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November 13, 2001

Dear Friends,

It is with profound gratitude and love that I today remember the
Mahasamadhi (leaving the body) of my teacher, Sri Swami Rama of the
Himalayas on November 13, 1996.

Bio: http://www.hihtindia.org/swamirama/index.htm
Photos: http://www.geocities.com/swamiramabio/Photos.htm

OM Tat Sat

Swami J

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November 13, 2001

Dear Friends,

Following is a portion of a press release issued today:

KAUAI, HAWAII, USA, November 13, 2001: Satguru Sivaya
Subramuniyaswami, one of Hinduism's foremost spiritual teachers, a
prolific author and publisher of Hinduism Today magazine, passed away
today at age 74 at his ashram home on the island of Kauai, Hawaii,
USA.

Few in the Hindu world would not recognize the tall, white-haired
American who had gained prominence over the decades for his practical
and clear-minded books replete with explanations of everything Hindu,
from the most basic beliefs and daily practices to the loftiest
refined philosophy and yoga techniques.

He was equally famous as founder and publisher of Hinduism Today,
which evolved over 21 years from a simple newsletter to an award-
winning, international, full-color magazine, respected for its
authoritative reporting on Hindu events, institutions, personalities,
issues and controversies around the world.

For detailed information:
http://www.gurudeva.dynip.com/~htoday/press_releases/

OM Tat Sat

Swami J

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November 15, 2001

Dear Friends,

That which separates you from your real Self--the whole and real--is
your ego. You may wonder how you can cut down that ego or may try to
tear it down or forget it, but that's not possible. Instead, you have
to learn to "polish" or train your ego. When the ego becomes aware of
the Reality, it is trained, and then the ego is useful. If the ego
does not remain aware of the Reality, then the ego becomes unhelpful;
it is then harmful or an obstacle.*

In loving service,

Swami J

*Swami Rama, The Art of Joyful Living

http://SwamiJ.com

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November 16, 2001

Dear Friends,

Out of our pain we begin to suspect there is something more to life,
that life is not limited to what our senses experience. We may only
suspect. Our knowledge of anything beyond the world of forms -- that
which we see and hear, and so on -- still may be barely a whisper
deep within us, but the possibility is worth the exploration.

The exploration begins by establishing the philosophy that there may
be something more to life. That philosophy at least gives a
direction. With such a philosophy, life takes on more meaning and
immediately begins to take a different shape. The intention to learn
more provides focus, and focus gathers energy. There is joy in that
alone. *

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Sacred Journey

http://SwamiJ.com

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November 20, 2001

Dear Friends,

Here is a link to a page entitled Interview with God. It is quite a
beautiful and inspiring piece of art.

Click here:
http://www.ifsny.com/interview/god.html

The file has both visual and sound, so remember to turn on the sound
of your computer. Those with slower internet connections may find
this difficult to experience due to the size of the file.

In loving service,

Swami J

http://SwamiJ.com

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November 24, 2001

Dear Friends,

Following is a link of a press release from The Divine Life Society
of Rishikesh, India, founded by Swami Shivananda Saraswati. The well
known and respected Swami Krishnananda has left the body on November
23, 2001 in Rishikesh.

http://www.sivanandadlshq.org/announce/krishnasamadhi.htm

OM Tat Sat

Swami J

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November 26, 2001

Dear Friends,

A human being need not waste his time and energy gathering great
means to fulfill the purpose of life. He can live with few means if
he knows how to utilize those few means correctly and at the right
time.

That skill is developed as one learns to coordinate his different
faculties and modifications of mind. It results from sincere efforts
made by the aspirant to develop full clarity of mind, which is the
very basis of actions performed successfully in the external world.

Mind and actions are virtually one and the same: one is a seed and
the other a plant that bears flowers and fruit. *

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita

http://SwamiJ.com

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November 28, 2001

Dear Friends,

It is important for one to be aware of both his strengths and his
weaknesses, for without such awareness, success in life remains a
mere dream. An aspirant should first learn to strengthen the faculty
of discrimination and judgment.

That faculty enables him to recognize both sets of qualities as they
exist within himself: [1] those that inspire him to attain his goal
and [2] those that create barriers for him and dissipate his will
power.

Every sadhaka [spiritual practitioner] should first learn to examine
and be aware of those two factors. *

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita

24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Retreat.htm

http://SwamiJ.com

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November 30, 2001

Dear Friends,

"If you want to know your true Self, you should understand that it is
neither your mind nor your personality. The personality is something
outside your Self.

"The word 'personality' comes from its root word, 'persona,' a Greek
word that refers to coverings or masks. If you remove all the
coverings and veils of your personality, one by one, you will find
the real Light within. You will find the real Self.

"In meditation, you don't eliminate any aspect of yourself or your
ego, but you learn to go inside to this Source and this Light. You
are not searching for something outside yourself that is difficult to
find. You are searching for someone who is already within you, so it
is actually easy to find.

"But unfortunately, the training to do that is usually not present.
Since your childhood you have not been trained to see things in the
internal world. Instead, you have been taught to see things and to
watch and judge things in the external world. No one teaches you how
to look within, to find something within, and to go to the Source
within. This subtle teaching is missing in your home life." *

May you find that Source inside your personality.

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, The Art of Joyful Living

24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Retreat.htm

http://SwamiJ.com

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December 1, 2001

Dear Friends,

The lotus is often used as a symbol in Indian culture and mythology
because the lotus grows in the mud, yet remains above, untouched and
unaffected by the mud and water.

You can live in the world and yet be spiritual. It is not necessary
for you to renounce the world. Wherever you are, stay there. Simply
follow two formulas.

One formula is for living in the external world:

All the things of the world that are given to me are given to me by
the Lord. They are meant for me and I have the right to use them, but
I don't have the right to possess them, for they are not mine. All
things will become means in life if you have this attitude, instead
of "This is mine, this is mine!" You are afraid of losing what you
have; you are afraid it will decay and go to decomposition. You
should learn to use the things of the world without being possessive.
As St. Bernard said, "Love the Lord alone. Use the things of the
world as your means." In addition, you should do your actions
selflessly, lovingly, and skillfully.

Nothing more than that is needed--one formula for the external
world.

What to do for the inner self? [the second of the two formulas]

God is everywhere. The Lord is in me; I am his shrine. As a shrine is
kept neat and clean, I will try my best to keep my body, breath, and
mind pure and orderly.

For a person of wisdom who knows the Truth, internal and external are
one and the same. Inner freedom is born of self-sacrifice, self-
purification, and self-control. This freedom releases the spirit and
gives it wings to soar to the boundless sphere of the unfathomable
levels of being. *


In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Sadhana

24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Retreat.htm

http://SwamiJ.com

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December 3, 2001

Dear Friends,

The word karma has come into mainstream usage in western culture.
Regrettably, however, the word is often not used accurately in the
West and its meaning is frequently twisted. In modern western
society's new lexicon, the word karma has come to be used very
casually and incorrectly to mean fatalism, something utterly out of
one's hands. People say, "Oh, it's karma, there's nothing you can
do," or, "It's not your fault, it's bad karma."

Implied in this interpretation of the word karma is the belief that
whatever happens is not a person's doing. It's all due to fateful
karma. This view takes the responsibility for an individual's life
and circumstances and places it on an abstraction called karma, as if
it were some ill wind blowing through that forced its effects on you.

This is not what karma means. Karma is not a catchy word from the
East that lets you off the hook. Karma places responsibility for your
circumstances and experiences with you. Karma means that you are
responsible; you determine your circumstances. You are the architect
of your present situation, and past, and future. It is not meant to
create guilt. To accept responsibility for your life gives you the
power to move, change, and grow. It means you are independent. Your
life is not dependent on what others do or think. You are not a
victim of circumstances, parents, selfish spouses, inconsiderate
children, tyrannical bosses, economic depression, or world politics.*

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Sacred Journey

Guided meditation, December 13:
24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 4, 2001

Dear Friends,

There are four types of people: those who are time oriented, those
who are goal oriented, those who are life oriented, and those who are
purpose oriented.

In today's world we find mostly time oriented people. They are
selfish, narrow, and conceited. Time oriented people do things to
fulfill their selfish ends without purpose or goal and are not aware
of the consequences of their actions. Time is fleeting for them. They
have no sense of tomorrow, so they demand immediate gratification.
They react impulsively to external stimuli to fulfill their desires
for sensory gratification. They take advantage of others; they cannot
think beyond their own concerns.

Slightly higher are those whose lives are directed toward certain
goals. Those goals, however, are related to the pleasures of the
mundane and temporal world. But at least those people have goals and
do not act impulsively like time oriented people.

Higher still is the life of those who try to remain in peace and to
live in harmony. They believe in co-existence as a way of life, so
they do not like to disturb the equilibrium of others nor do they
desire to possess unlawfully the wealth and property of others.

But the highest path is followed by those who are purpose oriented
and who direct all their energies and use all their resources to
fulfill their single purpose: Self-realization. *

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita

Guided meditation, December 13:
24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 5, 2001

Dear Friends,

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali outlines the entire science of yoga.
When the original Sanskrit is translated into English, some sense of
the meaning is lost. One way around this is to look at several
different translations for each of the sutras.

Here is a link to a website where the author has compared seven
different translations for each of the sutras:
http://www.bindu.freeserve.co.uk/yoga/yogasutra/ys_comments.htm

This same link has also been placed in the Bookmarks section of the
home page of the newsletter at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Swami_Js_Newsletter/

Or, you can go directly to the Bookmarks page:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Swami_Js_Newsletter/links

In loving service,

Swami J


Guided meditation, December 13:
24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 6, 2001

Dear Friends,

Swami Rama tells a delightful story about one time when he got angry
with his teacher and said, "After all these years you still have not
shown me God. All these great swamis come to you to learn and they go
away happily, saying that they have attained something, but I have
not attained anything. I don't want to be a hypocrite any more. You
show me God, or I will leave you in the morning!"

He says his teacher then told him, "Tomorrow morning I will show you
God." He said he was so excited that he could not sleep all night,
nor eat his supper. He asked, "Can you tell me one thing: why didn't
you show me God seventeen years ago? Why are you doing it now, after
all these years?" His teacher replied, "You never asked to see God
before, and today you asked me, so I will definitely show you God in
the morning."

The next morning he was extremely devoted to his teacher, prostrating
and bowing before him, and bringing him flowers, unlike when he would
usually just say "Good morning, Sir." His teacher asked, "What is
this abnormal behavior?"

"You are going to show me God," he said. The teacher said, "That is
why you are doing all these rituals? Okay, son, sit down. First, tell
me what type of God you want to see."

"Type of God? I never thought about that question! Are there types of
God?" asked the young student of his teacher. The teacher
answered, "Not really, but you must have your own concept of God, and
I don't want to change your concept. You think about it and however
you conceive God in your mind, whatever the picture you have in your
mind about God, I will show you God according to that concept."

"But I have not yet formed any concept of God," he said. Then his
teacher replied, "The day you develop one, I'll show it to you."

After narrating the story, Swami Rama then explains what his teacher
was trying to teach him: "His point was that our minds create
concepts like God. But the mind can never have a full concept of God,
because the mind does not have such a vast capacity. God cannot be
truly conceptualized by the human mind. Most of us create a limited
concept of God and Guru, and later on, we find that both are actually
different than what we conceived. In my case, for seventeen years I
had had a notion of God, which crumbled in five minutes' time."

He goes on to tell how his teacher further explained, "Shall I show
you God as it is, or do you want to see God the way you want to see
Him? If I show you God as it is, you will not believe it because the
picture in your mind is different, and if I show you God the way you
THINK it is, that image is already there. Either way, you will not be
convinced. The best way is to understand yourself first." *


In loving service,

Swami J

* Swami Rama, The Art of Joyful Living

Guided meditation, December 13:
24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 9, 2001

Dear Friends,

The Path of Truth is narrower than the needle's eye and as sharp as a
razor's edge.

When you start expanding your consciousness, you will come to know
that on the path of spirituality there is always guidance from the
unknown. We have come from the unknown, and we will return to the
unknown. We remain in the known for only a short time, but the
unknown is always with us. Therefore, we should rely on the unknown.

If we are treading the path of light, and if by chance, by mistake,
by ignorance, or even by bad habit, we commit mistakes, we will
return to the path again, because of the guidance from the unknown. *


In loving service,

Swami J

* Swami Rama, Sadhana

Guided meditation, December 13:
24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 10, 2001

Dear Friends,

All the differences in the outside world are the outcome of your
mental modifications. For example, imagine you have not seen your
father since your birth and he returns when you are ten years old. He
knocks at your door. Opening it, you see a strange face. You run to
your mama saying, "Mama, there's a stranger at the door." Your mama
comes and sees her long-lost husband. With all joy she receives him
and introduces him as your father. You say, "Oh, my Daddy!" A few
minutes before, he was a stranger; now he has become your daddy. Did
he change into your daddy? No, he is the same person. You created the
idea of "stranger," then changed it to "Daddy;" that's all.

The entire outside world is based on your thoughts and mental
attitude. The entire world is your own projection. Your values may
change within a fraction of a second. Today you may not even want to
see the one who was your sweet honey yesterday. If we remember that,
we won't put so much stress on outward things.

That is why Yoga does not bother much about changing the outside
world. There is a Sanskrit saying, "Mana eva manushyanam karanam
bandha mokshayoho." "As the mind, so the man; bondage or liberation
are in your own mind." If you feel bound, you are bound. If you feel
liberated, you are liberated. Things outside neither bind nor
liberate you; only your attitude toward them does that. *


In loving service,

Swami J

* Swami Satchidananda, Commentary on the Yoga Sutras

Guided meditation, December 13:
24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 12, 2001

Dear Friends,

We can say that karma is the source of misery.

We can focus on karma as suffering from the consequences of actions.

We can say karma is what shackles us to this world and all its
painful imperfections.

There is another perspective, a higher view. We can see karma as the
curriculum we must take to achieve the clarity of pure consciousness.
Nothing more.

Follow the rope of karma through the maze we call life and find the
absolute Reality. *


In loving service,

Swami J

* Swami Rama, Sacred Journey

Guided meditation, December 13:
24-Hour Retreat, December 15:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 17, 2001

Dear Friends,

Silence makes the mind one-pointed. So if one is in grief, the grief
becomes more intense in silence; if one is in love, silence
intensifies the feeling of love; if one is on the path of Self-
realization, silence offers no distraction but joy beyond
estimation.*

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita

http://SwamiJB.com

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December 18, 2001

Dear Friends,

Why is meditation necessary? Just as there is a subconscious state
beneath the conscious state, so is there a superconscious state above
the conscious state. Meditation alone can take man to this blissful
state of mind. Few people reach it because it is possible to get
there only through persistent effort, and only after meditation has
become a part of one's life.

Meditation can also help one to overcome physical and psychological
problems. A large percentage of all diseases is psychosomatic,
arising from conflicts, repressions and suppressions in the
unconscious mind. Meditation leads one to an awareness of these
conflicts, helps to analyze them and then erase them, thus
establishing harmony at the unconscious level.*

In loving service,

Swami J

* Swami Rama, Lectures on Yoga


Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Retreat, January 19:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 20, 2001

Dear Friends,

There is a parable in the Upanishads, in which someone asks, "How do
you see? Is it because of the sunlight? When there is no sunlight, is
it because of the moonlight? When there is no moonlight, then is it
fire that allows you to see? When there is no fire, then what helps
you see?"

Even in the deepest darkness, you can see yourself. You don't see
yourself through your eyes, yet you know you exist. I am talking
about that which you don't see with your eyes, yet you know it is
right. You don't need any proof that you exist; you don't ask
people, "Am I standing here?" You know it; your are here. You don't
need any evidence of that.

A time will come when you will know your true Self. You don't need a
swami, a book or your neighbor to tell you, "Yes, you are
enlightened." To become enlightened is the human endeavor; don't stop
pursuing that goal. *

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, The Art of Joyful Living

Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Meditation Retreat, January 19:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 22, 2001

Dear Friends,

You are the architect of your life. You build your own philosophy and
construct your own attitudes. Without right attitudes, the entire
architecture remains shaky. Once you realize this fact, you will look
within ....

If you study life's journey, when you start unfolding yourself and
experiencing life and its necessities, you will find throughout that
life is full of changes and modifications.

Let you learn to enjoy life from moment to moment and do not worry
about the future. If you take care of your present, the future will
be at your disposal, and one day you will find out that you are the
architect of your life. *

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Sadhana

Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Meditation Retreat, January 19:
http://SwamiJ.com

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December 23, 2001

Dear Friends,

Following are two links to Gayatri Mantra and Maha Mrityunjaya
Mantra. When you click on either link, the Mantra will be recited
aloud for 108 repetitions, which is the number of beads on a mala.
The 108 repetitions will take about 18 minutes. These have been
recorded by my dear friend, Swami Nardanand of Siddha Ashram, Ujjain,
India. http://SiddhaAshram.org

Gayatri Mantra:
http://www.geocities.com/siddhaashram/Gayatri.htm

Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra:
http://www.geocities.com/siddhaashram/Mahamrityunjaya.htm


In loving service,

Swami J

http://SwamiJ.com

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December 24, 2001

Dear Friends,

You seem to have lost your original identity and have identified with
your thoughts and body.

Suppose I ask you who you are if you don't identify with anything
whatsoever.

If you say, "I am a man," you have identified yourself with a
masculine body. If you say, "I am a professor," you are identifying
with the ideas gathered in your brain. If you say, "I am a
millionaire," you are identifying with your bank account; if "a
mother," with a child; "a husband," with your wife. "I am tall; I am
short; I am black or white" shows your identification with the color
and shape of the body.

But without any identifications, who are you? Have you ever thought
about it? When you really understand that, you will see we are all
the same.

If you detach yourself completely from all the things you have
identified yourself with, you realize yourself as the pure "I." In
that pure "I" there is no difference between you and me. *

In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Satchidananda, Commentary on the Yoga Sutras

Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Meditation Retreat, January 19:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 25, 2001

Dear Friends,

Vairagya is translated variously as non-attachment, detachment, or
dispassion. It should not be confused with indifference, lack of
emotion, lifelessness, numbness, or anything of that sort. Vairagya
is hardly indifference or numbness. Vairagya is a vibrant, open,
expansive way of living. It could more accurately be defined as love,
as a wonderful energy of openness, freedom, joy, giving,
selflessness, and fearlessness. That is vairagya.

The Vedantic philosophy of vairagya says you own nothing, so there is
nothing to fear. Everything you need for the purpose of life is there
in abundance. There is no reason to be possessive and selfish. There
is no reason to worry. Just live life as fully as possible with what
you have.

Jesus said it clearly: "Take no thought for your life, what you shall
eat, or what you shall drink, nor for your body, what you shall put
on. Is not life more than meat, and the body more than raiment?
Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap,
nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you
not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one
cubit unto his stature?

"And why take you thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the
field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin. And yet I
say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like
one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothed the grass of the field,
which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much
more clothe you, O you of little faith?

"Therefore, take no thought saying, What shall we eat? Or, what shall
we drink? Or, wherewithal shall we be clothed? Your heavenly Father
knows that you have need of all these things.

"But first seek the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all
these things shall be added unto you."

Don't fear over the things of the world. They are not there to be
acquired and hoarded. They were meant to serve spiritual needs. If
spiritual progress is the focus of life, everything you need, whether
it is a lot or a little, will be there.

Vairagya is the expression of this faith. *


In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Sacred Journey

Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Meditation Retreat, January 19:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 26, 2001

Dear Friends,

A teacher is like a boat that is the essential means to help one
cross the mire of delusion. The teacher shares his experiences,
making the student aware of the obstacles and stumbling blocks on his
journey.

A seeker should not delude himself and believe that by accepting
someone as a guru or becoming a disciple, he does not have to
practice, that he will become enlightened without any effort.

Spiritual leaders such as Krishna, Jesus, Moses, and Buddha did not
possess the power to enlighten the students who accepted them as
their guides but did not listen, follow, and practice their
teachings. *


In loving service,

Swami J

* Swami Rama, Perennial Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita

Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Meditation Retreat, January 19:
http://www.geocities.com/swamijb/Calendar.htm

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December 27, 2001

Dear Friends,

The teaching points out that there is this Cosmic Being or Cosmic
Consciousness, which has mysteriously been disrupted or fractured by
an ego sense which says, "This is `I' and therefore that is `you'."
From this division flows the interminable stream of worry, anxiety,
fear and hate.

How do you find an end to this stream?

By realizing you ARE the stream. When this happens, the menace has
ceased.

Why is this yoga or doctrine expounded at all? To point out in utter
simplicity that all our problems arise from non-understanding of the
very simple truth that whatever there is, is an indivisible whole. If
this understanding arises, all problems are dissolved immediately. *


In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Venkatesananda, Commentary on the Yoga Sutras

Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Meditation Retreat, January 19:
http://SwamiJ.com/Calendar.htm

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December 28, 2001

Dear Friends,

Just as a matter of intrigue, here is a definition of "Meditation"
from the Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:

"Private religious devotion or mental exercise, in which techniques
of concentration and contemplation are used to reach a heightened
level of spiritual awareness. The practice has existed in all
religions since ancient times. In Hinduism it has been systematized
in the school of Yoga. One aspect of Yoga, dhyana
(Sanskrit: "concentrated meditation"), gave rise to a school of its
own among the Buddhists, becoming the basis of Zen. In many
religions, meditation involves verbal or mental repetition of a
single syllable, word, or text (e.g., a mantra). Visual images (e.g.,
a mandala) or mechanical devices such as prayer wheels or rosaries
can be useful in focusing concentration. In the 20th century,
movements such as Transcendental Meditation emerged to teach
meditation techniques outside a religious context."

What do you think?


In loving service,

Swami J

http://SwamiJ.com

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   Swami J's Newsletter
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December 28, 2001

Dear Friends,

In response to the newsletter just sent out, on  the encyclopedic
definition of meditation, somebody just forwarded to me the link
below. It is about some research just published in the British
Medical Journal.

http://content.health.msn.com/content/article/1689.51814

The article includes the comment, "During both the Ave Maria and the
yoga mantra, respiratory rate was just six breaths per minute,
compared with 14.1 per minute during spontaneous breathing."

Slowing breath in this way has in recent years become more widely
accepted as a means of regulating the autonomic nervous system, thus
reducing stress, and thus improving health.

For the spiritual seeker, this sets the stage for the deeper
practices of meditation and contemplation, by which ones awareness is
eventually able to go beyond the body, breath, and mind, to the
center of consciousness, sometimes called realization of the Self.


In loving service,

Swami J

http://SwamiJ.com

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   Swami J's Newsletter
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December 31, 2001

Dear Friends,

No matter how many temples and churches we build, nothing is going to
happen unless we accept one principle -- that the  greatest of all
churches and temples is the living human being. *


In loving service,

Swami J


* Swami Rama, Sadhana

Guided meditation, January 3:
24-Hour Meditation Retreat, January 19:
http://SwamiJ.com/Calendar.htm

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   Swami J's Newsletter
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January 1, 2002

Dear Friends,

In your meditations this New Year...

May your body be still and comfortable...

May your head, neck and trunk be aligned...

May your breath be smooth, slow, serene, with no pauses...

May the flow of thoughts in your mind not disturb you...

May your meditations this New Year bring you peace, happiness and
bliss...


In loving service,

Swami J

http://SwamiJ.com