This is a wonderful, unique discourse:
The living self is the image of the Supreme Being.
It is neither old nor a child;
Neither it suffers pain, nor in death's snare is caught;
It is not shattered nor dies;
In all time it is pervasive.
It feels not heat nor cold;
Neither has it friend nor foe;
It feels not joy nor sorrow:
All is its own; to it belongs all might.
It has neither father nor mother;
Beyond the limits of matter has it ever existed.
Of sin and goodness it feels not the touch--
Within the heart of each being it is ever awake.

Guru Granth Sahib

As there is no point in expending energy that serves no end
benefit, ease your tension consciously. Relax the muscles that
need not be in use right now (and it's always "right now").
For instance, now you are sitting down reading these words.
Do your shoulders need to be so tight? Do your jaw muscles
have to be ready to speak? Are your legs loose as they can be
without your falling over? Know your body and awaken to the
flight or fight activity that is so commonly pouring your
strength down the proverbial drain needlessly. You're floating
in air, which is even lighter than water. Keep your inner eye
alert to anything pulling you down. Your intense intent is to
be free and easily flowing through your life, not to be stuck
in the same uptight postures moment after moment, uncomfortably
maintaining poses that are dysfunctional and even painful. All
unnecessarily. Real Self-control is using your awareness to
liberate yourself from discomfort of any kind. Witness what your
body is doing and set it and your Self free. You'll live happily
and more energetically ever after.

The Secret of Life

"Do you want to know the secret of life? It is very simple.
Play your part well. But, don't identify with that part.
How? Remember who you are. You have a role to play in life.
So act well but, at the same time, do not forget that you
are acting. Then you are always safe. If you forget one side
you are in danger. If you forget the spiritual side and think
that you are a completely worldly person, there's danger that
you'll be lost in maya (illusion). If you think that you are
completely spiritual and forget the world, then there is danger.
People everywhere will say you are madcap, crazy. So, remember
this and be in the world but not of the world.

"God bless you. OM Shanti, Shanti, Shanti."

Join Satchidananda Ashram's Satsang every Saturday evening

and share the archive with friends.

  7:30pm Eastern, with Livestream

new.livestream.com/yogaville

Please see how this charming story relates to your
own mind and its thoughts. Enjoy!

The Undesirable Visitors

`We have no doors in our monastery,' Shanti said to the visitor.

`And what do you do about thieves?'

`We have nothing of value inside. If we had, we would have
given it to those in need.'

`And what about troublesome people who come to disturb your peace?'

`We ignore them, and eventually they go away,' said Shanti.

`Is that all? And does it work?'

Shanti did not reply. The visitor repeated his question a few
times, but seeing that he got no response, he decided to leave.

`You see how well it works,' said Shanti to himself, smiling.

I like this.  It seems particularly good advice to internet users!

But I don't really understand the opening "No doors" line.  I mean, if there are
no doors, thieves wouldn't be a problem even if there WERE valuables inside,
would they?  And it would be quite hard to give anything to those in need if
everyone inside is locked in there.  Besides, minds actually *do* have "doors"
(of perception).

Anyhow, it seems to me that it might be clearer if it opened with something like
the simple, gracious "'How may I help you?' Shanti asked the visitor."

Best,

W

--- In meditationsocietyofamerica@yahoogroups.com, medit8ionsociety
<no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> Please see how this charming story relates to your
> own mind and its thoughts. Enjoy!
>
> The Undesirable Visitors
>
> `We have no doors in our monastery,' Shanti said to the visitor.
>
> `And what do you do about thieves?'
>
> `We have nothing of value inside. If we had, we would have
> given it to those in need.'
>
> `And what about troublesome people who come to disturb your peace?'
>
> `We ignore them, and eventually they go away,' said Shanti.
>
> `Is that all? And does it work?'
>
> Shanti did not reply. The visitor repeated his question a few
> times, but seeing that he got no response, he decided to leave.
>
> `You see how well it works,' said Shanti to himself, smiling.
>

"walto" <calhorn@...> wrote:
>
> I like this.  It seems particularly good advice to internet users!
>
> But I don't really understand the opening "No doors" line.  I mean, if there
are no doors, thieves wouldn't be a problem even if there WERE valuables inside,
would they?  And it would be quite hard to give anything to those in need if
everyone inside is locked in there.  Besides, minds actually *do* have "doors"
(of perception).
>
> Anyhow, it seems to me that it might be clearer if it opened with something
like the simple, gracious "'How may I help you?' Shanti asked the visitor."
>
> Best,
>
> W
>

Yo Sri W,

"Shanti" actually means Peace, and one of the teachings
here is that in the "Peace Monastery", all is open and it's
simply a play of Maya (Illusion) that things are good or
bad, or important or unimportant, or any other mind chatter
caused dualism. Yes, seemingly there are doors of perception,
but in Reality, all things are infinite, eternal, divine and
unified. So all one has to do to BE Shanti is to ignore that
which is transitory and changing (in a way, going from door
to door) and rest in the void, door-less, yet full.
Peace and blessings,
Bob

> --- In meditationsocietyofamerica@yahoogroups.com, medit8ionsociety
<no_reply@> wrote:
> >
> > Please see how this charming story relates to your
> > own mind and its thoughts. Enjoy!
> >
> > The Undesirable Visitors
> >
> > `We have no doors in our monastery,' Shanti said to the visitor.
> >
> > `And what do you do about thieves?'
> >
> > `We have nothing of value inside. If we had, we would have
> > given it to those in need.'
> >
> > `And what about troublesome people who come to disturb your peace?'
> >
> > `We ignore them, and eventually they go away,' said Shanti.
> >
> > `Is that all? And does it work?'
> >
> > Shanti did not reply. The visitor repeated his question a few
> > times, but seeing that he got no response, he decided to leave.
> >
> > `You see how well it works,' said Shanti to himself, smiling.
> >
>

"At the doors of large granaries are placed traps
containing fried rice (Moori) to catch mice. The mice,
attracted by the flavor of the fried rice, forgets
the more solid pleasure of tasting the rice inside the
granary, and fall into the trap. They are caught therein
and killed. Just so is the case with the soul. It stands
on the threshold of Divine bliss, which is like millions
of the highest worldly pleasures solidified into one; but
instead of striving for that bliss, it allows itself to
be enticed by the petty pleasures of the world and falls
into the trap of Maya, the great illusion, and dies therein".

Shine More

"The same spirit is in everybody. The same current
runs through everyone. But it's the bulb with the
bigger filament that takes more current because of
its construction; by consuming more current, it gives
off more light. The illumination is measured according
to the size of the bulb, but the current is the same.
The divine current is common; it is not partial. It is
given to one and all: a sinner or a saint, a yogi or a
non-yogi. It is everybody's birthright. So, if you
broaden your mind, you become a bigger bulb and you
have a longer filament. Then you are able to attract
more current to give out more light. It's not because
the bulb is greater that the current wants to flow in more.
The current has no decision like that. It's up to you — if
you have a broad mind, purity of the mind, you draw more
of the divine current and shine more.

"God bless you. OM Shanti, Shanti, Shanti."

  MAKE THE CALL:

Hear monthly messages from Sri Swami Satchidananda on the
Inspiration Line (434-WOW-GURU).

Dear Friends,

I hope you are all doing well. I wanted to inform you that I just
posted a new article on our website, which you may find helpful in your
meditation practice: 4 Tips for Jump-Starting Your Mindfulness
Meditation Practice.

This article discusses how to stay committed to your meditation
practice, so you make steady progress in your spiritual development. One
of the tips is to prepare a goal statement, and I discuss how to use it
for maximum effectiveness.

You can read the full article it at: http://wp.me/p22v0Y-to

I hope it helps you on your spiritual journey.

Warm regards,
Charles A. Francis
http://www.mindfulnessmeditationinstitute.org/

P.S. Please remember to share it with others through Facebook, email,
or other media. Thanks!

"Regulated breathing and sense control, discrimination
between the Enduring and the fleeting, the eternal and
the transient, Japa and meditation, and submerging of
the bodily and mental consciousness in the Consciousness
of the Spirit, merging oneself into the total Inner Silence
-- one must practice these with unrelenting fervor."

Marines expanding use of meditation training

Mind Fitness Training found to help troops improve
mental performance under stress of war

While preparing for overseas deployment with the U.S.
Marines late last year, Staff Sgt. Nathan Hampton
participated in a series of training exercises held at
Camp Pendleton, Calif., designed to make him a more
effective serviceman.

There were weapons qualifications. Grueling physical
workouts. High-stress squad counterinsurgency drills,
held in an elaborate ersatz village designed to mirror
the sights, sounds and smells of a remote mountain
settlement in Afghanistan.

There also were weekly meditation classes — including
one in which Sgt. Hampton and his squad mates were
asked to sit motionless in a chair and focus on the
point of contact between their feet and the floor.

"A lot of people thought it would be a waste of time,"
he said. "Why are we sitting around a classroom doing
their weird meditative stuff?

"But over time, I felt more relaxed. I slept better.
Physically, I noticed that I wasn't tense all the time.
It helps you think more clearly and decisively in stressful situations. There
was a benefit."

That benefit is the impetus behind Mindfulness-based
Mind Fitness Training ("M-Fit"), a fledgling military
initiative that teaches service members the secular
meditative practice of mindfulness in order to bolster their emotional health
and improve their mental performance under the stress and strain of war.

Designed by former U.S. Army captain and current Georgetown University professor
Elizabeth Stanley, M-Fit draws on a
growing body of scientific research indicating that regular meditation
alleviates depression, boosts memory and the
immune system, shrinks the part of the brain that controls
fear and grows the areas of the brain responsible for memory
and emotional regulation.

Four years ago, a small group of Marine reservists training
at the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Va., for deployment
to Iraq participated in the M-Fit pilot program, taking
an eight-week mindfulness course and meditating for an a
verage of 12 minutes a day.

A study of those Marines subsequently published in the
research journal Emotions found that they slept better,
had improved athletic performance and scored higher on
emotional and cognitive evaluations than Marines who
did not participate in the program, which centers on
training the mind to focus on the current moment and
to be aware of one's physical state.

The Army and Marines have since commissioned separate
studies of larger groups of troops receiving variations
of M-Fit training, the results of which currently are under scientific review
and likely will be published in the
next few months.

"The findings in general reinforce and extend what we saw
in the pilot study," said Ms. Stanley, an associate professor
of security studies at the Georgetown School of Foreign
Service. "These techniques can be very effective in
increasing situational awareness on the battlefield,
in not having emotions drive behavior, in bolstering
performance and resilience in high-stress environments.
I've seen effects in my own life."

Military meditation

A former Army intelligence officer, Ms. Stanley served
in Korea, Macedonia and Bosnia. Subsequently diagnosed
with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), she struggled
after leaving the military and enrolling in graduate
programs at Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology.

Frustrated by the ineffectiveness of prescription
medication, she began to research mindfulness and
quickly became convinced that the mental and emotional
health benefits of meditation could help not only her,
but also other service members.

Ms. Stanley wrote a paper for the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency (DARPA), essentially arguing that meditative techniques similar
to those used by Buddhist monks were both necessary and appropriate for today's
military — from drone
pilots coping with information overload to infantrymen
conducting dangerous and stressful counterterrorism and counterinsurgency
operations.

"The initial concerns form the military were, 'Is this going
to be a waste of time, and is this going to interrupt my
finely honed rapid-action drills?'" Ms. Stanley said. "The
concerns coming from the mindfulness side were, 'If you
teach them these skills, and they become more open people,
will it undermine their ability to armor up psychologically?
A few people even wondered if I was trying to make, quote,
'better baby-killers.'"

Undaunted, Ms. Stanley sought support for a pilot program
through her connections in the Army — the same Army that
in the mid-1980s conducted a Trojan Warrior Project, in
which 25 Special Forces soldiers nicknamed the "Jedi Knights" received six
months of meditative and martial-arts training
that helped them perform better than their peers on psychological
and biofeedback tests.

She found an advocate in Maj. Jason Spitaletta, a then-Marine reservist who was
a psychology graduate student in non-military
life. Mr. Spitaletta read Ms. Stanley's DARPA paper and brought
it to the attention of his superiors, who agreed to participate
in the 2008 study.

Over eight weeks of 12-hour days otherwise devoted to mock
firefights and exhausting field exercises, 31 Marine reservists
were taught breathing exercises and yoga poses, how to focus
their attention and how to prevent their minds from wandering.
More than once, they could be seen outdoors, sitting cross-legged
and practicing meditation.

Amishi Jha, the researcher who evaluated the troops, found
that the service members in the program ended up with improved
moods and greater attentiveness — and that the individuals
who spent additional time meditating on their own saw the
biggest improvements.

"It's like working out in the gym," said Ms. Jha, the
director of contemplative neuroscience for the University
of Miami's Mindfulness Research and Practice Initiative.
"Right now, the military has daily physical training. Every
day, they get together and exercise. But the equivalent is
not given to the mind. The more [these troops] practiced,
the more they benefited."

Brain training

Why the cognitive boost? The answer lies in neuroscience.
Previous studies have shown that habitual meditation:

• Changes the way blood and oxygen flow through the brain;

• Strengthens the neural circuits responsible for concentration
and empathy;

• Shrinks the amygdala, an area of the brain that controls
the fear response;

• Enlarges the hippocampus, an area of the brain that controls
memory

• In a recent, incomplete study of Marines taking an M-Fit
course — the one Sgt. Hampton participated in — University
of California at San Diego and Navy researcher Chris Johnson
took blood and saliva samples from the participating service
members and used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
to scan their brains.

• According to a report in Pacific Standard, the troops
recovered better from stressful training, while their brain
scans showed similarities to those taken of elite Special
Forces soldiers and Olympic athletes.

"Basically, there are parts of the brain that work differently
in high performers," said Robert Skidmore, director of operations
for the Alexandria, Va.-based Mind Fitness Training Institute.
"It's possible to train our minds to process things differently.
With eight weeks of training, working memory capacity increases."

Essentially the short-term, scratch-pad system we use to
manage relevant information, solve real-time problems and
regulate our current emotional state, working memory is
roughly equivalent to random access memory in a computer and functions on a
daily basis like money in a bank account:
Use it, and it depletes until it can be replenished.

Heavy cognitive tasks, such as scanning an alley for armed insurgents, require
working memory. So do emotional challenges,
like dealing with the stress of leaving one's family for an
overseas deployment.

According to Ms. Jha, depleted working memory has been
linked to emotional impulsivity, prejudiced behavior,
domestic violence and alcoholism.

"It's the core resource for regulating your own behavior,"
she said. "It's not like your psychological state or mood
is separate."

In the M-Fit study, troops who meditated regularly increased
their working memory capacity; moreover, they were more aware
of their physical responses to combat stress.

In a fight-or-flight situation — for instance, a firefight
— the pupils dilate to take in more information. Blood flows
away from the stomach and into the muscles, producing the
familiar "butterfly" sensation. Heart and breathing rates
rise. Stress hormones course through the body.

More importantly, blood flow in the brain is redirected away
from the areas that control rational thought and toward the
areas associated with instinct and survival.

"It's really hard to access rational thought during
high-intensity stress situations," said Jared Smyser, 28,
a former Marine who lives in Richmond, Va., and is training
to become an M-Fit instructor. "All this stuff happens in
your body because we've evolved to get away from predators.
But it's not really relevant in today's warfare. You need
to be calm, collected, making better decisions."

According to Ms. Stanley, meditative training can help troops
do so by increasing efficiency in the insular cortex, which
allows people to rapidly switch between thinking and unthinking states of mind.

"It can be exercised when we are attending to sensations
in the body," she said. "So a whole lot of our course is
teaching the ability to track those sensations. People come
into the course thinking it will ruin their ability to respond
fast in combat, but actually, we're enhancing their ability."

In the future, Ms. Stanley said, meditation may become as
standard in the military as rifle practice, another way of
making troops more effective and resilient. Next year, the
Marines will incorporate M-Fit classes into an infantry school
at Camp Pendleton, making the program a tentative part of its
regular training cycle.

Mr. Smyser, who served in Iraq in 2005, said military mental
training is overdue.

"It absolutely would have beneficial to me [in Iraq]," he
said. "I was very skeptical at first, but I've seen benefits
in my own life. I'm interested in working with veterans with
PTSD. And if we teach this upfront, we might be able to prevent
some of the problems we have to fix afterwards."

Read more:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/dec/5/marines-expanding-use-of-meditati\
on-training/print/#ixzz2EIbFA5v6
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Fair Use Notice: This document may contain
copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically
authorized by the copyright owners. I believe that
this not-for-profit, educational use on the Web
constitutes a fair use of the copyrighted material
(as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law).
If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes
of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain
permission from the copyright owner.

"Meditation is the only intentional, systematic human
activity which at bottom is about not trying to improve
yourself or get anywhere else, but simply to realize
where you already are."

Jon Kabat-Zinn, Wherever You Go, There You Are

--------------------------------------------------------
Fair Use Notice: This document may contain
copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically
authorized by the copyright owners. I believe that
this not-for-profit, educational use on the Web
constitutes a fair use of the copyrighted material
(as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law).
If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes
of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain
permission from the copyright owner.

The Cosmic Vibration

"One kind of meditation is to meditate on a
universal sound, like `OM' or `Amen,' because
it's that cosmic sound which will be heard
ultimately through your deep meditation.
OM or Amen are both the same, just a little
differently presented; they both symbolize
the sacred cosmic vibration. That cosmic sound
is to be heard within you. It's not that you
have to repeat it constantly, but you begin
with the repetition so that ultimately you'll
hear that sound within. So, sit quietly, watch
the breath for a while, then repeat a little
prayer if you want. Otherwise just go on and
repeat the OM or Amen. The more you repeat that,
the more you produce that vibration within you.

"God bless you. OM Shanti, Shanti, Shanti."

Inspiration Line

Hear an inspiration message from Sri Swami Satchidananda
by calling 434-WOW-GURU. New and improved software brings
an even better sound quality and more reliable system.
New message the first of each month. Call and be inspired
any time and from anywhere you are.

Pray, and think what you will, your thoughts will be
purified by prayer.

Pray, and do what you will. Your acts will be pleasing
to God and useful and salutatory to yourself.

Pray, and do not labor much to conquer your passions by
your own strength. Prayer will destroy them in you.

Pray, and fear nothing. Fear no misfortunes, fear no disasters.
Prayer will protect you and ward them off.

Pray somehow or other, only pray always and be disturbed by nothing.

It is to be noted, finally, that if the time of your vigilance
in prayer is prolonged, then naturally no time will be left not
only for doing sinful actions but even for thinking of them.

'The Way of the Pilgrim'

--------------------------------------------------------------------
Fair Use Notice: This document may contain
copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically
authorized by the copyright owners. I believe that
this not-for-profit, educational use on the Web
constitutes a fair use of the copyrighted material
(as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law).
If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes
of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain
permission from the copyright owner.

Balancing Spirituality and Prosperity
A New Video Event With
Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya
(in English and Hindi)

Too many people hold the misconception that Vedic spirituality is too
"other-worldly" to be of practical value in today's world, and that one must
choose to have either a life of spirituality or a life of prosperity. One or the
other...but not both! This is, however, no more than an uninformed stereotype
about Vedic spirituality. Sanatana Dharma is clear that we can - and must - have
a balanced and whole life, a life in which we have the ability to attain both
spiritual and material benefit. As the incomparable Dharma Master, Sri Dharma
Pravartaka Acharya, demonstrates in this powerful new video, Vedic spirituality
is the most practical, scientific, reasonable and prosperous worldview on Earth.
It provides us with the proper perspective through which we can have it all!

WATCH HERE:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG3q-ZrNlS0

Please Share.

A new member expressed a desire to learn about astral travel
so instead of just posting the article about it that appeared
in issue #9 of our newsletter, The Inner Traveler, we have
posted a file of the whole issue. We think all the art and
articles have the potential to elevate consciousness, and that's
what this group is all about.
You will find it in the Files section of this group. The title
is IT9 and we hope you all will enjoy and benefit from it.

"PREMA BHAKTI AND SEWA – A Spiritual view"
GREETINGS AND BEST WISHES IN YOUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY THE LATEST VOLUME OF THE
SPIRITUAL WEB SITE www.ahwan.org (or www.ahwan.com) : VOLUME 141, DEcember 2012
ISSUE,  has been published and uplinked with "PREMA BHAKTI AND SEWA – A
Spiritual view". If you visit the site, and have any observations to make, I
shall be grateful. In this issue we have also interesting questions from readers
dealing with  "Analysis of wish fulfillment", "What is the end of Sadhana?",
"Human life and animal life", "Prayer to end the day" , "Age of Sristi" etc.
You can also browse the previous articles by clicking on the ikon `articles'.
Please share it with your friends and dear ones.  God bless you-  Sri Bimal
Mohanty. (bimalmohanty@...)
PS – To continue spreading the benefit of AHWAN to all, we need your assistance
if you please. Click on `special information' on the homepage of www.ahwan.org.
If you do not wish to receive this information about future issues, please
e-mail accordingly - Thank you.
If you wish someone to receive this information as compliments from you please
indicate his/her e-mail address.
____________________

You can usher a qualitative change in your life, the spiritual way- the
effective way. Visit the website www.ahwan.org. or www.ahwan.com.
regularly. Share it with your friends and dear ones in any manner convenient-
through discussing, speaking, writing, inter-netting.

By Paulo Coelho

According to a traditional story, at the moment
when the Son of God expired on the cross, He went
straight to Hell in order to save sinners.

The Devil was most put out.

`I have no other function in the universe,' he said.
`From now on, all the delinquents who broke the rules,
committed adultery and infringed the religious laws
will be sent straight to Heaven!'

Jesus looked at him and smiled:

`Don't worry,' he said to the poor Devil. `All those
who judge themselves to be full of virtue and therefore
spend their lives condemning those who follow my word,
they will come here. Just wait a few hundred years and
you'll find that Hell is fuller than ever!'

Once again, I'll be displaying my knives and sharing
meditation concepts and techniques (the usual combination
for a meditation teacher:) at the Philly Gun Show in Oaks PA
this weekend, Friday Dec 14 from 4PM to 8PM, Sat 9AM to 5PM, and
Sun 9AM to 4PM. Here's where you can get info and a discount coupon:
http://www.eaglearmsgunshows.com/oaks-gun-show-philadelphia-expo-center.html
There will be about 1,000 tables full of weapons, ammo, and just
about anything you can think of that brings about violence and
destruction, as well as thousands of people who are anxious to buy
these items. And there will also be my table where consciousness
evolving methods will be shared (as well as complaining about the
Eagles). Many of the knives I have made will be available and with
the holidays coming, I expect lots of activity that interrupts our
"high" conversations. But this is all part of what life is about...
and maintaining a meditative mode in active as well as in passive situations is
what a meditative practice should include. And when
someone approaches you carrying a machine gun, and has ammo around
their neck, to discus how best to use a certain knife, or whatever else is
making their mind chatter, it's certainly an excellent opportunity to witness
your own chatter, and to apply Self
control and maintain your serenity, or to see just when and
how you lose it (which might be a more valuable benefit).
So it is actually an excellent environment for learning about and  experiencing
meditation in real life. Hope to see you there!
BTW, here's where you can see my knives:
http://www.bobroseknives.com
Peace and blessings,
Bob

The next time you are at a place where there's
someone ringing a bell for the Salvation Army,
please consider getting them a coffee and a snack to eat.
They're not just do-gooders, they're our brothers and sisters.

I would greatly appreciate advice on getting off on right foot in this
meditation stuff. I have been to one lecture where the primary aim was to pick
my pocket. A friend who is a yoga instructor has offered to work with me on
initial TM techniques. What to do, what to do? DD

--- In meditationsocietyofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "douglasedarling"
<douglasedarling@...> wrote:
>
> I would greatly appreciate advice on getting off on right foot in this
meditation stuff. I have been to one lecture where the primary aim was to pick
my pocket. A friend who is a yoga instructor has offered to work with me on
initial TM techniques. What to do, what to do? DD
>

Well, first of all, please don't pay anyone another penny!  Meditation is as
easy as breathing (though it's also as hard as breathing calmly).  There is so
much info available free on the internet.  Bob's meditation site is a great
place to start. And there are many good tips right here: just rummage around.

W

I am new to meditation, too. It is my experience that meditation is a practice
just as yoga is a practice. It comes by practicing and doing it regularly. There
are no quick and easy "tricks". For me, it is all about enjoying the journey and
learning what resonates with me. Each meditation is different.

I find it best to sit quietly and I listen to Dr. Wayne Dyer's "I Am Meditation"
(but any meditation is fine). I then sit quietly with my eyes shut and clear my
chakras. Then I ask myself: "What do I need to know?" If my mind gets cluttered
with dialogue, I gently thank it and refocus on my breathing. In through the
nose...out through the mouth breathing from the belly.

I have found that I can go to my local library and there are guided meditations
I can borrow and also New Age music I can use.

Also, if you google "Om Meditation" youtube has different Om Meditations for
different lengths of time. I have found these very helpful.

I have wondered about TM and have heard that it is very over rated and
expensive. But I do not have any direct experience. If you have a friend that
knows about TM maybe that would be helpful. I would be curious to know what
techniques your friends teaches in relation to TM.

Hope this was helpful and good luck with your meditation practice.

Lille

--- In meditationsocietyofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "douglasedarling"
<douglasedarling@...> wrote:
>
> I would greatly appreciate advice on getting off on right foot in this
meditation stuff. I have been to one lecture where the primary aim was to pick
my pocket. A friend who is a yoga instructor has offered to work with me on
initial TM techniques. What to do, what to do? DD
>

Meditation Takes Preparation

"Concentration is the sixth in the eight-step path
of Raja Yoga. When concentration becomes perfect,
then it becomes meditation. Yet people without any
preparation, without any discipline, without any control,
just go, sit, close their eyes and then say, `Oh, I
don't think I can meditate.' We can't jump into meditation
all of a sudden. We should have a lot of patience.
For many years, we allowed the mind to take the upper
hand. It takes a little time, but, once you train the
mind well, you'll have a wonderful instrument, a very
obedient, very powerful, dynamic instrument with which
you can achieve anything you want in this world. Let us
begin meditation with all the preparations, realizing it's
not to be achieved that quickly; it takes time. If we know
that, we won't be quickly disappointed, but we'll have
patience to continue more and more.

"God bless you. OM Shanti, Shanti, Shanti."
-------------------------------------------------------------
From Wikipedia:

Eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga

The eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga are:

Yama – code of conduct, self-restraint
Niyama – religious observances, commitments to practice,
such as study and devotion
Āsana – integration of mind and body through physical activity
Pranayama – regulation of breath leading to integration of
mind and body
Pratyahara – abstraction of the senses, withdrawal of the
senses of perception from their objects
Dharana – concentration, one-pointedness of mind
Dhyana – meditation (quiet activity that leads to samadhi)
Samādhi – the quiet state of blissful awareness, superconscious(?) state.
Attained when yogi constantly sees Paramatma in his
(jivaatma) heart.

They are sometimes divided into the lower and the upper
four limbs, the lower ones—from yama to pranayama—being
parallel to the lower limbs of Hatha Yoga, while the upper
ones—from pratyahara to samadhi—being specific for the
rāja yoga. The upper three limbs practiced simultaneously
constitute the Samyama.

Yama
Main article: Yamas

Yama (restraints) consists of five parts: Ahimsa
(non-violence), Satya (truthfulness), Asteya
(non-stealing), Brahmacharya meaning sexual abstinence,
and Aparigraha (non-covetousness). Ahimsa is perfect
harmlessness, as well as positive love. The five directives
of Yama lay down behavioral norms as prerequisites for
elimination of fear, and contribute to a tranquil mind.[4]

Niyama
Main article: Niyama

Niyama is observance of five canons: Shaucha (internal
and external purity), Santosha (contentment), Tapas
(austerity), Svadhyaya (study of religious books and
repetitions of Mantras), and Ishvarapranidhana (self-surrender
to God, and His worship). Niyama, unlike Yama, prescribes
mental exercises to train the mind to control emotions.

Asana
Main article: Asana

Asana in the sense of a posture that one can hold for
a period of time, staying relaxed and with normal (calm)
breathing (or, as some sources say, "without effort").

In English, the Sanskrit word asana means "seat", the place
where one sits; or posture, position of the body (any
position). Asanas (in the sense of Yoga "posture") are
said to derive from the various positions of animals' bodies
(whence are derived most of the names of the positions).
84 asanas are considered to be the main postures, of which
the highest are Shirshasan (headstand) and Padmasan (lotus).

The practice of asanas affects the following aspects or
planes of the human being:

physical (blood circulation, inner organs, glands, muscles,
joints and nerve system)

psychological (developing emotional balance and stability,
harmony)

mental (improved ability to concentrate, memory)

consciousness (purifying and clarifying consciousness/awareness)

From the rāja yoga perspective, it is considered that
the physical postures and pranayama serve to prepare the
body and mind for the following steps: pratyahara, dharana,
dhyana and samādhi (withdrawal of the senses, contemplation, meditation,
and state of expanded or transcendental
consciousness, where the activity of the mind ceases and
"The Knower and The Object of Knowledge Become One").

Prāṇāyāma
Main article: Pranayama

Prāṇāyāma is made out of two Sanskrit words
(prāṇa = life energy; ayāma = control or modification).
Breathing is the medium used to achieve this goal. The mind and life force are
correlated to the breath. Through regulating the breathing and practicing
awareness on it, one learns to control prana.

According to Rāja yoga, there are three main types (phases, units, stadia)
of pranayama:

     purak (inhalation)
     rechak (exhalation)
     kumbhak (holding the breath); which appears as:
         antara kumbhak (withholding the breath after inhalation)
         bahar kumbhak (withholding the breath after exhalation)
         keval kumbhak (spontaneous withholding of the breath)

There are numerous techniques of Pranayama, each with their specific goals. The
main techniques are:

     surya bhedan
     candra bhedan
     nadi shodhan (anuloma viloma)
     bhastrika
     kapalabhati
     ujjaji
     plavini (bhujangini)
     bhramari
     sheetkari
     sheetali
     combination of sheetkari and sheetali
     murccha

All pranayama practice ultimately works toward purification of the nadis (energy
channels) and the awakening of kundalini shakti at the muladhara chakra. The
awakening of kundalini energy (also described as the awakening of divine
consciousness or wisdom), and its ascent to the crown chakra is the final goal
of rāja yoga.
Pratyahara
Main article: Pratyahara

Pratyahara is bringing the awareness to reside deep within oneself, free from
the senses and external world. The Goal of Pratyahara is not to disrupt the
communication from the sense organ to the brain. The awareness is far removed
from the five senses. Pratyahara cannot be achieved without achievement of the
preceding limbs (pranayama, niyama, etc.). The awareness comes to rest deep in
the inner space, and during this time the yogi's breath will be temporarily
suspended. Pratyahara should not just be likened to concentration or meditation,
etc. It is a yogic practice that takes on adequacy with the prior 8 limbs as
prerequisites.
Dharana
Main article: Dharana

Real Yoga starts from concentration. Concentration merges into meditation.
Meditation ends in Samadhi. Retention of breath, Brahmacharya, Satvic (pure)
food, seclusion, silence, Satsanga (being in the company of a guru), and not
mixing much with people are all aids to concentration. Concentration on Bhrakuti
(the space between the two eyebrows) with closed eyes is preferred. The mind can
thus be easily controlled, as this is the seat for the mind.[clarification
needed][citation needed]
Dhyana
Main article: Dhyana in Hinduism

     "Sleep, tossing of mind, attachment to objects, subtle desires and cravings,
laziness, lack of Brahmacharya, gluttony are all obstacles in meditation. Reduce
your wants. Cultivate dispassion. You will have progress in Yoga. Vairagya thins
out the mind. Do not mix much. Do not talk much. Do not eat much. Do not sleep
much. Do not exert much. Never wrestle with the mind during meditation. Do not
use any violent efforts at concentration. If evil thoughts enter your mind, do
not use your will force in driving them. You will tax your will. You will lose
your energy. You will fatigue yourself. The greater the efforts you make, the
more the evil thoughts will return with redoubled force. Be indifferent. Become
a witness of those thoughts. They will pass away. Never miss a day in
meditation. Regularity is of paramount importance. When the mind is tired, do
not concentrate. Do not take heavy food at night.

     The mind passes into many conditions or states as it is made up of three
qualities: Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. Kshipta (wandering), Vikshipta (gathering),
Mudha (ignorant), Ekagra (one-pointed), and Nirodha (contrary) are the five
states of the mind.

     By controlling the thoughts the Sadhaka attains great Siddhis. He becomes
adept. He attains Asamprajnata Samadhi or Kaivalya. Do not run after Siddhis.
Siddhis are great temptations. They will bring about your downfall. A Raja Yogi
practices Samyama or the combined practice of Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi at one
and the same time.

     Control the mind by Abhyasa (practice) and Vairagya (dispassion). Any
practice that steadies the mind and makes it one-pointed is Abhyasa. Dull
Vairagya will not help you in attaining perfection in Yoga. You must have Para
Vairagya or Theevra Vairagya, intense dispassion." — Swami Sivananda from Amrita
Gita

Samadhi
Main article: Samadhi

Meditation on OM with Bhava removes obstacles in Sadhana and helps to attain
Samadhi. Avidya (ignorance), Asmita (egoism), Raga-Dvesha (likes and dislikes),
Abhinivesha (clinging to mundane life) are the five Kleshas or afflictions.
Destroy these afflictions. You will attain Samadhi.

Samadhi is of two kinds:

     Savikalpa, Samprajnata or Sabija; and
     Nirvikalpa, Asamprajnata or Nirbija.

In Savikalpa or Sabija, there is Triputi or the triad (knower, known and
knowledge). Savitarka, Nirvitarka, Savichara, Nirvichara, Sasmita and Saananda
are the different forms of Savikalpa Samadhi. In Nirvikalpa Samadhi, Nirbija
Samadhi or Asamprajnata Samadhi there is no triad.

In the last sutra (4,34), Patañjali says the soul reaches its end in liberation,
enlightenment, kaivalya.

Hi,

I am very new to this group and would like to share my views based on my past
knowledge and experiences. First of all i would like to mention that Meditation
is very different from Concentrating. I feel that various technique which our
friends mentioned here are a way to concentrate and not meditation. Of course
concentrating is a step towards Meditation. It was very well said by Lille that
meditation is just as yoga. In fact I would say both are same- which is a
process for the unification of soul with God. But this occurs at a very later
stage so there is need for concentration or we can say the very first step
towards Yoga.

Various techniques say it be TM Technique, Dr. Wayne's technique or controlled
breathing provides only a short span of concentration which works only for the
time we are doing these practices but does not give us long time improvement to
our concentration. I am practicing a very ancient technique mentioned in the
earliest scriptures Vedas called Vihangam Yoga. In this technique I just
meditate for 10 minutes morning and evening on a certain specified point on our
body. On practicing this, we can see the difference within few weeks. I have
been doing this technique since my childhood and has transformed my life
drastically than it was before. The very speciality of Vihangam Yoga is that it
is divided in 5 stages and first three stages is completely devoted for the
purification of the mind. I can talk more on this but it would be good that you
look sometime for your self on internet about this technique and come with more
question.

Rest, i will pray to the lord that he enlightens your path with the right
meditation technique.

All the Best,

krishna



--- In meditationsocietyofamerica@yahoogroups.com, lindamdc <no_reply@...>
wrote:
>
>
> I am new to meditation, too. It is my experience that meditation is a practice
just as yoga is a practice. It comes by practicing and doing it regularly. There
are no quick and easy "tricks". For me, it is all about enjoying the journey and
learning what resonates with me. Each meditation is different.
>
> I find it best to sit quietly and I listen to Dr. Wayne Dyer's "I Am
Meditation" (but any meditation is fine). I then sit quietly with my eyes shut
and clear my chakras. Then I ask myself: "What do I need to know?" If my mind
gets cluttered with dialogue, I gently thank it and refocus on my breathing. In
through the nose...out through the mouth breathing from the belly.
>
> I have found that I can go to my local library and there are guided
meditations I can borrow and also New Age music I can use.
>
> Also, if you google "Om Meditation" youtube has different Om Meditations for
different lengths of time. I have found these very helpful.
>
> I have wondered about TM and have heard that it is very over rated and
expensive. But I do not have any direct experience. If you have a friend that
knows about TM maybe that would be helpful. I would be curious to know what
techniques your friends teaches in relation to TM.
>
> Hope this was helpful and good luck with your meditation practice.
>
> Lille
>
> --- In meditationsocietyofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "douglasedarling"
<douglasedarling@> wrote:
> >
> > I would greatly appreciate advice on getting off on right foot in this
meditation stuff. I have been to one lecture where the primary aim was to pick
my pocket. A friend who is a yoga instructor has offered to work with me on
initial TM techniques. What to do, what to do? DD
> >
>

Well, this weekend I spent displaying knives I've made at
the Philly Gun Show. 1200 tables full of weapons and their
accoutrements and thousands of people there to buy them.
Much discussion about the duality of "guns don't kill people,
people do" and "if there weren't guns available, there wouldn't
be so many killings" Of course there were local TV crews there filming the
goings on and promising to be "fair" in their
reporting as they focused the cameras on assault rifles and
other semi and full automatic weapons. This will be just a
small part of the ongoing and now top news discussion.

In between actually selling some knives, I spent time
discussing meditation with people and even conducted some
mindfulness exercises semi-maintaining a Witnessing
perspective on whatever was flowing by moment to (what seemed
like) another moment. And as is common when in a wordless
meditative mode, words appear that (right or wrong) point to
"an answer", and here are some that flowed by...

I'm guessing that just as there are hundreds of millions of
words available to us, and they don't seem to solve anything,
there being hundreds of millions of guns and rifles right now
in the USA, and they aren't solving anything either, maybe
just being conscious is the only real "problem solver".
As Gurdjieff put it...
"Do not be affected by externals. In themselves they are
harmless; it is we who allow ourselves to be hurt by them."

(the above is a para-phrase of a post on the Gene's Gulag
forum)

--- In meditationsocietyofamerica@yahoogroups.com, medit8ionsociety
<no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> Once again, I'll be displaying my knives and sharing
> meditation concepts and techniques (the usual combination
> for a meditation teacher:) at the Philly Gun Show in Oaks PA
> this weekend, Friday Dec 14 from 4PM to 8PM, Sat 9AM to 5PM, and
> Sun 9AM to 4PM. Here's where you can get info and a discount coupon:
> http://www.eaglearmsgunshows.com/oaks-gun-show-philadelphia-expo-center.html
> There will be about 1,000 tables full of weapons, ammo, and just
> about anything you can think of that brings about violence and
> destruction, as well as thousands of people who are anxious to buy
> these items. And there will also be my table where consciousness
> evolving methods will be shared (as well as complaining about the
> Eagles). Many of the knives I have made will be available and with
> the holidays coming, I expect lots of activity that interrupts our
> "high" conversations. But this is all part of what life is about...
> and maintaining a meditative mode in active as well as in passive situations
is what a meditative practice should include. And when
> someone approaches you carrying a machine gun, and has ammo around
> their neck, to discus how best to use a certain knife, or whatever else is
making their mind chatter, it's certainly an excellent opportunity to witness
your own chatter, and to apply Self
> control and maintain your serenity, or to see just when and
> how you lose it (which might be a more valuable benefit).
> So it is actually an excellent environment for learning about and 
experiencing meditation in real life. Hope to see you there!
> BTW, here's where you can see my knives:
> http://www.bobroseknives.com
> Peace and blessings,
> Bob
>

School yoga tries to avoid religious controversy

ENCINITAS, Calif. (AP) -- Public school yoga instructor
Katie Campbell proudly looks out at 23 first graders as
they contain their squirming in a kid-friendly version of
the lotus position.

In a voice barely above a whisper, she says into her
microphone: "Why look at everyone showing me they're
ready for yoga. A-plus, plus, plus!"

Then the lesson begins with deep breathing and stretches
common to many yoga classes. But there is no chanting of
"om," no words spoken in the Indian language of Sanskrit
nor talk of "mindfulness" or clasping hands in the prayer position.

Campbell avoids those potential pitfalls for the Encinitas
Union School District, which is facing the threat of a lawsuit
as it launches what is believed to be the country's most comprehensive yoga
program for a public school system.

Parents opposed to the program say the classes will
indoctrinate their children in Eastern religion and are
not just for exercise.

It's a debate public schools across the country are
increasingly facing with the rising popularity of the
practice and the recent dispute over school prayer.

Yoga is now taught at public schools from the rural mountains
of West Virginia to the bustling streets of Brooklyn as a way
to ease stress in today's pressure-packed world where even kindergartners say
they feel tense about keeping up with their
busy schedules. But most classes are part of an after-school
program, or are offered only at a few schools or by some teachers
in a district.

Encinitas is believed to be the only public school system
that will have yoga instructors teach full-time at its nine
schools as part of an overall wellness curriculum that includes nutrition and a
school garden program, among other things.

"This is 21st century P.E. for our schools," said Encinitas Superintendent
Timothy B. Baird. "It's physical. It's strength-building. It increases
flexibility but it also deals with
stress reduction and focusing, which kickball doesn't do."

The program is expected to teach a 30-minute yoga lesson to
roughly 5,000 students twice a week at the district's schools,
which run kindergarten through sixth grade. It is funded with
a $533,000 grant from the Jois Foundation, a nonprofit whose
board of directors includes the son of the late Indian
instructor Krishna Pattabhi Jois, whose teachings are said
to have popularized Ashtanga yoga in the Western world and
were followed by Madonna and Sting.

Jois Foundation's program director Russell Case said Encinitas
is building a national yoga model for public schools.

"Kids are under a lot of stress. There are a lot of mandates
on them to perform. We think it would be extremely helpful to
have 10 to15 minutes possible to sit and be reflective instead
of go, go, go," he said.

Researchers at the University of Virginia and University of
San Diego will study the program, including analyzing data on students' resting
heart rates.

They want to know if public schools can impact not only
children's learning, but instill in them good eating habits
and skills to help their well-being.

The program started in several schools in September but will
go district-wide in January after months of protests by a group
of parents.

Mary Eady pulled her first-grade son out of the classes.

Eady said she observed a kindergarten class in which the children
did the motions referred to in yoga practices as a sun salutation. The folded
over children, stood upright, sweeping up their arms toward the sky.

She said while the teacher called it an "opening sequence" the connotation was
the same in her mind: Students were learning to worship the sun, which went
against her Christian beliefs that
only God should be worshipped.

"It will change the way you think," she said. "What they are
teaching is inherently spiritual, it's just inappropriate
therefore in our public schools."

Their attorney, Dean Broyles, says they are considering suing
to halt the program.

Despite the long debate over prayer in school, constitutional
law experts say the courts still have not clearly defined what constitutes
religion.

"You might get litigation on a program like this because it's
not totally settled what the boundaries of religion are," said
New York University law professor Adam Samaha.

He points to the 1979 ruling by a federal court that
blocked transcendental meditation classes from being taught
in New Jersey public schools, deeming those particular lessons
to be religious.

But the court did not go so far as to rule that meditation in
general is and Samaha thinks courts would not deem yoga a
religious practice. If they did, it would open the door to scrutinizing a host
of activities.

"It's practiced by enough people, who probably don't believe
they are engaging in a religious practice," he said.

Still, Encinitas Assistant Superintendent David Miyashiro
said administrators are not taking any risks.

"In light of all the attention, it's not enough to remove things
with cultural references but also anything that can be perceived
by onlookers as a concern," he said. "We think it's important
to keep this program in our schools and we're going to do what
we can to protect it."

At Flora Vista Elementary School, those precautions were apparent.

"Spread out, we're getting ready for some airplane," Campbell
said as the children laid on their mats face down and spread
their arms, arching their back and then flopping back down.
Later she said: "now push back to downward dog."

At the end, the children sprawled on their backs to relax
like a "pancake" as the lights went off. There were soft
giggles. Some wiggled in the dark or fiddled with their socks.

"We're like melting cheese," Campbell reminded the students.

Principal Stephanie Casperson said fewer children now come
to her office for acting out.

"I have teachers who say before a test now students do yoga
to calm themselves so they're transferring it into the classroom, into their
lives," she said.

During a recent fire drill, 6-year-old Sylvia Lawrence said
she folded over into a yoga position under her desk.

"It made the fire drill more fun," she said.

Maria Walsh, 11, said she was never into other sports.

"It's just a fun way for me to exercise," said the freckled,
blond-haired girl with a big smile.
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