[FairfieldLife] Secret UFO films released

[claudiouk]

see http://uk.yahoo.com/

[FairfieldLife] Re: The Spirit Level - could change politics

[claudiouk]

yes this is about correlational clusters but other studies coming out also 
pointing to the social "curse" of inequality, like recent one from the World 
Health Organization:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/mar/11/mental-health-inequality
which found that even the better off in societies with more inequality have 
more mental health problems than their counterparts in societies with lower 
inequality, so not a question about poverty, bad education etc per se although 
obviously these are ALSO contributing factors... 
Who has the "agenda" here though? 
Right-wingers threatened by such findings?

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, grate.swan  wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  wrote:
> >
> > they find is that, in states and countries where there is a big gap between 
> > the incomes of rich and poor, mental illness, drug and alcohol abuse, 
> > obesity and teenage pregnancy are more common, the homicide rate is higher, 
> > life expectancy is shorter, and children's educational performance and 
> > literacy scores are worse. 
> 
> The gap in income distribution has grown over the last 20-30 years and is 
> troubling. However, By this description, what they found are the seeds of 
> many many hypotheses, 99% of which they ignore.  And they appear from your 
> de3scripton to have croowend their favorite hypothesis as fact. 
> 
> As solid as thier hypothesis are:
> 
> A country with x lead leads to large gap in income distribution (LGID). 
> 
> X could be mental illness, obesity, alcohol abuse, etc.
> 
> And what about third factors? maybe both LGID and any of the x's, say mental 
> illness, might both stem, from low levels of education. Or perhaps education 
> that is too specialized -- not breaded and well rounded enough.  
> 
> What about unknown factors. Maybe there are factors y and z that we have not 
> connected to the ills above, but indeed are the root of the problem. 
>  
> > The Scandinavian countries and Japan consistently come at the positive end 
> > of this spectrum. They have the smallest differences between higher and 
> > lower incomes, and the best record of psycho-social health. 
> 
> And this somehow proves that the first leads to the other?
> 
> 
> > The countries with the widest gulf between rich and poor, and the highest 
> > incidence of most health and social problems, are Britain, America and 
> > Portugal. 
> > 
> > 
> > The authors' method is objective and scientific, 
> 
> If it is, you have not presented any part of that. What is presented is 
> someone starting with an agenda and filling in observations that appear to 
> make their point.
> 
> I am not arguing for or against LGID. I am arguing against agenda driven 
> science. That's Bushian.
>

[FairfieldLife] The Spirit Level - could change politics

[claudiouk]

This is a book with a big idea, big enough to change political thinking, and 
bigger than its authors at first intended. The problem they originally set out 
to solve was why health within a population gets progressively worse further 
down the social scale; they estimate that together they have clocked up more 
than 50 person-years gathering information from research teams across the 
globe. Their eureka moment came when they thought of putting the medical data 
alongside figures showing the extent of economic inequality within each 
country. They say modestly that since dependable statistics both on health and 
on income distribution are internationally available, it was only a matter of 
time before someone put the two together. All the same, they are the first to 
have done so. 

Their book charts the level of health and social problems — as many as they 
could find reliable figures for — against the level of income inequality in 20 
of the world's richest nations, and in each of the 50 United States. They 
allocate a brief chapter to each problem, supplying graphs that display the 
evidence starkly and unarguably. What they find is that, in states and 
countries where there is a big gap between the incomes of rich and poor, mental 
illness, drug and alcohol abuse, obesity and teenage pregnancy are more common, 
the homicide rate is higher, life expectancy is shorter, and children's 
educational performance and literacy scores are worse. The Scandinavian 
countries and Japan consistently come at the positive end of this spectrum. 
They have the smallest differences between higher and lower incomes, and the 
best record of psycho-social health. The countries with the widest gulf between 
rich and poor, and the highest incidence of most health and social problems, 
are Britain, America and Portugal. 

Richard Wilkinson, a professor of medical epidemiology at Nottingham 
University, and Kate Pickett, a lecturer in epidemiology at York University, 
emphasise that it is not only the poor who suffer from the effects of 
inequality, but the majority of the population. For example, rates of mental 
illness are five times higher across the whole population in the most unequal 
than in the least unequal societies in their survey. One explanation, they 
suggest, is that inequality increases stress right across society, not just 
among the least advantaged. Much research has been done on the stress hormone 
cortisol, which can be measured in saliva or blood, and it emerges that chronic 
stress affects the neural system and in turn the immune system. When stressed, 
we are more prone to depression and anxiety, and more likely to develop a host 
of bodily ills including heart disease, obesity, drug addiction, liability to 
infection and rapid ageing. 

Societies where incomes are relatively equal have low levels of stress and high 
levels of trust, so that people feel secure and see others as co-operative. In 
unequal societies, by contrast, the rich suffer from fear of the poor, while 
those lower down the social order experience status anxiety, looking upon those 
who are more successful with bitterness and upon themselves with shame. In the 
1980s and 1990s, when inequality was rapidly rising in Britain and America, the 
rich bought homesecurity systems, and started to drive 4x4s with names such as 
Defender and Crossfire, reflecting a need to intimidate attackers. Meanwhile 
the poor grew obese on comfort foods and took more legal and illegal drugs. In 
2005, doctors in England alone wrote 29m prescriptions for antidepressants, 
costing the NHS £400m. 

Status anxiety and how we respond to it are basic, it seems, to our animal 
natures. In an experiment with macaque monkeys, the animals were housed in 
groups, and the social hierarchies that developed among them were observed. 
Then the monkeys were taught to administer cocaine to themselves by pressing a 
lever. The dominant monkeys in each group were relatively abstemious, but the 
subordinate monkeys took a lot of cocaine to medicate themselves against the 
pain of low social status. In a similar experiment, high-status monkeys from 
different groups were housed together, so that some of them became low status. 
The downwardly mobile monkeys accumulated abdominal fat and developed a rapid 
build-up of atherosclerosis in their arteries, just like humans. 

The different social problems that stem from income inequality often, Wilkinson 
and Pickett show, form circuits or spirals. Babies born to teenage mothers are 
at greater risk, as they grow up, of educational failure, juvenile crime, and 
becoming teenage parents themselves. In societies with greater income 
inequality, more people are sent to prison, and less is spent on education and 
welfare. In Britain the prison population has doubled since 1990; in America it 
has quadrupled since the late 1970s. American states with a wide gap between 
rich and poor are likelier to retain the death penalty, and to ha

[FairfieldLife] Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better

[claudiouk]

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/non-fiction/article5859108.ece

time for the US and the world to become more socialist...

[FairfieldLife] vedic democracy - a contradiction?

[claudiouk]

One aspect of MMY's teachings that seems hopelessly "unenlightened" 
to me was his take on democracy, which he saw as socially devisive 
and irresponsible. For instance he talked disparangely about the 
Labour Party in the UK, believing that mere "labourers", totally 
uneducated, were running the country.

Yet some of his key political ideas seem oddly "democratic", eg:

(1) Government = reflection of collective consciousness of the people
(2) Ideal Society = self-governing individuals, attuned to Natural Law

I saw a video today where MMY again attacked democracy and praised 
the Vedic division of society into four groups on the basis of birth -
albeit in terms of Jyotish rather than socio-economic class. The 
whole thing just grates with me - also the gender divisions 
increasingly apparent in the Movement.

Just wondering what FFL participants make of all this (sorry if it's 
been discussed before..)! Is it possible to argue the case for a 
VEDIC Democracy?

[FairfieldLife] Man refuses to drive 'No God' bus

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hampshire/7832647.stm

maybe the slogan for a FFL bus should be:

"There's probably no enlightenment so  don't worry and enjoy your life"

certainly FFL and the TMO don't inspire much confidence 
in "enlightenment" etc

[FairfieldLife] flying is in the air...

[claudiouk]

'Anti-gravity' yoga taking off
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7820726.stm

Flying cars take to the skies
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7826330.stm
and http://uk.cars.yahoo.com/12012009/36/flying-car-takes-skies-0.html

meanwhile everyone else is crashing down fast, except TMO thinks 
everything is just perfect..

[FairfieldLife] anyone know julie pratt?

[claudiouk]

Pratt is her maiden name. Australian from Brisbane I think, came to 
London in late 60s, was initiated there (and got me into it); shared a 
flat with Veronica near Holland Park; worked in Seelisberg kitchen one 
summer in early 70s with then boyfriend. Back in Australia did the 
siddhis. Last I heard had opened a health food shop in the 80s. Would 
like to re-establish contact. So if you know about Julie & her 
whereabouts I'd love to hear. Many thanks - Claudio

[FairfieldLife] yogic flyer seen over english channel

[claudiouk]

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/?
rn=1095451&ch=&cl=9912874&src=ukyvideo

...fusionman

[FairfieldLife] Is America's red-blue divide based on voters' physiology?

[claudiouk]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-09/ru-paa091608.php

HOUSTON -- (Sept. 16, 2008) -- Is America's red-blue divide based on 
voters' physiology? A new paper in the journal Science, 
titled "Political Attitudes Are Predicted by Physiological Traits," 
explores the link.

Rice University's John Alford, associate professor of political 
science, co-authored the paper in the Sept. 19 issue of Science. 

Alford and his colleagues studied a group of 46 adult participants 
with strong political beliefs. Those individuals with "measurably 
lower physical sensitivities to sudden noises and threatening visual 
images were more likely to support foreign aid, liberal immigration 
policies, pacifism and gun control, whereas individuals displaying 
measurably higher physiological reactions to those same stimuli were 
more likely to favor defense spending, capital punishment, patriotism 
and the Iraq War," the authors wrote.

Participants were chosen randomly over the phone in Lincoln, Neb. 
Those expressing strong political views -- regardless of their 
content -- were asked to fill out a questionnaire on their political 
beliefs, personality traits and demographic characteristics. 

In a later session, they were attached to physiological measuring 
equipment and shown three threatening images (a very large spider on 
the face of a frightened person, a dazed individual with a bloody 
face and an open wound with maggots in it) interspersed among a 
sequence of 33 images. Similarly, participants also viewed three 
nonthreatening images (a bunny, a bowl of fruit and a happy child) 
placed within a series of other images. A second test used auditory 
stimuli to measure involuntary responses to a startling noise.

The researchers noted a correlation between those who reacted 
strongly to the stimuli and those who expressed support for "socially 
protective policies," which tend to be held by people "particularly 
concerned with protecting the interests of the participants' group, 
defined as the United States in mid-2007, from threats." These 
positions include support for military spending, warrantless 
searches, the death penalty, the Patriot Act, obedience, patriotism, 
the Iraq War, school prayer and Biblical truth, and opposition to 
pacifism, immigration, gun control, foreign aid, compromise, 
premarital sex, gay marriage, abortion rights and pornography.

The paper concluded, "Political attitudes vary with physiological 
traits linked to divergent manners of experiencing and processing 
environmental threats." This may help to explain "both the lack of 
malleability in the beliefs of individuals with strong political 
convictions and the associated ubiquity of political conflict," the 
authors said.


###
Alford's co-authors were Douglas R. Oxley, Kevin B. Smith, Jennifer 
L. Miller, John R. Hibbing and Mario Scalora, of the University of 
Nebraska; Matthew V. Hibbing, of the University of Illinois, Urbana-
Champaign; and Peter K. Hatemi, of the Virginia Institute for 
Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics.

Alford is available to members of the news media for comments on the 
paper. To speak with Alford, contact Franz Brotzen at 
[EMAIL PROTECTED] or 713-348-6775.

[FairfieldLife] Re: Vedic Perspective Concerning Natural Disasters

[claudiouk]

No one's mentioned the fact that weather storms are coming from the 
SOUTH Come to think of it, in India the floods are coming from 
the NORTH! Maybe if your town faces East you're OK?

Have missed FFL over the last "holiday" month (without internet 
access) - but heard the news about cows prefering north-south 
orientations. But maybe not in Louisiana..

And generally global news have been very depressing in August - 
Indian floods, conflict in Georgia, tensions rising between
Russia & the West etc etc.. no sign that invincibility in USA and 
India is having any positive effect. Maybe there is an INVERSE 
correlation? How have the TMO been explaining developments lately?


--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, TurquoiseB <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "John"  wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend"  
wrote:
> > >
> > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "John"  wrote:
> > > >
> > > > To All:
> > > > 
> > > > The Shrimad Bhagavatam states that natural disasters are due 
to
> > > > a demon being born in the area.  In modern parlance, it would
> > > > mean that the residents in the area may be doing something 
wrong
> > > > in term of karma that is causing the disaster to occur.  So,
> > > > what have the residents of New Orleans done to deserve 
another 
> > > > hurricane to come along?
> > > 
> > > It looks as though the main effect of Gustav will
> > > be felt well west of New Orleans; and in any case,
> > > it's weakening as it nears the coast.
> > > 
> > > The thing is, the vulnerability of people living
> > > along the Gulf Coast to devastation from hurricanes
> > > is largely due to bad decisions *not made by them*.
> > > The folks most likely to be hurt are not those
> > > responsible for the birth of the "demon."
> > 
> > I was in Houma, LA many years ago during the summer and 
> > when the weather was calm.  
> 
> Dude, is it possible that YOU are the reason that 
> Houman is being wasted by a hurricane right now?
> 
> I mean, you went there, it was calm. Now, it's
> not. If that's not an omen, what is?
> 
> :-)
> 
> Just freakin' on ya, but do you see my point?
> That is *exactly* how a True Believer in his or
> her preferred prediction method or "Vedic" inter-
> pretation of "omens" would think.
>

[FairfieldLife] Girish Verma back in the fold

[claudiouk]

Just watching Verma talking on Maharishi Channel, back in MERU I 
imagine, and seemingly all is back to normal again. Maybe was a false 
alarm... He is being very productive in India - good luck to him.

[FairfieldLife] Re: Girish Verma's site

[claudiouk]

Noticed two recent changes on the site - a flashing notice emphasizing 
this is for Indians only (!) AND "Maharishi World Peace Movement is 
part of Maharishi's global movement and the Global Country of World 
Peace". So perhaps there's been some quick and successful diplomacy..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> http://peace-movement.net/Administrative.html
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Girish Verma's site

[claudiouk]

Initiations for 18 to 65 year-olds costs Rs. 900 (about £10)- don't 
know whether that's a change and whether £10 worth is "expensive" for 
Indians.. http://peace-movement.net/participation.html

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> http://peace-movement.net/Administrative.html
>

[FairfieldLife] Girish Verma's site

[claudiouk]

http://peace-movement.net/Administrative.html

[FairfieldLife] Re: Girish Verma leadership challenge?

[claudiouk]

I watched Bevan THIS evening on the Maharishi Channel. He mentioned 
that everyone, including the Raja of India, had been taken BY 
SURPRISE by Verma's new Indian organization. There followed some 
contact and clarification with Verma which led to an announcement, on 
the Maharishi Channel, of the TMO's support for Verma - but at the 
same time, Bevan went out of his way to emphasize how MMY had 
DEFINITELY made King Nader the leader of the Movement. As an example 
he described how on January 12 2006 he had Nader sit in "his" seat in 
the Brahmanistan at MERU and had a new platform built for himself to 
the side. I imagine that this broadcast will be repeated.

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> Could you please give specific answers, claudiouk, to the following 
> questions:
> 
> You said: "Just watching Bevan say leadership taken by surprise..."
> 
> Where did you see this, please?
> 
> Do you have a link?
> 
> How do you know Girish didn't consult Holland...citation, please.
> 
> Which recent broadcasts did the TMO emphasize that Nader Raam is 
the 
> chosen successor?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > Clarification - as I understand it Verma, who basically dealt 
with 
> > the Indian side of the Movement, seems to have launched a new 
> Indian 
> > initiative (to teach 1% of Indians and introduce other MMY 
> projects, 
> > without consulting the Global Country of World Peace leaders 
> > (including the Indian Raja). They, in their turn, spent some time 
> on 
> > recent webcasts highlighting the fact that MMY had made Maharaja 
> > Rader Ram the absolute leader of his Movement plus suggested 
> contact 
> > was made to clarify this new Verma initiative and announced they 
> were 
> > giving it their blessing after all. However there is a suggestion 
> > here that Verma sees himself as the main player in India - he is 
> the 
> > one after all responsible for all the Indinan Maharishi schools 
and 
> > the Pandits programmes and the large groups in India in the 
> > Brahmanastan centre being constructed. So he has a lot of power 
> > locally and is Indian and I think is in fact a member of MMY's 
> family 
> > as well. The fact that he launched what amounts to a separate 
> > organization without any consultation  with the TMO leadership 
> > suggests he doesn't see himself as having to defer to them. They 
in 
> > turn seem to have given their "blessing" to his efforts 
officially, 
> > but privately must have experienced this development as a 
> leadership 
> > challenge. At least that's how I interpret these developments.
> > 
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk" 
 
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> > > wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Just watching Bevan say leadership taken by surprise by 
Verma's
> > > > announcement of new organization for India and attempts to 
> > clarify 
> > > it
> > > > all plus lots of statements underlining MMY's annointment of 
> > > Maharaja
> > > > Nader Ram as the LEADER of his Movement as if to make a 
special
> > > > point. A Brutus scenario unfolding?
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > Could someone please clarify for me?
> > > 
> > > claudiouk makes reference to Bevan say leadership taken by 
> > > surprise...when and where did this happen...was it a press 
> > > release...is there a video of Bevan saying this?
> > > 
> > > Please let me know...
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > > --
--
> -
> > > > 
> > > > India
> > > > Maharishi World Peace Movement aims to establish world peace
> > > > Jabalpur | Thursday, Jul 17 2008 IST
> > > > 
> > > > Maharishi World Peace Movement Chairman Brahmachari Girish 
Verma
> > > > today said his objective was to establish world peace and 
make 
> > every
> > > > citizen invincible through Vedic principles and experiments.
> > > > 
> > > > ''The need of the hour is to take the place Movement to every 
> > human
> > > > being and establish world peace for all time to come,'' he 
told
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Girish Verma leadership challenge?

[claudiouk]

Clarification - as I understand it Verma, who basically dealt with 
the Indian side of the Movement, seems to have launched a new Indian 
initiative (to teach 1% of Indians and introduce other MMY projects, 
without consulting the Global Country of World Peace leaders 
(including the Indian Raja). They, in their turn, spent some time on 
recent webcasts highlighting the fact that MMY had made Maharaja 
Rader Ram the absolute leader of his Movement plus suggested contact 
was made to clarify this new Verma initiative and announced they were 
giving it their blessing after all. However there is a suggestion 
here that Verma sees himself as the main player in India - he is the 
one after all responsible for all the Indinan Maharishi schools and 
the Pandits programmes and the large groups in India in the 
Brahmanastan centre being constructed. So he has a lot of power 
locally and is Indian and I think is in fact a member of MMY's family 
as well. The fact that he launched what amounts to a separate 
organization without any consultation  with the TMO leadership 
suggests he doesn't see himself as having to defer to them. They in 
turn seem to have given their "blessing" to his efforts officially, 
but privately must have experienced this development as a leadership 
challenge. At least that's how I interpret these developments.

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > Just watching Bevan say leadership taken by surprise by Verma's
> > announcement of new organization for India and attempts to 
clarify 
> it
> > all plus lots of statements underlining MMY's annointment of 
> Maharaja
> > Nader Ram as the LEADER of his Movement as if to make a special
> > point. A Brutus scenario unfolding?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Could someone please clarify for me?
> 
> claudiouk makes reference to Bevan say leadership taken by 
> surprise...when and where did this happen...was it a press 
> release...is there a video of Bevan saying this?
> 
> Please let me know...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> > -
> > 
> > India
> > Maharishi World Peace Movement aims to establish world peace
> > Jabalpur | Thursday, Jul 17 2008 IST
> > 
> > Maharishi World Peace Movement Chairman Brahmachari Girish Verma
> > today said his objective was to establish world peace and make 
every
> > citizen invincible through Vedic principles and experiments.
> > 
> > ''The need of the hour is to take the place Movement to every 
human
> > being and establish world peace for all time to come,'' he told
> > reporters on the eve of Guru Purnima, when the Movement would be
> > launched here.
> > 
> > Pointing out that Maharishi Mahesh Yogi launched the World Peace
> > Spiritual Re-awakening Movement five decades back and undertook
> > constant tours to the nooks and crannies of the globe for blowing 
> the
> > bugle of a spiritual revolution, Dr Verma added 'that' was the
> > inspiration for a resolve to launch the Peace Movement
> > internationally.
> > 
> > The Peace Movement would be launched here as this was Mahesh
> > Yogi's 'karmabhoomi' in the initial part of his life.
> > 
> > ''Guarding one's health as per the Maharishi Vedic Health Rituals,
> > construction and use of homes, schools, offices, villages and 
cities
> > as per Vaastu principles, Yoga every morning and evening, 
meditation
> > and consumption of only bio-food products are among ten principal
> > schemes of the Peace Movement,'' explained Dr Verma. The Maharishi
> > Maha Media News Service and Maharishi Maha Media Portal would be 
> also
> > inaugurated tomorrow.
> > 
> > ''Maharishi World Peace Movement committees will be formed at
> > different levels with the target of linking at least one per cent 
of
> > India's population with meditation besides imparting Yoga 
training 
> to
> > the maximum number of people,'' Dr Verma added
> >
>

[FairfieldLife] Girish Verma leadership challenge?

[claudiouk]

Just watching Bevan say leadership taken by surprise by Verma's
announcement of new organization for India and attempts to clarify it
all plus lots of statements underlining MMY's annointment of Maharaja
Nader Ram as the LEADER of his Movement as if to make a special
point. A Brutus scenario unfolding?
-

India
Maharishi World Peace Movement aims to establish world peace
Jabalpur | Thursday, Jul 17 2008 IST

Maharishi World Peace Movement Chairman Brahmachari Girish Verma
today said his objective was to establish world peace and make every
citizen invincible through Vedic principles and experiments.

''The need of the hour is to take the place Movement to every human
being and establish world peace for all time to come,'' he told
reporters on the eve of Guru Purnima, when the Movement would be
launched here.

Pointing out that Maharishi Mahesh Yogi launched the World Peace
Spiritual Re-awakening Movement five decades back and undertook
constant tours to the nooks and crannies of the globe for blowing the
bugle of a spiritual revolution, Dr Verma added 'that' was the
inspiration for a resolve to launch the Peace Movement
internationally.

The Peace Movement would be launched here as this was Mahesh
Yogi's 'karmabhoomi' in the initial part of his life.

''Guarding one's health as per the Maharishi Vedic Health Rituals,
construction and use of homes, schools, offices, villages and cities
as per Vaastu principles, Yoga every morning and evening, meditation
and consumption of only bio-food products are among ten principal
schemes of the Peace Movement,'' explained Dr Verma. The Maharishi
Maha Media News Service and Maharishi Maha Media Portal would be also
inaugurated tomorrow.

''Maharishi World Peace Movement committees will be formed at
different levels with the target of linking at least one per cent of
India's population with meditation besides imparting Yoga training to
the maximum number of people,'' Dr Verma added

[FairfieldLife] Chopra's Soul of Healing

[claudiouk]

Soul of Healing 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lnBiyeMNVg&feature=user

Soul of Healing 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_Wv6RURNAs&feature=related

Soul of Healing 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijgqWaZep7M&feature=related

Soul of Healing 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdvzYt3KnAs&feature=related

Soul of Healing 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tU5eBqnZJbo&feature=related

Soul of Healing 6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgikqZf7D3c&feature=related

Soul of Healing 7
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yha8gud9PlI&feature=related

Soul of Healing 8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeS4Jkw6Ba4

Soul of Healing 9
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNjYDEwedkM&feature=related

[FairfieldLife] could "reap as you sow" be computer tested?

[claudiouk]

Nature supposedly knows best how to organize and it administers the 
cosmos without problems. Except suffering exists everywhere you look.. 
Nature seems wholly mechanical and amoral in its operations. And yet 
karma is supposed to be a hidden moral force which overlaps individual 
lifetimes in its influence and eventually ensures that beings evolve to 
conquer ignorance and finally enjoy their underlying blissful nature 
etc.. MMY claims that the Laws of Nature aren't punitive - just that 
their violation causes suffering. Is karmic trial and error really the 
most efficient method for beings to conquer ignorance and suffering?

Computer models have been created to see how complex systems and 
imaginary organisms behave and evolve, using simple rules  as starting 
points, bit like fractal generation etc. I'm wondering if anyone 
anywhere has thought of creating such a computer "universe" to explore 
how the "reap what you sow" principle would work out. Some of the 
simple rules to use might include "pleasure-seeking, pain 
avoidance"; "competition, co-operation";"scarce resources, fluctuating 
life-threatening challenges" etc? Presumably the final conquering of 
ignorance, via a transcendental practice, would become an available 
resource after a certain accumulation of "merit"? Never played computer 
games but I guess there are games where a fighter has to accumulate 
resources in order to reach a goal..

What would be the point anyway? One is - just the application of 
computer modelling to a moral question related to Eastern philosophy - 
whether it's at all possible as an idea; Another point might be to 
check out whether, like fractal generation, there are any interesting 
surprises that unfold, whether "reap as you sow" actually works, at 
least for these computer creatures.

Is it a completely mad and useless idea?

[FairfieldLife] magic mushrooms revisited

[claudiouk]

Timothy Leary was on the right track - provide the right supportive 
conditions and the experiences are safe, meanigful and lasting...
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-07/jhmi-seo062608.php

Spiritual effects of hallucinogens persist, 
Johns Hopkins researchers report

Related report gives safety guidelines for hallucinogen research
In a follow-up to research showing that psilocybin, a substance 
contained in "sacred mushrooms," produces substantial spiritual 
effects, a Johns Hopkins team reports that those beneficial effects 
appear to last more than a year. 

Writing in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, the Johns Hopkins 
researchers note that most of the 36 volunteer subjects given 
psilocybin, under controlled conditions in a Hopkins study published 
in 2006, continued to say 14 months later that the experience 
increased their sense of well-being or life satisfaction. 

"Most of the volunteers looked back on their experience up to 14 
months later and rated it as the most, or one of the five most, 
personally meaningful and spiritually significant of their lives," 
says lead investigator Roland Griffiths, Ph.D., a professor in the 
Johns Hopkins departments of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and 
Neuroscience.

In a related paper, also published in the Journal of 
Psychopharmacology, researchers offer recommendations for conducting 
this type of research.

The guidelines caution against giving hallucinogens to people at risk 
for psychosis or certain other serious mental disorders. Detailed 
guidance is also provided for preparing participants and providing 
psychological support during and after the hallucinogen experience. 
These "best practices" contribute both to safety and to the 
standardization called for in human research.

"With appropriately screened and prepared individuals, under 
supportive conditions and with adequate supervision, hallucinogens 
can be given with a level of safety that compares favorably with many 
human research and medical procedures," says that paper's lead 
author, Mathew W. Johnson, Ph.D., a psychopharmacologist and 
instructor in the Johns Hopkins Department of Psychiatry and 
Behavioral Sciences.

The two reports follow a 2006 study published in another journal, 
Psychopharmacology, in which 60 percent of a group of 36 healthy, 
well-educated volunteers with active spiritual lives reported having 
a "full mystical experience" after taking psilocybin. {See 
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Press_releases/2006/07_11_06.html}

Psilocybin, a plant alkaloid, exerts its influence on some of the 
same brain receptors that respond to the neurotransmitter serotonin. 
Mushrooms containing psilocybin have been used in some cultures for 
hundreds of years or more for religious, divinatory and healing 
purposes.

Fourteen months later, Griffiths re-administered the questionnaires 
used in the first study -- along with a specially designed set of 
follow up questions -- to all 36 subjects. Results showed that about 
the same proportion of the volunteers ranked their experience in the 
study as the single most, or one of the five most, personally 
meaningful or spiritually significant events of their lives and 
regarded it as having increased their sense of well-being or life 
satisfaction.

"This is a truly remarkable finding," Griffiths says. "Rarely in 
psychological research do we see such persistently positive reports 
from a single event in the laboratory. This gives credence to the 
claims that the mystical-type experiences some people have during 
hallucinogen sessions may help patients suffering from cancer-related 
anxiety or depression and may serve as a potential treatment for drug 
dependence. We're eager to move ahead with that research." 

Griffiths also notes that, "while some of our subjects reported 
strong fear or anxiety for a portion of their day-long psilocybin 
sessions, none reported any lingering harmful effects, and we didn't 
observe any clinical evidence of harm." 

The research team cautions that if hallucinogens are used in less 
well supervised settings, the possible fear or anxiety responses 
could lead to harmful behaviors.


###

These studies were funded by grants from NIDA, the Council on 
Spiritual Practices, and the Heffter Research Institute.

Additional researchers who contributed to this work include Matthew 
W. Johnson, Ph.D. and Una D. McCann, M.D. of the Department of 
Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School 
of Medicine; psychologist William A. Richards of the Johns Hopkins 
Bayview Medical Center; and Robert Jesse of the Council on Spiritual 
Practices, San Francisco.

[FairfieldLife] genetic material from stars

[claudiouk]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-06/icl-sct061308.php

Scientists have confirmed for the first time that an important 
component of early genetic material which has been found in meteorite 
fragments is extraterrestrial in origin, in a paper published on June 
15, 2008

[FairfieldLife] Maharishi Effect hits Iowa with floods?

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7452363.stm

"State Governor Chet Culver said that with nine rivers at near record 
levelsHe has declared 55 out of Iowa's 99 counties state disaster 
areas" 

[FairfieldLife] Re: Promises and Ethics - Karmic implications

[claudiouk]

Maybe this is common knowledge but I recently came across a statement 
in a TMO website (I'd have to find it again..) that warned people not 
to teach TM outside the organization because doing so 
karmically "binds" the teacher to the student until the latter 
reaches enlightenment; whereas the promise of enlightenment 
and "responsibility" to fulfil this promise is shouldered by the TMO 
if the technique is taught on behalf of the organization. 

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "do.rflex" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, m2smart4u2000  
wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Rick Archer"  wrote:
> > >
> > >  
> > > 
> > > From: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com 
> > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > > On Behalf Of m2smart4u2000
> > > Sent: Thursday, June 05, 2008 2:48 PM
> > > To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com
> > > Subject: [FairfieldLife] Promises and Ethics
> > > 
> > > Does it matter whether or not you belive Marharishi did this 
thing 
> > or 
> > > that? Does some accusation on your part, invalidate your word? 
> > > Rick, you were on Maharishi's team for a long time. You sound a 
> > little 
> > > like MacLellan. A little late to complain about Maharishi's 
> > actions. 
> > > You were an adult at the time no? Why don't you delete those 
posts?
> > > Where is your level of responsibility? Where are your ethical 
> > standards?
> > > The only person you can control is yourself, so the 
responsibilty 
> > to do 
> > > the right things lies with you.
> > > 
> > > I admire what McLellan did. Better late than never. When I was 
in 
> > the TMO, I
> > > wasn't aware of a lot of the stuff that was going on. Had I 
been, I 
> > probably
> > > would have left sooner. Having said that, I still appreciate 
> > tremendously
> > > the good TM has done me and others. But nonetheless, I don't 
> > believe that
> > > the TMO should get away scot-free with some of the shit it has 
> > pulled. I
> > 
> > Amazing to me that people blame someone else when they lack moral 
> > character. "It must be the "movement's" fault that I didn't keep 
my 
> > promise. Somehow this justifies my lack of ethics." It's a broad 
> > excuse to justify anything and everything. Just look at what you 
> > wrote, "I don't believe that the TMO should get away scot-free", 
so 
> > therefore YOU are going to be the one chosen to deliver whatever 
you 
> > deem fair recompense for (again broad undescribable term)the TMO. 
> > Anything goes right? Maybe there could be some level of honor and 
> > still maintain a discussion without lowering yourself to breaking 
of 
> > legal contracts that you signed.
> 
> 
> It is my understanding that the following 'promise' which TM
> initiators were asked to sign, is not a legal document. The fact 
that
> no copy was issued to the initiator further makes it legally non-
binding.
> 
> As far as I know the TMO hasn't hesitated in the past to seek legal
> redress in legitimate cases, but I've never heard of any such cases
> with regard to claimed violations of this particular 'promise'. 
> 
> Further, it is my view that the TMO under Maharishi became a corrupt
> organization - and because of that, any 'promises' made to Maharishi
> and his organization in terms of that agreement were rendered to be
> meaningless.
> 
> 
> TO HIS HOLINESS MAHARISHI MAHESH YOGI
> 
> It is my privilege, Maharishi, to promise to teach the Principles 
and
> Practice of Transcendental Meditation only as a teacher-employee of
> [IMS, SIMS, SRM, or other TM movement front group]___ which
> accepts me as such; that I will always hold the teaching in trust 
for
> you, dear Maharishi, and [IMS, SIMS, etc.]__; that I will
> never use the teaching except as a teacher in [IMS, SIMS,
> etc.]___ or other organisations founded by you for the 
purpose
> of carrying on your work of spreading Transcendental Meditation for
> the good of Mankind; that as a teacher in [IMS, SIMS, etc.]
_ I
> shall receive such compensation as shall be agreed between myself 
and
> [IMS, SIMS, etc.]__ in writing and, except as agreed in
> writing I expect to receive no monetary compensation but am fully
> compensated by the love and joy that I receive from the work, by the
> alleviation of suffering that I may accomplish, and by the Wisdom 
that
> I obtain, expound, and cherish. 
> 
> In furtherance of the pledge I acknowledge that prior to receiving 
the
> training I had no prior knowledge of such system of Teaching; that
> there is no other available source where the knowledge of such
> teaching may be obtained; that such training is secret and unique. I
> am a link in the chain of organisations that you have founded; and
> that to retain the purity of the teaching and movement, you have 
laid
> down the wise rule that, should I ever cease to teach in [IMS, SIMS,
> etc.]__ or other organisations founded by you for the 
purpose
> of teaching Transcendental Meditation, I 

[FairfieldLife] is inequality a good thing?

[claudiouk]

A new perspective on this from two physicists & their computer model

http://www.newstatesman.com/200209020014
NS Essay - The science of inequality
Mark Buchanan,Published 02 September 2002

You always knew that the rich got richer through no merit of their 
own, didn't you? Now, with the aid of computers, scientists think 
they have proved it

Why is wealth so unevenly distributed among individuals? This is 
perhaps the most controversial and inflammatory of all topics in 
economics. As J K Galbraith noted, the attempt to explain and 
rationalise inequality "has commanded some of the greatest, or in any 
case some of the most ingenious, talent in the economics profession".

We all know that a few people are very rich and that most of us have 
far less. But inequality in the distribution of wealth has a 
surprisingly universal character. You might expect the distribution 
to vary widely from country to country, depending not only on 
politics and culture but also, for example, on whether a nation 
relies on agriculture or heavy industry. Towards the end of the 19th 
century, however, an Italian engineer-turned-economist named Vilfredo 
Pareto discovered a pattern in the distribution of wealth that 
appears to be every bit as universal as the laws of thermodynamics or 
chemistry.

Suppose that, in Britain, China, the United States or any other 
country, you count the number of people worth, say, $10,000. Suppose 
you then count the number worth $20,000, $30,000 and so on, and 
finally plot the results on a graph. You would find, as Pareto did, 
many individuals at the poorer end of the scale and progressively 
fewer at the wealthy end. This is hardly surprising. But Pareto 
discovered that the numbers dwindle in a very special way: towards 
the wealthy end, each time you double the amount of wealth, the 
number of people falls by a constant factor.

Big deal? It is. Mathematically, a "Pareto distribution" implies that 
a small fraction of the wealthiest people always possess a lion's 
share of a country's riches. It is quite easy to imagine a country 
where the bulk of people in the middle of the distribution would own 
most of the wealth. But that is never so. In the United States, 
something approaching 80 per cent of the wealth is held by 20 per 
cent of the people, and the numbers are similar in Chile, Bolivia, 
Japan, South Africa and the nations of western Europe. It may be 10 
per cent owning 90 per cent, 5 per cent owning 85 per cent, or 3 per 
cent owning 96 per cent, but in all cases, wealth seems to migrate 
naturally into the hands of the few. Indeed, although good data are 
sadly lacking, studies in the mid-1970s, based on interviews with 
Soviet emigrants, suggested that wealth inequality in the Soviet 
Union was then comparable to that in the UK.

What causes this striking regularity across nations? The question is 
all the more urgent now that inequality seems to be growing. In the 
US, according to the economist Paul Krugman: "The standard of living 
of the poorest 10 per cent of American families is significantly 
lower today than it was a generation ago. Families in the middle are, 
at best, slightly better off. Only the wealthiest 20 per cent of 
Americans have achieved income growth anything like the rates nearly 
everyone experienced between the 1940s and early 1970s. Meanwhile the 
income of families high in the distribution has risen dramatically, 
with something like a doubling of real incomes of the top 1 per cent."

Something similar is taking place on the global stage. Globalisation 
is frequently touted - especially by those with vested economic 
interests, such as multinational corporations and investment banks - 
as a process that will inevitably help the poor of the world. To be 
sure, greater technological and economic global integration ought to 
have the potential to do so. Yet as Joseph Stiglitz, the former chief 
economist of the World Bank, notes in his recent book Globalization 
and Its Discontents: "Despite repeated promises of poverty reduction 
made over the last decade of the 20th century, the actual number of 
people living in poverty has actually increased by almost 100 
million. This occurred at the same time that total world income 
actually increased by an average of 2.5 per cent annually."

What is the origin of these distinct but seemingly related trends: 
the greater inequality within nations (which applies to the UK, and 
many other countries, especially in eastern Europe, as well as to the 
US) and the greater inequality between them? We can blame tax cuts, 
the liberalisation of capital markets, new communication 
technologies, the policies of the International Monetary Fund and so 
on. But might there be a general science that could illuminate the 
basic forces that lead to wealth inequity?


Conventional economic theory has never before managed to explain the 
origin of Pareto's universal pattern. But two physicists, Jean-
Philippe Bouchaud and Marc Me

[FairfieldLife] selfishness - altruism 's unexpected ally

[claudiouk]

http://urel.binghamton.edu/PressReleases/2008/May-Jun%2008/5-2%
20Selfish.html

Binghamton, N.Y. -- Just as religions dwell upon the eternal battle 
between good and evil, angels and devils, evolutionary theorists 
dwell upon the eternal battle between altruistic and selfish 
behaviors in the Darwinian struggle for existence. In a new study 
published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 
(PNAS), evolutionary theorists at Binghamton University suggest that 
selfishness might not be such a villain after all.

Omar Tonsi Eldakar and David Sloan Wilson propose a novel solution to 
this problem in their article, which is available in the online Early 
Edition of PNAS  (http://www.pnas.org/papbyrecent.shtml).  They point 
out that selfish individuals have their own incentive to get rid of 
other selfish individuals within their own group.

Eldakar and Wilson consider a behavioral strategy called "Selfish 
Punisher," which exploits altruists and punishes other selfish 
individuals, including other selfish punishers. This strategy might 
seem hypocritical in moral terms but it is highly successful in 
Darwinian terms, according to their theoretical model published in 
PNAS and a computer simulation model published in the Journal of 
Theoretical Biology. Selfish punishers can invade the population when 
rare but then limit each other, preventing the altruists from being 
completely eliminated.

Individuals who behave altruistically are vulnerable to exploitation 
by more selfish individuals within their own group, but groups of 
altruists can robustly out-compete more selfish groups. Altruism can 
therefore evolve by natural selection as long as its collective 
advantage outweighs its more local disadvantage.  All evolutionary 
theories of altruism reflect this basic conflict between levels of 
selection.

It might seem that the local advantage of selfishness can be 
eliminated by punishment, but punishment is itself a form of 
altruism. For instance, if you pay to put a criminal in jail, all law-
abiding citizens benefit but you paid the cost. If someone else pays 
you to put the criminal in jail, this action costs those individuals 
something that other law-abiding citizens didn't have to pay. 
Economists call this the higher-order public goods problem. Rewards 
and punishments that enforce good behavior are themselves forms of 
good behavior that are vulnerable to subversion from within.

Eldakar and Wilson first began thinking about selfish punishment on 
the basis of a study on humans, which indeed showed that the 
individuals most likely to cheat were also most likely to punish 
other cheaters. Similar examples appear to exist in non-human 
species, including worker bees that prevent other workers from laying 
eggs while laying a few of their own.

Is selfish punishment really so hypocritical in moral terms? 
According to Eldakar and Wilson, it can be looked at another way - as 
a division of labor. Altruists `pay' the selfish punishers by 
allowing themselves to be exploited, while the selfish punishers 
return the favor with their second-order altruism. "That way, no one 
needs to pay the double cost required of an altruist who also 
punishes others," says Eldakar. "If so, then the best groups might be 
those that include a few devils along with the angels."

[FairfieldLife] Are humans hardwired for fairness?

[claudiouk]

http://www.psychologicalscience.org/media/releases/2008/tabibnia.cfm

Is fairness simply a ruse, something we adopt only when we secretly 
see an advantage in it for ourselves? Â Many psychologists have in 
recent years moved away from this purely utilitarian view, dismissing 
it as too simplistic. Recent advances in both cognitive science and 
neuroscience now allow psychologists to approach this question in 
some different ways, and they are getting some intriguing results.

UCLA psychologist Golnaz Tabibnia, and colleagues Ajay Satpute and 
Matthew Lieberman, used a psychological test called the "ultimatum 
game" to explore fairness and self-interest in the laboratory. In 
this particular version of the test, Person A has a pot of money, say 
$23, which they can divide in any way they want with Person B. All 
Person B can do is look at the offer and accept or reject it; there 
is no negotiation. If Person B rejects the offer, neither of them 
gets any money.

Whatever Person A offers to Person B is an unearned windfall, even if 
it's a miserly $5 out of $23, so a strict utilitarian would take the 
money and run. But that's not exactly what happens in the laboratory. 
The UCLA scientists ran the experiment so sometimes $5 was stingy and 
other times fair, say $5 out of a total stake of $10. The idea was to 
make sure the subjects were responding to the fairness of the offer, 
not to the amount of the windfall. When they did this, and asked the 
subjects to rate themselves on scales of happiness and contempt, they 
had some interesting findings: Even when they stood to gain exactly 
the same dollar amount of free money, the subjects were much happier 
with the fair offers and much more disdainful of deals that were 
lopsided and self-centered. 

The psychologists wanted to know if there is something inherently 
rewarding about being treated decently. So, they scanned several 
parts of the participants' brains while they were in the act of 
weighing both fair and miserly offers. Consistent with previous 
results, the researchers found that a region previously associated 
with negative emotions such as moral disgust (the anterior insula) 
was activated during unfair treatment.  However, interestingly, they 
also found that regions associated with reward (including the ventral 
striatum) were activated during fair treatment even though there was 
no additional money to be gained.

As reported in the April issue of the journal Psychological Science, 
a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, the brain 
finds self-serving behavior emotionally unpleasant, but a different 
bundle of neurons also finds genuine fairness uplifting. What's more, 
these emotional firings occur in brain structures that are fast and 
automatic, so it appears that the emotional brain is overruling the 
more deliberate, rational mind. Faced with a conflict, the brain's 
default position is to demand a fair deal.

Furthermore, when the scientists scanned the brains of those who 
were "swallowing their pride" for the sake of cash, the brain showed 
a distinctive pattern of neuronal activity. It appears that the 
unconscious mind can temporarily damp down the brain's contempt 
response, in effect allowing the rational, utilitarian brain to rule, 
at least momentarily. 

Author Contact: Golnaz Tabibnia [EMAIL PROTECTED] 

[FairfieldLife] Re: selfishness and exploitation

[claudiouk]

Yes the husband was standing there not saying anything but the 
situation, with BBC cameras invading your privacy, would create an 
artificial and unrepresentative impression. Personally I liked the 
wife who did smile(!) and talked about her practice of TM in a family 
of six quite humbly and realistically, and the two kids too were OK, 
particularly the younger daughter. So I think Vaj you are being 
rather too harsh on them. Not sure they were meant to be the "ideal" 
TM family either, just maybe the more accommodating at the time (for 
the interviews).. I certainly wouldn't be my ordinary self on camera..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> 
> On Apr 4, 2008, at 7:24 PM, sparaig wrote:
> 
> > By taking a financial risk and moving to Fairfield, IA in order 
to  
> > practice group yogic flying
> > for hte sake of world peace, meditators are obviously 
acting "for  
> > the greater good."
> 
> 
> "Acting" is probably a good word for it. Of course they could also  
> just be fools lured by false promises and milked like cash cows.
> 
> I found the "ideal TM family" from the BBC documentary very 
telling,  
> as I screened it for several psychiatric professionals over the  
> weekend. All were creeped out on the coldness of the husband and 
the  
> superficiality of the wife. It was as if they devoid of emotion, 
like  
> emotional and compassion anemics. No range, not a smile and  
> blankness. One person said she would have run out of the house if 
she  
> walked into a place that.
> 
> They'd both been meditating 35 years.
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: selfishness and exploitation

[claudiouk]

I agree with you Richard about the teaching of this Yagya stuff in 
schools. I'm wondering though whether meditators in the West, at 
least, are more skeptical about Vedic astrology & Yagyas than in 
India (where it's just part of the culture) especially from word of 
mouth assessments of its nebulous advantages. So far there is little 
evidence that neither the astrology nor the yagyas have particularly 
advantaged MMY and his TMO. That surely is a telling, warning sign...

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "hugheshugo" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > Happened to watch snippets of two programmes tonight - rather 
> > disturbing. First MMY tape, quite an early one, on M channel, 
> around 
> > 18:40 GMT. Some quotes will give the flavour: " funnily enough, 
> this is 
> > the story of love; no-one loves anybody; all currents of love 
> directed 
> > by self, for self, to self; feeding of self is what is dear, 
> expansion 
> > of self is only what is dear" etc. At end talked about self 
> expanding 
> > to Self, which seems OK but this is rather a limited view. 
> Throughout 
> > nature from cellular, organ, organism and social levels there is 
> > evidence of co-operation, altruism & selflessness (more Self than 
> self 
> > perhaps but nevertheless..). A psychpath, according to MMY's 
> criteria, 
> > would be more enlightened than a Ghandi? Surely not.
> > 
> > The other was a TV report on Voodism in Benin - how poor families 
> are 
> > having to sell their children to pay for expensive Voodoo rituals 
> to 
> > rectify bad "aspects" etc. Kind of exploitation that could easily 
> > result, in future, with the likes of Yagyas & Jyotish etc. 
> 
> What do you mean in future? The TMO makes a fortune peddling this 
> superstitious garbage to the True Believers. Yagyas cost a fortune!
> 
> And not content with mugging gullible seekers they teach jyotish at 
> Maharishi schools, how immoral is that! Ostensibly I don't care 
about 
> consenting adults giving money to the TMO and getting nothing in 
> return, if people want to kid themselves that yagas do anything at 
> all it's up to them but I've known plenty who have splashed out 
> thousands and thousands and obviously not got anything in return, I 
> wouldn't mind if it was even half as good as the placebo effect! 
> Sure, they kid themselves that it works "on some level" usually one 
> they "are not aware of".
> 
> I think bringing up children to believe this stuff should be 
illegal. 
> If you can't prove that something has any basis in fact what right 
do 
> you have to teach children it's an established fact, just because 
> it's "vedic"?
> 
> That's the trouble with religion it teaches you to be happy not 
> understanding the world. Keep it out of the classroom and the next 
> generation will grow up rejecting voodoo hokum.
> 
> 
> 
>  
> > So was reminded of my general unease about TMO's tendencies 
towards 
> > fundamentalism where common sense and compassion and fairness 
have 
> > become such secondary concerns. Doesn't augur well for future TM 
> Voodoo 
> > generations...
> >
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: selfishness and exploitation

[claudiouk]

I agree with you Richard about the teaching of this Yagya stuff in 
schools. I'm wondering though whether meditators in the West, at 
least, are more skeptical about Vedic astrology & Yagyas than in 
India (where it's just part of the culture) especially from word of 
mouth assessments of its nebulous advantages. So far there is little 
evidence that neither the astrology nor the yagyas have particularly 
advantaged MMY and his TMO. That surely is a telling, warning sign...

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "hugheshugo" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > Happened to watch snippets of two programmes tonight - rather 
> > disturbing. First MMY tape, quite an early one, on M channel, 
> around 
> > 18:40 GMT. Some quotes will give the flavour: " funnily enough, 
> this is 
> > the story of love; no-one loves anybody; all currents of love 
> directed 
> > by self, for self, to self; feeding of self is what is dear, 
> expansion 
> > of self is only what is dear" etc. At end talked about self 
> expanding 
> > to Self, which seems OK but this is rather a limited view. 
> Throughout 
> > nature from cellular, organ, organism and social levels there is 
> > evidence of co-operation, altruism & selflessness (more Self than 
> self 
> > perhaps but nevertheless..). A psychpath, according to MMY's 
> criteria, 
> > would be more enlightened than a Ghandi? Surely not.
> > 
> > The other was a TV report on Voodism in Benin - how poor families 
> are 
> > having to sell their children to pay for expensive Voodoo rituals 
> to 
> > rectify bad "aspects" etc. Kind of exploitation that could easily 
> > result, in future, with the likes of Yagyas & Jyotish etc. 
> 
> What do you mean in future? The TMO makes a fortune peddling this 
> superstitious garbage to the True Believers. Yagyas cost a fortune!
> 
> And not content with mugging gullible seekers they teach jyotish at 
> Maharishi schools, how immoral is that! Ostensibly I don't care 
about 
> consenting adults giving money to the TMO and getting nothing in 
> return, if people want to kid themselves that yagas do anything at 
> all it's up to them but I've known plenty who have splashed out 
> thousands and thousands and obviously not got anything in return, I 
> wouldn't mind if it was even half as good as the placebo effect! 
> Sure, they kid themselves that it works "on some level" usually one 
> they "are not aware of".
> 
> I think bringing up children to believe this stuff should be 
illegal. 
> If you can't prove that something has any basis in fact what right 
do 
> you have to teach children it's an established fact, just because 
> it's "vedic"?
> 
> That's the trouble with religion it teaches you to be happy not 
> understanding the world. Keep it out of the classroom and the next 
> generation will grow up rejecting voodoo hokum.
> 
> 
> 
>  
> > So was reminded of my general unease about TMO's tendencies 
towards 
> > fundamentalism where common sense and compassion and fairness 
have 
> > become such secondary concerns. Doesn't augur well for future TM 
> Voodoo 
> > generations...
> >
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: selfishness and exploitation

[claudiouk]

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, nablusoss1008 wrote:
God helps he who helps himself. Helping onself is the ultimate 
compassion.

I am somewhat surprised at the responses I've got. If a child 
unfairly grabs someone else's biscuit - all other things being equal 
(satiation/starvation levels, points on the Maslow scale etc) - one 
would try to make it aware of the wrongness of the action, the 
distress it's causing the other child etc. One wouldn't applaud the 
action as a paragon of compassion. There are psychpaths walking 
around, often very successful because of their ruthlessness, that are 
just grown-up extreme versions of such a child. 

Yes behaviour is object oriented, and one is responding to internal 
moral criteria, compliance to which might be "rewarding" per se 
therefore at root "selfish", but this way of thinking, whilst perhaps 
accurate technically, is ultimately unproductive in generating MORE 
altruistic behaviour in society (which presumably we agree is a good 
thing?). Also I do think that in nature there is as much altruism to 
be found as selfishness. At a cellular level one finds co-operation, 
suicide for the good of the whole etc. Parents in most species often 
sacrifice themselves for their offspring (and yes I know about the 
selfish gene but that's not the whole story). 

Even from an SCI perspective one would expect more altruistic 
behaviours arising from the Maharishi Effect alone, as a function of 
increased coherence and entanglement. True, realization of the Self 
is the ultimate spirituality, but that's not the same as the "self" 
just helping itself regardless - that would be selfishness, not 
altruism or wholeness. So perhaps we need to distinguish two 
dimensions - vertically, the more "Self" the more good; horizontally, 
the more "self", at the expense of others, the badder. 

Can't see why this seems so controversial in FF! 

> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > The very existence of words like selfishness and altruism points 
to 
> > an important distinction. A psychopath would be at one extreme, a 
> > Ghandi at another. Saying that love is all about feeding the self 
> is 
> > not something you'd want to teach children in school about - the 
> > whole point of socialization and morality is to help people 
respond 
> > to needs that are not entirely egocentric. So MMY's exposition, 
> taken 
> > at face value, seemed rather shallow and unhelpful, although I 
can 
> > see that he was really trying to focus eventually on the self 
> > expanding to the Self.
> > 
> > And yes we have plenty of historical examples of religious 
> > exploitation, Christian and otherwise - the more important 
> therefore 
> > to ensure such things don't happen again especially within an 
> > organization one cares about..
> > 
> > Group meditators showing compassion? Not unless there was such an 
> > intention, although maybe a knowledge that this activity might 
> > simultaniously serve both individual and social interests makes 
it 
> > both important and worthwhile.
> > 
> > Perhaps I  camea cross as too "critical"; was just sharing a 
> response 
> > to what I saw & heard, which also happened to resonnate with 
> concerns 
> > about TMO practices - they do sometimes seem less compassionate 
and 
> > altruistic than ideally I'd like them to be. I also had in mind 
my 
> > previous post about bullying and compassion..
> 
> God helps he who helps himself. Helping onself is the ultimate 
> compassion.
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: selfishness and exploitation

[claudiouk]

The very existence of words like selfishness and altruism points to 
an important distinction. A psychopath would be at one extreme, a 
Ghandi at another. Saying that love is all about feeding the self is 
not something you'd want to teach children in school about - the 
whole point of socialization and morality is to help people respond 
to needs that are not entirely egocentric. So MMY's exposition, taken 
at face value, seemed rather shallow and unhelpful, although I can 
see that he was really trying to focus eventually on the self 
expanding to the Self.

And yes we have plenty of historical examples of religious 
exploitation, Christian and otherwise - the more important therefore 
to ensure such things don't happen again especially within an 
organization one cares about..

Group meditators showing compassion? Not unless there was such an 
intention, although maybe a knowledge that this activity might 
simultaniously serve both individual and social interests makes it 
both important and worthwhile.

Perhaps I  camea cross as too "critical"; was just sharing a response 
to what I saw & heard, which also happened to resonnate with concerns 
about TMO practices - they do sometimes seem less compassionate and 
altruistic than ideally I'd like them to be. I also had in mind my 
previous post about bullying and compassion..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "sparaig" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
wrote:
> >
> > Happened to watch snippets of two programmes tonight - rather 
> > disturbing. First MMY tape, quite an early one, on M channel, 
around 
> > 18:40 GMT. Some quotes will give the flavour: " funnily enough, 
this is 
> > the story of love; no-one loves anybody; all currents of love 
directed 
> > by self, for self, to self; feeding of self is what is dear, 
expansion 
> > of self is only what is dear" etc.
> 
> LOL. This is the commonly understood psychological (and religious) 
view of how humans 
> work, so I'm not sure why you're upset. 
> 
>  At end talked about self expanding 
> > to Self, which seems OK but this is rather a limited view. 
Throughout 
> > nature from cellular, organ, organism and social levels there is 
> > evidence of co-operation, altruism & selflessness (more Self than 
self 
> > perhaps but nevertheless..).
> 
> Not at all. All organisms work to survive. That this survival might 
include "altruism" is only 
> an accident of evolution, not some "higher" purpose.
> 
>  A psychpath, according to MMY's criteria, 
> > would be more enlightened than a Ghandi? Surely not.
> > 
> 
> Surely you're not this dense. Psychopaths are psychopaths because 
their brains don't 
> worth right. They don't recognize others as being worthy of 
consideration because their 
> brains don't work that way, period.
> 
> > The other was a TV report on Voodism in Benin - how poor families 
are 
> > having to sell their children to pay for expensive Voodoo rituals 
to 
> > rectify bad "aspects" etc. Kind of exploitation that could easily 
> > result, in future, with the likes of Yagyas & Jyotish etc. 
> 
> Yes, a danger in any society. Or do you think that its never been 
done, even in Christian 
> societies?
> 
> > 
> > So was reminded of my general unease about TMO's tendencies 
towards 
> > fundamentalism where common sense and compassion and fairness 
have 
> > become such secondary concerns. Doesn't augur well for future TM 
Voodoo 
> > generations...
> >
> 
> Soyou think that people sacrificing careers to go do group 
meditation for the sake of the 
> world aren't showing compassion...
> 
> 
> Lawson
>

[FairfieldLife] selfishness and exploitation

[claudiouk]

Happened to watch snippets of two programmes tonight - rather 
disturbing. First MMY tape, quite an early one, on M channel, around 
18:40 GMT. Some quotes will give the flavour: " funnily enough, this is 
the story of love; no-one loves anybody; all currents of love directed 
by self, for self, to self; feeding of self is what is dear, expansion 
of self is only what is dear" etc. At end talked about self expanding 
to Self, which seems OK but this is rather a limited view. Throughout 
nature from cellular, organ, organism and social levels there is 
evidence of co-operation, altruism & selflessness (more Self than self 
perhaps but nevertheless..). A psychpath, according to MMY's criteria, 
would be more enlightened than a Ghandi? Surely not.

The other was a TV report on Voodism in Benin - how poor families are 
having to sell their children to pay for expensive Voodoo rituals to 
rectify bad "aspects" etc. Kind of exploitation that could easily 
result, in future, with the likes of Yagyas & Jyotish etc. 

So was reminded of my general unease about TMO's tendencies towards 
fundamentalism where common sense and compassion and fairness have 
become such secondary concerns. Doesn't augur well for future TM Voodoo 
generations...

[FairfieldLife] Re: Study shows compassion meditation changes the brain

[claudiouk]

I think you are both raising very important points. I've often 
thought how violent movies, TV and computer games desensitise people 
to violence, legitimise it and make out it's "cool". You see bullying 
in the classroom on the screen and for sure even more copy-cat 
bullying then takes place in real classrooms. The notion that "art" 
just has to "reflect" reality, however dark that may be, undermines 
its potential in evoking finer values that people can then emulate. 
Great films, like the Killing Fields, can be about the most extreme 
brutality but it's the "finer values" surviving even in such tragic 
situations that separates them from "cool" trash like James Bond or 
worse..

The electric shock example you gave reminds me of the Milgram 
Experiments when experimenters in white coats legitamized the 
administration of huge electric shocks in a supposedly educational 
experiment on learning, the victims being actors feigning distress 
and agony. Most people complied with instructions. The point of the 
experiment was to show how ordinary people could have behaved like 
the Nazis did. Seems like the programme you mentioned is designed, as 
you say, to exploit these tendencies for "entertainment". A disgrace!

Yes I think that more efforts should be made to educate the young in 
compassion and altruism but that will ring hollow if adults all 
around them think and behave in opposite ways. However it's worth 
making a start and compassion meditation seems to have real effects.


--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, TurquoiseB <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "ispiritkin"  
wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj  wrote:
> > >
> > > Study shows compassion meditation changes the brain
> > > 
> > > "Thinking about other people's suffering and not just your own 
helps  
> > > to put everything in perspective," he says, adding that 
learning  
> > > compassion for oneself is a critical first step in compassion  
> > > meditation.
> > > 
> > > The researchers are interested in teaching compassion 
meditation  
> > > to youngsters, particularly as they approach adolescence, as a 
> > > way to prevent bullying, aggression and violence.
> >
> > Thanks for posting this, Vaj.  There's a little boy, about 9 
> > years old, right across the street from me at my new place who 
> > is heading toward serious trouble.  My children told me yesterday 
> > they saw him viciously stomping on a tiny dog (who got up and ran 
> > away as soon as he could). That's just a graphic example of the 
> > kind of hardness and cruelty this boy has demonstrated, and we've 
> > only encountered him a handful of times.  The note about learning 
> > compassion for oneself as the first step gives me some kind of 
> > starting point if I connect with him in the future.
> 
> I think that instruction in compassion from an
> early age on could help the world's problems
> immensely. And strangely, I think that TV may
> be making some inroads into doing just that,
> whereas society as yet is not.
> 
> There have been a few TV programs recently that,
> in my opinion, have had their whole *premise*
> built upon compassion. Dexter, for example. The
> premise of the series is unthinkable; you're
> supposed to tune in every week and watch the
> first-person musings of a serial killer. But as
> you do, you learn that he is a serial killer whom
> you could strangely have some *compassion* for. 
> And then you learn that most of the "normal" folks
> around him in the series are *just* as fucked up 
> as he is, but they don't "act out" in the same 
> way he does, and you develop compassion for *them*, 
> too.
> 
> Deadwood and John From Cincinnati are similar,
> in that they are full of characters who are dif-
> ficult to like *unless* you have some compassion
> in you. Yeah, it's just TV, but IMO it's a good
> first step, one that is refreshingly different
> from the "find somebody to blame" mentality that
> is so otherwise prevalent in America. I think
> that Pushing Daisies has a consistent theme of
> compassion as part of it.
> 
> Compassion is about being able to identify with
> and understand another's samskaras instead of 
> distancing oneself from them and looking down upon 
> them as deviant or "bad." Does the process of 
> doing this -- finding a more compassionate POV --
> cause some changes to the brain? Very possibly. 
> If so, I cannot help but believe that they would 
> be positive changes in terms of society.
> 
> The first step in helping others to overcome bad
> experiences and bad conditioning and find a more
> productive place in society is recognizing that
> their problems are simply our problems, magnified.
> 
> If we are reactive to what we see in them, we are
> *react-ing* to the subconscious realization that
> we have those same qualities, but "stuff" them.
> Acceptance of those qualities -- or at the very
> least compassionate effort to move those qualities
> in a more producti

[FairfieldLife] Re: Fairfield on the BBC!

[claudiouk]

How about:
Transcendental Meditation Effective In Reducing High Blood Pressure, 
Study Shows

ScienceDaily (Dec. 5, 2007) — People with high blood pressure may 
find relief from transcendental meditation, according to a definitive 
new meta-analysis of 107 published studies on stress reduction 
programs and high blood pressure, which will be published in the 
December issue of Current Hypertension Reports. 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071204121953.htm


--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Angela Mailander 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Can you cite studies that these folks have missed that
> do show methodologies and results they would accept
> for any meditation practice?
> 
> 
> --- authfriend <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> 
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Vaj"
> >  wrote:
> > >
> > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend"
> >  wrote:
> > > >
> > > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj
> >  wrote:
> > > > 
> > > > > Another nice review of meditation research can
> > be found in
> > > > > The Cambridge Handbook of Consciousness, a
> > textbook for 
> > > > > neuroscientists from Cambridge University.
> > It's section on 
> > > > > meditation and neurosceince objectively
> > reviews some of the 
> > > > > exaggerated claims by TM cult researchers,
> > esp. the specious
> > > > > claim of "coherence" during TM. It turns out
> > what they've
> > > > > been touting for years now is statistically
> > insignificant
> > > > > and often seen in normal waking state!
> > > > 
> > > > As Vaj knows but doesn't tell you, there are
> > several
> > > > *very* serious problems with the treatment of TM
> > research
> > > > in this study, including that the authors didn't
> > bother
> > > > to look at the most recent *20 years* of
> > research on TM.
> > > 
> > > And of course, this is incorrect. There was TM
> > research as
> > > recent as the year of publication.
> > 
> > We've already covered this, as you know. Your
> > assertion
> > is disingenuous.
> > 
> > Again: See posts #168345, #168474, and #168493.
> > 
> > > And of course the study in question only lists the
> > studies
> > > they specifically refer to! This is part of what
> > is known
> > > as the APA style, common in almost all research
> > for 
> > > publication.
> > 
> > More disingenuity. The *problem* is that they did
> > not
> > refer to those later studies *because they did not
> > look at them*.
> > 
> > > Really since as early as the 1980's it was known
> > and shown--and
> > > replicated sometimes as many as 3 times--that TM
> > claims were and
> > > still are fallacious.
> > 
> > It was not "known and shown" in the 1980s that TM
> > claims
> > post-1980s are fallacious, obviously.
> > 
> > Again, the Buddhist researchers *did not look at any
> > of the TM research* post-1986 in the areas they
> > were discussing.
> > 
> > > Really after that was proven and replicated
> > repeatedly, there 
> > > wasn't much reason to emphasize the newer bogus
> > research
> > 
> > Obviously, you can't tell whether research is
> > bogus until you've examined it. The Buddhist
> > researchers did not examine post-1986 TM research.
> > 
> > > but there is absolutely no indication whatsoever
> > that these
> > > leading researchers are missing anything at all
> > worth
> > > mentioning.
> > 
> > What an extraordinarily empty assertion.
> > 
> > Again, see my posts #168345, #168474, and #168493.
> > 
> > > Fortunately the Alberta study does show for 
> > > us the continuing poor quality as it does show
> > that TM 
> > > research still is pretty much still just bad
> > marketing
> > > research.
> > 
> > Unfortunately, Vaj fails to mention that the Alberta
> > study found that *all* research on the 11 different
> > practices studied (including Vipassana, Mindfulness,
> > Zen, and TM) was of what it deemed to be "poor
> > quality."
> > 
> > The point of that study was to point out that
> > meditation research *as a whole* needs to be refined
> > and improved. Here's the conclusion:
> > 
> > "The field of research on meditation practices and
> > their
> > therapeutic applications is beset with uncertainty.
> > The
> > therapeutic effects of meditation practices cannot
> > be
> > established based on the current literature. Further
> > research needs to be directed toward the ways in
> > which
> > meditation may be defined, with specific attention
> > paid
> > to the kinds of definitions that are created. A
> > clear
> > conceptual definition of meditation is required and
> > operational definitions should be developed. The
> > lack of
> > high-quality evidence highlights the need for
> > greater care
> > in choosing and describing the interventions,
> > controls,
> > populations, and outcomes under study so that
> > research
> > results may be compared and the effects of
> > meditation
> > practices estimated with greater reliability and 
> > validity. Firm conclusions on the effects of
> > meditation
> > practices in healthca

[FairfieldLife] Re: Fairfield on the BBC!

[claudiouk]

Yes I think the cortex thikening is interesting. I must say I had 
assumed that the evidence of health benefits of TM was well 
established. But I came across this 2007 independent "review" which 
doesn't appear to rate any of the meditation research.. (same one 
cited on the programme?):
http://www.ahrq.gov/downloads/pub/evidence/pdf/meditation/medit.pdf
Surely this is just too negative?

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "gruntlespam" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> On a side note, what's interesting about this BBC synopsis on the 
show,
> and the BBC show it self - is how the BBC now feel the need to dumb-
down
> everything and add "drama" all the time.
> 
> They make it seem like research is "just starting", when it's been 
going on
> for years. And the point about "interest in meditation [could] turn 
out to be
> a passing fad" is just moronically funny - yeah, like a "fad" 
lasting 5,000
> years or more.
> 
> But as I mention above, the research about part of the cortex 
actually thickening
> by around .1mm to .2mm is simply astonishing. A demostratable 
physical change
> of substance - not just lines on a graph or MRI scans.
> 
> 
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
wrote:
> >
> > Good synopsis and points. Actually the TM part seemed rather 
> > insubstantial and the general impression came across that all the 
> > scientific claims for TM (for cardiovascular effects, for 
instance)
> > did not amount to much when properly "reviewed". The following 
piece 
> > from BBC Health News is all about the programme and there is not 
even 
> > a mention of TM  
> > 
> > Scientists probe meditation secrets 
> > By Naomi Law  
> > 
> > Scientists are beginning to uncover evidence that meditation has 
a 
> > tangible effect on the brain. 
> > 
> > Sceptics argue that it is not a practical way to try to deal with 
the 
> > stresses of modern life. 
> > 
> > But the long years when adherents were unable to point to hard 
> > science to support their belief in the technique may finally be 
> > coming to an end. 
> > 
> > When Carol Cattley's husband died it triggered a relapse of the 
> > depression which had not plagued her since she was a teenager. 
> > 
> > "I instantly felt as if I wanted to die," she said. "I couldn't 
think 
> > of what else to do." 
> > 
> > Carol sought medical help and managed to control her depression 
with 
> > a combination of medication and a psychological treatment called 
> > Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. 
> > 
> > However, she believes that a new, increasingly popular course 
called 
> > Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) - which primarily 
consists 
> > of meditation - brought about her full recovery. 
> > 
> > It is currently available in every county across the UK, and can 
be 
> > prescribed on the NHS. 
> > 
> > One of the pioneers of MBCT is Professor Mark Williams, from the 
> > Department of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford. 
> > 
> > He helps to lead group courses which take place over a period of 
> > eight weeks. He describes the approach as 80% meditation, 20% 
> > cognitive therapy. 
> > 
> > New perspective 
> > 
> > He said: "It teaches a way of looking at problems, observing them 
> > clearly but not necessarily trying to fix them or solve them. 
> > 
> > "It suggests to people that they begin to see all their thoughts 
as 
> > just thoughts, whether they are positive, negative or neutral." 
> > 
> > MBCT is recommended for people who are not currently depressed, 
but 
> > who have had three or more bouts of depression in their lives. 
> > 
> > Trials suggest that the course reduces the likelihood of another 
> > attack of depression by over 50%. 
> > 
> > Professor Williams believes that more research is still needed. 
> > 
> > He said: "It is becoming enormously popular quite quickly and in 
many 
> > ways we now need to collect the evidence to check that it really 
is 
> > being effective." 
> > 
> > However, in the meantime, meditation is being taken seriously as 
a 
> > means of tackling difficult and very modern challenges. 
> > 
> > Scientists are beginning to investigate how else meditation could 
be 
> > used, particularly for those at risk of suicide and people 
struggling 
> > with the effects of substance abuse. 
> > 
> > What is meditation? 
> > 
> > Meditation is diff

[FairfieldLife] Re: Fairfield on the BBC!

[claudiouk]

Good synopsis and points. Actually the TM part seemed rather 
insubstantial and the general impression came across that all the 
scientific claims for TM (for cardiovascular effects, for instance)
did not amount to much when properly "reviewed". The following piece 
from BBC Health News is all about the programme and there is not even 
a mention of TM  

Scientists probe meditation secrets 
By Naomi Law  

Scientists are beginning to uncover evidence that meditation has a 
tangible effect on the brain. 

Sceptics argue that it is not a practical way to try to deal with the 
stresses of modern life. 

But the long years when adherents were unable to point to hard 
science to support their belief in the technique may finally be 
coming to an end. 

When Carol Cattley's husband died it triggered a relapse of the 
depression which had not plagued her since she was a teenager. 

"I instantly felt as if I wanted to die," she said. "I couldn't think 
of what else to do." 

Carol sought medical help and managed to control her depression with 
a combination of medication and a psychological treatment called 
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. 

However, she believes that a new, increasingly popular course called 
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) - which primarily consists 
of meditation - brought about her full recovery. 

It is currently available in every county across the UK, and can be 
prescribed on the NHS. 

One of the pioneers of MBCT is Professor Mark Williams, from the 
Department of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford. 

He helps to lead group courses which take place over a period of 
eight weeks. He describes the approach as 80% meditation, 20% 
cognitive therapy. 

New perspective 

He said: "It teaches a way of looking at problems, observing them 
clearly but not necessarily trying to fix them or solve them. 

"It suggests to people that they begin to see all their thoughts as 
just thoughts, whether they are positive, negative or neutral." 

MBCT is recommended for people who are not currently depressed, but 
who have had three or more bouts of depression in their lives. 

Trials suggest that the course reduces the likelihood of another 
attack of depression by over 50%. 

Professor Williams believes that more research is still needed. 

He said: "It is becoming enormously popular quite quickly and in many 
ways we now need to collect the evidence to check that it really is 
being effective." 

However, in the meantime, meditation is being taken seriously as a 
means of tackling difficult and very modern challenges. 

Scientists are beginning to investigate how else meditation could be 
used, particularly for those at risk of suicide and people struggling 
with the effects of substance abuse. 

What is meditation? 

Meditation is difficult to define because it has so many different 
forms. 


 By meditating, you can become happier, you can concentrate more 
effectively and you can change your brain in ways that support that 
Dr Richard Davidson  

Broadly, it can be described as a mental practice in which you focus 
your attention on a particular subject or object. 

It has historically been associated with religion, but it can also be 
secular, and exactly what you focus your attention on is largely a 
matter of personal choice. 

It may be a mantra (repeated word or phrase), breathing patterns, or 
simply an awareness of being alive. 

Some of the more common forms of meditative practices include 
Buddhist Meditation, Mindfulness Meditation, Transcendental 
Meditation, and Zen Meditation. 

The claims made for meditation range from increasing immunity, 
improving asthma and increasing fertility through to reducing the 
effects of aging. 

Limited research 

Research into the health claims made for meditation has limitations 
and few conclusions can be reached, partly because meditation is 
rarely isolated - it is often practised alongside other lifestyle 
changes such as diet, or exercise, or as part of group therapy. 

So should we dismiss it as quackery? Studies from the field of 
neuroscience suggest not. 

It is a new area of research, but indications are intriguing and 
suggest that meditation may have a measurable impact on the brain. 

In Boston, Massachusetts, Dr Sara Lazar has used a technique called 
MRI scanning to analyse the brains of people who have been meditating 
for several years. 

She compared the brains of these experienced practitioners with 
people who had never meditated and found that there were differences 
in the thickness of certain areas of the brain's cortex, including 
areas involved in the processing of emotion. 

She is continuing research, but she believes that meditation had 
caused the brain to change physical shape. 

Buddhist monks 

In Madison, Wisconsin, Dr Richard Davidson has been carrying out 
studies on Buddhist monks for several years. 

His personal belief is that "by meditating, you can become happier, 
you can concentrate more effectivel

[FairfieldLife] TMO future - just speculation

[claudiouk]

Right now TMO like babes in the wood, having lost the "parents". Most 
likely the instinct for survival and security will draw the key 
leaders together, especially as MMY left them in a clear hierarchy of 
his choosing. And for a while they'll carry on doing and saying 
things as before, as if MMY was still there in the background. But at 
some point this situation will become untenable because whereas 
previously any problems encountered because of policy decisions were 
clearly MMY's "responsibility", from now on any "failure" will hit 
the TMO harder and cause confusion and differences to emerge. 

I think three problems in the near future will be encountered, though 
the order of these is less important, I imagine.

(a) Once they establish even a few of the 48 towers of invincibility 
and associated schools & universities they'll find few takers, 
especially at the current pricing levels. Pressure to change 
initiation fees will mount as income reserves dwindle. The very Hindu 
image of the TMO via the Maharishi channel will pose another problem 
and headache.

(b) Disillusionment will mount in South American countries where 
invincibility thresholds have been reached yet national disasters 
keep happening - eg current floods in Bolivia and equador. The word 
invincibility itself will be felt like a heavy burden.

(c) As differences in opinions emerge in the TMO one major divide 
might emerge between the Western and Indian branches of the TMO - the 
latter has been more independent of the current leaders and will have 
the power of tradition behind it and also control of the pandits and 
the majority of new practitioners through its educational 
establishments. Unless Raja Ram and the Rajas establish themselves in 
India to oversee developments there and gain some acceptance from the 
natives they will seem increasingly remote and colonial and 
irrelevant to the Indian TMO.

I think Bevan's position as the main mouthpiece of MMY will become 
less tolerated by the others now that MMY is gone and not being  a 
Raja himself. Whereas Hagelin is likely to gain more influence. Raja 
Ram will likely succumb to temptation and subtly exert more and more 
authority.

And the more the TMO's united front dissolves the more we'll hear of 
certain individuals' special relationships with MMY, secret knowledge 
from or telepathic communication  with the Master. Miracles too, 
eventually..

But maybe nothing of the kind will happen and we'll just see 
the "invincible" TMO succeed beyond our wildest dreams...

[FairfieldLife] Re: Deepak Chopra: The Maharishi Years - The Untold Story: Recollections of a Fo

[claudiouk]

Towards the end MMY was clearly irritated by Chopra - I remember 
seeing a video where Chopra was speaking to the camera and MMY was in 
the background and clearly noticeable were subtle side to side 
movements of his jaw or face. Basically unlike Hagelin who talks 
about Physics in a way MMY couldn't but always deferred to MMY when 
it came to any pronouncement that related to Vedic/Hindu scriptures, 
Chopra was a better public speaker than MMY and HE ALSO talked with 
relative "authority" about Hindu cuilture (as far as Westerners were 
concerned). To cap it all not only was he a medical doctor trained in 
the West but now seemed to take on the mantle of Ayurvedic expert. So 
MMY was definitely getting resentful about that.

However I remember before the rift an Initiator predicting it simply 
because his latter books and tapes amounted to a "Chopra" version of 
Ayurveda, health, spirituality - that he was also introducing more 
superficial thinking/feeling practices - mood making - and that was 
bound to cause a rift. I was surprised to hear these views as at the 
time Chopra was by far the most impressive exponenet of TM & MMY's 
philosophy. But then it happened about 6 months later.. And I was 
told that MMY said to Chopra much the same thing he'd said to Ravi 
Shankar - if you need to teach go ahead but we must go our separate 
ways.. Interesting that both Chopra & Ravi Shankar featured in 
commentaries about MMY after his death.

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, TurquoiseB <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, TurquoiseB  wrote:
> >
> > Geez, Chopra was well after my time in the TMO
> > and, if I remember correctly, after yours as well.
> > Therefore I have no feelings about him one way or
> > another, and I've always wondered about the
> > strong anti-Chopra feelings I've seen expressed
> > on groups like this one. Some of the things said
> > by the very people who are now tempering their
> > previous demonizations of Chopra because he's
> > recently praised Maharishi have been in the past
> > nothing short of slander.
> > 
> > What I finally decided was at the cause of all the
> > anger and obvious attempts to demonize Chopra and 
> > convince others that something was wrong with him
> > or bad or devious about him is that HE WALKED
> > AWAY FROM MAHARISHI.
> > 
> > For some people, especially those who never became
> > TM teachers or became involved with the TMO them-
> > selves, there is this "ideal" they have in their 
> > heads of what a "disciple" should be. He should 
> > basically just have no life and DO WHAT HE 
> > IS TOLD by his "master."
> > 
> > THEY have never done this, of course. Hell, they
> > never even went to the trouble to learn how to teach 
> > TM. But they consistently look down on the people 
> > who were at one time put in front of the public 
> > by Maharishi and who then blew him off and walked 
> > away and chose their own lives over his.
> > 
> > Why? I think they try to demonize those who made 
> > their own decisions and chose to live their own 
> > lives because they're trying to suggest that THEY
> > would have done a "better" job of being a "true"
> > disciple, of "hitting one out of the park" as a 
> > true devotee. Which is hilarious, because they
> > were never even in the ball game.
> > 
> > Bottom line for me with regard to Chopra is that
> > he seems balanced (if a bit publicity-seeking to
> > sell his books), whereas the people trying so
> > desperately to rag on him are not. I don't know
> > him at all, but the things he says sound sane 
> > and the things his detractors say do not.
> 
> Still speculating because this phenomenon
> is so strange to me, and I'm still trying
> to figure it out. WHY are so many people
> so ANGRY at Chopra, enough to systematically
> try to demonize him?
> 
> I think it has a lot to do with the scenario
> he described in this latest Huffington Post
> article. Maharishi clearly was jealous of
> Chopra because people were paying attention
> to him. 
> 
> I get the feeling that what's *really* going
> on with the detractors is that they feel the
> same jealousy. Chopra's "sin" is that he didn't
> play the game and pretend that everything was
> always about Maharishi.
> 
> He didn't fawningly suggest that "everything 
> I am I owe to my master" the way these people
> want him to. He took credit for his own accom-
> plishments. He reserved the right to live his
> own lifestyle and make his own decisions. And
> for some reason that's BAD in their eyes.
> 
> It's like for them the way that a devotee
> "should" act is to constantly give all the 
> credit for everything they've ever done in 
> their lives to the "master." In other words,
> play the toady game the way Bevan always did.
> 
> Chopra never did that, so that makes him some-
> one who "detracts" from the all-importantness
> of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. And we can't have
> that. Better suggest there is something wrong
> with him, or that he's 

[FairfieldLife] alleged invincibility undermined in Bolivia

[claudiouk]

"On 29 July 2007, Bolivia achieved the number of Yogic Flyers required
to crown the country with Invincibility. Almost 500 students, staff
and teachers practicing Maharishi's Vedic Technologies of
Consciousness twice a day at three schools in Bolivia are proud to
create national invincibility." (from Global Good News)

unfortunately:

Bolivia declares flood emergency

Bolivian President Evo Morales has declared a national disaster as his
government tries to cope with the aftermath of widespread flooding.

Floods caused by rain have left more than 60 dead in the eastern lowlands.

Mr Morales on Monday toured the worst-hit province, Beni, where
thousands of people have had to leave their homes amid rising floodwaters.

It is the second year in a row that Bolivia has seen such floods,
which officials blame on climate change.

The floods have left more than 40,000 people homeless, officials say.

Rivers have broken their banks and floodwaters are threatening to
breach a raised road surrounding the provincial capital of Trinidad,
home to some 300,000 people.

The government has been distributing food and tents in Trinidad, while
rescue teams backed by helicopters from Brazil have been stepping up
operations, a presidential spokesman said.

Mr Morales' declaration authorises the government to release funds to
help tackle the crisis.

The president had been under pressure to act from opposition governors
in the eastern states, who had accused him of reacting too slowly, the
Associated Press news agency reported.

Since November, several parts of Bolivia have suffered floods.

The United Nations says the flooding is expected to get worse as more
rain is forecast.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/americas/7241528.stm

Published: 2008/02/13 00:48:49 GMT

© BBC MMVIII

[FairfieldLife] Re: A short list of my grievances with the movement

[claudiouk]

Personally I don't think the PRACTICE of TM, whatever the mantra
sounds are related to in Sanskrit scripture, is any problem for a
devotee of other religions. The mantra is meant to be a "vehicle" for
transcending, the ultimate goal of which is a merging with the ONE
ABSOLUTE DIVINITY. All commandments prohibiting worship of "other"
gods relate to the SPLIT of consciousness into DUALITY per se, just
because it ends up "deifying" diversity instead of Unity. Whether
Vedic or Hindu, the philosophy of the Gita is the UNIVERSAL quest of
humanity to find union with the ONE DIVINITY. So where is the conflict
for any Christian, Jew or Muslim meditator in this? MMY especially
emphasized the "Unified Field" in both science and religion and saw
the Hindu "gods" as expressions of particular spiritual "qualities"
often embodied in physiology. 

This reminds me of a story of the Dalai Lama who wanted to give a
blessing to an audience when some Catholics raised their concern.
Initially he felt obliged to give them the choice to opt out of this
but then he explained.. a blessing is just a blessing..

However I too have had my own issues with MMY - mainly to do with
unethical and unfair pricing policies and wasteful, unproductive
campaigns - notably 50 unsuccessful years in establishing large
permanent groups of yogic flyers in few but strategic places - India,
Middle East, Europe & USA.

As for the "lies" like the ones about yogic "flying" they seemed
childish, one knew noone would believe them, their only justification
was perhaps their eventual realisation (like the promises of
enlightenment).

His approach was to focus on the 1 in a 100 who responded and
benefited from his teachings. I happen to be among the 100 who didn't
benefit - keep getting headaches (SIDE EFFECTS from a VEDIC practice -
an impossibility!). Nothing but rather superficial checking procedures
in place for these or more serious difficulties...

But now that we are getting some countries reaching invincibility,
such as in South America, we must understand how collectively this
won't automatically and dramatically transform those societies. So for
instance in Holland yes on 50 important social indexes there has been
positive cjhanges in the last two years of invincibility, but hardly
anyone in the society links any of this to TM or MMY...

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, boyboy_8 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Started TM in 1976 (gads, was it that long ago?).  Eventually made my 
> way to Siddhis.  In another post I will talk about the good 
> experiences I had with TM/Siddhis.  I was not a teacher but was 
> married to a Governor who was also my initiator.  
> 
> When I started TM those years ago I was not overly concerned about 
> the religious implications of TM and this accurately reflected my own 
> disinterest in my own religion.  That was to change as I got older 
> and raised a family.  For years I just accepted the standard party 
> line as told by MMY which was that TM and all of its branches 
> was "Vedic" and not Hindu and that it was cosmically clean and of no 
> concern to any other religious group.  In time I came to question 
> just what this here Vedic really meant.  As well in time I came to 
> read more about the Mantras and in what context that came from.  
> 
> Years later I took a more in-depth interest in my own religion and 
> began to reflect much closer on what Vedic meant.  After a while I 
> realized that it was just a pale ruse to call TM stuff "Vedic" when 
> in fact it was just dressed up Hindu practices, familiar to all 
> Hindu's around the world.  In coming to know my own religion better I 
> chanced upon a sentence in the Torah which just sealed the whole 
> affair for me.  
> 
> I quote: "the name of other gods ye do not mention; 
> it is not heard on thy mouth..." Source: Exodus 23:13.  I have read 
> various commentaries about what this means.  While the OT is open to 
> interpretation I think that the words can be taken here at face 
> value.  Since these Children of Israel were spiritually open vessels 
> and sensitive to all kinds of influences, the wording is not 
> ambiguous.  You do NOT put the names of other (pagan) gods in your 
> mouthlest they sway you, influence you.  It is surmised by some 
> that these people were also taught meditational techniques by Moses, 
> some standing/walking techniques, others maybe sitting/contemplative, 
> prayer-like techniques.  So, back to mantras: they are the names of 
> Hindu deities, end of story.  That was the end of TM for me, although 
> there were other factors that were involved.  
> 
> The movements famous or perhaps infamous inability to address the 
> psychological changes a person undergoes when meditating is one of 
> the biggest failures.  TM has the [possible] ability to alter much 
> and 
> the fallback of "you're just unstressing, go and lie down and feel 
> the body" is laughable and probably irresponsible.  I can see that 
> some people would

[FairfieldLife] Re: Narcissistic Personality Disorder in a spiritual context

[claudiouk]

Judy you said "you always got your money's worth, as it were, from 
doing good, in the form of feeling better (or less bad) about 
yourself--there was always some reward, as you suggest, some element 
of selfishness involved, no matter how profound one's capacity for 
empathy."

Surely with altruism there is a polarity from the conscious, 
calculated, devious intentionality on the one hand (I better do X so 
as to benefit from Y) to the more spontaneous flow of good intentions 
(X just is the appropriate thing to do, even if this means discomfort 
or some personal sacrifice). The fact that the latter makes one 
feel "good" does not invalidate altruism, surely.. The key point is 
not that some "good feeling" reward contaminates the process but that 
the good intention/action came NATURALLY, as an impulse (selfishness 
is firstly an impulse which is then indulged in, in spite of our 
better judgement).

Just a thought/reaction I thought I'd share. Not thoroughly thought 
through, of course.. but something I've noticed within myself. What 
one feels naturally, spontaneously that is "good" may well be 
affected by all sorts of unconscious processes and defence mechanisms 
which ultimitely might seem "selfish", but then it becomes 
tautological - a denial of the possibility of goodness, just a world 
view based on one permissable principle, of "badness"! It doesn't 
have to be like that necessarily, in my view.. but the spontaneity 
and naturalness of the emerging feeling is the key.

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "ruthsimplicity" 
>  wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend"  
wrote:
> > >
> > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "ruthsimplicity" 
> > >  wrote:
> > > 
> > > > There are many who say some variant of "good works are not the
> > > > way to heaven."  I think that they are wrong, or at least 
wrong
> > > > in implying that good works are not a necessary part of the 
> path.
> > > 
> > > Martin Luther said (paraphrased): Good works do not
> > > make a good person, but a good person will do good
> > > works. Which is pretty much Maharishi's perspective.
> > > ("Good person" = enlightened person; "good works" =
> > > spontaneous right action. By [his] definition, you
> > > can't do *spontaneous* right action if you aren't
> > > enlightened.)
> > 
> > Yes, I have heard this before.  I think that both can be true.
> > A good person will do good works.  But a person can learn goodness
> > by doing good works.  Why do we teach our children to share?  To 
> > give?  To say please and thank you?  We are teaching them to do 
> > good and to be good. For people with intact empathy, doing good 
is 
> > rewarding and encourages you to do more good. In the end, you are
> > a good person.
> > 
> > But for people without any empathy, doing "good" probably is just 
a
> > means to an end. 
> 
> I don't know that it's quite so simple.
> 
> I remember in junior high school we had to write
> an essay on altruism. I said I didn't think there
> was such a thing; you always got your money's
> worth, as it were, from doing good, in the form of
> feeling better (or less bad) about yourself--there
> was always some reward, as you suggest, some
> element of selfishness involved, no matter how
> profound one's capacity for empathy.
> 
> Obviously that doesn't mean doing good based on
> empathy is a *bad* thing, but it's not the same as
> "spontaneous right action" as long as there's some
> expectation of a quid pro quo, even if it's just
> getting to feel magnanimous.
> 
> Of course, when I wrote the essay I didn't know
> anything about the nature of "enlightenment," but
> I think my reasoning holds up with regard to those
> in "ignorance."
> 
> Luther, in any case, was thinking in terms of
> salvation, not just everyday "goodness." To him,
> a "good person" was one who had achieved
> "righteousness" through faith, and good works were
> an effect, not a cause. He even thought striving
> for righteousness through works was detrimental to
> salvation.
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: TM has never been secular (secular organization to teach TM)

[claudiouk]

Never was myself a TM teacher and personally I WAS interested in 
MMY's commentary on the Gita and his SBAL - as an underlying 
universal spiritual perspective to the practice of TM, but one which 
was not forced down your throat (unless perhaps you became a 
teacher?). Because of that it WAS OK to see the technique 
independently, as a SECULAR procedure. 

The fact that mantras were "sounds" of Hindu significance was to be 
expected, given MMY's  cultural background, but there was nothing in 
TM practice itself that resembled a religious practice - no required 
articles of faith, moral commandments to follow, nothing that 
resembled traditional prayer. OK certain behaviours were discouraged -
smoking, alcohol, drugs, consumption of meat etc. But these were on 
grounds of health, for a more refined nervous system. MMY seemed 
friendly in relating to people of different faiths and was not out to 
alienate anyone from their beliefs. The SRM spiritualism was more 
like a deeper common denominator between religions, but his SCI 
orientation seemed an attempt to find an even more non-religious, 
secular language, focusing on the scientific and social significance 
of the practice. 

The situation in the TMO now is COMPLETELY different. It no longer 
is "engaging" with secular society or with other faiths. It has 
become a shrinking enclave of fanatical practitioners, has rid itself 
of more rational, dissenting insiders, and has become completely 
Hindu in character. From a Western perspective it's now just a 
peculiar cult. But maybe after MMY dies this more Vedic emphasis, 
with its chanting pandits and Rajas in Hindu dress, might help 
establish the Movement more widely in India itself.

But hoping to see it spread now in the West is as unlikely as the 
West converting on mass to Islam.. 

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Richard J. Williams" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Curtis wrote:
> > So Richard claims to know more about TM 
> > than MMY, but I claim to know more about 
> > his teaching than people who haven't gone 
> > through TTC. 
> >
> Maybe so, but you don't know more about TM
> than I do regardless of your TTC claims. The
> proof is here for anyone to read.
> 
> So, what, exactly, in his teaching would you 
> be knowing more about? You didn't seem to be
> aware that the Maharishi never mentioned any 
> "demons" in SBAL. What's up with that?
> 
> So, if you knew so much why didn't you tell
> everyone that TM was a religion that taught
> people to chant the nick names of the Hindu 
> demi-Gods? What's the big secret?
> 
> And why were you so silent about where the
> TM mantras come from? You really suck as an 
> informant. Why all the secrecy?
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Hello and London Meditation Centre

[claudiouk]

I've been surprised by the bad press this London Meditation Centre is 
getting from FFL especially as another posting expressed hopes that 
David Lynch might be a catalyst for a more "secular" revival of TM, 
given that the TMO is now openly broadcasting it's religiousity and 
cultness on all available channels and on all possible fronts, quite 
unconcerned about the damage all this is doing to its credibility, 
whatever the merits and scientific evidence for its claims. What 
surprises me more, in this internet age, is why these independent 
meditation teachers don't form a loose international association and 
themselves do what MMY should have done after 1973.. keep it simple, 
practical, non-controversial, universal. 

I agree with you Guyfawkes when you say: "The independent sector is 
doing the movement a favor by demonstrating that the lack of new 
initiates in the official channel isn't due to a lack of coherence, 
or bad vastu , or bad karma, or lack of purity. It's due to having a 
non-viable business model." 

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "guyfawkes91" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> I know that some people get het up about TM teachers who go indy and
> keep the money for themselves. But look at it another way, if you 
want
> the movement to survive then people have to be able to make a living
> as  professional teachers. The TMO cannot survive forever on 
handouts
> from the rich, there's a declining supply of them and in a couple of
> decades they'll all be dead. So how will the movement make a living 
then? 
> 
> The only option for long term survival is to become like any other
> profession, train people well, trust them to run their own 
businesses
> and set their own prices, let them keep the money and expand their
> business. The independent sector is doing the movement a favor by
> demonstrating that the lack of new initiates in the official channel
> isn't due to a lack of coherence, or bad vastu , or bad karma, or 
lack
> of purity. It's due to having a non-viable business model. Teachers 
in
> the independent sector can make a good living and they teach lots of
> people. More people learn TM through the indy channel than the
> official channel. Charging people a fortune, paying  teachers a
> pittance and surviving by extracting money from the rich in exchange
> for the hope that "next year the phase transition will come", is 
not a
> viable business model in the long term.
> 
> On the other hand people who give money to the movement are doing 
the
> TMO a great disservice by protecting it from economic reality and
> encouraging delusional thinking.
> 
> Eventually, when the donation money runs out, whoever is left in the
> official TMO will have to let teachers set their own prices, keep 
the
> money and earn a living because that is the only business model that
> works.
> 
> 
>  
> > > New York City Course:
> > > HYPERLINK
> > >
> "http://www.londonmeditationcentre.com/index.php/nymc/"http://www.lo
ndonmedi
> > > tationcentre.com/index.php/nymc/
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: a computer question - is it allowed? new question..

[claudiouk]

>From the responses so far it seems that there are ways of controlling a 
a pc remotely, but that my idea of using a laptop as the sole monitor 
and keyboard of a faster desktop base unit won't actually take 
advantage of the faster capabilities of the unit. The main bottleneck 
is the monitor although developments like
http://www.itpro.co.uk/news/161082/multiple-monitors-go-wireless-this-
year.html suggest we are getting to the point of overcoming this 
problem. 

So forgetting wireless connections, how can I wire up a laptop to a 
faster PC base unit so that it ONLY acts as the monitor and keyboard, 
thereby taking full advantage of the faster PC (and save me having to 
buy a new monitor at least)?


--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Instead of buying a new laptop is it possible to just buy a faster 
> desktop PC base unit (without monitor or keyboard) and then access 
this 
> unit from anywhere in the house from my old laptop (which then 
becomes 
> the wireless keyboard and monitor for the unit)?? I've got XP Home on 
> my laptop. I know there are programs (eg XP Professional has it) 
where 
> you can control a computer remotely and see the desktop, but does 
that 
> take advantage of the faster computer capacity or is the process 
> limited by the speed of the "controlling" computer anyway, in which 
> case my idea is pointless..?
> 
> I know this is a non-TM question but I noticed there are real PC 
> experts in FFL...
>

[FairfieldLife] a computer question - is it allowed?

[claudiouk]

Instead of buying a new laptop is it possible to just buy a faster 
desktop PC base unit (without monitor or keyboard) and then access this 
unit from anywhere in the house from my old laptop (which then becomes 
the wireless keyboard and monitor for the unit)?? I've got XP Home on 
my laptop. I know there are programs (eg XP Professional has it) where 
you can control a computer remotely and see the desktop, but does that 
take advantage of the faster computer capacity or is the process 
limited by the speed of the "controlling" computer anyway, in which 
case my idea is pointless..?

I know this is a non-TM question but I noticed there are real PC 
experts in FFL...

[FairfieldLife] computing power of single brain cell

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7151920.stm
 
Single brain cell's power shown 

There could be enough computing ability in just one brain cell to 
allow humans and animals to feel, a study suggests. 

The brain has 100 billion neurons but scientists had thought they 
needed to join forces in larger networks to produce thoughts and 
sensations. 

The Dutch and German study, published in Nature, found that 
stimulating just one rat neuron could deliver the sensation of touch. 

One UK expert said this was the first time this had been measured in 
mammals. 

These studies drive down the level at which relevant computation is 
happening in the brain Dr Douglas Armstrong Edinburgh Centre for 
Bioinformatics  

The complexity of the human brain and how it stores countless 
thoughts, sensations and memories are still not fully understood. 

Researchers believe connections between individual neurons, forming 
networks of at least a thousand, are the key to some of its 
processing power. 

However, in some creatures with simpler nervous systems, such as 
flies, a single neuron can play a more significant role. The latest 
research suggests this may also be true in "higher" animals. 

The team, from the Humboldt University in Germany and the Erasmus 
Medical Center in the Netherlands, stimulated single neurons in rats 
and found this was enough to trigger a behavioural response when 
their whiskers were touched. 

A second research project from the US suggests the computational 
ability of the brain cell could be even more complex, with different 
synapses - the many junctions between neurons and other nerve cells - 
able to act independently from those found elsewhere on the same 
cell. 

This could mean that, within a single neuron, different synapses 
could be storing or processing completely different bits of 
information. 

Computing power 

Dr Douglas Armstrong, the deputy director of the Edinburgh Centre for 
Bioinformatics, said the research did not mean all neurons had an 
individual role to play but that, in some instances, they might be 
capable of working alone with measurable results. 

He said: "The generally accepted model was that networks or arrays 
make decisions and that the influence of a single neuron is smaller - 
but this work and other recent studies support a more important role 
for the individual neuron. 

"These studies drive down the level at which relevant computation is 
happening in the brain." 

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/7151920.stm

Published: 2007/12/22 00:02:38 GMT

© BBC MMVII

[FairfieldLife] sobering video

[claudiouk]

http://www.slide.com/r/lhBmAL5h1z-QgA6UpVotXjVbtLu42c61

long way to invincibility...

[FairfieldLife] Raja Luis

[claudiouk]

What did Dr Jose Luis Alvarez Roset do before becoming a Raja?
Of all the key figures in the TMO he strikes me as the most 
genuinely "spiritual" (and most successful Raja by far). Anybody know 
anything about his backround (couldn't find anything on google)?

[FairfieldLife] Re: To Rick Archer/ On Reciting God's Name

[claudiouk]

You mentioned earlier your own experience of both the infinite Self & 
background bliss and of the relative self, not seeing any 
contradictions. Why isn't it the "relative" self in the "background" 
going about it's usual business and the "infinite" Self that is the 
centre of gravity & identity, as one would expect this to override/ 
overwhelm everything else - like sunshine blotting out moon and star 
light in daytime..? Also how is it that the Self, once established in 
a permanent way, remains "associated" with a parrticular 
elative "self"? How come, in other words, you don't get "experiences" 
coming from other relative "selves" apart from your "own"? I'm 
thinikng of the analogy of an actor playing different roles - he 
can "be" this or other character AND himself as transcendental from 
such roles... 

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Rick Archer" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> My own experience, and my observation of those whom I consider to 
have most
> successfully achieved the "goal" of meditation practice, does not
> corroborate your theory. The realized people I know, on this forum 
and in my
> personal life, tend to be dynamic, clear-thinking, decisive, even 
forceful
> individuals who are above average in their ability to fulfill their 
desires.
> They are not meek, submissive, subservient, or drained. They tend 
to respect
> the guru or gurus from whom they have learned, but are quite 
independent of
> them now, thinking their own thoughts and putting things in their 
own terms
> based on their own experience. It is the goal of true gurus to 
produce such
> individuals. Gurus are just people who are farther up the mountain, 
or
> perhaps sitting on its summit. They can be useful in pointing out 
the best
> route up, or in reminding you that you haven't reached the summit 
if you're
> sitting on your butt thinking you have. To my understanding, you 
don't unite
> with gods by using a bija mantra. You transcend the mantra and 
realize the
> ground state of all existence, including the gods' existence. The 
realized
> people I know don't see themselves as having united with a god. 
They see all
> life – from ants to gods – as being particles or facets of their 
infinite
> nature.
> 
> 
> No virus found in this outgoing message.
> Checked by AVG Free Edition. 
> Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.33/1034 - Release Date: 
9/27/2007
> 5:00 PM
>

[FairfieldLife] Out-of-body experience recreated

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6960612.stm

Experts have found a way to trigger an out-of-body experience in 
volunteers. The experiments, described in the Science journal, offer 
a scientific explanation for a phenomenon experienced by one in 10 
people. 

Two teams used virtual reality goggles to con the brain into thinking 
the body was located elsewhere. 

The visual illusion plus the feel of their real bodies being touched 
made volunteers sense that they had moved outside of their physical 
bodies. 

The researchers say their findings could have practical applications, 
such as helping take video games to the next level of virtuality so 
the players feel as if they are actually inside the game. 

Clinically, surgeons might also be able to perform operations on 
patients thousands of miles away by controlling a robotic virtual 
self. 

Teleported 

For some, out-of-body experiences or OBEs occurs spontaneously, while 
for others it is linked to dangerous circumstances, a near-death 
experience, a dream-like state or use of alcohol or drugs. 

One theory is that it is down to how people perceive their own body - 
those unhappy or less in touch with their body are more likely to 
have an OBE. 

But the two teams, from UCL and the Swiss Federal Institute of 
Technology in Lausanne, believe there is a neurological explanation. 


 We feel that our self is located where the eyes are 
UCL researcher Dr Henrik Ehrsson  

Their work suggests a disconnection between the brain circuits that 
process visual and touch sensory information may thus be responsible 
for some OBEs. 

In the Swiss experiments, the researchers asked volunteers to stand 
in front of a camera while wearing video-display goggles. 

Through these goggles, the volunteer could see a camera view of their 
own back - a three-dimensional "virtual own body" that appeared to be 
standing in front of them. 

When the researchers stroked the back of the volunteer with a pen, 
the volunteer could see their virtual back being stroked either 
simultaneously or with a time lag. 

The volunteers reported that the sensation seemed to be caused by the 
pen on their virtual back, rather than their real back, making them 
feel as if the virtual body was their own rather than a hologram. 

Volunteers 

Even when the camera was switched to film the back of a mannequin 
being stroked rather than their own back, the volunteers still 
reported feeling as if the virtual mannequin body was their own. 

And when the researchers switched off the goggles, guided the 
volunteers back a few paces, and then asked them to walk back to 
where they had been standing, the volunteers overshot the target, 
returning nearer to the position of their "virtual self". 

Dr Henrik Ehrsson, who led the UCL research, used a similar set up in 
his tests and found volunteers had a physiological response - 
increased skin sweating - when they felt their "virtual self" was 
being threatened - appearing to be hit with a hammer. 

Dr Ehrsson said: "This experiment suggests that the first-person 
visual perspective is critically important for the in-body 
experience. In other words, we feel that our self is located where 
the eyes are." 

Dr Susan Blackmore, psychologist and visiting lecturer at the 
University of the West of England, said: "This has at last brought 
OBEs into the lab and tested one of the main theories of how they 
occur. 

"Scientists have long suspected that the clue to these extraordinary, 
and sometimes life-changing, experiences lies in disrupting our 
normal illusion of being a self behind our eyes, and replacing it 
with a new viewpoint from above or behind." 


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/6960612.stm

Published: 2007/08/23 18:02:22 GMT

© BBC MMVII

[FairfieldLife] vedic water

[claudiouk]

Recently the London Mayor has been trying to persuade people to stop 
buying bottled water as ordinary tap water was perfectly good and did 
not have the high carbon footprint of transported bottled water. 

But in Global Family Chat yesterday there was a mention of Vedic water -
presumably "bottled" tap water with Vedic "sounds" imprinted in it.. 
The Mayor won't be too pleased if it catches on over here...

[FairfieldLife] Re: So Judy..what's Samadhi like?

[claudiouk]

There is a loss of "experience" when one slips into sleep - if during 
this time there is transcendental consciousness there is no 
recollection of it. In meditation the loss and recovery of experience 
happens during a shorter period and one becomes aware of this change 
or gap. But interestingly the sense of self or wakefulness during TM 
is not lost, as in sleep. That, and a sense of finer quality of 
thinking and breathing (one rare occasions amazingly fine), has 
featured in my "subtler" experiences during TM. Hard to see how these 
experiences wouldn't be overshadowed by grosser awareness, as in CC 
though. Another important consequence of "experiencing" finer values 
within the mind is a great boost in general positivity in oneself and 
the world - a new glow, somehow. But actually most of the time during 
TM it's a struggle, paradoxically, to remain effortless in the 
process because even the faintest preocupation with "thinking" a 
mantra eventually creates tension and headaches - a very discouraging 
effect. Yet not "thinking" a mantra seems counter the instructions. I 
end up having to re-invent the process of meditation anew each time 
as nothing seems to "work" effortlessly more than a few times in a 
row. Have tried countless "checks" to no avail. Have tried your 
approach of accepting the mantra as just very "abstract" but often 
doubts creep in that I'm not doing "TM" after all!! Also can't see 
how further advanced techniques can help as the pronounciation of the 
mantra has just gone now and any attempt to retrieve it, however 
gentle, ends up in headaches. If I weren't hooked on MMY's Gita 
philosophy I'd given up ages ago!!

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> We've already been through this, BillyG. I'm going
> to explain one more time how I understand MMY's
> teaching, and that'll be it; I'm not going to argue
> with you about it:
> 
> If you're aware *of* bliss as a "something," as
> blissfulness, that isn't no thoughts/no mantra,
> by definition.
> 
> You may recall that MMY has said, "Bliss is not
> blissFUL." To experience blissfulness, one must
> have awareness *of* it, as a "something."
> 
> Transcendental consciousness-by-itself (samadhi)
> is *pure* bliss, as opposed to blissFULness. There
> is no subject/object distinction present in TC-by-
> itself, so no way to be aware *of* blissfulness.
> 
> That doesn't mean one doesn't experience
> blissfulness before and/or after TC-by-itself. But
> in TC-by-itself, one *is* bliss. There is no "me"
> to say, "I am blissful." That happens only after
> TC-by-itself has ended and the subject/object
> distinction has returned.
> 
> Pure bliss is utterly abstract, not something
> one is aware *of*. It is awareness itself, 
> awareness without an object, pure Subject,
> pure Self, pure Being, no-*thingness*.
> 
> Pure bliss is the absence of thingness, of
> distinctions, of awareness *of*. That's what
> I meant by "It's like nothing" (no-thing) above.
> 
> If one experiences waking-state awareness along
> with pure consciousness, one may experience
> blissFULness, but that isn't TC-by-itself.
> Waking-state awareness is not present during
> TC-by-itself. The capacity to experience
> blissfulness is not operative in TC-by-itself.
> "(Pure) bliss is not blissFUL."
> 
> BlissFULness occurs only when one is able to
> sustain some waking-state awareness *along with*
> pure consciousness, after repeated cycles of
> TC-by-itself alternating with waking state (the
> yellow cloth analogy). This is a more "advanced"
> state than TC-by-itself, i.e., cosmic
> consciousness, or "witnessing" if it's temporary.
> 
> So if you're experiencing blissFULness, that's
> terrific. But it isn't samadhi (TC-by-itself),
> no thoughts/no mantra, as MMY defines it.
> You've gone *past* that stage and have begun
> to integrate pure Being with waking state. You
> may still experience samadhi (TC-by-itself) in
> meditation, but you experience blissFULness
> only after you come out of TC-by-itself, when
> you're experiencing waking-state and pure Being
> together.
> 
> If you want to define samadhi differently than
> MMY does, fine, but you can't tell people who
> are going by MMY's definition that they aren't
> experiencing samadhi, as MMY defines it, on the
> basis that it doesn't involve blissfulness.
> That's just not how he uses the terms.
> 
> "Bliss is not blissFUL."
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Most Yoga schools 'end' with Cosmic Consciousness..

[claudiouk]

I remember a TM teacher commenting on Kundalini & TM - maybe after 
some video where MMY talked about other systems - emphasizing 
the "naturalness" of spiritual unfoldment with TM in contrast with 
the more "forceful" and potentially more destabilizing 
Kundalini "methods" taught elsewhere.. Seems like TM is destabilizing 
enough for many people..!!


--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Ron" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> A friend claims he has a video or tape where MMY is talking about
> Kundalini, so I can't confirm this until I hear it, he said he will
> dig it out.
> 
> Hamsa Yogi on youtube talks about it, I didn't catch everything 
about
> it, and "the four Guru's " on youtube talk about it. 
> 
> We all have it, it is shakti or consciousness but if very alive, it 
is
>   unmistakenly not missed to be so. While it is described over here
> wher I am as the roto rooter of consciousness because it will bring
> things to the surface quickly and will have to be dealt with- if 
there
> is no supervision while this is occuring, then it is a hit or miss.
> 
> 
> It is possible to say that my frined that jumped in front of the 
train
> last year had this or strong energies awakened as he was doing long
> programs and in the group. On a mass scale like TM, if the 
techniques
> given opened up Kundalini as it seems reiki can- we can imagine the
> possible catastrophie if people are left with this and no one there 
to
> guide.
> 
> My experience is that I have never had a problem as the kundalini 
was
> only slightly and lightly awake while doing TM. I didn't know it 
then
> but now I do. My kundalini only fully woke up ( even though there 
are
> degrees) once I came under the guidance where I am now. It can't be
> switched off once turned on. 
> 
> By now, I have seen people coming in with comments who had the
> kundalini spontaneosly awake, and also this one fellow I knew in TM,
> say that they wish they can shut it off as they can't sleep, etc. It
> can be worse than this so hopefully there is not a lot of this in TM
> where it is getting turned on.
> 
> In the path here, it is aimed to turn it on because the intention is
> to move the disciple as quicly as possible to enlightenment, and 
this
> is the effect of the kundalni being awake- however, it will probably
> awaken with those that are ripe.
> 
> Those doing TM for such a long time, it is possible to say they are
> ripe for this now, could be that more and more come into spontaneous
> Kundalini awakenings these days. Should this happen, for those few 
who
> have been reading this, I think they have atleast a thought sitting 
in
> the background that they will run to the net and go after what they
> think they need to get the necessary help that they feel they may
> need. Also people who have the symptoms may quesion what is going 
on.
> 
> If I do hear comments from MMY, I will post them. I am also
> interesterd in any comments about Kundalini from anyone. I saw a
> little comment from Amma ( the one from Kalki's Onenness movement),
> and I read something that suposedly the late Charlie Lutes said. 
> 
> Again, Kundalini awakening can be the greatest blessing but also can
> be a great curse without proper guidance.
> 
> 
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "BillyG."  wrote:
> >
> > Generally, in Yoga, Cosmic Consciousness is considered the highest
> > achievement obtainable by a human. In TM MMY sort of turns the 
whole
> > process on its head, stating that CC comes first, but what he is
> > talking about is really only Self-Realization, which is fine if 
you
> > know what he is talking about. (Brahman on the level of the 
Self/jiva)
> > 
> > In TM terminology, Unity Consciousness is Cosmic Consciousness in 
Yoga
> > proper. In the traditional teachings of Yoga, when the 7th seal
> > (chakra) is opened, you achieve the ultimate, Cosmic 
Consciousness.
> > 
> > As MMY does not talk about Chakras and kundalini per se,
(fundamental
> > principles in Yoga) it's hard to ascertain his meaning of CC, GC, 
and
> > UC.  He uses the terms rather loosely in his Gita, though with 
careful
> > reading you can see what his meaning is, which is consistent with
> > basic Yoga teachings.
> >
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: "According to the ancient Maharishis, Vastu equals 50% of spirituality. It solve

[claudiouk]

Seems rather simplistic to me - like saying vegetarianism = 50% 
spirituality... There are striking "Vastu" Similarities between 
Indian and Incan / Mayan Sacred Structures..
http://www.vastu-design.com/ht-article.htm
.. doesn't seem to have fostered much natural law in those Vastu 
dwellers, what with human sacrifices, Spanish conquests etc..
MMY's comments about living within transparent Vastu walls and fears 
of going now into non-Vastu buildings may just be related to ageing. 
Like he said for most of his life he didn't care much about the 
buildings he inhabited. I'm wondering whether this Vastu business 
should be read, like the Bible, metaphorically. Orienting one's own 
inner temple/indwelling towards the East - the inner Sun etc. Then 
yes that may contribute 50% of spirituality..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, bob_brigante <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shukra69"  
> wrote:
> >
> > According to the ancient Maharishis, Vaastu equals 50% of
> > spirituality. It solves 80% of life's problems. 
> > "It's better to live in a hut under a tree than to live in bad
> > Vaastu," he states. 
> > http://www.kaleshwaravaastu.com/enu/vaastu_kaleshwaravaastu.htm
> >
> 
> 
> 
> 
> It's been my own experience that bad vastu does crimp life (and 
what 
> little good vastu I have been in has an uplifting effect), and 
anyway I 
> can't argue with MMY's assignment of authenticity to Vedic lit on 
vastu 
> (by extrapolating confidence gained by my 4 decades of practice of 
TM). 
> But this guy's web site is typical of the muddled thinking in India 
> which has made a mess of life there. What MMY has done has re-
introduce 
> the centerpiece of Vedic life, expanded awareness, without which 
the 
> Vedic guidelines are scrambled by confused and limited thinking, as 
is 
> this guy's claim that some south entrances are OK:
> 
> http://www.kaleshwaravaastu.com/enu/vaastu_example1.htm
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: nobody interested in GOOD news?

[claudiouk]

I see what you mean about the 2,000 figure. Perhaps I heard it 
wrong.. interesting your link to invincibleamerica tallies - why have 
the Washington figures dried up - abandoned project?

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "george_deforest" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> > claudiouk wrote:
> >
> > What good news? You want me to spell it out?
> > Global Family Chat  provides daily updates on developments ... > 
> 
> > For decades MMY would announce overambitious plans in the 
> > New Year and nothing much happened thereafter. Whereas
> > NOW things are happening .. .
> > 
> > The pandits have finally arrived and the Fairfield group
> > is now 2000 strong ...
> 
> Well no, this is not true; its only half true!
> 
> 1000 pandits are "planned", but only -400- have come so far;
> and the numbers in the dome are far short of the desired 2000;
> 
> if fact, they *very often* dont reach even the minimum 
> super-radiance threshold (1732 IIRC), this is documented daily:
> http://invincibleamerica.com/tallies.html -- where today's
> totals for 16 June Fairfield/MVC [AM 1474] [PM 1613] -- not 2000!
> 
> so i have to wonder by extension, how many other "good news"
> they are propagating, that is only part fact, and part fiction.
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: nobody interested in GOOD news?

[claudiouk]

What good news? You want me to spell it out?

Global Family Chat  provides daily updates on developments in the 
TMO - whether it's new land being purchased, start or completion of 
Peace Palaces, Health Spas, Invincibility schools, establishment of 
yogic flyers' groups, Maharishi Effect reports from particular 
countries etc. 

For decades MMY would announce overambitious plans in the New Year 
and nothing much happened thereafter. Whereas NOW things are 
happening. The 400 group in Holland seems to have improved the 
country, on over 50 statistical indicators. The pandits have finally 
arrived and the Fairfield group is now 2000 strong. Raja Luis seems 
to have performed miracles in Latin America - by October probably 
quite a number of countries will have reached the invincibility 
threshold. Traditional kings and their entire tribes are doing group 
programme together; schools and universities have started such 
programmes; even the military in one country is introducing it in its 
own academies. In Africa progress with schools is being made in Ghana 
and Mozambique; in Europe Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland are doing 
well; Germany is importing 1,000 pandits; The TMO in Spain and France 
seem quite lively. The other day reports from the Philippines were 
extremely encouraging, with a real estate developer adopting the 
Vastu guidelines in all constructions. And so on.

Ashley Dean's world tour has been very effective in attracting 
interest from educationists wherever he goes. It seems MMY's 
instincts to relaunch his Movement with the most motivated of his 
entourage and his focus on invincibility schools, MAV spas and 
products, Vastu developments etc is paying off.

Soon it may look like this:
http://www.seethru.co.uk/goodle/goodle3.htm#

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, off_world_beings <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > Shame on you.. 
> > 
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
wrote:
> > >
> > > is this what MMY thinks will soon be reported by world press?
> > > http://www.seethru.co.uk/goodle/goodle3.htm#
> > > 
> > > On a more serious note - some of the developments reported in 
> Global 
> > > Family Chat are pretty encouraging. Things are beginning 
> to "happen", 
> > > after decades of stagnation..
> 
> 
> Why couldn't you just tell us the good news instead of making me 
waste 
> a post on asking you what the good news is. Thanks
> 
> OffWorld
>

[FairfieldLife] nobody interested in GOOD news?

[claudiouk]

Shame on you.. 

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> is this what MMY thinks will soon be reported by world press?
> http://www.seethru.co.uk/goodle/goodle3.htm#
> 
> On a more serious note - some of the developments reported in Global 
> Family Chat are pretty encouraging. Things are beginning to "happen", 
> after decades of stagnation..
>

[FairfieldLife] good news

[claudiouk]

is this what MMY thinks will soon be reported by world press?
http://www.seethru.co.uk/goodle/goodle3.htm#

On a more serious note - some of the developments reported in Global 
Family Chat are pretty encouraging. Things are beginning to "happen", 
after decades of stagnation..

[FairfieldLife] Re: Unified Field Theory Part II

[claudiouk]

"your universe doesn't interfere with mine" - I find it does!
Or, even if "you" are just in MY universe, how come then I can't get 
rid of you, if I want to. (nb YOU here stands for anything - eg 
suffering etc). If I create my universe then it's gone "out of 
control", like in a scary SciFi movie.

But there is an interesting book by Chopra on this whole subject - 
nice chapters too on all the quantum physics talked about by Hagelin 
etc..

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/202/story_20289_1.html

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "suziezuzie" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> I figured out the unified field theory. It works like this. The 
> universe that you see is a creation of your own consciousness, you 
> created it, everything out there. The reason why your universe 
> doesn't interfere with mine is for the same reason that two 
> flashlight beams of light crossing one another don't interfere with 
> each other, the beam of light isn't effected by the other. I 
believe 
> that the order of creation is: consciousness, then light, and then 
> the forces, which in my opinion are all variations of light. 
Einstein 
> discovered that time and space change, the speed of light remaining 
> constant, that mass-light speed was equivalent to E or energy. I 
> believe that light, being the first expression from consciousness 
is 
> the constant for all the forces that follow, gravity, 
> electromagnetism, strong, weak, etc., all being variations on light 
> itself. It's consciousness that gives light it's constant. 
> Consciousness first creates light (and god said, "let there be 
> light") As the first of consciousness' creation, the universe is 
pure 
> light. And then with an innate desire within consciousness' to 
create 
> a single universe with its galaxies, stars and solar systems, light 
> then negates itself into expressions of matter, gravity, 
> electromagnetic, weak and strong forces. But in the end, it's our 
> creation, so we need to incorporate the creator and the creation. 
To 
> view the creation as separate from the creator always falls short. 
> The physics would have to show how light can transform itself into 
> gravity, electromagnetism, strong and weak forces which deal with 
sub 
> atomic particles. And then infer that light came from 
consciousness. 
> And why is that? Because in the end, whose consciousness is it that 
> ponders its creation?
>

[FairfieldLife] secret of happy relationships - misery!

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6711071.stm
 
Misery: the secret to happiness
 
The key to a happy relationship could be accepting that some 
miserable times are unavoidable, experts say. 
Therapists from California State University and Virginia Tech 
University say accepting these problems is better than striving for 
perfection. 

And they blame cultural fairytales and modern love stories for 
perpetuating the myth that enjoying a perfect relationship is 
possible. 

The report was published in the Journal of Marital and Family 
Therapy. 

The pursuit of relationship nirvana can be potentially damaging 
Jan Parker  

The authors, Dr Diane Gehart and Dr Eric McCollum say it is a "myth 
that, with enough effort we can achieve a state without suffering." 

And they say healthcare professionals may not be helping the 
situation. 

"The field of mental health perpetuates this myth with the very 
concept of "mental health," which implies a state without suffering," 
they say. 

Potentially damaging 

But this belief can eventually cause people to believe that with 
enough effort they can eliminate suffering. 

And experts say this is an unrealistic aim in relationships, and 
striving to achieve it can lead people to feel they have failed. 

Jan Parker of the Association of Family Therapy said: "The authors 
are right to point out that the pursuit of relationship nirvana can 
be potentially damaging." 

She said it was important to explore what people mean by a happy and 
healthy relationship, because nobody's life or relationship can be in 
a permanent state of happiness - there will always be more difficult 
times. 

She said couples need to build strengths, such as understanding, in 
their relationships to help them cope in these hard times and 
appreciate the good times. 

Mrs Nadine Field, a consultant psychologist, said it was a "fantasy" 
that any relationship could be perfect and that striving for such an 
impossible state could lead to bitter disappointment. 

She said this disappointment could then cause people to focus on the 
negative aspects of a relationship, and lead to more disappointment 
and resentment. 

She said: "People need to try to understand their partners through 
communication, rather than demanding perfection of them." 

Meditation 

The authors recommend using mindfulness, a Buddhist meditation 
technique, to help cope with family suffering. 

The technique requires individuals to focus on their present thoughts 
and actions, and is already used by some psychiatrists in the UK. 

They say although Buddhism is considered a major religion, the 
technique is taken from Buddhist psychology which could be useful 
aside from Buddhism's spiritual beliefs and practices. 

The authors say family therapists can integrate the principles into 
their work to help patients change the way they relate to the forms 
of suffering that can occur in intimate relationships, such as abuse, 
divorce, rejection, and loss. 


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/6711071.stm

Published: 2007/06/01 10:51:19 GMT

© BBC MMVII

[FairfieldLife] Re: most peaceful nations: 1. Norway; USA 96th

[claudiouk]

I think Scandinavian countries have become more peaceful since 
Vikings times to be sure.. like Nobel who I think was into explosives 
but now the Nobel Prize celebrates more life-enhancing things! The 
Scandinavians were the "middle way" between Soviet socialism and US 
capitalism and were often mediators in East-West or Arab-Israeli 
conflicts. They have a good humanitarian record domestically and 
internationally. So I think overall they deserve some recognition for 
their peace-promoting endevours..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, bob_brigante <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/6704767.stm
> >  
> > Norway rated most peaceful nation 
> > 
> 
> ***
> 
> It is now, but Norway was one of the homelands of the Vikings, who -
- 
> apparently looking for lebensraum, ravaged a large area for 
hundreds 
> of years:
> 
> "It has been suggested that the expansion of the Viking age was 
> spurred by a population growth outstepping the capacities of 
domestic 
> resources. Archaeological evidence shows that new farms were 
cleared 
> in sparsely populated forest areas at the time of the foreign 
> expansion - so the pressure of population growth is surely a 
> contributing factor. Iron extraction is another. An abundance of 
iron 
> to forge weapons and arm everyone setting off on raids helped give 
> the Vikings the upper hand."
> 
> http://www.norwaydirect.co.uk/articles/vikings.asp
> 
> *
> Every country has gone through these cycles of violence for a 
while, 
> in response to various environmental influences.
>

[FairfieldLife] most peaceful nations: 1. Norway; USA 96th

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/6704767.stm
 
Norway rated most peaceful nation 

A study has ranked Norway as the most peaceful country and Iraq as 
the least in a survey of 121 countries. 
The Global Peace Index, compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit, 
looked at 24 factors to determine how peaceful each country was. 

It places the US at 96th on the list and the UK at 49th, while New 
Zealand ranks second and Japan fifth. 

The authors say it is the first attempt to produce such a wide-
ranging league table of how peaceful countries are. 

Factors examined by the authors include levels of violence and 
organised crime within the country and military expenditure. 

The survey has been backed by the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond 
Tutu, former US President Jimmy Carter and US economist Joseph 
Stiglitz, who are all Nobel prize laureates. 

It is also supported by Queen Noor of Jordan. 

'Wake-up call' 

Scandinavian and other European countries generally performed well in 
the survey. 


 TOP FIVE COUNTRIES 
1 Norway 
2 New Zealand 
3 Denmark 
4 Ireland 
5 Japan  

But Britain's ranking comes partly from its involvement in Iraq and 
other conflicts. 

The United States is 96th - between Yemen and Iran - again because of 
such things as its military spending, its involvement in Iraq, 
violent crime at home, and a high prison population. 

The survey also places Russia and Israel at the wrong end of the 
scale - 118th and 119th respectively. 

The brainchild of Steve Killelea, an Australian entrepreneur, the 
survey is meant to inform governments, international organisations, 
and campaign groups. 

Mr Killelea said: "This is a wake-up call for leaders around the 
globe. Countries need to become more peaceful to solve the major 
challenges that the world faces - from climate change to decreasing 
biodiversity. 


 BOTTOM FIVE COUNTRIES 
117 Nigeria 
118 Russia 
119 Israel 
120 Sudan 
121 Iraq  

"There is also a strong case for the world becoming more peaceful and 
it is now crucial for world leaders and business to take a lead," he 
said. 

He added that the high positions of Germany, which ranked 12th, and 
Japan revealed that "there can be light at the end of what may seem 
at the moment like a very dark tunnel." 

The study is published just before the G8 summit of leading countries 
next week. 

The authors say they are trying to supplant what they call 
some "woolly" definitions of peace with a scientific approach, that 
includes levels of violent crime, political instability, and a 
country's relations with its neighbours. 

But questions have been raised over the way some of these factors are 
brought together. 

The authors themselves acknowledge that there is a lack of data in 
many countries. 

What impact the new survey will have is unclear. The authors also 
argue that some countries - like Japan - may benefit from sheltering 
under the US military umbrella. 



Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/6704767.stm

Published: 2007/05/30 15:01:50 GMT

© BBC MMVII

[FairfieldLife] healing water created

[claudiouk]

maybe they should look at effects of vedic chants on water next..

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6684701.stm
 
Firm makes 'healing super-water' 
US scientists have developed "super-oxidised" water which they say 
speeds up wound healing. Oculus, the Californian firm which developed 
the water - made by filtering it through a salt membrane - says it 
kills viruses, bacteria and fungi. 

It is also effective against MRSA and UK trials are being carried out 
on patients with diabetic foot ulcers, New Scientist magazine 
reported. 

Experts said wound healing was a major problem for people with 
diabetes. 

The key ingredient of the water, called Microcyn, are oxychlorine 
ions - electrically charged molecules which pierce the cell walls of 
free-living microbes. 

The water can only kill cells it can completely surround so human 
cells are spared because they are tightly bound together in a matrix. 


 We would welcome any safe effective treatment which could help 
people with diabetes make a swift recovery 
Tracey Kelly, Diabetes UK  

It is made by taking purified water and passing it through a semi-
permeable sodium chloride membrane, which produces the oxychlorine 
ions. 

One study showed that patients with advanced foot ulcers who were 
treated with the water, alongside an antibiotic had an average 
healing time of 43 days compared with 55 days in those who received 
standard treatment 

Bleach-resistant bacteria 

The results were presented at a Global Healthcare biomedical 
conference in Monte Carlo. 

Bleach also contains a number of electrically charged molecules such 
as hypochlorite but in much higher concentrations than in the water. 

However, US studies have shown the water kills 10 strains of bleach-
resistant bacteria. 

Professor Andrew Boulton, from Manchester Royal Infirmary, who is 
conducting one of the early UK trials, said the treatment seemed 
promising. 

"Hopefully it will confirm our initial good experience." 

About 15% of diabetic foot ulcers result in amputation. 

Diabetes UK care adviser Tracey Kelly said: "The healing of wounds is 
a major problem for people with diabetes who do not have good blood 
glucose control or have circulatory problems. 

"We would welcome any safe effective treatment which could help 
people with diabetes make a swift recovery. 

"This research is very interesting and we look forward to the trial 
results." 

Help the Aged spokesman Mike Foster said: "The team involved is a 
credible one and wound healing is a major area in the health of older 
people. 

"There is an urgent need to understand the biology of our repair 
systems so that we can improve treatments that will help to restore 
more people's health and independence." 



Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/6684701.stm

Published: 2007/05/24 00:32:18 GMT

© BBC MMVII

[FairfieldLife] Re: holland shows the way

[claudiouk]

You are probably right in terms of strictly scientific studies. 
However (a) I think economists for instance use regression analysis 
to investigate the impact of a change in policy such as a tax or 
interest rate on a host of measures. If 52 social indices move in 
the "predicted" direction, contrary to expected trends, and this ME 
is repeated in another country, that would be more convincing 
supportive evidence for the ME than any study so far performed 
regarding Government policy changes or proposals. And (b) when MMY 
talks of "creating the effect now" I think he expects the effect to 
be more dramatic than any study could "prove" - not only very 
substantial changes in society but also more favourable receptivity 
to his ideas. So far the latter is not much in evidence yet - not 
even in Holland, at least not in any dramatic way.

But going back to your scientific considerations, what would 
constitute an ideal study in your view?

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Peter <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> On the surface it sounds goodbut so much depends
> upon the design of the study. Simply gathering a group
> of sidhas, having them do program and then measuring
> these data points across time does not make a valid
> study. What you indicate, in terms of legit research,
> is meaningless. The TMO essentially never designs
> these ME studies properly.
> 
> --- claudiouk <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> 
> > Just listening to Global Family Chat report from
> > Holland - very 
> > impressive developments since the establishment of a
> > permanent group of 
> > 400 flyers in April 2006. On 52 statistical
> > indicators the trends since 
> > then have moved "unexpectedly" (in a conventional
> > sense)in more 
> > positive direction. For instance more trains &
> > passengers, more trains 
> > on time, 60% less crime on railways etc. Crime rates
> > in the two largest 
> > cities falling by around 50%. Holland featuring well
> > in international 
> > tables such as best treatment of the elderly,
> > happiness, best place for 
> > childhood, huge increase in innovation &
> > competetiveness etc etc.. If 
> > this pattern can be repeated in the USA after a
> > 2,000 group is 
> > established, it would be incredible!
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > To subscribe, send a message to:
> > [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > 
> > Or go to: 
> > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/
> > and click 'Join This Group!' 
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
> > 
> > 
> > mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > 
> > 
> > 
> 
> 
> 
>  
> 
__
__
> Now that's room service!  Choose from over 150,000 hotels
> in 45,000 destinations on Yahoo! Travel to find your fit.
> http://farechase.yahoo.com/promo-generic-14795097
>

[FairfieldLife] holland shows the way

[claudiouk]

Just listening to Global Family Chat report from Holland - very 
impressive developments since the establishment of a permanent group of 
400 flyers in April 2006. On 52 statistical indicators the trends since 
then have moved "unexpectedly" (in a conventional sense)in more 
positive direction. For instance more trains & passengers, more trains 
on time, 60% less crime on railways etc. Crime rates in the two largest 
cities falling by around 50%. Holland featuring well in international 
tables such as best treatment of the elderly, happiness, best place for 
childhood, huge increase in innovation & competetiveness etc etc.. If 
this pattern can be repeated in the USA after a 2,000 group is 
established, it would be incredible!

[FairfieldLife] Re: Visualizing the E8 root system

[claudiouk]

"Being is all the gunas perfectly balanced but still having the
quality of being manifest" - MMY, frequently talked about Being = the 
Absolute and, for instance in the Gita, how the Gunas are the 
first "Relative" manifestation from this Absolute/Being.

"the Relative is nothing but the Absolute" is just because the 
manifestation is just another point of view of the Absolute - as 
Hagelin tried to show, even in the Unified Fileld equations, one can 
discern the non-duality underlying diversity. And in higher states of 
consciousness first the distinction betweeen Absolute and Relative is 
established, then the non-duality of reality.

All rather theoretical stuff for me anyway - I'll wait and see what 
personal experience brings - so far nothing remotely about Gunas or 
Being or Absolutes.. unfortunately.

But going back to your formulation, if the Absolute is NOT Being, and 
Being is just a finer value of the Relative, and there is a mystery 
about how the Absolute becomes Relative, what 
consequences/implications you see in that then regarding meditation, 
knowledge, enlightenment etc?



 --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Duveyoung <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> To me Being is all the gunas perfectly balanced but still having the
> quality of being manifest -- that is, observable and thus distinct
> from the Absolute -- just exactly as a mirror is functional but
> "invisible" to human eyes that are tuned to see only to the mirror's
> reflections.
> 
> That quality of having all qualities nested in "virtual" potential,
> and its quality of objectivity, these are what I think the Unified
> Field is to today's physicists -- they make statements like "an
> infinite amount of energy can come from any cubic centimeter of
> virtual field."  Sounds like Brahma to me.
> 
> Now, what kicks Being off balance and into full manifestation?  
Can't
> be nothing but the Absolute, right?  But the Absolute has no feet! 
> And in fact the Absolute does NOT have the quality of "having no 
feet"
> too!  See?  Gonna come out stupid sounding whenever one talks about
> the Absolute.  That's the mystery -- there's no connection between 
the
> Absolute and Being and this is a powerful deep truth, but as Turq 
just
> reminded us, the Relative is nothing but the Absolute.  Hence the
> paradox -- Godel loved it.
> 
> I'm waiting for a physicist to say, "Hey, is it just me, or did I 
just
> see the universe blink off for a scintillation's halflife?"  Then,
> I'll say they're sniffing around the Absolute's hydrant.
> 
> In a dream, everything's real only as long as the dreamer is there.
> 
> Of all the statements one can make about the Absolute, that pausing 
of
> bliss, that silence of deep dreamless sleep is about as truthful as
> any lie a brain can tell.
> 
> Edg
> 
> 
> 
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
wrote:
> >
> > "you're no Jack Kennedy" - not sure what THAT means.. no I'm 
Claudio.
> > I'm sure we all have our own views on these matters and how far 
our 
> > definitions are fuzzy, and how bad that is in fact, is all rather 
> > fuzzy to me. I think language can only point the way.. 
> > 
> > re definitions for consciousness, the Absolute, Being, and the 
> > Unified Field - I don't find MMY's usage of these terms, as in 
his 
> > Gita or more recent pronouncements, problematic. They refer to a 
> > transcendental realm of awareness, beyong thoughts or concepts or 
> > even "objective" reality, which is universal, oneness, non-
duality, 
> > the fundamental reality of Being, Existence, Reality.. as opposed 
to 
> > duality, individuality, physical reality characterised by 
locality, 
> > isolation etc. Can't say I'm philosophically minded so not that 
> > bothered with fuzzy thinking.
> > 
> > re " Unified Field is a good metaphor for Being, not the 
Absolute" - 
> > suggests you yourselk have an understanding of the difference 
between 
> > Absolute and Relative. The Unifield Field is the theoretical Non-
> > Duality of Nature, the Unity underlying the Diversity of the 
> > Relative. Hence I don't find it that difficult to equate it with 
the 
> > Absolute. Yes we are dealing with concepts that have arisen from 
> > different epochs and philosophical traditions but if one takes a 
> > broader view one can see the equivalences and idsentities rather 
than 
> > get bogged down obsessively with finer details that end up 
distorting 
> > the reality.
> > 
> > But hey, that's just my opinion and und

[FairfieldLife] Re: Visualizing the E8 root system

[claudiouk]

"you're no Jack Kennedy" - not sure what THAT means.. no I'm Claudio.
I'm sure we all have our own views on these matters and how far our 
definitions are fuzzy, and how bad that is in fact, is all rather 
fuzzy to me. I think language can only point the way.. 

re definitions for consciousness, the Absolute, Being, and the 
Unified Field - I don't find MMY's usage of these terms, as in his 
Gita or more recent pronouncements, problematic. They refer to a 
transcendental realm of awareness, beyong thoughts or concepts or 
even "objective" reality, which is universal, oneness, non-duality, 
the fundamental reality of Being, Existence, Reality.. as opposed to 
duality, individuality, physical reality characterised by locality, 
isolation etc. Can't say I'm philosophically minded so not that 
bothered with fuzzy thinking.

re " Unified Field is a good metaphor for Being, not the Absolute" - 
suggests you yourselk have an understanding of the difference between 
Absolute and Relative. The Unifield Field is the theoretical Non-
Duality of Nature, the Unity underlying the Diversity of the 
Relative. Hence I don't find it that difficult to equate it with the 
Absolute. Yes we are dealing with concepts that have arisen from 
different epochs and philosophical traditions but if one takes a 
broader view one can see the equivalences and idsentities rather than 
get bogged down obsessively with finer details that end up distorting 
the reality.

But hey, that's just my opinion and understanding. So what 
conclusions are you making from your premises as expressed in your 
posting (apart from questioning mine, I mean)?



--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Duveyoung <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Claudiouk,
> 
> Please tell me the definitions you'd have for consciousness, the
> Absolute, Being, and the Unified Field.  I think you're being fuzzy
> and mixing the Absolute with Being, but I see Being as the relative,
> qualities that must be described dualistically -- thus, I would say
> that the Unified Field is a good metaphor for Being, not the 
Absolute.
>  This fuzziness is what I finally decided was a "tell" about the 
lack
> of subtlety for Maharishi's vocabulary.  
> 
> To me, soul, consciousness, Being, atma, are all "in" the relative. 
> They're egoically spawned concepts.
> 
> Tell me your definitions for awareness and sentience while you're 
at it.  
> 
> To me the Absolute is pure mystery -- Being can pretend to be the
> Absolute, even fool the rishi's that it is the Absolute, but I've 
seen
> the Absolute, and Being, I gotta tell ya, "you're no Jack Kennedy."
> 
> Anyone else want a piece of this?
> 
> Edg
> 
> 
> 
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
wrote:
> >
> > Sorry sinhlnx, I'm finding it harder to follow your points than 
> > Hagelin's! And you're not even using any quantum maths!
> > 
> > "strictly relative principles, akin to the Buddhist principles of 
> > interconnectedness and dependent origination" - MMY consistently 
> > identifies the Unified Field with the ABSOLUTE, the origin of the 
> > dualistic Relative.
> > 
> > "holographic nature of the universe: a concept pioneered in 
> > Buddhism" - if you mean things like "smaller than the smallest = 
> > greater than the greatest"; or "as above, so below"; or "as is 
the 
> > atom, so is the universe" etc then such holographic parallels 
predate 
> > Buddhism..
> > 
> > "pure Consciousness is not a field" - Hagelin says it's the field 
of 
> > all fields; a field effect of consciousness, as in the Maharishi 
> > Effect, means that changes in the coherence and quality of 
> > indivindual consciousness has an effect on others over and above 
one-
> > to-one interactions through action or communication. I think this 
is 
> > not anti-Buddhist. The Natural Mind, Buddha Nature, transcends 
> > individuality.. enlivening the Buddha Nature in oneself naturally 
> > creates positive effects in others - a field effect.
> > 
> > "there's no direct connection between "Being" and quantum 
mechanics" -
> > Hagelin talks of superstring theory. Transcending the individual 
mind 
> > and the "quantum + gravity unification" brings us to the Unified 
> > Field Consciousness - the Being or pure consciousness/existence 
of 
> > everything..
> > 
> > So don't really see where the discrepancy between MMY and 
Buddhism 
> > lies. I personally see myself as more Buddhist than anything 
else..
> >

[FairfieldLife] Re: Visualizing the E8 root system

[claudiouk]

Sorry sinhlnx, I'm finding it harder to follow your points than 
Hagelin's! And you're not even using any quantum maths!

"strictly relative principles, akin to the Buddhist principles of 
interconnectedness and dependent origination" - MMY consistently 
identifies the Unified Field with the ABSOLUTE, the origin of the 
dualistic Relative.

"holographic nature of the universe: a concept pioneered in 
Buddhism" - if you mean things like "smaller than the smallest = 
greater than the greatest"; or "as above, so below"; or "as is the 
atom, so is the universe" etc then such holographic parallels predate 
Buddhism..

"pure Consciousness is not a field" - Hagelin says it's the field of 
all fields; a field effect of consciousness, as in the Maharishi 
Effect, means that changes in the coherence and quality of 
indivindual consciousness has an effect on others over and above one-
to-one interactions through action or communication. I think this is 
not anti-Buddhist. The Natural Mind, Buddha Nature, transcends 
individuality.. enlivening the Buddha Nature in oneself naturally 
creates positive effects in others - a field effect.

"there's no direct connection between "Being" and quantum mechanics" -
Hagelin talks of superstring theory. Transcending the individual mind 
and the "quantum + gravity unification" brings us to the Unified 
Field Consciousness - the Being or pure consciousness/existence of 
everything..

So don't really see where the discrepancy between MMY and Buddhism 
lies. I personally see myself as more Buddhist than anything else..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "sinhlnx" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- thanks for your outstanding points, most valid indeed!.
> OTOH, on occasion, metaphorical analogues to math/physics 
principles 
> can be useful in helping us find parallels to certain deep, subtle 
> properties of relative existence.  The downside is the risk of 
> logical errors such as "the appeal to authorities", and geekspeak, 
or 
> jargon.
>   Since the TMO has been known to use some (or all) of such logical 
> fallacies, we become naturally suspicious, and rightly so!.
>  Such mathematical principles as the E8 Lie group point to 
(contrary 
> to MMY and Hagelin) strictly relative principles, akin to the 
> Buddhist principles of interconnectedness and dependent 
origination; 
> and ultimately, the holographic nature of the universe: a concept 
> pioneered in Buddhism - more so than in Hinduism. (wiki - the 
> Buddhism of Tien Tai).
>  At any rate, no, "pure Consciousness" - as pointed out by the 
> quantum pioneers themselves (since some of them apparently had an 
> intuitive knowledge of "Being-In-Itself", especially Schroedinger); 
> is not a subject of modern scientific inquiry (unless** - as 
pointed 
> out by Jim Flanagan, we restrict the inquiry by safe qualifications 
> such as "this is my experience:..etc.".  Then, such studies can 
> be "scientific" as long as one doesn't tweak the statistics (as in 
> the MUM studies).
>   Thus, pure Consciousness is not a "field".  One can make 
parallels 
> to certain facets of relative existence (explored and explained 
more 
> by the Buddhists than Hindus) - particularly the nature of Dharma, 
> karma, and reincarnation; and the various elements of cause and 
> effects.
>  As mentioned before, such relative concepts would be 
> interconnectedness, dependent origination, and the holographic 
nature 
> of existence.
>  Such concepts may "point to" THAT, but as several contributors 
have 
> already pointed out, there's no direct connection between "Being" 
and 
> quantum mechanics.
>   I might add that the concept of a "Singularity" has a ringing 
> appeal to what me might experience as That; but again, a 
Singularity 
> has to be something relative in order for scientists to investigate 
> it, according to the commonly accepted notions of scientific 
inquiry. 
> (that does not of course include private revelations).
>  BTW private revelations were in the domain of the Gnostics, as 
> opposed to "appeal by Authorities" ; such as the local Bishop, 
Pope, 
> etc.
>  Naturally, Gnosticism was a very dangerous, heretical approach; 
> since if one can discover innate wisdom through interior inquiry, 
who 
> needs the Pope?
> 
> 
> In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, TurquoiseB  wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, new.morning  
wrote:
> > >
> > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, TurquoiseB  
> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Peter  
> wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > Just my usual too quick on the trigger response. I
> > > > > hear the term "super string" or anything of that ilk
> > > > > associated with TM and my brain locks-up! I'm sure it
> > > > > can have value for people, such as John Hagelin, who
> > > > > actually understand it and can facilitate deeper
> > > > > understanding of the mechanichs of consciousness, but
> > > > > for us lay folk it is mind numbing.
> > > > 
> > > > That

[FairfieldLife] tm & ireland

[claudiouk]

Tony Blair's one success in his 10-year tenure is his fostering of 
peaceful developments in Northern Ireland (in co-operation with the 
Irish government)which have resulted in an extraordinary peace between 
die-hard opponents - now actually sharing power together. A Berlin wall 
experience.. But what was the contribution of TM groups in this? MMY 
pulled out from the UK a couple of years ago. So what info is there on 
special TM developments in North or South Ireland that could account 
for these extraordinary developments? Could any Irish readers help us 
out here? Thanks.

[FairfieldLife] Re: Visualizing the E8 root system

[claudiouk]

"Is Consciousness the Unified Field?" - if consciousness is truly 
most fundamental, there IS a need to relate it to the most 
fundamental laws of physics, because presently it is being ignored 
altogether. As for the limits and incomprehensibility of Hagelin's 
metaphors or equivalences, surely the same could be said of the 
Vedas - in spite of countless commentaries it remains a rather 
obscure philosophy/manual of consciousness. In the end nothing 
but "realization" itself will do.. 

But I think you are both being too harsh on Hagelin.. He is making 
valiant efforts to interpret those equations in novel ways, as 
windows to the properties of the unified field. Like us looking at 
the behaviour of someone and figuring out underlying propensities? 
The discussion on the equations reflecting the non-duality of unity I 
thought ADDED to my understanding of nonduality I had  come across 
previously from similar statements made by individuals or in 
scriptures. 

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Vaj <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> 
> On May 15, 2007, at 7:45 AM, Peter wrote:
> 
> > All this theoretical physics stuff from Hagelin is a
> > metaphor, and a poor metaphor at that. It is
> > essentially incomprehensible and contributes
> > absolutely nothing to the understanding of
> > Realization.
> 
> 
> It's interesting, MIU physics texts (privately published) did  
> emphasize a relationship and an analogy between physics and  
> consciousness BUT they also included a chapter on such analogies 
and  
> mentioned the fact that such analogies could only be taken so far.
> 
> At some point, probably around the time Hagelin was urged 
(forced?)  
> to write the hilarious "Is Consciousness the Unified Field?", a 
major  
> leap of faith was made and analogy became taken as science or fact.
> 
> The TMO and Mahesh Varma: putting the "Con" back in Consciousness 
and  
> selling it to you.
>

[FairfieldLife] US health system ranks last compared to other countries

[claudiouk]

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20070515/tpl-us-health-government-politics-
10170b4.html

More surprising UK ranking good, yet here we think we're in crisis.
We think France, for instance, is better looked after..

[FairfieldLife] VOOMM Memo (was: Re: Pundits to change salt into sugar)

[claudiouk]

I think MMY has achieved his own goals - he has elaborated his 
teachings to a maximum degree of detail and (according to him) 
effectiveness; and he has "multiplied himself" in the thousands of 
devotees leading his organization, who really think and talk like him 
now and will carry on doing so when he dies. He will be leaving 
behind a skeleton of a Movement in terms of personnel and new centres 
embodying the whoile "architecture" of his teachings, in seed form.

He seems to have focused on this rather than building a fan base, a 
more widespread body of followers. His latest thinking seems to 
suggest that in future individuals will be catered for within 
structures arising from more "collective" projects - school systems, 
health programmes in this or that organization or country etc. Maybe 
this reflects the wider role of governments, multinationals etc in 
modern times - creating Church-like institutions nowadays may be less 
relevant. I personally think that is a mistake. Grassroot 
developments have a power and momentum of their own and he has opted 
to ignore that option altogether.

Regarding dysfunctional effects arising from MMY and his TMO & 
philosophy, clearly a lot of good, sincere people who got very 
involved initially suffered a huge letdown as MMY's course  of action 
and their own sincere convictions started to clash. A lot of ordinary 
meditators, including myself, never quite managed to see the point in 
much of what seemed UNNECESSARY self-inflicted problems, in attempts 
to persuade society and, in particular, governments and the 
intelligentzia. Even now I think the format of press conferences are 
most UNLIKELY to persuade the press, because no attempt is made to 
taylor the message to the audience and to make use of feedback to 
fine tune future communications.

On a more personal level, I have found the UNREALISTIC optimism of 
the message - capturing the fort/kingdom of heaven?Being first - 
meant that I put all my existential problems on hold. Meanwhile 
DECADES past by without much happening. Hence what was dysfunctional 
simply got worse!! From this experience I think the original message 
was incomplete and irresponsible. No wonder more vulnerable people 
got more seriously fucked up. It's a kind of abuse - of trust..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "markmeredith2002" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "llundrub"  wrote:
> >
> > I think when you guys start thinking there is a 'they' then the
> battle is 
> > lost.  There is no 'they' on Earth.  Conventionally there are 
people
> and 
> > cabals. If the Movement got sidetracked it was from people and 
cabals. 
> > Identify the people and the cabal and you can know why the 
Movement got 
> > where it is.  I think with MMY being a micromanager you'll find 
that
> there 
> > is a cabal of his top controllers who feed MMY information, often
> incorrect 
> > information, through fear, and then MMY adjests the scenario. 
Since
> things 
> > reported to him are not as they really are, MMY's decision cannot 
> > approximate reality. Simple really.  Every leader has a Rasputin.
> I'm pretty 
> > sure Bevan is as close to that as it gets. But there are others. 
> What is 
> > their motivation?  IMO Bevan's is ego.  It's pretty clear by all 
the
> puffed 
> > up hyperbole that he stuffs into every sentence. Thus ego is at 
the
> center 
> > of the Movement, alongside spirit. As in every spiritual 
endeavor. 
> Thus all 
> > those who worship the Movement, worship Bevan and the other
> henchmen, not 
> > just MMY.  I think Bevan has fucked the whole Movement up.  He is
> the only 
> > professional at the top with no actual skills besides 
pontification.
> 
> Yes, but MMY was the one who kicked out Jerry Jarvis, Walter Koch,
> Charlie Lutes and the original reality-based leaders of the movement
> (charlie was reality-based in terms of organization/policy) and put
> the younger and more emotionally and spiritually immature people in
> charge, most likely because they acted as solely as devoted yes 
men. 
> Some of them may be feeding false info to MMY, but I don't think he
> really has wanted to hear anything else for some time.
>

[FairfieldLife] Fairfield & enterprises

[claudiouk]

http://www.city-data.com/city/Fairfield-Iowa.html
found this data on Fairfield 
see declining crime, half-way down
interesting how MUM is only about the size of Fairfield High School.
whereas the MSofE is the largest primary/middle school 
Was just trying to see what kind of commercial enterprises are around, 
still with this idea - what could about 1,000 siddhas do commercially 
together, to sustain such a group - in Fairfield or anywhere really. A 
group of 1,000 would be more than enough for most countries in the 
world (eg UK only needs about 800).

[FairfieldLife] Re: Whole Brain Functioning - flaws of Unity

[claudiouk]

"Appear intelligent *compared to what*? " - just the fact that nature 
is lawful, orderly and consistent and thereby discoverable and 
predictable; but also that the "constants" in nature are so fienely 
tuned that even the tiniest numerical deviation and matter and energy 
would not develop or exist even. These qualities of the laws of 
nature point either to an underlying intelligence, as Hagelin argues, 
or to their chance emergence in the right ratios, in this particular 
universe (compared to the case in trillions of other parallel 
universes, where the ratios etc in the constants are "wrong" and no 
evolution of matter happens).

"what provided us with what intelligence we have in the first place"
Yes as we are part of nature - but still it is surprising the 
correspondence between our "models" and "nature", that our 
mathematics for instance, can be so incredibly accurate. Also amazing 
how the mere act of observation can alter outcomes in quantum 
experiments.

Regarding the question of "coverings" and "ignorance", it is all 
rather intriguing nevertheless, metaphorically. Children like peek-a-
boo games, psychological development involves discovering self, 
others and the boundaries inbetween; science is about "uncovering" 
laws of nature, we like mysteries, magic etc.. even mystical 
experience is about "revelation" etc. But existentially, especially 
concerning all the suffering in the universe, it's infuriating!

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> 
> > On the other hand this veil of ignorance & forgetting
> > implicated in the unified field itself (therefore preceding
> > karma and personal sin) might give rise to Laws of Nature
> > that themselves only APPEAR intelligent.
> 
> Appear intelligent *compared to what*? By what standard?
> 
> Human intelligence? Because one occasionally feels one
> could have pissed a smarter set of Laws of Nature, a
> universe in which one didn't have to go through all
> this convoluted, counterintuitive stuff to "remember"
> what one has supposedly "forgotten" but "always already
> knew"?
> 
> I'm in sympathy with you on that.
> 
> But these stupid Laws of Nature that condemn us to sin
> and suffering until we finally figure it out (or not)
> are what provided us with what intelligence we have in
> the first place, aren't they?
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Whole Brain Functioning - flaws of Unity

[claudiouk]

A lot of good points have been made about ways of handling suffering 
eg Marek's concerning putting the attention away from suffering, on 
attention itself - hence manage to transcend suffering; or by 
embracing suffering/demons eg Rory or Jim. I can see the wisdom in 
all this. Am also impressed with some of the reported experiences.

Raging against the clouds will not make the sun shine back any 
sooner. In the end we seem to have to do the rope trick in reverse - 
pretend the snake is just a rope. Become more immune to it at any 
rate. For instance raging anger needs to subside into indifference or 
equanimity, in order for us to transcend duality. This is where a 
leap of faith is required, at least before enlightenment - that this 
is not just wishful thinking, that goodness can and will overcome 
evil in the end.

However my focus was on the dynamics of Unity giving RISE to creation 
as discussed in recent webcast conferences - the rope/snake comment 
by MMY, the risposte by Hagelin concerning different perspectives of 
his Unity equations. And the inherent "covering" of ignorance and 
forgetfulness MMY noted between silence and dynamism.

So on the one hand we have the view of creation arising from the 
precise, sequential unfoldment of the Laws of Nature reputedly 
working "without problems" - excuse me, what about suffering, was my 
question. Where is the unifiedfield chart connecting physics with 
moral philosophy, karma etc? And what evidence is there in nature of 
moral values anyway? 

On the other hand this veil of ignorance & forgetting implicated in 
the unified field itself (therefore preceding karma and personal sin) 
might give rise to Laws of Nature that themselves only APPEAR 
intelligent. Some physicists believe for instance that there are 
multiple univereses and in this one the laws just so happen 
to "work", but the underlying process is still blind chance. Another 
take on the rope/snake analogy. 

God = mad, bad or a fool? Well maybe I've been a little too harsh 
here - sorry God..


--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "jim_flanegin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Rory Goff"  
> wrote:
> > YES! This is what I meant when I said there is a place inside 
> where 
> > the Purusha deeply hates and fears the Prakriti, and vice versa. 
> > Coming upon the Purusha's utterly helpless imprisonment within 
the 
> > bodymind-world-prakriti stymied me for a moment, as this seemed 
to 
> be 
> > the ultimate demonic Hell. Then I remembered the approach which 
> has 
> > generally worked for me in the past: When I meet a demon, I 
> embrace 
> > it. Since the demon here seemed to be the whole of physical 
> creation, 
> > I embraced it. Wow! Just under that horror of separation/hate was 
> the 
> > passionate Understanding of the intimacy of the world as my body, 
> as 
> > my LOVE!
> > 
> > *L*L*L*
> >
> This is a process I go through continually, and I find it the most 
> instructive to challenge and resolve those feelings of revulsion I 
> feel the strongest. It is easy for all of us to continue to love 
> that which we naturally love; babies, flowers, a blue sky, and yet 
> we are constantly given the opportunity, the sign-post, to be 
> pointed at those elements of Creation which we detest, simply 
> because that negative attraction is so strong, that when confronted 
> by it, we either reinforce our dislike of that, and in turn 
> reinforce our boundaries, literally, or find a way, a strategy, a 
> breakthrough on how to incorporate that which we have so disliked 
> and find that rather than it being the proverbial brick wall, 
behind 
> the brick wall, beyond that nasty person, that barking dog, that 
> sinful President, lies a doorway to infinitely greater and fuller 
> worlds. Not in a facile, "oh I forgive you" way that has been 
> mouthed emptily for so long, but rather a genuine acceptance and 
> full integration of that which challenges us so greatly, to the 
> point where an honest appraisal of ourselves has to be squarely 
> modified; we are not the nice person we think we are when faced 
with 
> such challenges presented to us on the silver platter of the 
Divine. 
> Rather, they bring out the worst in us, and it is then that the 
> golden opportunity occurs, to love that which we reject and find a 
> way to a greater self-definition of ourselves, enriching our lives 
> at the expense of nothing. What else is life, if not this?
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: ignorance is part of totality

[claudiouk]

"Ignorance is only apparent, it isn't real" - I know, fundamentally 
and philosophically this is supposed to be so and yes one can 
appreciate the "cleverness" in that magical trick - it's only a rope 
that appears like a snake etc; but experientially suffering is real 
enough. The deception then becomes not playful but unimaginably 
cruel. And there is just smugness in the philosophy, no real 
compassion, unfortunately. It's voyeurism on the part of the Self - 
witnessing like in a peep show, at safe distance, whilst the whole of 
creation is left languishing in despair..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Marek Reavis" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Quick comment below:
> 
> **
> 
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > "'So both diversification and unification ... when the two come 
to 
> > awareness then the hiding, the cover, also comes to awareness. So 
> the 
> > cover is uncovered." This is the mechanics of how we get 
suffering 
> > and the elimination of suffering. But suffering still dominates 
in 
> > the Relative, like a flowing river; the elimination of suffering 
is 
> > by contrast a drop by drop process, so on balance venturing into 
> the 
> > Relative is utter stupidity. There is something rather perverse 
in 
> > the idea that you have unity, diversity and the COVERING in the 
> first 
> > place. Why not unity, diversity and total CLARITY instead? That 
way 
> > unity is never lost whatever the experience in the relative, 
bliss 
> > overriding any possibility of suffering, and thus all would be 
> well. 
> > The cover that needs uncovering is the ROOT of suffering and it 
has 
> > nothing to do with our own karma after all!! It is a flaw in 
> Unity.. 
> > right? 
> > 
> > You say ignorance is part of totality - but totality INCLUDES non-
> > ignorance which you would expect to OVERWHELM ignorance. Whereas 
> the 
> > experience of Nature - apart from a few fortunate individuals 
here 
> > and there - is that non-ignorance has the upper hand. If the 
> > INTENTION is to expand happiness via the Relative these mechanics 
> > simply insure that the outcome inevitably is a FAILURE!! One has 
to 
> > question, therefore, the intelligence or sanity at the root of 
> > creation.. 
> > 
> **snip to end**
> 
> But that's the glory of Maya; somehow the boundless, timeless, 
> nothing-else-but-that, " forgets". Somehow it appears as if we have 
> forgotten who we are (even though we never do and never have).  
> Ignorance is only apparent, it isn't real; it just seems real at 
the 
> time.  But you are outside of time; you just "think" that you've 
> forgotten.
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: ignorance is part of totality

[claudiouk]

"'So both diversification and unification ... when the two come to 
awareness then the hiding, the cover, also comes to awareness. So the 
cover is uncovered." This is the mechanics of how we get suffering 
and the elimination of suffering. But suffering still dominates in 
the Relative, like a flowing river; the elimination of suffering is 
by contrast a drop by drop process, so on balance venturing into the 
Relative is utter stupidity. There is something rather perverse in 
the idea that you have unity, diversity and the COVERING in the first 
place. Why not unity, diversity and total CLARITY instead? That way 
unity is never lost whatever the experience in the relative, bliss 
overriding any possibility of suffering, and thus all would be well. 
The cover that needs uncovering is the ROOT of suffering and it has 
nothing to do with our own karma after all!! It is a flaw in Unity.. 
right? 

You say ignorance is part of totality - but totality INCLUDES non-
ignorance which you would expect to OVERWHELM ignorance. Whereas the 
experience of Nature - apart from a few fortunate individuals here 
and there - is that non-ignorance has the upper hand. If the 
INTENTION is to expand happiness via the Relative these mechanics 
simply insure that the outcome inevitably is a FAILURE!! One has to 
question, therefore, the intelligence or sanity at the root of 
creation.. 

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "george_deforest" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> > claudiouk wrote:
> >
> > "constantly crossing and recrossing the gap of ignorance" 
> > might imply therefore that something is lacking in UNITY?
> > Never saw the sense of the purpose of life as 
> > "expansion of happiness" by going into ignorance..
> > if the happiness is in the return to Unity,
> > why wander off in the first place??
> 
> Maharishi discusses this very point (abstractly) in his
> recent commentary on the cognition of Madhuchandas:
> 
> 'Immediately what Madhuchandas saw when he saw -- one is two. 
> What he saw? One is not only two, but there is a third element. 
> What came to the sight of Madhuchandas? He saw something that was
> hidden from view. The two were hidden from view. They were existing 
> in the 'A', in the flow, but not known.
> 
> 'Now he saw silence and dynamism at the same time. At the same time
> he saw the third value which was hiding 'I' from 'A', and hiding 
> 'A' from 'I' -- those two values, silence and dynamism. 
> One was hiding the other.
> 
> 'So when he saw 'I' is unfolding 'A', bringing 'A' to consciousness,
> to awareness, so 'A' comes to awareness which was hidden so far,
> and 'I' comes to awareness which was hidden so far. So when the two
> come to awareness then the hiding, the cover also comes to 
awareness.
> So the cover is uncovered.
> 
> 'So he saw not only silence and dynamism but he saw that the 
covering
> of silence and dynamism is over, so the third element he also saw. 
> He saw the Chandas. So Rishi, Devata, and Chandas. 'A' stands as 
> a unified wholeness of Rishi, Devata, Chandas.
> 
> 'This is how step by step, through sequential steps, unfoldment of
> diversity commences ... 
> 
> 
> 'To know what variety is, we have to know Unity and we have to know
> how Unity is composed as Unity of many values, and that we know when
> we are able to take out the units of variety and put them back in
> Unity again.
> 
> 'So both diversification and unification ...
> 
> 
> selections snipped from "First Seer of the Veda" at:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/message/138961
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Whole Brain Functioning - flaws of Unity

[claudiouk]

Both of you are looking at the Relative in a rather upbeat way, 
perhaps reflecting transient (for most mortals) blissful moods (maybe 
states or permanent stations in your cases??). Doesn't help the 
wilderbeast being tormented to death by lions or some innocent 16-
year old in Pakistan having acid thrown in her face because in love 
with a Hindu or not wearing full Islamic dress. Take a snapshot of 
the WHOLE of Nature and all there is, 99.99 of it, is suffering. So 
where is the expansion of happiness in that? Maybe the flaw in Unity 
is an inherent madness - well, who would NOT go mad in total 
isolation? Put anyone in solitary confinement with sensory 
deprivation and they will hallucinate and create nightmares for 
themselves. That's the real story perhaps - a madness without cure. 
It goes on FOREVER because even when it transcends time it ends up 
recreating it all over again. There is no sense in a creation which 
just gives suffering to everyone. Either God is mad, bad or just a 
fool - so much (supposed) intelligence in the geometry and sequence 
of laws of nature but then making a total mess with the experiment. 
There are states of matter, because of laws of nature, which are not 
permissable. For instance H2O, at a given temperature and pressure, 
is always water. If Unity truly wanted to expand happiness also in 
every phase of the Relative, all you'd need is some corollary laws 
concerning suffering. Make one step towards goodness, Unity etc = 1 
million times stronger than one step towards badness, anti-Unity. 
Then Unity can safely wander into diversity without resulting in 
suffering for no-one. That is what MMY says is going to happen NOW, 
right? So why not have that as an invariable law in the first place? 
We would be deprived of many experiences yes - but do you mind 
terribly if you don't taste the experience of being a torturer? or a 
victim of torture? What about free will? Where is the free will when 
all the probabilities are stacked in favour of you ending up 
suffering, even when you chose bliss? Sorry, but there IS a flaw with 
Unity and the supposed "expansion" of happiness via the Relative. 
I've never seen a convincing argument to the contrary... Wish there 
was one though!!

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Marek Reavis" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> "I" sees through both "my" eyes.  I sees through all 100 trillion 
> eyes on this planet.  So what's the use of yet another pair of eyes 
> to see with, unless it's to check out what the binocular 
perspective 
> from that moving point in the universe is like.  
> 
> Being yet one more hot squidge of granodiorite cooling off in some 
> crack in the mantle 70 miles below Mt. Shasta is just another way 
to 
> experience what Is, too.  Or moving into a garden apartment in 
> Sitges, busking on the sidewalks in DC, walking the trails in 
> Fairfield, pounding out more code in San Jose, or offering flowers 
to 
> the lotus feet of another monkey that looks more like me than I do 
> myself.
> 
> It's all play.  Just wonderful, tragic, frustrating, sad, tedious 
and 
> exquisite play.
> 
> Have to say that FFL seems particularly sweet this morning. Thanks 
> for that.
> 
> **
> 
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Rory Goff"  
> wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> > >
> > > "constantly crossing and recrossing the gap of ignorance" might 
> imply 
> > > therefore that something is lacking in UNITY? Never saw the 
sense 
> of 
> > > the purpose of life as "expansion of happiness" by going into 
> > > ignorance.. if the happiness is in the return to Unity, why 
> wander 
> > > off in the first place??
> > 
> > Because happiness is the return to Unity, enriched by the 
> experience of 
> > non-Unity. How else can we "expand happiness" except by moving it 
> into 
> > where it (apparently) wasn't? How can we learn and grow if not 
> through 
> > creation, through stories? Now on the other hand, if you wish to 
> say 
> > that in truth we *don't* actually learn or grow, that Isness is 
all 
> > there ever Is, you'll get no real argument from me! :-)
> >
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Whole Brain Functioning

[claudiouk]

"constantly crossing and recrossing the gap of ignorance" might imply 
therefore that something is lacking in UNITY? Never saw the sense of 
the purpose of life as "expansion of happiness" by going into 
ignorance.. if the happiness is in the return to Unity, why wander 
off in the first place??

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Rory Goff" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "jim_flanegin"  
> wrote:
> >> Hi Rory, good to hear from you. Your perspective is always a 
> > refreshing and profound one. I find it delightfully paradoxical 
that 
> > we as humans, as the perfect agents of the Divine, serve Him and 
Her 
> > best by finding ourselves first ignorant and then taking the 
journey 
> > to enlightenment, over and over again, as if God Himself and 
Herself 
> > wants to experience that joy and agony of discovery and 
rediscovery 
> > infinitely.
> >
> Yes, precisely, Jim; many thanks! That's what I was trying to get 
at 
> with the stitching image -- constantly crossing and recrossing the 
gap 
> of ignorance, constantly encountering the not-self and re-membering 
it 
> as self, suturing sutras of self-recognition. We manifest because 
we 
> love to tell ourselves stories, and we love stories so much we are 
> tempted to believe in them, and that's where the suffering seems to 
> creep in...when we forget it's "only a movie" and start to take our 
> subtitles as gospel :-)
>

[FairfieldLife] Blair will stand down on 27 June

[claudiouk]

So will Britain now be forgiven???
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6639945.stm

[FairfieldLife] Re: The recent MU conference webcast

[claudiouk]

Your comment Judy - especially in view of the posting limit 
predicament, which is unfortunate - was greatly appreciated. You are 
right, I'm not expecting a leopard to change its spots.. just getting 
things off my chest occasionally helps..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
wrote:
> >
> > "I think you are very brave to freely think these thoughts and 
> > publish them." You are getting me worried - maybe that explains 
why 
> > hardly anyone seems to be responding to my posts lately, apart 
from 
> > yourself.
> 
> Remember the new posting limits. Folks may be
> reluctant to use one of their posts to say
> they agree with what someone else has said
> unless they have something significant to add.
> 
> They're probably *more* likely to speak up if
> they disagree, so silence may be a good sign,
> although it can be disconcerting. One of the
> unfortunate consequences of posting limits is
> a reduction in feedback.
> 
> As long as I'm using one of my posts to make
> this observation, I'll add that I think your
> points were quite valid, but that we ain't likely
> to see any improvements anytime soon.
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Whole Brain Functioning

[claudiouk]

I agree - the essential message about coherence and the use of the 
whole brain and its effects on student health, learning readiness and 
improved performance is all very impressive. Add to that the 
Maharishi Effect on the social environment and yes the introduction 
of TM in schools, along with unifiedfield charts as suggested, is 
surely the most radical and profound educational innovation ever. I 
think Dr. Dean's talks to educators around the world clearly have an 
impact - he's one of them, talks about HIS school, etc. Whereas 
Hagelin, MMY & Morris dwell too much on esoteric details that might 
distract from the essential message. Just an opinion..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "suziezuzie" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> From: "claudiouk"  
> Date: Wed May 9, 2007 2:28 pm 
> Subject: recent conference webcast doubts  claudiouk 
>  Offline 
>  Send Email 
>  Invite to Yahoo! 360°  
>   Is there ever a real audience present I wonder, of non-
meditators. 
> In
> the middle of listening to the live conference - MMY speaking at the
> moment. Just listening for my own benefit it's OK I guess - I'm
> keeping in touch with developments; occasionally there is something
> new or that makes more sense; but mostly seems too repetive - heard
> it all before etc. So for instance today the theme is about
> consciousness based education developing the whole brain. 
>  
> In the middle of a meditation, I experienced pure consciousness and 
> then realized that this was because the neurons in the brain were 
all 
> functioning as a whole, together and that this was its' ultimate 
> purpose. I can understand now why MMY keeps saying this over and 
> over, because if you think about it, what could be more 
significant? 
> Life until then is the fragmented use of the brain, different parts 
> doing different things but imagine the idea of 1 trillion neurons, 
> 100 percent, funtioning collectively to create pure consciousness.
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: The recent MU conference webcast

[claudiouk]

"I think you are very brave to freely think these thoughts and 
publish them." You are getting me worried - maybe that explains why 
hardly anyone seems to be responding to my posts lately, apart from 
yourself. So thanks for the support.. So you think I'm being 
blacklisted somewhere? Actually I did have a scary exchange a few 
years back. I posted something (OK, it was "critical") and I received 
an email from this guy who said I'd go to hell because of my views. 
At least nothing like that has happened since! 


--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "dhamiltony2k5" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> >wrote:
> >
> > Is there ever a real audience present I wonder, of non-
meditators. 
> >In 
> > the middle of listening to the live conference - MMY speaking at 
> >the 
> > moment. Just listening for my own benefit it's OK I guess - I'm 
> > keeping in touch with developments; occasionally there is 
something 
> > new or that makes more sense; but mostly seems too repetive - 
heard 
> > it all before etc. So for instance today the theme is about 
> > consciousness based education developing the whole brain. There 
is 
> > lots of interesting stuff, but one would like to see more a 
> > documentary approach - seeing snipets of real lessons, pupil 
views, 
> > more examples of how non-scientific subjects are represented in 
the 
> > unified field charts etc.
> > 
> > But then I think what if I were an educator attending such a 
> > conference for the very first time and having never heard of TM 
or 
> > the unified field even.. These presentations supposedly are to 
> > attract interest in what is on offer. However(a) now the problem 
is 
> > that there is SO MUCH information that is relevant but will be 
> > COMPLETELY new to the audience; (b) how to present this in a way 
> >that 
> > will make most sense to THEM, so that in spite of their natural 
> > misgivings they can relate to the message and see its value; and
(c) 
> > what is it they NEED practically to go away afterwards with 
> >concrete 
> > examples and strategies for communicating their understanding AND 
> > persuading authorities to take this innovation more seriously.
> > 
> > I really don't think that the format of these presentations is 
> >likely 
> > to favour such outcomes. Firstly Haglin's equations are barely 
> > understandable by people familiar with his talks and are 
> > incomprehensible to educators even in the science disciplines. 
> >Their 
> > natural reaction would be deefensive - well that's YOUR 
> > interpretation (and they are right). Secondly MMY comes in and 
> >spends 
> > ages going round in obscure circles this time from the 
perspective 
> >of 
> > Veda - usually one remembers AH and BRUM because repeated a lot, 
> >but 
> > otherwise complete beginners would have NO IDEA about what the 
> >Vedic 
> > tradition is - most educators these days don't even know much 
about 
> > their own Bible (if Christian). So after hearing a long 
> > winded "mathematical" discussion they don't unders have to endure 
> > Maharishi's Vedic take, another alien element. The Morris comes 
in 
> > and instead of relating what has been said to the audience's 
needs 
> > simply punishes them with another REPEAT of the previous 
speakers' 
> > main points. 
> > 
> > Personally I think the TMO would benefit ENORMOUSLY from 
> >focus groups 
> > for each sector of society they wish to engage with. 
> 
> >Unfortunately 
> >they see no value from feedback whatsoever, seeing wisdom an up-
down 
>  >process only!!
> > 
> > Even with the Central University plan why would students from the 
> > SAME State want to spend all their time with fellow citizens, in 
> > segregated campuses - the whole point of a university is to mix 
> >with 
> > others from different backgrounds and gain something extra from 
the 
> > cross-fertilization. NOBODY has bothered to look at it from the 
> >point 
> > of view of the STUDENT.
> > 
> > No surprise then that these conferences pay no attention to the 
> >point 
> > of view of the AUDIENCE!!!
> > 
> 
> Yes, honest blasphemy Claudiouk.  I listen to the broadcasts too 
from 
> the local MUM radio in my shop for the same reasons & often wonder 
> the similar things that you do here.  
> 
> Many may dare not too freely express what you are here for fear of 
> being found 'negative' by some friends here.  That is the dynamics 
of 
> being in the meditator community here.  I think you are very brave 
to 
> freely think these thoughts and publish them.
> 
> -Doug in FF
> 
> >Unfortunately 
> >they see no value from feedback whatsoever, seeing wisdom an up-
down 
>  >process only!!
>

[FairfieldLife] recent conference webcast doubts

[claudiouk]

Is there ever a real audience present I wonder, of non-meditators. In 
the middle of listening to the live conference - MMY speaking at the 
moment. Just listening for my own benefit it's OK I guess - I'm 
keeping in touch with developments; occasionally there is something 
new or that makes more sense; but mostly seems too repetive - heard 
it all before etc. So for instance today the theme is about 
consciousness based education developing the whole brain. There is 
lots of interesting stuff, but one would like to see more a 
documentary approach - seeing snipets of real lessons, pupil views, 
more examples of how non-scientific subjects are represented in the 
unified field charts etc.

But then I think what if I were an educator attending such a 
conference for the very first time and having never heard of TM or 
the unified field even.. These presentations supposedly are to 
attract interest in what is on offer. However(a) now the problem is 
that there is SO MUCH information that is relevant but will be 
COMPLETELY new to the audience; (b) how to present this in a way that 
will make most sense to THEM, so that in spite of their natural 
misgivings they can relate to the message and see its value; and (c) 
what is it they NEED practically to go away afterwards with concrete 
examples and strategies for communicating their understanding AND 
persuading authorities to take this innovation more seriously.

I really don't think that the format of these presentations is likely 
to favour such outcomes. Firstly Haglin's equations are barely 
understandable by people familiar with his talks and are 
incomprehensible to educators even in the science disciplines. Their 
natural reaction would be deefensive - well that's YOUR 
interpretation (and they are right). Secondly MMY comes in and spends 
ages going round in obscure circles this time from the perspective of 
Veda - usually one remembers AH and BRUM because repeated a lot, but 
otherwise complete beginners would have NO IDEA about what the Vedic 
tradition is - most educators these days don't even know much about 
their own Bible (if Christian). So after hearing a long 
winded "mathematical" discussion they don't unders have to endure 
Maharishi's Vedic take, another alien element. The Morris comes in 
and instead of relating what has been said to the audience's needs 
simply punishes them with another REPEAT of the previous speakers' 
main points. 

Personally I think the TMO would benefit ENORMOUSLY from focus groups 
for each sector of society they wish to engage with. Unfortunately 
they see no value from feedback whatsoever, seeing wisdom an up-down 
process only!!

Even with the Central University plan why would students from the 
SAME State want to spend all their time with fellow citizens, in 
segregated campuses - the whole point of a university is to mix with 
others from different backgrounds and gain something extra from the 
cross-fertilization. NOBODY has bothered to look at it from the point 
of view of the STUDENT.

No surprise then that these conferences pay no attention to the point 
of view of the AUDIENCE!!!



tand in terms of

[FairfieldLife] 2000 strong enterprise idea

[claudiouk]

Supposing we wanted to create self-sustaining large yogic flying 
groups of 400, 1000, 2000, or maximum 10,000 - without government 
involvement and support.. what kind of enterprises would be suitable 
for such a project? I'm not myself into business so wouldn't really 
have a clue. I did have the idea of a free newspaper for London some 
years ago - relying on ads, printing news from other sources plus 
occasional features - including ones on TM - sparingly - hence free 
publicity, reaching a huge audience. But now there are three free 
papers in the capital, competing with each other. 

Did you have ideas for such an enterprise or come across any from 
friends? MMY seems to have opted for educational establishments, 
agriculture, MAV clinics and products, pandit services etc. But no 
manufacturing, assembly, information, distribution or service 
enterprises and wonder why not.

Or maybe he tried these without success already? Shame that MIU/MUM 
never came out with any invention or innovation (eg more efficient 
solar panel or internet breakthrough) that could have provided the 
necessary funds for all the TMO projects. 

[FairfieldLife] do watch this!

[claudiouk]

Myths about the developing world (with INCREDIBLE graphics)!!
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4237353244338529080&q=genre%
3Adocumentary+duration%3Along
With the drama and urgency of a sportscaster, Hans Rosling debunks a 
few myths about the "developing" world. Rosling is professor of 
international health at Sweden's world-renowned Karolinska Institute, 
and founder of Gapminder, a non-profit organization that brings vital 
global data to life. (Recorded February 2006 in Monterey, CA. Duration: 
20:35

ps - the kind of graphics the TMO should adopt perhaps in global good 
news developments?

[FairfieldLife] Scientific Verification of Vedic Knowledge - video

[claudiouk]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7678538942425297587&q=vedic

[FairfieldLife] Deadly tornado hits Kansas

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6628613.stm

anywhere near Central Uni???

[FairfieldLife] God machine

[claudiouk]

http://www.slate.com/id/2165004/
How to wire your brain for religious ecstasy. By John Horgan
Posted Thursday, April 26, 2007, at 7:19 AM ET 

Eight years ago, I flew to Laurentian University in Midwestern Canada 
to test a gadget that some journalists called the "God machine." The 
device consisted of computer-controlled solenoids that fit over the 
skull and stimulate the brain with electromagnetic pulses. Its 
inventor, neuroscientist Michael Persinger, claimed that it could 
induce mystical experiences, including, as Wired magazine put it, 
visions of "Jesus, the Virgin Mary, Mohammed, the Sky Spirit." 

I sat in a ratty armchair in a soundproof chamber and pulled the God 
machine onto my head as, outside the chamber, a graduate student 
tapped a computer keyboard. As he bombarded my brain with 
electromagnetic bursts patterned after brain waves of epileptics in 
the throes of religious visions, I waited for God or even a minor 
deity or demon to appear—in vain. Persinger told me later that the 
device doesn't work on skeptics, implying that it "works" merely by 
exploiting subjects' suggestibility. 

Persinger is one of the more colorful characters in the fast-growing, 
flakey field of neurotheology, which studies what is arguably the 
most complex manifestation—spirituality—of the most complex 
phenomenon—the human brain—known to science. Given that brain 
researchers have no idea how I conceived and typed this sentence, I 
doubt they will ever account for religious experiences in all their 
vast diversity and subtlety. Nor will they solve the riddle of 
whether God actually exists or is a figment of our evolved 
imaginations, like unicorns or superstrings. Neurotheology may 
nonetheless have a profound social impact, by yielding more potent, 
reliable methods of inducing spiritual experiences.

Surveys suggest that only about one in three people has ever had a 
mystical experience, defined by one poll as the sensation of "a 
powerful spiritual force that seemed to lift you out of yourself." 
Humans have long sought such experiences through meditation, yoga, 
prayer, guru-worship, fasting, and flagellation, but these methods 
are unreliable, notes James Austin, author of Zen and the Brain, one 
of the best books on neurotheology. Austin hopes that neurotheology 
will eventually yield much more potent, precise methods of inducing 
transcendent experiences, from fleeting feelings of connectedness all 
the way up to "the full moon of enlightenment." Persinger's God 
machine may not have done much for me, but here's a brief status 
report on four mystical technologies with potential:

Mystical Brain Chips

In the 1950s, Canadian neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield, while preparing 
epileptic patients for surgery, stimulated their exposed brains with 
electrodes. Some patients heard voices or music and saw apparitions 
when their temporal lobes were stimulated. Upon learning about 
Penfield's experiments, Aldous Huxley wrote: "Is there, one wonders, 
some area in the brain from which the probing electrode could elicit 
Blake's Cherubim?"

One still wonders. A Swiss team recently induced out-of-body 
experiences in an epileptic patient about to undergo surgery by 
stimulating her right angular gyrus, which underpins spatial 
awareness. Other groups have shown that implanted electrodes can 
trigger euphoria, and in fact they are now being tested as treatments 
for severe depression (as well as paralysis, tremors, and epilepsy). 
In principle, implants would provide the most precise, powerful means 
of inducing religious ecstasy. Indeed, self-described "Wireheads" 
look forward to the day when these devices will vanquish mental 
suffering and deliver ecstasy on demand. But for now, this technology—
which requires inserting wires into the brain through holes drilled 
in the skull—remains too risky for all but the most desperate 
patients. 

Magic Wands

Transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS, is noninvasive and hence 
safer and easier to test than implants. Researchers have reported 
success in treating depression and other disorders with this method, 
which often employs electromagnetic "wands" as well as headsets. 
Persinger insists that TMS, properly used, can also induce intense 
mystical experiences.

A group at Uppsala University has tried and failed to replicate 
Persinger's results in a controlled, double-blind experiment. Todd 
Murphy, a neuroscientist who has worked with Persinger, is 
nonetheless marketing a version of the God machine called 
the "Shakti" (a Hindu term for divinity), which according to Murphy's 
Web site "uses magnetic fields to create altered states."

Tweaking the God Gene

The work of Dean Hamer, a geneticist at the National Cancer 
Institute, raises the prospect of genetically engineered mystics. 
Hamer claims to have found a gene associated with "self-
transcendence" or "spirituality" in a group of 1,000 subjects who 
filled out surveys that probed their beliefs in God, ESP, and s

[FairfieldLife] Re: This guy Girish is creepy

[claudiouk]

"Dr Girish Chandra Varma, Director-General of the Maharishi World 
Capital of Peace at the Brahmasthan of India, performs Vedic Puja to 
inaugurate Raam Nomi, Brahmasthan of India, 27-29 March 2007"

I thought it was only proper pandits who were supposed to do Vedic 
pujas etc.. Is Girish a Brahmin, where MMY is not?

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "dhamiltony2k5" 
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk"  
> >wrote:
> >
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk" 
 
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > 
> > > Is this ...
> > > 
> > > http://tinyurl.com/2pgkuf 
> > > 
> > > ... the same guy as this:
> > > 
> > > http://tinyurl.com/2l72eu 
> > > 
> > > If so, he's one creepy bastard!  I think he fashions himself a 
> > Maharishi
> > > and can't wait for his uncle to die so that he can take a shot 
at
> > > sitting on the deer skin.
> > > 
> > > Anyone getting a similar vibe?
> > 
> > 
> > Boys and girls: can you say..."scism"?
> >
> 
> 
> 
> Girish! Girish! Girish! If Maharishi can't do it, Girishji can!
>

[FairfieldLife] central university - germany

[claudiouk]

just heard they are hoping to buy the land used previously for US base, 
in Berlin. But Berlin is not "central" Germany, surely... I suppose 
there would be no point having a Central University in Siberia 
somewhere, for Russia either. But then the whole concept 
of "centrality" is somehow flawed then..

Don't see how all  these universities around the world are going to 
find students either. Years ago they tried to start a uni in the UK but 
it was a flop.. Universities are costly things to set up - libraries, 
halls of residence, laboratories, academic staff salaries etc. You need 
all that BEFORE students can be confident enough to invest their own 
resources in this institution instead of somewhere else..

Maybe MMY hopes something SOMEWHERE will work out at the cost of many 
failures and that this is good enough for him?

[FairfieldLife] Re: status of women in Global Country

[claudiouk]

I have two daughters myself - have been a very involved father, 
finding parenting a learning, rewarding and sublime experience in its 
own right. I want my daughters to have equal opportunities in the 
world of work. The female contribution in the workplace nowadays is 
essential both technically and in terms of their "people" skills; 
equally, the most significant factor in the rise of children's 
psychological and behavioural problems often relates to emotionally 
absent fathers rather than mothers.. Restricting the VISION of the 
female function in society to that of a MOTHER, whilst perhaps 
understandable in a hunter-gathering or early agricultural community, 
makes NO SENSE in a post-industrial society where families typically 
have much fewer children and females have important career 
contributions to make before and after having children. I personally 
would be horrified if my daughters had to live in a Global Country 
where the ideal was not that different from what the Talibans 
consider most noble for their women - namely, having no civic rights 
at all!! Surely what we all need is CHOICE and better QUALITY, 
whatever that choice might be.

So yes, I'm STILL puzzled why these clearly REGRESSIVE developments 
don't bother meditators more..

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>
>  
> In a message dated 4/29/07 3:33:04 A.M. Central Daylight Time,  
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> 
> So maybe  the 
> next thing would be to deny females higher education (avert the  
> danger principle), apart from classes for learning to cook Vedic 
> food,  handle re-usable Vedic dipers, master alternate breast 
feeding 
> techniques,  baby yoga etc, all skillfully accomplished under 
layers 
> of invisibility  cloathing..
> 
> "Steps have been taken to establish an institution of  higher 
> education for a group of 100 ladies, where they will be engaged in  
> curriculae for mothers at home, to nourish their children, their  
> families, and their nation by nourishing themselvesâ€"gaining 
higher  
> states of consciousness through Maharishi's programmes. "
> 
_http://www.globalgohttp://www.http://www.ghttp://wwwhttp://www.globah
t_ 
> (http://www.globalgoodnews.com/world-peace-a.html?
rt=117761870716553626) 
> 
> Nobody  seems bothered - strange...
> 
> 
> 
> Sounds wonderful and noble. Intrusting the care and nurturing of 
the next  
> generation with those that have the most refined experiences while 
the men slug  
> it out in the mud.
> 
> 
> 
> ** See what's free at 
http://www.aol.com.
>

[FairfieldLife] status of women in Global Country

[claudiouk]

All the leaders in the Movement now are men - unlike the early days 
when there were as many female initiators. No female Raja equivalents 
are in prominence - except as Raja companions, described as "mothers" 
of a domain. Vedic ideas about the role of women were based on a pre-
industrial society more in tune with the Taliban ideal.. So maybe the 
next thing would be to deny females higher education (avert the 
danger principle), apart from classes for learning to cook Vedic 
food, handle re-usable Vedic dipers, master alternate breast feeding 
techniques, baby yoga etc, all skillfully accomplished under layers 
of invisibility cloathing..

"Steps have been taken to establish an institution of higher 
education for a group of 100 ladies, where they will be engaged in 
curriculae for mothers at home, to nourish their children, their 
families, and their nation by nourishing themselves—gaining higher 
states of consciousness through Maharishi's programmes. "
http://www.globalgoodnews.com/world-peace-a.html?rt=117761870716553626

Nobody seems bothered - strange...

[FairfieldLife] immortality, from incoherence?

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/6599041.stm

By contrast, MMY is sounding increasingly much older than his years. So 
much so that lately on Maharishi Channel only a picture of him appears 
as he speaks and he sounds as if he's on his last legs, voice croaking 
and memory failing. Or is he? Don't know what Iggy Pop looks & sounds 
like now, by comparison. Anyone does?

Anyway, both are immortal.. so far..

[FairfieldLife] quantum coherence in plants ..

[claudiouk]

http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.php?feed=Science&article=UPI-1-
20070412-13515700-bc-us-energytransfer.xml

U.S. scientists have discovered how, through photosynthesis, solar 
energy is transferred across molecular systems with nearly 100-
percent efficiency.

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley 
National Laboratory and the University of California-Berkeley say the 
answer lies in quantum mechanics.

The scientists found speed is the key for green plants and 
cyanobacteria to be able to transfer sunlight energy to molecular 
reaction centers for conversion into chemical energy, with the 
transfer occurring nearly instantaneously so little energy is wasted 
as heat.

"We have obtained the first direct evidence that remarkably long-
lived wavelike electronic quantum coherence plays an important part 
in energy transfer processes during photosynthesis," said Graham 
Fleming, principal investigator for the study. "This wavelike 
characteristic can explain the extreme efficiency of the energy 
transfer because it enables the system to simultaneously sample all 
the potential energy pathways and choose the most efficient one."

Fleming, deputy director of Berkeley Lab, and colleagues Gregory 
Engel, Tessa Calhoun, Elizabeth Read, Tae-Kyu Ahn, Tomas Mancal, Yuan-
Chung Cheng, and Robert Blankenship, report their findings in the 
current issue of the journal Nature.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International. All Rights Reserved.

[FairfieldLife] 'Kryptonite' discovered in mine

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6584229.stm
 
'Kryptonite' discovered in mine 

Kryptonite is no longer just the stuff of fiction feared by caped 
superheroes. A new mineral matching its unique chemistry - as 
described in the film Superman Returns - has been identified in a 
mine in Serbia. 

According to movie and comic-book storylines, kryptonite is supposed 
to sap Superman's powers whenever he is exposed to its large green 
crystals. 

The real mineral is white and harmless, says Dr Chris Stanley, a 
mineralogist at London's Natural History Museum. 

"I'm afraid it's not green and it doesn't glow either - although it 
will react to ultraviolet light by fluorescing a pinkish-orange," he 
told BBC News. 

Rock heist 

Researchers from mining group Rio Tinto discovered the unusual 
mineral and enlisted the help of Dr Stanley when they could not match 
it with anything known previously to science. 

Once the London expert had unravelled the mineral's chemical make-up, 
he was shocked to discover this formula was already referenced in 
literature - albeit fictional literature. 

"Towards the end of my research I searched the web using the 
mineral's chemical formula - sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide -
 and was amazed to discover that same scientific name, written on a 
case of rock containing kryptonite stolen by Lex Luther from a museum 
in the film Superman Returns. 

"The new mineral does not contain fluorine (which it does in the 
film) and is white rather than green but, in all other respects, the 
chemistry matches that for the rock containing kryptonite." 

The mineral is relatively hard but is very small grained. Each 
individual crystal is less than five microns (millionths of a metre) 
across. 

Elementary clash 

Identifying its atomic structure required sophisticated analytical 
facilities at Canada's National Research Council and the assistance 
and expertise of its researchers, Dr Pamela Whitfield and Dr Yvon Le 
Page. 

"'Knowing a material's crystal structure means scientists can 
calculate other physical properties of the material, such as its 
elasticity or thermochemical properties," explained Dr Le Page. 

"Being able to analyse all the properties of a mineral, both chemical 
and physical, brings us closer to confirming that it is indeed 
unique." 

Finding out that the chemical composition of a material was an exact 
match to an invented formula for the fictitious kryptonite "was the 
coincidence of a lifetime," he added. 

The mineral cannot be called kryptonite under international 
nomenclature rules because it has nothing to do with krypton - a real 
element in the Periodic Table that takes the form of a gas. 

Power possibilities 

Instead, it will be formally named Jadarite when it is described in 
the European Journal of Mineralogy later this year. 

Jadar is the name of the place where the Serbian mine is located. 

Dr Stanley said that if deposits occurred in sufficient quantity it 
could have some commercial value. 

It contains boron and lithium and two valuable elements with many 
applications, he explained. 

"Borosilicate glasses are used to encapsulate processed radioactive 
waste, and lithium is used in batteries and in the pharmaceutical 
industries." 


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/sci/tech/6584229.stm

Published: 2007/04/24 02:46:51 GMT

© BBC MMVII

[FairfieldLife] any good yogic flying videos?

[claudiouk]

interesting end in
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOW2wIFhioo

interesting "beginning":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-jRqM3hCJc


tried sending this before but seems to have flown away altogether...

[FairfieldLife] Re: Guns don't kill people, the lack of guns kill people

[claudiouk]

Jews in WW2, liberation movements & guns.. maybe that was the only 
way THEN? Don't think we should encourage people to have guns.. 
Governments have better guns, organization & oppressive apparatus 
anyway. The Palestinians tried to use violence to help their cause - 
personally I think it did NOT help their cause. However it is true 
that you need SENSITIVE government/international opinion to RESPOND 
to news of injustices and atrocities in an APPROPRIATE way; otherwise 
everyone ends up CONDONING and ENCOURAGING further injustices and 
atrocities.

There is NO DOUBT that the USA & Europe have NOT been even handed in 
the Israeli-Arab conflict, for example.

Just allowing people to arm themselves to fight real or imaginary 
oppression is NOT the answer, in my humble opinion. Gandhi was 
inspirational because he defeated the world power of his age with NON-
VIOLENCE!

I can see situations where there is no Gandhi equivalent about and 
more urgent/violent means need to be adopted, but there is always 
then the danger that the forces of liberation transform into new 
forces of oppression - eg the Russian revolution, Zimbabue etc..

But returning to the US scenario - I CAN'T see any justification for 
people holding on to arms. They would NOT stop an undemocratic "coup" 
or restore democracy through violence. Governments these days are 
just TOO powerful. International SOLIDARITY, in the face of gross 
oppression & injustice, might be more successful.

If MMY is right the way ahead is NOT through arming people with guns, 
but arming them with finer CONSCIOUSNESS anyway

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "claudiouk"  
> wrote:
> >
> > http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6567329.stm
> > 
> > guns, bombs = means of destruction
> > 32 killed in US - terrible - a mad guy perhaps
> > over 100 killed DAILY in Iraq - horrific - an insane situation 
for 
> > sure
> > 
> > Is there a parallel? Gun laws don't help; neither do endless 
> Hollywod 
> > movies and internet games "glorifying" violence; or the ways 
> > prisoners are treated in US prisons or how suspects treated by 
> police 
> > (no wonder Iraqi prisoners get abused - almost "normal" 
treatment).
> > 
> > Unfortunately UK having wave of gun and knife gang-led murders as 
> > well. West Side Story rather prophetic.. 
> > 
> > Lack of guns kill people? well, knives can kill too...
> 
> 
> Yeah, pretty much the point I was trying to get at.  Also:
> 
> 1) 150 million people died in holocausts in the 20th century. Many 
of 
> those killed were people specifically targeted, prior to their 
> murder, with gun REMOVAL, such as gun laws in Nazi Germany that 
> prohibited Jews from having guns or peasants in communist countries 
> from having guns.  And when the State came for them, they were 
> helpless to defend themselves.  As the tagline for the movie "V for 
> Vendetta" says: Governments should be afraid of their people; 
people 
> shouldn't be afraid of their governments.
> 
> 2) More people died in Oklahoma City than in VT.  No guns were 
fired 
> in Oklahoma City.  If Cho didn't have a gun he would have, as Barry 
> suggested, used something else.
> 
> 3) Alot of research is coming up that suggests that in states that 
> have concealed weapons laws that the crime rate goes down.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> > 
> > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk" 
 
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > Discuss amongst yourselves.
> > >
> >
>

[FairfieldLife] Re: Guns don't kill people, the lack of guns kill people

[claudiouk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6567329.stm

guns, bombs = means of destruction
32 killed in US - terrible - a mad guy perhaps
over 100 killed DAILY in Iraq - horrific - an insane situation for 
sure

Is there a parallel? Gun laws don't help; neither do endless Hollywod 
movies and internet games "glorifying" violence; or the ways 
prisoners are treated in US prisons or how suspects treated by police 
(no wonder Iraqi prisoners get abused - almost "normal" treatment).

Unfortunately UK having wave of gun and knife gang-led murders as 
well. West Side Story rather prophetic.. 

Lack of guns kill people? well, knives can kill too...

--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "shempmcgurk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
>
> Discuss amongst yourselves.
>