American Meditation Institute Self-Care for Healthy Living americanmeditation.org
Do you Sometimes Feel Like a Marionette?
AVERILL PARK, NEW YORK
“Lapis Lazuli,” Acrylic on mahogany panel, © Jenness Cortez, 2013
JULY – AUGUST 2013
“Marionettes,” by John Singer Sargeant
How Unconscious Upcoming Classes and Events Inside this Issue: Beginner’s Meditation Comprehensive Meditation The Compassionate Buddha CONCEPTS If you want to start and main- This six week “self-care” program Learn how your thoughts can tainControl a meditationour practice, this offers the complete science of lead to joy and health, or be the course is perfect for you. / P. 2 Yoga, and lifelong support. / P. 3 cause of dis-ease and sorrow. / P. 4 Conscious Two Video Lectures Transformation Gentle Yoga & Breathing PERCEPTIONS Reduce stress by learning two Practical essays by respected Video lectures will explain the fundamental practicesDIS-EASE of tradi- Yoga scientists to support and nature of enlightenment and the And Cause psychology of the chakras. / P. 5 deepen your meditation. / P. 8 tional Yoga Science. / P. 5 COMPLETE AMI CLASS SCHEDULE: Pages 2-5
AMI Classes for July - August 2013
BEGINNER’S MEDITATION: The Basics for Getting Started Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev), AMI Founder Level I: Have you ever thought about trying meditation, but didn’t know how to get started? In AMI’s two-session course, you’ll receive step-by-step guidance on how to start—and stick with—a daily meditation practice. It’s easy to learn the basics: how to deal with distractions, reduce stress, enhance your body’s immune system and become more focused, creative and content. This class includes a FREE “guided meditation” CD.
What is Meditation? In meditation you are fully alert, but the mind is relaxed and allowed to let go of its tendencies to think, analyze, remember, solve problems and focus on events of the past or expectations for the future. Meditation helps the mind to slow down its rapid series of thoughts and feelings that often lead to stress and dis-ease, and to replace that mental activity with a quiet, effortless, one-pointed focus of attention and awareness. Thus, meditation is not thinking about problems or analyzing a situation. Meditation is not having an internal conversation or argument with yourself. It is an inner attention that is concentrated, yet relaxed. It does not conflict with any religious tradition.
and body are calm and relaxed, dis-ease from a previously agitated system (that may have intensified issues such as high blood pressure, headaches, back pain, insomnia, digestive problems or PMS) is lessened, and you feel better. • Meditation can improve all relationships. By offering you tools to deal with stressful thoughts, meditation helps you remain calm, compassionate and skillful with others and to be more loving toward yourself. • Meditation makes you smarter. A 2005 Harvard Medical School study showed that meditation increased thickness in the regions of the brain associated with attention, sensory awareness and emotional processing.
Why Should I Meditate?
• Meditation makes you more creative. By
According to ABC World News Tonight, meditation is used today by many Americans including the U. S. Marines and students in classrooms all over the country. In 2011, 10% of U.S. adults (over 20 million) practiced meditation and 3 million patients, on the recommendation of their physicians, established their own meditation practice.
resting the mind from its habit of thinking, planning, judging and worrying, you create more space for new ideas to arise and to be noticed. Meditation also lowers resistance you may have to new concepts and ways of thinking.
• Meditation can make you healthier. Daily meditation is an essential ingredient in your own personal “self-care health program.” Scientific studies at the Mayo Clinic show that “meditating slows breathing rate, heart rate, lowers blood pressure and aids in the treatment of anxiety, depression and a range of other ailments.” • Meditation calms the mind. The mind and body are inter-connected. When the mind is calm, the body becomes stronger, more flexible, and less inflamed. When the mind 2
Meditating in a Chair: AMI teaches you to meditate in a straight-back chair. For proper posture, the head, neck and trunk should be comfortably erect (no slouching). For best back comfort, your buttocks should be slightly higher than your knees.
*
SATURDAY MORNINGS, 9:30 -10:30AM, $95. (2 WKS) JUL 27 & AUG 3; SEP 21 & 28
•*
Your entire $95 registration fee will be applied to your COMPREHENSIVE MEDITATION tuition should you decide to register for that additional class within one year.
americanmeditation.org • Tel. (518) 674-8714 TMTM
COMPREHENSIVE MEDITATION: The Heart and Science of Yoga Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev), AMI Founder
Level I: AMI’s acclaimed six-week course teaches you how to apply meditation principles to every situation. This complete “self-care health program” includes all the Beginner’s Meditation material plus breathing techniques, nutrition counseling, easy-gentle yoga exercises, instruction on how to make the best possible choices and lifelong support for your meditation practice. It provides you all the tools you’ll need to ease stress, reduce pain, boost your immune system, heal relationships, enhance your problem solving ability and find inner peace, happiness and security. A retrospective case study of former Heart and Science of Yoga TM students
recently found these positive, reproducible, long-term health-promoting changes: • Lowered blood pressure • Increased exercise capacity • Reduced stress and fear • Lowered heart rate • Improved restorative sleep • Eliminated irritable bowel • Reduced cholesterol levels • Improved energy levels • Enhanced happiness/optimism • Weight loss • Increased creative capacity • Diminished or extinguished • Increased breathing capacity • Diminished migraines acute and chronic pain TM
The Heart and Science of Yoga Curriculum is Endorsed by
Dr. Oz (Mehmet Oz MD), Dean Ornish MD, Bernie Siegel MD, Larry Dossey MD WEEK 1: YOGA SCIENCE How to use the mind for the best choices How to create new, healthier habits Understanding pain as an agent for healing Increasing energy, will power & creativity Antidotes for worry, stress and depression WEEK 2: MEDITATION Systematic procedure for meditation How to diminish distractions Learning the one-minute meditation Building focus, fearlessness, and strength WEEK 3: BREATHING TECHNIQUES Breath as Medicine How breathing irregularities foster dis-ease Complete (three-part) yogic breath
WEEK 4: PSYCHOLOGY & AYURVEDA How the mind supports optimal health The power of the present moment Building and healing relationships Introduction to Ayurveda WEEK 5: EASY-GENTLE YOGA Yoga stretches and exercises for: muscles, joints, glands and internal organs Physiological benefits of Hatha Yoga WEEK 6: MIND-BODY CARE PLAN The healing power of prayer The practical benefit of contemplation Creating a therapeutic care plan Learning to budget your time Integrating spiritual beliefs
PHYSICIAN ACCREDITATION (15 CMEs)
NURSING ACCREDITATION (15 contact hours)
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint sponsorship of Albany Medical College and The American Meditation Institute. Albany Medical College is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
This continuing nursing education activity was approved by the Massachusetts Association of Registered Nurses, Inc., an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialling Center's Commission on Accreditation.
The Albany Medical College designates this Live activity for a maximum of 15 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits TM. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
WEDNESDAY NIGHTS, 6:30 - 9:00PM, $475. (6 WKS) Physicians, Residents, Fellows, PAs, NPs: $775; RNs: $575 JUL 10 – AUG 14; SEP 11 – OCT 16
Registration Includes: Lifelong support for your meditation practice, a Guided Meditation CD, a complementary subscription to Transformation journal and a copy of The Physiology of EasyGentle Yoga. Required Texts: The Heart and Science of Yoga : A Blueprint for Peace, Happiness and Freedom from Fear, and The Art of Joyful Living. TM
3
americanmeditation.org • Tel. (518) 674-8714
Welcome to AMI Leonard and Jenness Perlmutter founded The American Meditation Institute in 1996 as a 501(c)3 non-profit educational organization devoted to providing “self-care for healthy living.” In its holistic approach to wellness, AMI combines the best of ancient Eastern meditational wisdom and the practicality of modern Western science. By practicing the scientific, meditational techniques taught at AMI, students learn how to construct a practical bridge between their own inner, intuitive wisdom and their actions in the world. This bridge between the inner and outer worlds coordinates all our assets so that we can experience healthy, creative, loving, nurturing and rewarding relationships.
Professional
ENDORSEMENTS “Traditional medicine is very good at treating physical illness. However, studies show that the state of one’s health has more to do with lifestyle choices than with heredity or medical care. Patients need something beyond what we can offer them. Meditation relieves stress, allows clearer thinking and helps to control many chronic illnesses, all at very low cost and a small investment of time. We are fortunate to have the excellence of AMI in our area.” RICHARD RUBIN MD Internal Medicine, Slingerlands, NY
“The Heart and Science of Yoga comprehensively outlines the holistic benefits of Yoga and brought joy to this heart surgeon’s heart.” MEHMET OZ MD Host of “The Dr. Oz Show” The AMI Curriculum is also endorsed by:
Dean Ornish MD Bernie Siegel MD Larry Dossey MD
Directions to A MI • 60 Garner Road I-90 Exit #8 (Rt. 43 E). Take Rt. 43 for 4 1/2 miles. In W. Sand Lake, take a right turn at the lighted intersection onto Rt. 150. Go 1 mile on Rt. 150. Take a left turn on Cnty Rd #52/Sheer Rd (at stone wall). Go 1 mile on Sheer Rd and bear left at fork onto Garner Rd. AMI is the 3rd house on the right.
4
SACRED JOURNEY Living Purposefully And Dying Gracefully Leonard and Jenness Perlmutter Available by CDL (Computer Distance Learning) *Now available online. Call 518.674.8714 for details.
Level II: To understand the purpose of life, we must try to understand the relationship between life and death. The two are partners––each providing a context for the other. Death is not the end, but merely a pause in an eternal journey. When both birth and death are understood and accepted as parts of the human journey, then the fear of death subsides and life can be lived more fully and joyfully. Based on the ancient Katha Upanishad, this course reveals how to organize your life in a way that leads to expansion and growth. Required text: Sacred Journey, by Swami Rama
THURSDAY NIGHTS, 6:30PM - 8:30PM (3 WKS) AUG 15 - 29, $150.
PHYSICIANS’ RETREAT Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev), AMI Founder November 6 -10, 2013 Cranwell Resort • Lenox, MA • 26 CMEs
According to the National Institutes of Health, more than 1 in 3 Americans are now seeking mind/body healing therapies to supplement their conventional care, and a growing number of patients are seeking guidance about the value of various holistic modalities. This course (at one of the nation’s premier golf and spa resorts) provides an opportunity for physicians and other health care providers to deepen their understanding of Yoga Science as mind/body medicine in a stimulating immersion course led by Leonard Perlmutter and a panel of other leading medical experts. Physicians receive 26 CME credits; nurses receive 26 contact hours. FOR MORE INFORMATION: TEL. (518) 674-8714 OR VISIT: americanmeditation.org/cme.aspx
AMI Classes for July - August 2013
The Heart and Science of Yoga
TM
SUMMER RETREAT Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev), AMI Founder
July 19-21, 2013 The July retreat presents the same curriculum as our six-week Comprehensive Meditation course, now in a concentrated weekend format. (See page 3). All the practices are designed for both the general public and healthcare professionals. Physicians, PAs, RNs and NPs receive 15 continuing medical education credits. Gourmet vegetarian meals are included. FOR MORE INFORMATION: TEL. (518) 674-8714 OR VISIT ONLINE: americanmeditation.org
FREE GUIDED MEDITATION Leonard (Ram Lev) and Jenness Perlmutter Level I: Each Sunday morning AMI offers a FREE 20-minute guided meditation followed by a satsang (a philosophical discussion). Participants can choose to sit comfortably on chairs or cross-legged on the floor. This program provides a convenient way to become familiar with the teachings at AMI. SUNDAYS, 9:30 - 11:00AM, FREE
YOGA PSYCHOLOGY
EASY-GENTLE YOGA & BREATHING Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev), AMI Founder Level I: AMI’s easy-gentle yoga and breathing class is taught the same way it was thousands of years ago: as preliminary practices to prepare both the body and mind for daily meditation. Without difficulty or pain, you’ll learn the simple, therapeutic pleasures of focusing and stilling the mind, expanding your breathing capacity, relieving stiffness and stress, detoxifying the lymph system, stretching muscles and invigorating internal organs. Most students feel less stress and inflexibility after the very first class. You’ll move with more ease, gain physical confidence and enhance the flexibility and health of your body. When your body is stiff or in pain, the mind is often distracted and cannot help you experience the positive effects of meditation. This course is the perfect complement to our Comprehensive Meditation program. For beginners and experienced students.
*
SATURDAY MORNINGS, 9:30 - 10:45AM, $75. (4 WKS) AUG 10 - 31 Drop ins welcome (with notice), $20.
•*
Your entire $75 registration fee will be applied to your COMPREHENSIVE MEDITATION tuition should you decide to register for that additional class within one year.
*
The Gita’s Mind-Body Connection Leonard (Ram Lev) and Jenness Perlmutter
*
Available by CDL (Computer Distance Learning) Study Yoga Psychology from your own home or anywhere in the world. Call 518.674.8714 for details. No additional computer software is necessary.
Level II: The Bhagavad Gita is the most revered scripture in the literature of Yoga Science. As a follow-up to the six-week Comprehensive Meditation course, the Gita will teach you how to further reduce stress and confidently enhance your personal health and creative abilities while providing you a new perspective on all your family and business relationships. MONDAY NIGHTS, 6:30 - 8:30 PM, $150. (6 WKS) JUL 29 - SEP 9, SEP 16 - OCT 21
PERSONAL COUNSELING Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev), AMI Founder Int’l. Association of Yoga Therapists Meditational Therapy is a powerful tool of mind/body medicine. With over 35 years of personal practice, Leonard will teach you how to live free from stress and illness. By observing and harnessing the power of your thoughts, desires and emotions, you can establish a state of personal contentment, creativity and bodily health. Each personal counseling session will teach you how to make choices that enhance your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well being. AMI HOME CENTER, By appointment. $125 /hr. 5
PHYSICIANS’ RETREAT Also: RNs • NPs • PAs • Administrators
Cranwell Resort & Spa, Lenox, MA
CALENDAR
NOVEMBER 6-10, 2013
SUNDAY GUIDED MEDITATION & SATSANG
26 CMEs • For Details: (518) 674-8714
Sundays 9:30-11:00 AM with Leonard (Ram Lev) and Jenness Perlmutter. Love donations appreciated.
www.americanmeditation.org/cme.aspx
Guru Purnima-July 20 Full Moon Fire Ceremony & Movie
Saturday Night: 7-10PM Free
JULY 2013 JUL 10 - AUG 14: COMPREHENSIVE MEDITATION see p.3 Wed. Nights, 6:30 - 9:00 PM (6 weeks)
JUL 19 - 21: SUMMER RETREAT see p.5 Fri - Sun. (Weekend Event)
JUL 20: GURU PURNIMA (MOVIE & FIRE CEREMONY) Sat. Night, 7 - 10 PM
JUL 27 & AUG 3: BEGINNER’S MEDITATION
see p. 2
Sat. Mornings, 9:30 -10:30 AM (2 weeks)
JUL 29 - SEPT 9: YOGA PSYCHOLOGY see p.5 Mon. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM (6 wks. Bhagavad Gita Study)
AUGUST 2013 AUG 10 - 31: EASY-GENTLE YOGA see p.5 Sat. Mornings, 9:30 -10:45 AM (4 weeks)
AUG 15 - 29: SACRED JOURNEY see p.4 Thurs. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM (3 weeks)
On this day students revisit their teachers to rejuvenate their practice and to receive inspiration and further instruction. The Light of Guru is our own inner, intuitive wisdom, always available to help correct our ignorance and enhance our health and well being.
Please join us as we honor the wisdom of our Yoga tradition.
RSVP before July 12
American Meditation Institute
Self-Care for Healthy Living July-August, 2013 • Vol. XVI No. 5 ©2013 60 Garner Road, Averill Park, NY 12018
americanmeditation.org \ Tel. (518) 674-8714 ami@americanmeditation.org AMI is a tax exempt, non-profit 501(c)3 educational organization. Donations are fully tax deductible.
6
SEP TEMBER 2013 SEPT 11- OCT 16: COMPREHENSIVE MEDITATION see p.3 Wed. Nights, 6:30 - 9:00 PM (6 weeks)
SEPT 16 - OCT 21: YOGA PSYCHOLOGY see p.5 Mon. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM (6 wk. Bhagavad Gita Study
SEPT 21 & 28: BEGINNER’S MEDITATION
see p. 2
Sat. Mornings, 9:30 -10:30 AM (2 weeks)
16th Annual
Giving Campaign Please support AMI with your generous donation. Thank you for your generosity. americanmeditation.org/MakeADonation.aspx
MEDITATION NEWS Dr. Burock-Stotts, who practices Functional Medicine in Guilderland, NY and will be a speaker at AMI’s CME retreat for physicians Nov. 6-10, was interviewed by meditational therapist Mary Helen Holloway. MHH: When did you begin to meditate and what is the nature of your practice? ANITA: Even though my religious tradition taught me certain rituals that focused my attention and quieted my mind, it wasn’t until I was 18 that I learned to meditate. Since I became a student at AMI in 2003, meditation has become an essential part of my life. I try to meditate every morning and read from a book of spiritual essays before seeing patients. Throughout the day I often call on my mantra, do breathing practices and try to
make everything I do a meditation in action. MHH: What changes have you noticed in your life? ANITA: I am less enslaved to emotions, regrets and sad memories from the past. This newfound freedom has allowed me to experience peace and joy in my life and to be more present in relationships––with my patients, family and myself. My meditation practice also allows me to feel more confident in making both personal and professional decisions. Over the years, as my meditation practice has deepened, it has slowed down my mind and brought a greater clarity to every situation. It now provides me with certainty of what is to be done and what is not to be done.
Anita Burock-Stotts, MD
MHH: Do you teach any practices to your patients? ANITA: If I believe they’re receptive, I share my own experience with the benefits of meditation––physically, emotionally and spiritually. I also regularly refer my patients to AMI to learn to meditate because I am confident in both the value of the curriculum and the competence of the instructors.
Continuing Medical Education for Physicians The American Meditation Institute, in joint sponsorship with the Albany Medical College, will present the fifth annual mind/body medicine CME course (Continuing Medical Education) on meditation and yoga for physicians, nurses and other health care professionals, November 6-10, 2013 at the Cranwell Resort and Spa in Lenox, Massachusetts. This comprehensive and evidence-based education will include gentle yoga, lymph system detoxification, meditation, diaphragmatic breathing, Epigenomics, mantra science, Ayurveda,
Functional Medicine and Chakra Psychology. Faculty members include AMI founder Leonard Perlmutter, Rudolph Ballentine MD, Mark Pettus MD, Susan Lord MD, Beth Netter MD MT, and Anita Burock-Stotts MD. According to recent graduate, Joel M. Kremer, MD, who is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology in Albany, New York, “This teaching has been an enormous benefit in my personal and professional life. I have less stress, more focus, and am able to serve my patients with greater clarity. It becomes surprisingly easy
Joel Kremer, MD
now to recognize the many clinical situations in which patients with somatic [bodily] manifestations of ‘dis-ease’ could greatly benefit from Yoga Science.” For more information visit
americanmeditation.org/cme.aspx
7
Transformation The Journal of Meditation as Mind/Body Medicine
Do You Sometimes Feel
Like a Marionette?
How Unconscious CONCEPTS Control our Conscious PERCEPTIONS And Cause DIS-EASE
By Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev) Photo / 123rf
Over forty years ago I received some sage advice that, at the time, seemed of little value. But as my meditation practice deepened, and my ability to “see” and understand grew, that counsel proved to be profound. “Nothing is as it appears,” I was told. It was exactly the same observation made by 17th century German writer and philosopher Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: “We don’t know what we see; we see what we know.” In other words, our unconscious concepts determine our conscious perceptions. In everyday life we don’t really experience the world, we experience our mind. And because so many of our stored, unconscious concepts are neither true nor valid, the perceptions the 8
mind makes and actions the body takes often lead to dis-ease and pain. Historically, the importance of our attitude toward concepts has been recognized since ancient times. In the Book of Genesis the Hebrew Torah points out that, “God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.” In the first century AD the Greek philosopher Epictetus observed, “Men are not disturbed by things, but by the views they take of them.” In the play Hamlet, William Shakespeare (c. 1602) made the bold observation, “There’s nothing
either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” It might seem cruel and unfair, but just as a puppeteer (called a manipulator) controls a marionette from above the stage using wires or strings, our unconscious habits and concepts enslave each of us to certain habitual thoughts, words and deeds. In fact, according to stem cell biologist and bestselling author of The Biology of Belief, Bruce Lipton, PhD, human beings operate 95 percent of the time from unconscious programming! And this unconscious programming, samskaras in Sanskrit, is, in Lipton’s estimation, a million times more powerful than good intentions. To understand how concepts and habits are formed, it’s helpful to know that the conscious, discriminating portion of the human brain doesn’t become fully functional until the age of six. Newborns and young children are observing their environment just like a television camera––and recording everything in the unconscious portion of the mind. In this way children use their parents as teachers and software programmers, gathering unconscious, conceptual data in their attempt to find happiness, health and security in this new, strange and wondrous world in which they find themselves. Lipton explains that, “Within a couple of days after birth children begin to recognize their parents’ faces. Within the first couple of weeks, they learn if a parent’s face is happy and secure or scared and afraid. Ever after, any time children have an issue of concern or come across something new in the environment, they instinctively look at mother or father to observe the expression chiseled on their face. If a child is presented with some potential danger and the parent’s face reflects worry or fright, the child will likely avoid the encounter. If the parent’s facial expression appears happy and smiling––conveying safety––the child will be more inclined to experiment; to play with the new relationship at hand.” Through this process children observe, gauge and ultimately perceive the world through their parents’ conceptual lenses. Intimate encounters with parents give children basic concepts and build habits of what to do and what not to do. This knowledge
does not come from personal experience, but rather from observing and downloading––for better or worse––the habits and experiences (the “sins of the father”) modelled by their parents. Relying on that already installed software, we begin to adopt a variety of concepts modelled for us by individual and cultural authority figures including friends, clergy, teachers and celebrities. Every concept that we believe is important to our self-preservation is ultimately stored in the unconscious mind. All concepts are forms of shorthand. They represent a mental combination of similar objects, events and people that we use to remember and understand what things are, what they mean, and what categories or groups they belong to. For example, if someone asks you to “think of a car,” the concept, “car” will evoke some specific ideas and memories about what a car is; what its characteristics are and how you feel about that car. Does your concept of a car have black tires or white walls, two doors or four doors? Is it red, white, black, or some other color? Some erroneous concepts we commonly use in everyday language may not be true, but they are also not really injurious. They are merely innocent societal conveniences for the sake of conversation. For instance, we all believe that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. But once we critically examine such a concept, we realize that the sun never does rise in the east nor set in the west. Why? Because the sun never rises nor sets at all. The rotation of the earth produces the illusion of sunrise and sunset. In the decision making process, before we ever take an action or speak a word, concepts help us define what is relevant and irrelevant. When a concept reprises a memory of pleasure and security, we tend to like it and seek to serve it. When a concept reprises a memory of pain and insecurity, we most often dislike it enough that we seek to avoid serving it. And in order for a concept to be most beneficial, it must be relevant to our unique personal needs and purpose in life. For someone who doesn’t know how to read music, the concepts contained in a sheet of music would be useless. They would only register as a bunch of lines, dots, dashes and 9
other symbols that have no real meaning. But a musician would be able to hear notes, chords, tempos, melodies and harmonies. For a non-musical person, sheet music concepts are worthless, but for a musician, the notations represent music. Similarly, if someone placed a car part in front of you, you might only see “a car part,” whereas a mechanic would be able to see an intake manifold, a water pump or a ball joint. You would “see” what you know––a car part––while the mechanic would see what he knows: a water pump. A very experienced mechanic might even see something more specific, like a water pump from a particular make, model and year of car. Whenever we blindly accept, adopt and employ concepts offered by other people and the prevailing culture without our own critical examination, they can become dangerous and even life-threatening to our personal well being and all our relationships. When we constantly use faulty concepts to perceive a world that is constantly changing––including our own body and mind––it is impossible to make reliable, health-affirming choices. Meditation is a journey without movement. When we learn to concentrate exclusively on the mantra, the mantra can guide the mind beyond the boundaries of transitory concepts, thoughts and feelings. Then as the mind becomes increasingly still, we inherit the rarest of all human treasures––an intimate glimpse into the ocean of peace, happiness, bliss, wisdom, discrimination and love within us––that is us––having a human experience. This profound encounter of consciousness observing consciousness––free of concepts––provides a meditator the impetus and courage to examine, question, refine and consciously change the concepts used in daily life. In the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna (who represents the personality enslaved to inappropriate concepts) asks this penetrating question of Krishna (who represents Supreme Wisdom): “Why do we human beings take actions that cause us so much pain and suffering? What power moves us, even against our will, as if forcing us?” As Arjuna broods on his own inability to take skillful action, Krishna answers the poignant 10
question with words that are as relevant today as they were thousands of years ago. Just as marionettes are manipulated by the puppeteer, he says, every human being sometimes feels like a puppet whose strings are pulled by powerful concepts hidden below the surface level of the conscious mind. To help rectify this human condition, philosopher and poet William Blake wrote in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, “If the doors of perception were cleansed, every thing would appear to man as it is––Infinite. But since man has closed himself up, he sees all things through narrow chinks of his cavern.” The pain we experience when serving ill-suited concepts is a messenger inviting us to embark on our own personal hero’s journey. Once we accept this invitation, all those unexamined, unconscious concepts that skew our perceptions, diminish our problem-solving capacity, restrict our freedom of action and weaken the body’s immune system become the dragons we must slay in battle. For that momentous effort, meditation and its allied disciplines provides the precise methodology for becoming the hero or heroine of our own life’s story. But meditation concepts are not offered as dogma or tenets of faith. They are part of a scientific hypothesis that you can test––if you have the daring and determination needed to pursue this course of investigation. For thousands of years, meditation has been the go-to science for knowing, understanding and analyzing our internal states and for optimizing our personal relationships in the world. By examining your concepts, which will present themselves one by one when you adhere to a daily meditation practice, you too can effectively cleanse the windows of your perception. It is an experience that has the power to revolutionize your vision of the universe and bring profound changes in your character, conduct, and consciousness––changes that will leave a positive mark on everything you do and deeply influence everyone you come in contact with.
“Sacred Journey” Living Purposefully And Dying Gracefully
AUGUST 15-29 See p. 4
On Radical Healing By Rudolph Ballentine, MD The reconnection that is the essence of healing is a process that reaches deeper and deeper, reshaping your consciousness and redirecting your energy so that your body is brought into greater and greater synchrony with the pulsing of the larger wholes of which you are a part. The farthest reaches of healing stretch the mind and stagger the imagination. It is a matter of cosmic proportions. The journey of radical healing you have embarked upon is an epic one, and not one that you will complete soon. Your healing is a process that will extend far into the future, bringing you to realizations and transformations that you cannot now imagine. But at the same time, this business of healing is not something abstract and otherworldly. It is firmly anchored in the practical. Your healing may be important to the universe, but it is also a matter of simple and concrete urgency for you personally. It is what is required to address the aches and pains in your body, the fears and anxieties of your everyday world. Healing is the natural and necessary response to the issues at hand. Despite our unfortunate habit of considering our illnesses and disorders obstacles to living, that is not what they are. They are instead, as we have seen, opportunities. The secret of fulfillment in your life is dealing with the problems that seem to plague you and prevent you from moving forward. Whatever is “in your way,” is your way. The key to your personal transformation is the thorn in your side. You need not wax philosophical, or lose yourself in conjecture and speculation. Address whatever bothers you most, and you will be on the track of personal evolution and your contribution to the struggles of mankind. Your body will tell you what to deal with, or, failing that, your mental or emotional issues will do so. But for this to work, you cannot deal with your crises and challenges suppressively. You must use the tools and techniques of a truly holistic medicine. Listen to the eloquent language of the
body, of the emotions; step back and see what are the knots that the mind gnaws on. To be of value, what you notice doesn’t have to be a grave disorder. If you don’t have a major health challenge, start with the little ailments and problems that seem insignificant. Whether large or small, use your symptoms as clues to the steps you need to take at this moment. Ask yourself what cleansing needs to be done, what you need to let go from the past. Allow yourself to see your “defects” more clearly, own them, value their utility for you. They unlock mysteries, open doors. Don’t hide from them. Explore, experiment, use your body as a laboratory. Make learning from your body and from your mental and emotional challenges your modus operandi. Rejoice in the challenge of this moment, this sensation, this opportunity. Make a habit of letting go the old and moving into the new. Let your journey be a constant delight, a daring dance. Make radical healing a way of life, a celebration of your presence on this earth. RUDOLPH BALLENTINE, MD will lecture on “The Yoga of Eating” and “Understanding the Psychology of the Chakra System to Help Redefine the Practice Model” at AMI’s 5th Annual Physicians’ Retreat November 6-10, 2013 at the Cranwell Resort in Lenox, Massachusetts. Dr. Ballentine is a graduate of Duke University School of Medicine specializing in psychiatry, and a pioneer of the holistic health movement. He founded the Centers for Holistic Medicine and served as its director for 25 years, offering an integrative approach to treatment using psychotherapy, meditation, homeopathy, Ayurveda and hatha yoga. Rudy served as president of the Himalayan Institute for 12 years and as director of its Combined Therapy Department for 18 years. He has authored numerous acclaimed books including Diet and Nutrition, Radical Healing, Transition to Vegetarianism and Science of Breath. 11
Aliens Are Invading Earth! By Linda Johnsen illuminati-illusions.blogspot.com
I jolted awake—I could sense something was terribly wrong. I couldn’t move; my entire body was completely paralyzed. Only eleven years old, with no known health problems, lying in bed in the middle of night I must have just died—that was my first thought. I was in my body but no longer connected to it. Then things got even more frightening. Someone was standing next to my bed. I guess my eyelids still worked because I looked up and saw something not human bending down over me. It was the most terrifying moment of my life. This entity reach down and touched my left hip. It was as if its finger burned straight through into my body, the sensation was so excruciating. This was back in the mid 1960s, during the heyday of the UFO hysteria, and it actually occurred to me that this creature might be an alien from outer space. It sure looked like one. But I was always a rational person, even under pressure, and I clearly understood I must be hallucinating. Abruptly the vision vanished. Gradually motor control returned to my fingers and toes, and then I was back in charge of my body. Over the next two years this experience repeated itself numerous times, scaring the holy heck out of me. There was not a soul I could talk to about it. In those days if you 12
claimed something like this had happened to you, people said you were crazy or a liar or both. Even today a whole cottage industry has grown up around this phenomenon. People honestly believe they are being abducted by aliens, and a boatload of books and TV specials have appeared touting this alleged extraterrestrial invasion. These beings are here to harvest our organs, breed with us, or whatever. The phenomenon finally caught the attention of scientists, and thanks to their research we now understand at least part of what’s happening. Normally when we fall asleep the part of our brain that connects our thinking mind with our body temporarily shuts off. It’s an indispensable safety mechanism that keeps us from actually getting out of bed and running when we dream we’re running, or otherwise physically acting out our dreams. Usually when we wake up our connection with our body switches back on immediately so we can reach over and turn off the alarm clock. But sometimes we wake up without the nervous system noticing, and for several terrifying minutes we can’t move a muscle. More alarmingly even though we’re mentally awake we continue to dream, so we may see weird creatures in our bedroom, feel as if we’re floating up toward the ceiling, or find ourselves thrust into bizarre
hallucinatory worlds that seem completely real. The scientific name for this phenomenon is “sleep paralysis.” Researchers estimate at least 15 percent of the population probably have this experience at least once in their life. When it started happening again in my early 20s, I was lucky enough to be studying with one of the great yoga masters of the twentieth century, Swami Rama of the Himalayas. At that time scientists were still denying this kind of experience was real, but yogic adepts of course were very familiar with it. Swamiji told me that the breath is the flywheel of life; that breathing is the one unconscious bodily function we can easily control consciously. I got the hint. The next time I woke up paralyzed I simply focused on my breath and sure enough, although I couldn’t move a muscle, I could make myself breathe faster or slower. Changing my breathing pattern immediately snapped me out the paralyzed state and the frightening waking dream that came with it. This is one thing I love about the yogis, how they give you the knowledge and practical means to overcome fear. In their explorations of the many states of consciousness, they’ve seen it all. Meeting the Inner Aliens My many childhood experiences of sleep paralysis would have been a lot easier to deal with if I’d understood what was going on. I wish I’d known Swami Rama when I was 11! But I do have to admit I learned a lot about the inner landscapes of the mind through my hypnogogic (“between waking and sleep”) experiences. In Sanskrit this is called a sandhya state, sandhya meaning “dawn or dusk,” so these experiences truly are the Twilight Zone! During sleep paralysis you find yourself traveling through hallucinatory dream worlds, meeting threatening alien intelligences or wise angelic beings, sometimes feeling living presences you can’t actually see but with whom you communicate telepathically. The thing is, none of this is real. However it feels completely real while it’s happening; in fact, if one of these alien beings touches you, you feel it as vividly, in
fact more vividly, than when someone touches you in normal waking life. You know those medieval paintings of the damned being tortured in hell, or medieval reports of demons called incubi or succubi attacking good Christians while they were in bed? Without a doubt, these horrifying images arose from panicked sleepers experiencing living nightmares in this twilight world. What I learned was that our subconscious mind contains much more than the confused stream of images we generally experience in our run-of-the-mill dreams. There is an entire inner universe of aliens— some friendly, some menacing—playing out their dramas within us, of whom our conscious mind is ordinarily completely unaware. The brilliant Swiss psychologist Carl Jung famously stumbled across this internal world himself. He called these inner beings “archetypes,” and this startling interior landscape “the collective unconscious” because so many people who find themselves in this imaginary realm have very similar visions. Jung felt it was important for us to get to know this hidden part of our nature because as long as we’re unaware of it, it secretly controls our behavior in the “real” world. A good example is the archetype of the inner lover. Most men have an anima (a conceptualized female lover) while most women have an animus (their concept of the perfect romantic partner) that they’re continually searching for in the external world. They meet someone new and exciting, project their concept onto that person, and then are disappointed when the real life person fails to match their inner ideal. They end the relationship and go looking for someone else to mistake for their fantasy lover. Unless they learn to accept their real life partners for who they are, warts and all, they will never be happy. The anima/animus must be recognized for what it is and left behind before an individual can enjoy a truly mature, lasting marriage. Over the years I’ve watched people sabotage their own lives due to hidden inner complexes that in their own nonmaterial way are just as real as any object in the 13
external world. Yet these people are totally unaware of how inner aliens—the parts of their personality they’re split off from in their waking awareness—are abducting them. I remember one classmate in college whose inner alien prompter convinced him he was much more knowledgeable than any of his professors. He would express his contempt for them by chronically showing up late and disrupting the class. One exasperated teacher finally told him that if he didn’t show up on time, she would lock him out. This was a serious matter since he needed to pass her course to earn his degree. One day he and I drove to a university in another city to do some research in their medical library. After several hours I mentioned that we needed to leave right away if he was going to make it back for his class. He insisted we had plenty of time and refused to hurry. As we finally drove back I pointed out that we were nearing our exit, but he was sure it wasn’t the right one, even though he had driven this way many times before. We wound up getting back very late and, of course, he missed his class. He was extremely angry with his professor for locking him out, although it was clearly his own fault for not getting back in time. His friends could see, but he could not, that some inner demon had steered him wrong. Yoga and the Unconscious Back in the 1970s Carl Jung was hugely popular—everyone was talking about “archetypes” and the “collective unconscious.” One evening we asked Swami Rama if it would be useful for us Yoga students to also study Jung. His answer made our jaws drop. “Don’t waste your time,” he said. Later Swamiji explained that the inner archetypal world is so fascinating we could literally explore it for lifetimes and we’d still barely scratch the surface. The wise old crones and bizarre looking aliens we encounter there—and all the repressed feelings and mistaken ideas those unreal images represent in our unconscious—are ultimately only maya, an illusion. Swamiji explained that stopping to explore that twilight world was a detour on the spiritual path. He insisted that serious students can achieve enlight14
enment in this very incarnation if we stay focused on our goal and deal with the emotional residue of any “detours.” What about all the insight we can gain, all the psychological complexes we think we can untangle by entering the undiscovered country of our own unconscious, we asked. Swami Rama recommended that instead we continue to sit for meditation in a relaxed but disciplined fashion. In meditation many of the figures and feelings from the unconscious flash in the field of our awareness. Rather than empowering them by chasing them excitedly down the rabbit hole of the unconscious, we should observe them calmly and let them go. In this manner we become aware of our psychological tics, become conscious of the contents of our unconscious, but also become free of them. Moksha, the Sanskrit word for enlightenment, means “freedom.” There are aliens living just under the screen of our conscious awareness. Although they’re not really that alien—they are, after all, personifications of our own thoughts, feelings and concepts rummaging around the basement of our minds. It’s not useful to climb into their flying saucers and fly off with them. Better to return our awareness to our breath, calmly observe them, and bid them adieu. These unidentified inner objects will simply vanish. Our goal in meditation is not to visit the strangers inside who are bits and pieces of our own personality, but to transform the creative energy they represent by discovering and resting in the pure conscious Source from which they emerged.
Linda Johnsen is the award-winning author of eight books on yoga and meditation, including Meditation is Boring? Putting Life in Your Spiritual Practice.
Available at the AMI Bookstore and Booksellers Nationwide
American Meditation Institute’s Yoga of Medicine Program
5th Annual Retreat: Physicians • RNs • NPs • PAs • Psychologists Comprehensive Training in Yoga Science as
Holistic Mind/Body Medicine For Clinical and Personal Application (26 CMEs)
The Heart and Science of Yoga
TM
Meditation • Mantra Science • Diaphragmatic Breathing • Yoga Psychology • Mind Function Optimization Chakras • Easy-Gentle Yoga • Lymph System Detox • Nutrition • Functional Medicine • Ayurvedic Medicine • Epigenomics
NOVEMBER 6 -10, 2013 PHYSICIAN ACCREDITATION (26 CMEs) This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint sponsorship of Albany Medical College and The American Meditation Institute. Albany Medical College is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians. Self-Care For Healthy Living
The Albany Medical College designates this Live activity for a maximum of 26 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditsTM. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Albany Medical College
Lenox, Massachusetts
The only 4-Diamond Resort in the Berkshires
Space is LIMITED
Please Register EARLY!
Leonard Perlmutter, AMI Founder • Rudolph Ballentine MD Beth Netter MD • Susan Lord MD • Mark Pettus MD • Anita Burock-Stotts MD
REGISTER ONLINE:
americanmeditation.org/cme.aspx • Tel. (518) 674-8714
Curriculum Endorsed by: Mehmet Oz MD, Dean Ornish MD, Larry Dossey MD and Bernie Siegel MD 15
Unexamined, unconscious concepts skew our perceptions, diminish our problem-solving capacity, restrict our freedom of action and weaken the body’s immune system.
Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev) Founder, American Meditation Institute Photo by Jenness Cortez Perlmutter
Self-Care for Healthy Living Tel. 518.674.8714
americanmeditation.org 60 Garner Road, Averill Park, NY 12018