October - December 2020 Transformation

American Meditation Institute

Transformation Bringing Yoga Science to Life

October - December 2020

americanmeditation.org

or en f tics! v E os ful, Help s & Agn ist Athe

Ego-Centered Prayer VERSUS

God-Centered Prayer

by Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev)

AMI Classes for October - December 2020

YOGA SCIENCE

FOUNDATION COURSE INCLUDING AMI MEDITATION A TRANSFORMATIVE & EMPOWERING SELF-CARE PROGRAM ON ZOOM

U NITING M IND , B ODY & S PIRIT INCLUDES 36 TOOLS FOR DEALING WITH THE STRESS OF COVID-19 American MEDITATION Institute Bringing Yoga Science to Life

Foundation Course Overview The curriculum for the FOUNDATION COURSE is based on the award-winning book, The Heart and Science of Yoga® by Leonard Perlmutter

Seated AMI Meditation • Mantra Science Diaphragmatic Breathing • Yoga Psychology Mind Function Optimization • Easy-Gentle Yoga Lymph System Detox • Nutrition • Ayurvedic Medicine YOGA SCIENCE––WEEK 1 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 AMI MEDITATION––WEEK 2 Systematic procedure for AMI Meditation Diminishing distractions with mantra science Learning the one-minute meditation Building focus, fearlessness, and strength BREATHING TECHNIQUES––WEEK 3 Breath as Medicine How breathing irregularities foster dis-ease Complete (three-part) yogic breath 2

YOGA PSYCHOLOGY & AYURVEDA––WEEK 4 How the mind supports optimal health The power of the present moment Building and healing relationships Introduction to Ayurveda EASY-GENTLE YOGA EXERCISES––WEEK 5 Yoga stretches to benefit: muscles, joints, glands and internal organs Physiological benefits of yoga postures MIND /BODY SELF-CARE PLAN––WEEK 6 The healing power of prayer The practical benefits of contemplation Creating a therapeutic self-care plan for yourself Learning to budget your time Integrating spiritual beliefs into daily life

americanmeditation.org • Tel. (518) 674-8714

Taught by

Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev) The AMI MEDITATION Foundation Course was developed and is taught live on Zoom by Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev). Leonard is a noted educator, philosopher, Yoga scientist and founder of The American Meditation Institute. He is the author of The Heart and Science of Yoga® and the mind/body medicine journal, Transformation. He is a direct disciple of Swami Rama of the Himalayas. Leonard’s lectures are enlivened by his inspiring enthusiasm, vast experience, humor and clear teaching style. He has taught at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, The New York Times Yoga Forum, Kaiser-Permanente and the U. S. Military Academy at West Point.

A MI MEDITATION: Case Study Results In 2008, AMI conducted a retrospective case study of participants who completed Leonard Perlmutter’s AMI MEDITATION Heart and Science of Yoga ® Self-Care Program.

The findings included these positive, life-enhancing, health-promoting changes: • Significant reductions in stress and fear • Improved energy levels • Reduced cholesterol levels • Decreased anxiety and depression • Increased creative capacity • Diminished or extinguished • Lowered blood pressure • Diminishment of migraine headaches acute and chronic pain • Lowered heart rate • Decreases irritable bowel symptoms • Weight loss • Improved restorative sleep • Enhanced happiness and optimism • Increased breathing capacity

FOUNDATION COURSE Schedule and Accreditation

Medical Accreditation PHYSICIAN ACCREDITATION (18 CMEs) americanmeditation.org/physician-cme 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 providership 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.

The Albany Medical College designates this Live activity for a maximum of 18 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits TM. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

NURSING CONTINUING EDUCATION (15 contact hours) americanmeditation.org/nursing-continuing-education This continuing nursing education activity was approved by the American Nurses Association Massachusetts (ANA MASS), an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

Registration Includes: Lifelong support, a 20-minute digital Guided Meditation, a copy of The Physiology of Easy-Gentle Yoga, and a subscription to AMI’s Transformation journal.

UPCOMING CLASSES

Live Streaming on ZOOM with Leonard Perlmutter Oct 27-Dec 1

Tuesday Evening

6:30 -8:30pm ET, $595.

Nov 7-Dec 12

1:30 -3:30pm ET, $595.

Dec 8-Jan 12

(6 WKS)

Tuesday Evening

6:30 -8:30pm ET, $595.

Jan 2-Feb 6

(6 WKS)

Saturday Afternoon

(6 WKS)

Saturday Afternoon

1:30 -3:30pm ET, $595.

(6 WKS)

Required Texts available at AMI Bookstore: The Heart and Science of Yoga ® The Art of Joyful Living Physicians $895; PAs, NPs: $795; RNs: $695

HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE Call us to discuss how your Health Insurance plan might cover this program.

Endorsed by Dean Ornish MD, Bernie Siegel MD, Larry Dossey MD, Dr. Oz 3

americanmeditation.org • Tel. (518) 674-8714

*

CALENDAR FREE: SUNDAY GUIDED MEDITATION & SATSANG LIVE on ZOOM every Sunday 9:30-11:00am ET with Leonard (Ram Lev) & Jenness • Link is on the website

OCTOBER 2020 OCT 15- 29: BEST CHOICES

see p.5

Thurs. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM ET (3 wks) Live on ZOOM

OCT 26 - NOV 30: GITA/YOGA PSYCHOLOGY see p. 4 Mon. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

OCT 27 - DEC 6: AMI MEDITATION see p. 2-3 Tues. Nights, 6:30-8:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

NOVEMBER 2020 NOV 7 - DEC 12: AMI MEDITATION see p. 2-3 Sat. Afternoons, 1:30-3:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

NOV 14 & 21: YOGA SCIENCE LAB

see p. 4 Live on ZOOM

Sat. Mornings, 10:30AM-12:30PM ET (2 wks)

DECEMBER 2020 DEC 7 - JAN 11: GITA/YOGA PSYCHOLOGY see p. 4

YOGA PSYCHOLOGY BHAGAVAD GITA STUDY

Leonard (Ram Lev) and Jenness Perlmutter

*

Available by CDL (Computer Distance Learning) Attend this in-depth course from your own home or anywhere in the world. Call 518.674.8714 for details.

LEVEL II: In continuous six week installments this course presents the profound teachings of the Bhagavad Gita as a handbook on the science of life and the art of living. If you are seeking a manual or guide for the supreme task of living well in the world today, this ongoing study will provide you practical wisdom, meaning and purpose for your life. Each week Leonard and Jenness will teach you how to reduce stress and confidently enhance your health and creative abilities, while providing you a fresh, positive perspective on all your family and business relationships.

MONDAY NIGHTS, 6:30 - 8:30 PM ET, $150. (6 WKS) OCT 26 - NOV 30; DEC 7 - JAN 11 LIVE ON ZOOM

Mon. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

DEC 8 - JAN 12: AMI MEDITATION see p. 2-3 Tues. Nights, 6:30-8:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

DEC 3 & 10: ADVANCED TANTRIC HEALING

see p. 5 Thurs. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM ET (2 wks) Live on ZOOM

JANUARY 2020 JAN 2 - FEB 6: AMI MEDITATION see p. 2-3 Sat. Afternoons, 1:30-3:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

JAN 18 - FEB 22: GITA/YOGA PSYCHOLOGY see p. 4 Mon. Nights, 6:30 - 8:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

JAN 19 - FEB 23: AMI MEDITATION see p. 2-3 Tues. Nights, 6:30-8:30 PM ET (6 wks) Live on ZOOM

American Meditation Institute

Bringing Yoga Science to Life October - December, 2020 • Vol. XXIV No. 1 ©2020 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.

4

Ne w ! YOGA SCIENCE LAB How to Practice Meditation-in-Action Valerie Chakedis, Mary Holloway MT Prerequisite: Yoga Science Foundation Course

LEVEL II: In AMI’s Foundation Course, you learned that your thoughts are your most valuable asset. The Yoga Science Lab will help you examine your thoughts and expand your ability to focus your attention. The techniques learned in seated AMI Meditation are applied in every duty and responsibility throughout the day. This process is called Meditation-in-Action. As you experiment with the Truth reflected by your Conscience, you’ll develop decision-making skills that will enhance your confidence in all relationships. As you have already learned, to experience real freedom you must be centered in the present moment, know who you are, and follow your Inner Wisdom. Yoga Science Lab can help you achieve that freedom!

SATURDAY MORNINGS, 10:30AM -12:30 PM ET, $75.

NOV 14 AND 21 (2 WKS) LIVE ON ZOOM

AMI Classes for October - December 2020

MAKING THE BEST CHOICES

10 Indispensable Keys for Inspired Decision-Making Leonard (Ram Lev) and Jenness Perlmutter

VE SA ATE! ED H T

Available by CDL (Computer Distance Learning) Now available online. Call 518.674.8714 for details.

Level II : This course offers 10 practical guidelines for better decision-making. Known as the Yamas and Niyamas, these tools will help you reliably access your own intuitive wisdom to resolve every issue skillfully. These time-honored guidelines will teach you how to transform the contractive power of unhelpful, stress-provoking, negative emotions and habits into an expansive, creative and dynamic force. Real-life issues will be examined, including home, family, friends, work, recreation and death.

THURSDAY NIGHTS, 6:30 - 8:30PM ET $125 (3 WKS) OCT 15 - 29 LIVE ON ZOOM

ADVANCED TANTRIC HEALING “Yoga Nidra” Practices To Benefit Mind and Body Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev) –– AMI Founder

LEVEL II: This advanced two-week course provides important instruction on employing the subtle energy healing of Tantra, a system of powerfully effective tools for self-care and stress management. Each week you will be taught new skills that reduce the effects of stress, illness and physical exhaustion by purifying the mind and body. These deeply therapeutic practices minimize tension, facilitate energy flow, calm and train the mind, awaken creativity, enhance memory and retard the aging and disease processes by boosting the body’s innate healing wisdom. This course will provide complete instruction in the practices of yoga nidra, shitali karana, shavayatra, and tantric visualization.

THURSDAY NIGHTS, 6:30 - 8:30PM ET $125 (2 WKS) DEC 3 & 10 LIVE ON ZOOM This class is open to the general public and recommended for physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals.

PHYSICIANS’ CME CONFERENCE 12th Annual

“Yoga Science As Mind/Body Medicine”

19-23, 2021 October 13-21, 2021

WYNDHURST MANOR & CLUB AT MIRAVAL BERKSHIRES Lenox, Massachusetts

32 CMEs americanmeditation.org/cme 5

Ego-Centered VERSUS

God-Centered

PRAYER Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev) From the award winning book, The Heart and Science of Yoga No matter what your religion, or absence thereof, prayer can become a valuable part of your daily practice. In Yoga Science, contemplation, repentance and prayer are often grouped together because, in concert, they enhance every aspect of spiritual life. Even if you are an agnostic or avowed atheist, prayer can become a powerful force for personal transformation.

In the dualistic paradigm, God is conceived of as a super-force, separate and apart from the human being. In Yoga Science, however, the two are One; there is no “other.” Although traditions and individuals may differ in their definition of God, everyone acknowledges his or her own existence and capacity to witness. For each of us, based on our experience and memory, there has never been a time when the concept “I am” was not true.

According to Yoga Science, this I-amness, our capacity to be present to witness, is the doorway to experiencing union with the One Supreme Reality. Yoga Science states that the I-amness of which all traditions speak is an aspect of this One Reality, and it is to the Eternal Witness dwelling within each of us that the lower self, or personality, offers its prayer.

Ego-Centered Prayer The most familiar form of prayer is ego-centered prayer. This kind of petitioning is 6

learned in early childhood. Generally, it begins like this: “Mommy, may I have a cookie? Mommy, may I please have a cookie?

Please, Mommy, may I have a cookie?

Please. Please, Mommy!” “Okay, honey.”

Mother replies. “Here’s a cookie. You’re such a good boy. Mommy loves you.”

“Thank you, Mommy.”

In practical terms, this kind of learned behavior quickly teaches the child to become a beggar. Motivated by the delusion that each of us is a separate individual, we begin petitioning a variety of authority figures at a very early age in hope of securing the objects and relationships we believe will bring us happiness or eliminate our pain.

As we mature into adulthood, certain desires take on great importance in our lives.

Perhaps we have an opportunity to get a new, better-paying position at work. In furtherance of that desire, we update our resume, complete the application and interview for the position. Then, after we have done all in our power, we might call on the Supreme authority figure for Divine intervention. In other words, we pray––in the same manner the child learned to beg for cookies. “Dear God, please let me get this job. Please let me get this job. Please, God. Please!”

If we are sufficiently creative and resourceful, we might even bargain with the Supreme authority figure as if we were playing Monopoly. “Dear God, if you give me

this job . . . I will start doing this and I will stop doing that.” In modern business vernacular, we try to cut a deal.

Unfortunately, this subservient, egocentered, petitioning attitude increasingly alienates us from the One Supreme Reality as it reinforces the divisive power of the ego (ahamkara). Regardless of the immediate outcome, the samskaras created as a consequence of this repetitive begging enslave us to further rounds of pain and bondage.

God-Centered Prayer God-centered prayer recognizes that on the highest level of consciousness only One Absolute Reality exists. Unlike the dualistic paradigm that represents man’s relationship with God as “I and Thou,” Yoga philosophy maintains that I and my Father are truly One; that the Supreme Reality resides within each of us as the Eternal Witness (Sat-ChitAnanda). Accordingly, the only thing an earnest seeker can legitimately pray for is strength.

Why strength? Because as a Yoga scientist you learn through experience that when thought, word and deed are in harmony with buddhi (Conscience), you are always led for your highest and greatest good.

Therefore, in God-centered prayer, speak to that aspect of the Supreme Reality closer to you than your own breath. “Dear Lord, Dear Jesus, Dear Inner Dweller, Dear Divine Mother, O Great Spirit, Dear Allah, Dear Ganesha (whatever phrase feels most comfortable to you, based on your personal religious or non-religious upbringing) . . . please grant me the strength to do Thy will– –to serve the higher good and surrender the ego’s limiting attachment.”

The agnostic will fashion a prayer in an entirely different manner than will the Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist, but the form is not as important as your intention.

Remember, words are just pointers.

Yoga Science does not ask anyone to abandon his or her faith or belief and adopt another, nor should you ask your friend or loved one to use the prayer that you use. To be meaningful and effective, prayer must be a very

personal experience and spoken in the language of love––the same language the mother or the father uses with the newborn baby. Avoid using memorized passages that do not have an intimate, heart-opening meaning for you.

Don’t feel pressured to construct a long, formal, poetic or grammatically correct prayer. Merely speak lovingly to that Inner Dweller residing in the cave of the heart in a simple, direct, open, honest and loving manner.

Make an Offering Remember, the sages teach that “it is in giving that we receive.” Instead of begging for something, as in ego-centered prayer, Godcentered prayer is an opportunity to give away something you’re holding on to–– something that is separating you from the Supreme Reality. No one knows better than you what your attachments are. Therefore, in your prayer, openly share with the Supreme Reality how difficult it may be for you to give up the worry, anger or unfulfilled selfish desire presently calling your attention and blocking your path.

In the process of making an offering, welcome, witness and honor your attachments dispassionately. Remember, they were created by your previous attention. They’re part of the bundle of habit patterns known as your personality. Then, with all the strength and will power you can marshal, make an offering of the contracting attachment back to the Origin from which it has come. Make the offering lovingly, willingly and joyously as part of your spiritual practice and ask the Inner Dweller to accept this gift of a dedicated seeker, to transform its inherent power and to lead you for your highest and greatest good.

The more you can consciously and willingly surrender your attachments in Godcentered prayer, the weaker the habit patterns become, and the less control they will have over your future actions.

Sample God-Centered Prayer To encourage your own creativity, we have prepared a sample God-centered prayer.

7

Please don’t consider this something you should memorize. If certain passages speak to your own situation and heart, feel free to incorporate them into your own prayer. If other phrases feel uncomfortable to you,

perhaps they might at least help clarify what you’re really feeling. Remember, earnestness is the key. As spiritual food for thought, the following prayer is suggested:

God-Centered Prayer “O Lord of Life, O, my Inner Dweller, Thou Who gives me Light, that I might see, Who gives me power to hear, to smell, to taste, to touch, to think, to analyze, Who gives me power to walk, energy to walk, to do things in the external world; O that Center of Power within me, let me draw strength directly from You. You are my only source of strength.

O Inner Dweller, Light of Light and Holy of Holies, with a grateful heart for the bounty and blessings of creation that You unceasingly provide, I humbly pray that your Presence come forward into my awareness and that you lead me in my meditation and my practice.

Teach me to receive with equanimity the pleasant and the unpleasant, remembering that You are the Origin of all; that everything is here for me to use and to enjoy but not to possess, nor to be possessed by.

O Inner Dweller, help me to purify this body, mind and senses that I might become an instrument of love, forgiveness and compassion; to do Thy will–– even in the face of my own likes and dislikes.

O Inner Dweller, though I am attached to the charms, attractions and temptations of this material world, I desire to surrender all my attachments back to You: I surrender my very breath, body, mind and senses. I surrender every concept of I, and me and mine. I surrender all fear and worry, anger and selfish desire. I surrender the ignorance of separateness and the illusion of personal doer-ship. On the altar of surrender I offer You my expectations, anticipations and intentions, my judgments and criticisms, conclusions and opinions––every thought, every word, every deed.

I make this offering lovingly, humbly and earnestly, and pray that You will consume this offering in the fire of your compassionate Light. Lead me from the unreal to the Real. Lead me from the darkness to the Light. Lead me from mortality to immortality.

O Inner Dweller, I pray for your strength. I humbly pray for your grace. I pray for your grace through the scriptures. I pray for your grace through those teachers who bring me knowledge. I pray for your grace through the Supreme Reality Within. May the voice and light of that Absolute Truth grow in my awareness. Grant me an ear to hear and eye to see, at all times, in every relationship and every circumstance, that I might declare with full faith, in this lifetime: I and my Father are One.” 8

24th Annual Appeal The American Meditation Institute Because of COVID-19 We Need Your Help to Reach our Goal of $150,000 We urge you to thoughtfully consider the value that AMI has brought to your life, and to give generously to help us recover from the financial damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. We understand that you too may be suffering financially, yet we must count on you to help us achieve our goal of $150,000. No gift is too big or too small, and we thank you sincerely for your ongoing love and support.

Leonard (Ram Lev) and Jenness

Help Us Keep Bringing Yoga Science to Life!

Call (518) 674-8714

Donate Online at: americanmeditation.org/annual-appeal 9

Conceptions Skew Perceptions and Prohibit us from Seeing the Truth

by EKNATH EASWARAN Yesterday Christine and I went to the Hyatt Regency hotel in San Francisco, which has achieved notoriety for its unusual architecture. I always appreciate a good view, and I wanted to visit the revolving penthouse restaurant from which you can look out over the whole city. We entered the Regency's portals and went straight to the top, the Equinox. I felt like a wide-eyed boy set down on another planet. A nice waitress came and showed us to a plush corner with huge windows and mirrors on all sides, where she promised we would be able to get a good view. Then the usual restaurant topic of vegetarian food came up. This can lead to highly philosophical discussions about what comes with what and how it is prepared, whether fish and birds can count as vegetables, and other botanical and ontological topics. At the end of all this the waitress said, “I’ll bring you a special chefs salad.” That suited me perfectly. “There's no need to hurry on,” I assured Christine. “Why don’t we sit here until we’ve seen the whole city pass by?”

Out of the window we could see the ships coming and going in San Francisco Bay. While we worked our way through the salad, the Bay slipped out of sight and more and more of the city swung into view. "Look at that!” I said to Christine after a while. “You can see Coit Tower.”

Christine laughed. “That’s not really Coit Tower,” she said. “Of course it is,” I said. Everybody in the Bay Area knows Coit Tower; it looks like a giant fire hose nozzle.

“You’re looking at its reflection.” replied Christine. She was right. I realized suddenly that I had been looking in the wrong direction, gazing into one of the full-height mirrors with which our booth was paneled. How much of what I had been watching had been real? I couldn’t tell what was window and what was mirror.

“There,” I said, pointing in another direction. “Isn’t the Equitable Insurance 10

building?” Another landmark; I recognized the parking lot.

Christine looked closely. “That’s not a window either,” she decided. “In fact, I think it’s not just a reflection; it’s a reflection of a reflection.” I lost all confidence in my vision.

Only when we escaped from the Equinox and got back to Union Square did I feel I knew where I was and what I was seeing. The sage Shankara compares the whole phenomenal world to a city seen in a mirror. This is not a poetic fancy. When we look at people as physical entities, talk to them and deal with them and try to possess or manipulate them as if they were physical entities, we are dealing with reflections of our own mind-making. Just like Coit Tower, they do seem real.

Until Christine pointed out that I was looking in a mirror, I would have sworn that I was looking at the real Coit Tower. Even then, in order to understand that this was only a reflection, I needed to be able to compare it with something real. In the Equinox I could do that simply by looking in a different direction. But in life, if you want to see what is real, you have to get below the surface level of consciousness. This illusion can lead to painful comments on relationships, particularly the romantic. “Making love,” for example, has no necessary connection with love. I would say this is “making physical relationships”––making reflections of reflections of love. Love means affirming the unity between two people; indulging in physical relationships for physical satisfaction is denying that unity. Anyone who has tried to build a relationship on sexual attraction knows how fleeting it is, how soon satiation and irritation come.

We have a story in India about a courtesan who was notoriously fond of money. One evening a rich man came to her salon and happened to see her standing before a mirror.

The image was so voluptuously beautiful that he went and gallantly kissed the reflection.

Immediately she said, “That will cost you one hundred rupees.” This was a resourceful chap. He took out a hundred rupees, held it up, and gestured toward its reflection in the mirror. “You may collect that,” he said.

It is tragic, but in personal relationships we are often dealing with a reflection. Trying to possess somebody is trying to possess a reflection; it cannot be done. Imagine Romeo seeing Juliet’s reflection and carrying away the mirror! That is just what physically oriented people do when they try to possess, manipulate, and enjoy. Sooner or later this is accompanied by negative reflections of reflections: doubt, jealousy, insecurity, alienation, frustration, anger, depression. Love never asks “What can I get from this person?” It asks only, “What can I give?” That is the way to go beyond reflections to the real person.

After we finished our salad at the Equinox and paid the bill, we didn’t know how to get out. We wandered around the periphery looking for one of those glowing exit signs, but all we could see in that eerie half-darkness was windows, mirrors, and red plush. Finally we asked our waitress for help.

“You just walk out,” she said. We had been looking for some special exit, but right in front of us was a gap through which we could pass from the Equinox back to the everyday reality of San Francisco.

“Don't wait for signs,” Jesus the Christ says. Right where we are standing we can find the exit from the world of separateness and enter into the world of unity. All we have to do is turn our backs, to the best of our ability, on our private needs, demands, and self-indulgences. Otherwise, the Bhagavad Gita says, the world we live in will become darker and darker. Living in separateness means being dominated by private urges, trying to have our own way and do only what we like, unable to see what cries out to be done for the welfare of the world around us.

When this darkness becomes deep enough, we can’t see which direction to go; we will always be losing our way, never coming out at all. When we decide to say no to private, personal urges, we start to enter a world of light where the path is clear. We know where we are going, and we can travel safely and surely.

“A true work of art that explains the transformational power of classical Yoga Science in clear and practical terms. This book is a priceless manual for creatively meeting the challenges of everyday life.”

LILIAS FOLAN Author and host of the groundbreaking PBS yoga series, Lilias!

NOW AVAILABLE AMI Website Store Barnes & Noble Amazon.com All Fine Booksellers 11

2nd Annual National Conscience Month The American Meditation Institute (AMI) announces that the 2nd annual National Conscience Month will be observed throughout the month of January, 2021. The mission of this observance is to remind and encourage individuals across the nation to practice using their Conscience as a guide in every level of decision making.

Working in partnership with citizens, governments, school systems, faith leaders, non-profits, community organizations and corporations across the United States, National Conscience Month provides every citizen a fresh opportunity to experience the value of using the Conscience as an inspired guide to making better decisions.

We know that in today’s world people are moving very quickly and reacting automatically––rather than making discerning choices. Currently there are few coordinated opportunities for teaching people how to evaluate options or to use their Conscience as a guide in everyday situations. Because of this, we experience dis-ease. We suffer personally and as a culture from ills like addictions, gun violence, chronic and debilitating health conditions, suicide, racism, bigotry, stress, and depression, to name just a few.

The inspiration for National Conscience Month grew out of the Yoga Science “Law of Karma” which states simply that thoughts lead to words, actions and, eventually, to further consequences. This law of cause and effect, embraced by all great scientists, from Sir Isaac Newton to Albert Einstein and today’s quantum physicists, is as true and unavoidable as the Law of Gravity.

12

According to AMI founder Leonard Perlmutter, “A space satellite launched into orbit has no inner guidance to determine its destiny. You, however, can escape the failings of the culture or your own past mistakes, and can truly thrive in every relationship, simply by letting your Conscience be your guide in thought, word and deed.”

National Conscience Month’s January 2021 campaign is designed to: • Remind, educate and raise awareness about the value of using your Conscience as a guide to making better decisions.

• Inspire, build and support a national movement that embraces the role of conscience-driven choices in experiencing more health, happiness and security, as we create more rewarding lives for our families, communities and nation.

• Encourage well-chosen individual actions through simple experiments that aid in increasing positivity, self-confidence, and self-reliance. It is by our personal experience of its wisdom that we learn to trust and rely on our own Conscience.

According to Dan Millman, philosopher, acclaimed author of “The Way of the Peaceful Warrior,” world champion gymnast and Honorary Spokesperson for National Conscience Month, “Everything you'll ever need to know is within you; the secrets of the universe are imprinted on the cells of your body.” Our work in every relationship is to remember and employ this treasure.

2nd Annual National Conscience Month

ESSAY CONTEST For ALL High School Seniors $1,000. SCHOLARSHIP

January, 2021 marks the 2nd Annual observance of National Conscience Month. Throughout the month Americans from all walks of life will be imagining new ways to celebrate the benefits of using their Conscience to guide their thoughts, words and deeds.

Here’s a special opportunity for high school seniors across the nation! You’re now invited to participate in a unique and creative way––by writing a short essay about using the Conscience. Think of a real situation in your life––or create an imaginary scenario––in which you allowed (or chose not to allow) your Conscience to guide your thoughts, words and actions. What were the results? Were there benefits? Or unexpected consequences? What did you learn from this experience?

One talented student will receive a $1,000. scholarship, awarded for an original essay of 1,000 words or less.

Submission Instructions …

No membership or purchase of any kind is required to take part in the National Conscience Month Essay Contest. Essay submissions should be sent by email to ami@americanmeditation.org. Submissions should be sent as a PDF attachment.

Submissions must be received no later than Friday, January 15, 2021. The contest winner will be notified by email. Submissions may be featured by the American Meditation Institute either online or in print in connection with National Conscience Month programming and promotions, and the right to reproduce submissions is reserved by AMI and its sponsors.

E-mail your essay to ami@americanmeditation.org together with your name, address, telephone number and the name of your high school.

13

“The Artist’s Model” © by Jenness Cortez

JENNESS CORTEZ “Demystifying the Masters” HOMER • SARGENT • ROCKWELL • WARHOL • VERMEER • DEGAS • VAN GOGH • VAN EYCK • RENOIR

Visit Jenness’s Website and Watch Her New Video Series on YouTube Jenness Cortez begins her creative process by selecting another artist’s iconic painting to serve as the centerpiece of her own original composition. Depending on her response to that chosen painting, the artist who created it, and the time and culture that gave birth to it, Cortez then becomes author, art director, architect, visual journalist, art historian, curator and pundit as she searches for supportive elements—such as books, photographs and clocks—to assist in telling her story. Completion of the painting involves thousands of choices, each one determined by her highly perfected intuitive sense of what is needed. Then, when all the elements are in harmony— in service to her vision—the viewer is drawn into the picture. And it is this instantaneous seduction that leads us into exploring the hidden pleasures awaiting our discovery.

JennessCortez.com (518) 674-8711 bit.ly/JennessCortezArt WEBSITE 14

TELEPHONE

YOUTUBE VIDEOS

Words to Live By “Like generations before us, we are now asked to engage in the existential struggle between darkness and Light, animal and Divine.

The only way the forces of Light can dispel the darkness is for each of us to convince our ego, senses and unconscious mind to follow the unerring wisdom of our Conscience in thought, word and deed.”

Leonard Perlmutter (Ram Lev)

Let your Conscience be your guide. Vote!

ConscienceMonth.org • NATIONAL CONSCIENCE MONTH • January 2021

American MEDITATION Institute Bringing Yoga Science to Life

YOGA SCIENCE FOUNDATION COURSE – ON ZOOM 15

American Meditation Institute Bringing Yoga Science to Life Tel. 518.674.8714 • 60 Garner Road, Averill Park, NY 12018

Hi, I’m Jiminy Cricket!

January

2021 National Conscience Month

disneyclips.com

Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide!

ConscienceMonth.org americanmeditation.org

American Meditation Institute

16

American Meditation Institute