About

Song of the Morning yoga retreat of excellence, a new world center of yoga culture, is located on 800 acres of beautiful rolling woodland in northern Michigan. It is the perfect place for pursuing the spiritual reality that flows like a deep river beneath the chaos of our times.  The retreat provides spiritual retreats, lodging, and delicious vegetarian meals.  Additionally, guests may enjoy many outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, canoeing, and nature watching.

Song of the Morning, operated by Golden Lotus, Inc. a Michigan nonprofit corporation. Golden Lotus, Inc. was founded in 1970 by Yogacharya Oliver J. Oliver Black, a highly advanced disciple of the yoga master Paramahansa Yogananda.

Mr. Black, a man of joy and vitality, was a very successful businessman and was also ordained by Yogananda as a Self-Realization Fellowship Minister, serving more than 40 years. The title of “Yogacharya,” bestowed on him by Yogananda, means “Yoga Teacher.” Through his untiring efforts at his Detroit SRF meditation services and at Song of the Morning, he attracted thousands to the science of yoga.

Song of the Morning is the result of Yogacharya’s desire to carry out the wishes of his guru to establish a yoga retreat for the purpose of expanding the application of this timeless science as a full and practical way of life.

Yoga is a scientific ordering of the universal laws of life.  As modern science continues to unlock the secrets of nature, it continually verifies what yogis have known intuitively for thousands of years.

The goals of Golden Lotus, Inc. are:to promote the understanding of this most ancient of sciences, helping modern  men and women  develop new depths of inner awareness and self-realization;

*   to further the teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda and the teaching of yoga;
*   to operate a yoga retreat of excellence and a World Brotherhood Colony;
*   to exemplify a higher culture where householder yogis live balanced, productive lives; and
*   to provide a place of relaxation and spiritual refreshment for truth-thirsty souls.