tutor. On 27 November 1861, Lahiri Mahasaya met Babaji in Ranikhet. Babaji taught him a meditation technique called Kriya Yoga, which Lahiri Mahasaya then taught to many others, including his wife, Paramahansa Yogananda's parents, and Sri Yukteswar Giri, guru of Yogananda.