The Self Realization Fellowship was founded in 1920 by Paramahansa Yogananda. He is known as the pioneering father of yoga in the west. The Bay Area SRF family moved locations a few times, including a temporary move to their Berkeley temple from 2012-2020. Finally they found a permanent home at their current location in Walnut Creek, California. They currently offer meditations varying in duration from 40 minutes to 6 hours, and are open and welcoming to anyone at any point in their spiritual journey.

Paramahansa Yogananda founded Self Realization Fellowship in Boston in 1920. He then visited the San Francisco Bay Area in November 1924 and the following year established the SRF's headquarters in Los Angeles, California. In 1949, Kamala Silva, a devoted SRF member, moved to Northern California and began searching for a permanent home for the growing number of SRF members in the Bay Area. The group moved to various locations in Oakland and Berkeley. In 1974, a church and three acres of surrounding property purchased, and then the Richmond themple was born. After leaving that location a temporary location in Berkeley was secured for the Bay and served as their local spiritual home from 2012 until 2020. They finally found their permanent home in Walnut Creek which is now known as the Bay Area Temple. They are easily accessible, with public transit located close by, and parking located on the property and the street.