Michael's Blog

Carl Sagan Quote Posted February 27, 2008

I remember when I first left the ashram and began lecturing. I thought everyone would stand up and cheer at the end. Surely, I felt, they would all be hugely relieved that many of the distortions that have overtaken Eastern, Western, and New Age spiritual understanding were revealed and corrected. I think the following quote nicely explains why that was not the case:

"One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to
reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We’re no longer interested in finding out the truth.
The bamboozle has captured us. It is simply too painful to acknowledge -- even to ourselves -- that
we’ve been so credulous"
-Carl Sagan

Vastu Posted February 21

I’m in Providence for a weekend of classes. On the plane, I wrote Vastu in a Nutshell, 54 bullet points that should get you up and running. It won’t make you an expert, but it should give you enough information to get your home design far enough along that a Vastu professional, with a little massaging, could have it ready for blueprint. When I get back home, Barbara and I will do a little editing and it will be posted on the website.

The Year of Manifestation Posted February 13, 2008

Over the past couple of weeks we had our Surya Ram class in Asheville as well as the winter Surya Ram Meditation retreat in Black Mountain. We also poured the footer for the Learning Center at Mount Soma. Needless to say, it has been quite a busy time!

Class and retreat were great. Our group is doing extremely well. It seems like everyone I spoke with could not help but to comment on how extremely powerful the retreats have become. I agree.

With all the building commencing at Mount Soma, I think we justly declared 2008 to be ‘The Year of Manifestation.” Our discussions led us to think of 2008 as the year of courage and manifestation. It requires courage to move forward and change your life. We recalled the words of a World War II ace saying, “Courage is half commitment and half fear.” Your relationship with fear is of utmost importance. Do you allow it to freeze your life? Or are you able to move forward and manifest your dreams in spite of it?

Next week we will have class in Rhode Island. Then a week or so later it is on to San Diego class. So my blogs may be limited for a while longer.

We are tentatively planning to have an extended retreat at Mount Soma this summer. We want to arrange the retreat so you can attend it all, or just a portion. It will include the already published August dates, but will start with a huge inaugural celebration on July 17. That should be something quite historic for us. I hope you can all make it for a birthday celebration of our new home. Some are planning to come even earlier to help with setting up our new home! Details about this event will continue to evolve and we will keep everyone informed. For now, pencil July 17 into your schedule if at all possible.

Let us all look forward to a wonderful Year of Manifestation!

Traditional Vedic Culture Posted February 5, 2008

In a recent conversation with a student, I used the phrase ‘traditional Vedic culture.’ I was interrupted with, “I have no idea what ‘traditional Vedic culture means’.” That was one of those rare moments as a teacher when I was hit with a huge wakeup call. I have spoken so much about cultural integrity and innate human decency that I thought the notion of traditional Vedic culture would be self-evident.

A Vedic culture is one that is in harmony with nature, in harmony with natural law. The traditions of such a culture uphold humanity and society and help to keep it in harmony with nature. It includes values of morality, integrity, keeping your word, dignity, respect, decency, and so on. Cultural values, even when purely Vedic, are dynamic and fluid. Times change and cultures change, just as trees branches blow in the wind even when firmly rooted in the earth. Similarly, traditional Vedic culture is not defined by a set of rules. It is accessed through a pure soul which births standards anew as time passes on.

Humanity has been, as if, cast adrift for millennia. People have weakened their connection to the root of life. Left handed approaches have crept into meditation as well as all walks of life. Spiritual and moral understandings passed from generation to generation slowly distorted over the centuries. This is seen, not only in the US, but all over the world. For example, it is recognized by many in India that there is a large gap between Hindu and Vedic understanding. To explain exactly how things will change is not so simple to do. It is subtle, just as the difference between a good dancer and a poor dancer making all the same moves is subtle yet pronounced. Yet in the case of cultural integrity, seeing the distinction is even more elusive. It is like a raft cast adrift so long, that it has lost clear sight of the shore.

As humanity evolves, values will be fed, just like the root of a tree feeds the entire tree. Our values will be less and less influenced by the arbitrary superficiality of what is socially vogue and will come from a deeper place within everyone. Human integrity will strengthen. Values of morality, respect, etc. will become more and more in harmony with nature. The tree of life will flourish and blossom.

It may be easy to read this and dismiss the essential message by thinking, “I know what human decency is. I am a person of integrity. I have a great value system.” Yet humility is the gateway to wisdom. To evolve past where you currently are, you must be willing to hold your notions less tightly. When you hold not at all, you float in the cosmic waters of life and gain the universe as your domain. That is not a philosophy of letting go, it is a physiological reality of living in harmony with your essence which is the essence of the universe.