New Age of Inner Exploration

Meditation and yoga science offer creative solutions 
to end dangers to modern American life
 

by Leonard and Jenness Perlmutter

"It was the best of times; it was the worst of times," begins A Tale of Two Cities, the epic Dickens novel of the French Revolution. In the 1960s, President Kennedy warned the nation and the world that humanity was approaching a similar time of opportunity and peril. "This New Frontier," the President foretold, "is here, whether we seek it or not. It would be easier to shrink back from this frontier, to look to the safe mediocrity of the past, to be lulled by good intentions and high rhetoric. But I believe the times demand new invention, innovation, imagination and decision."

In the years since, our modern civilization has channeled its creative energies into scientific, technological and commercial growth, and has produced many astonishing and beneficial achievements. In light of such greatness, it's hard to understand why there remains so much underlying insensitivity, alienation, divisiveness and violence. Science, technology and commerce may provide the standards by which we measure progress, but shouldn't we also have found a way to live at peace--with ourselves and others? Shouldn't we have developed and adopted a practical and civilized philosophy by now, one that teaches the necessary skills for all people to realize their unalienable rights to Life, Liberty and Happiness?

Such questioning does not impune the genius of science and of commerce. Who among us would want to retreat to earlier times that lacked our plentiful food supply and the medical miracles that extend and enhance our lives? Yet in the face of the relentless stress and enmity between individuals and cultures that threaten to destroy our civilization, where are we to find the creative genius to overcome the dangers we face?

An interesting story found on the internet sheds some light on why human beings remain enslaved to the worst of times amidst the best of times. The story points out that the United States' standard railroad gauge--the distance between the rails--measures a width of four feet, eight and one-half inches. That's an exceedingly odd number. Why was that gauge used when the railroads were built in the nineteenth century? Because that's the way the railroads were built in England, and English expatriates built the rail system in this country. Why did the English build them like that? Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the pre-railroad tramways, and that's the gauge they used. Why did they use that unusual gauge? Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that were used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing. And why, you might ask, did the wagons require that particular, odd wheel spacing? Well, it just so happened that if any other spacing were used, the wagon wheels would break on the old, long distance roads in England, because of the spacing of the wheel ruts.

So, who built those old rutted roads? Imperial Rome built the first long distance roads in Europe (and England) for their military legions. Those same roads have been used ever since. And the ruts in the roads? Roman war chariots formed the initial ruts, which everyone else had to match for fear of destroying their wagon wheels. Since the chariots were made for Imperial Rome, each was constructed with uniform wheel spacing. So, the United States standard railroad gauge of four feet, eight and one-half inches is derived from the original specifications for an Imperial Roman war chariot--just wide enough to accommodate the back ends of two war horses.

A closer look at our own everyday standards for decision-making can reveal criteria just as bizarre and unquestioned. Despite the best of intentions, most people think, speak and act out of habit, day in and day out--simply because "that's the way it's always been done." Then they complain when they continue to experience the same painful results. The answer seems obvious: some part of the equation needs to change!

Change. It may be inevitable, natural--even desirable--yet we generally want to avoid it. For some, finding a "new equation" means relying on strict adherence to a religious doctrine; others may choose an exhaustive examination of personality through
psychoanalysis. But blind fundamentalism eventually leads to repression and pain, and even psychoanalysis, according to Sigmund Freud, can only bring an individual from painful neurosis to "ordinary unhappiness."

Such familiar remedies will not transform lives, Albert Einstein would argue, because "a problem cannot be solved on the same level at which it arises." Despite our best intentions, the answer to our conundrum must be found outside the current modus operandi.

The science of yoga provides a reliable blueprint for peaceful, creative and rewarding change. Yoga science recognizes that all change begins in the subtle world of thought before it can become manifest in the material world of name and form. Just as all of the future tree exists in the seed, the very chair you are sitting on right now was originally an idea in the mind of a human being. The first and most basic manifestation of your chair originally appeared as a subtle thought. The mind moves first and the body follows. You cannot even raise your hand without first entertaining a thought.

Recognizing this truth, and desiring to transform their lives in positive ways, the ancient practioners of meditation began to observe, examine and experiment with their habitual thoughts, desires and emotions. What they discovered through the process of inner exploration was profound. When their outer action reflected the subtle wisdom of their own conscience (known as the buddhi in yoga science) they experienced less pain and more harmonious and nurturing relationships.

Modern American culture, however, has little understanding of the subtle. You can't see the subtle. You can't smell, taste, hear or touch it, and you certainly can't buy or sell it. Yet every word and every action has its origin in a thought. This essay you're now reading was first a thought in the minds of its authors, as was your decision to give it your attention.

Remember, in Genesis it is written: "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light." Similarly, the Compassionate Buddha taught,"You are what you think." Your destiny is the consequence of those particular thoughts, desires and emotions you choose to give your attention to--as well as those you choose to exclude by withdrawing your attention.

If our generation really wants to solve the problems of our time--individually and collectively, within, at home and abroad--we must inaugurate a new age of inner exploration. The sages of every spiritual tradition are very clear and in accord on this vital issue. In order to change things for the better; to experience loving, nurturing relationships for ourselves and all of humanity, we must explore the vast frontier that lies beyond the ordinary conscious mind and learn to free ourselves from the painful limitations of harmful habits. The science of yoga is a road map for this great inward journey, but it is not for the faint of heart. It is for the visionary and courageous individual who, more than anything else, deeply desires to know his or her own potential for physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being.
 

Is that person you?

IN SERVICE -- WITH LOVE
LEONARD AND JENNESS PERLMUTTER

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Click here to read what others are saying about:
The Heart and Science of Yoga!

By philosopher, teacher and author Leonard Perlmutter
Publication date: September 2005

click here for more information

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Yoga Humor


A student went to his meditation teacher and said, "My meditation is horrible! I feel so distracted. My legs ache and I'm constantly falling asleep. It's just horrible!" To this the teacher replied matter-of-factly, "It will pass." A week later, the student came back to his teacher. "My meditation is wonderful! I feel so aware, so peaceful, so alive!" To this the teacher replied matter-of-factly, "It will pass."



Q: Why couldn't the yogi vacuum his carpet?
A: He had lost all his attachments.

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Elvis is Guru An acquaintance once asked, "Wasn't Elvis Presley's life a tragedy?" The question opened a floodgate of memories. My relationship with Elvis Presley had begun in 1956. As a teenager, listening to Elvis's music was one of my first experiences with meditation. Every time I listened intently to his music I felt happy--so happy in fact, that I began to associate Elvis and his music with my happiness. As Paul McCartney similarly observed, "I always knew that no matter how I felt, if I played an Elvis record it would make me happy." Because of this experience, over the years I continued to freely give my attention to Elvis Presley. For me, Elvis had charisma. To some extent, each of us has experienced the power of charisma. When someone has charisma, we feel an overwhelming, magnetic attraction that demands our attention. But from a yogic perspective, it's interesting to question the karmic purpose of such a phenomenon. What is to be learned from an individual who commands our attention, our love, or even our anger? Before responding about the tragedy or non-tragedy of Elvis's life, I began to process some memories of him from the unconscious portion of the mind known as chitta. Because I had given Elvis my attention over the years, I actually knew quite a bit about his desires, choices, achievements and some of the painful consequences he experienced--many of which appeared to result from serving the passing pleasure of ego or sense gratification (preya). Elvis Presley was obviously a generous and loving man, yet many of his actions were not in harmony with the guru in the cave of my own heart. Observing all this, I knew that as a yoga scientist, Elvis Presley's life was not a tragedy for me. Because I had been attentive to Elvis's life, I was able to receive many important lessons that instructed me what to do--and what not to do. Yes, even Elvis can be a vehicle for guru. In order to be open to the ever-present light of guru, in whatever form it may appear, each of us must be willing to be as innocent, open and non-judgmental as a child. When the outer guru reflects the truth of the inner guru, the advice is to be heeded and served. When a suggestion from the outer guru is not in harmony with the inner guru, as reflected by the purified buddhi (conscience), the advice is to be honored, respected and lovingly rejected, with gratitude--for your teacher has just taught you what not to do. It's all so very simple. Logically, it must be simple. In order to be available to every human being on an equal basis, the pathway to Happiness must be the common denominator, and that common denominator is pure consciousness--awareness within. You don't have to be of a certain race. You don't need a high school diploma or college degree, or to be the follower of any particular religion. You are merely asked to be awake, like every great sage, to hear and to serve the wisdom of guru in mind, action and speech. Excerpt from The Heart and Science of Yoga: A Blueprint for Peace, Happiness and Freedom from Fear by Leonard Perlmutter. Available September 7, 2005.

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Forward from The Heart and Science of Yoga

By Linda Johnsen Linda resides in Sonoma, California and is the author of:   A Thousand Suns Meditation Is Boring? The Living Goddess

It wasn't what I'd expected. I'd spoken at many yoga centers before; they were often large, empty rooms where students could unroll their hatha mats and launch into a series of stretches and twists imported from India. When I'd show up to lecture, folding chairs would materialize from hidden closets and an audience would listlessly filter in from the dirty city streets.

The American Meditation Institute, it turned out, was more like a beautiful estate than a yoga business. The grounds were magnificent, colored with an astonishing array of flowers and flowering shrubs. A sparkling pond brimming with minnows and a small, man-made waterfall interrupted the rolling green lawn. This oasis twenty minutes outside Albany, New York was a paradise of tranquility and fragrant blossoms.

The AMI building was friendly and clean, scented with the inviting aroma of vegetarian cooking and filled with co-founder Jenness Cortez Perlmutter's paintings of country landscapes, scenes from Indian mythology and especially--everywhere--horses. Jenness herself was tall and lean, exuding both warmth and intelligence. Her husband and fellow AMI founder Leonard Perlmutter had a thick beard that made him look like an Indian baba who'd just come down out of the Himalayas after years of meditation. He appeared very serious but the moment he began to speak, not only his vast knowledge of the world's mystical traditions but also his totally disarming sense of humor were immediately evident.

I didn't for a moment feel I was visiting a yoga "institute." Len and Jen made all of us at the seminar feel like family. Their emphasis on yoga as a preeminently practical form of spiritual discipline kept their teaching very real, grounded and relevant to their students' everyday lives.

The Perlmutters are students of Swami Rama of the Himalayas, the yogi who revolutionized our understanding of human physiology back in the 1970s. Before Swami Rama allowed researchers at the Menninger Institute in Topeka, Kansas to hook him up to their EEGs, EKGs and temperature monitors, Western scientists had never believed India's yogis could do what the Indians always claimed they could, controlling every component of their physical bodies to the extent that they could appear virtually lifeless according to the electronic printouts, yet remain fully conscious. The swami repeatedly demonstrated full mastery of his autonomic nervous system, which until then most Western doctors had assumed was impossible.

I studied with Swami Rama for some years when he founded a graduate program in Eastern Studies here in the United States in the 1980s. Swamiji complained that the experiments the researchers conducted at Menninger were comparatively trivial. The real value of yoga lay not so much in stopping one's heartbeat or regulating the temperature in individual cells in his body (skills he actually demonstrated there) but in its deep and transforming effect on human consciousness. That, unfortunately, the scientists didn't know how to measure.

Swami Rama left his body permanently in November, 1996. He died like a yogi, having announced the exact moment of his departure earlier that day. He sat up in a yoga posture and, in full consciousness, vacated the body we'd come to love so well. He taught us how to live and, in his final moments, showed us how to die.

Swami Rama's work lives on through the efforts of his students. Swamiji strongly encouraged the Perlmutters to teach. His blessings have transformed their originally modest home into one of the finest yoga centers in North America. The  Heart and Science of Yoga is the story of yoga as they live it, in the vibrant tradition of Swami Rama of the Himalayas.

Linda Johnsen
 Sonoma, California

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QUESTION: What does the Guru Purnima holiday celebrate?

LEONARD: For those who earnestly practice the science of yoga, it is traditional to gather each July on the evening of the full moon (the brightest moon of the year) to honor and rejoice in the wisdom and blessings of the sages. Guru Purnima is the occasion when students revisit their teachers to rejuvenate their sadhana (spiritual practice) and to receive inspiration and further instruction on their spiritual journey.

QUESTION: What happens at the Guru Purnima celebration?

LEONARD: Through personal testimony and scriptural readings, students and teachers share the practical benefits of yoga science. The highlight of the ceremony occurs when everyone gathers dry twigs (representing our human limitations of fear, anger and selfish desire) and sacrifices them into the bonfire. The light of the fire represents the perfect wisdom known as guru within each person, and the heat of the fire represents the will power necessary to follow that wisdom.

QUESTION: What is the meaning of the word guru?

LEONARD: Guru is a principle--a universal force of light that dispels the darkness of ignorance. As fundamental as the elements of space, air, fire, water and earth, the light of guru is also a naturally occurring element, or tattva. But unlike the elements that make up the material world, the guru principle exists as a teacher within every relationship--always available to help correct our ignorance and cure our dis-ease. True happiness can only be obtained by going to the inner-most levels of our being so we can be guided by that inner light of perfect wisdom. The sages promise that if we understand, experience and rely on the light of guru within to guide our thoughts, words and actions, we will be freed of debilitating habits of fear, anger or greed.

QUESTION: Why is it necessary to honor every human being--regardless of how reprehensible their actions might be?

LEONARD: Since every action has a consequence, it's prudent to base all actions on the best available intelligence. The U. S. government so thoroughly endorses this concept that the Department of Homeland Security--including the FBI, CIA and Department of Defense--spends approximately $40 billion dollars each year gathering intelligence to keep our nation safe from internal and external threats. And yoga science subscribes to the same philosophy, but with one critical difference. Yoga science claims that the best available intelligence--the light of guru--is always within us and is free! Yoga science teaches us to "include all and exclude none" because the best available intelligence is always present as an integral part of every relationship. For true happiness, you need no outer guidance. The sole purpose of any worthy external guide, guru or teacher is to introduce you to your own intuitive wisdom. If the outer guru, in the form of any person or experience, reflects the truth and light of your own inner guru, the advice is to be heeded and served in thought, word and deed. If a suggestion from the outer guru is in conflict with your own inner guru (as reflected by the purified discrimination of the conscience, Holy Spirit or buddhi), the advice is to be honored and lovingly rejected with gratitude--because the guru, in the form of that relationship, has just taught you what not to do. When you rely on this kind of intelligence, you are always led for your highest and greatest good.

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I have learned silence from the talkative, tolerance from the intolerant and kindness from the unkind. 
I should not be ungrateful to those teachers.
Kahlil Gibran

Divine knowledge is realized, not taught.
Shirdi Sai Baba

The lust for comfort is a stealthy thing that enters the house as a guest, 
then becomes a host, and then a master.
Khalil Gibran

Your own Self is your own teacher. The outer teacher is merely a milestone. 
It is your inner teacher that will walk with you to the goal, for he is the goal.
Nisargadatta Maharaj

In the ancient teaching the first demand at the beginning of the way to liberation was: Know thyself.
George I. Gurdjieff

A guru is like a fire; stand too close and you'll get burnt; stand too far away and you won't get heat.
Tibetan Proverb

True teaching liberates the student from his teacher. 
He will find the teacher within himself. This will not make him arrogant or egotistical; 
rather, he will have a deep sense of humility, as we should have when we face the Great Reality.
Ernest Holmes

The teacher, however great, can never give his knowledge to the pupils, 
although, he can kindle the light if the oil is in the lamp.
Hazrat Inayat Khan

The real purpose of teachers, books and teachings is to lead us back to the kingdom of God within ourselves.
Joel Goldsmith

A bus driver is the best example of a guru. He is totally involved in taking you to a destination, 
but he is uninvolved with you as well. His job is to pick you up and to deliver you.
Yogi Bhajan

Every man I meet is my superior in some way. In that, I learn from him.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tell a Friend about AMI

If you know someone who might benefit from our American Meditation class, let them know about the AMI program or call us with their name and address and we'll send them a brochure with our current class schedule.

Karma Yoga --- the practice of selfless and skillful action

If, as part of your practice, you have a few extra hours during the week and are interested in helping grow the American Meditation Institute, we need your dedicated, volunteer energy. As a student of yoga science, you are already familiar with the kinds of practical services the Institute provides. Each month we write, edit and publish this newsletter, teach an average of thirty new meditation students and present stress-reduction seminars to various businesses and organizations. We also invite visiting speakers of interest to our area, organize seminars on yoga science and do continuing personal counseling.

Our immediate needs include press relations, seminar management, clerical assistance and general delivery work. Remember, whatever time or talents you possess will be put to meaningful, productive use.

If you have the time, please call the Institute at (518) 674-8714.

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