The Pulse IAM Newsletter Institute for Applied Meditation, Inc. www.Applied-Meditation.org 1-888-310-7881

September 2006   Editors: Jeanie and Porter Underwood

• The devastating event of Sept. 11, 2001 caused a death toll of 2,986.

• Hurricane Katrina killed at least 1,836 people, making it the deadliest U.S. hurricane since the 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane.

• On December 26, 2004, the Asian Tsunami swept from Indonesia to Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa causing a worldwide death toll of over 275,000 people.

• More than a hundred thousand people lost their lives on and a few days after October 8th, 2005 in the earthquake in Pakistan.

Our response to September 11th was a divine opportunity for our country to act compassionately towards those who inflicted violence upon us. We missed that opportunity as a collective and took the usual response of counter-attack. I wonder, when I look at the natural disasters which followed 9/11: Does our violence affect our planet? Is our inability to find ways to negotiate, understand and surrender affecting nature? Are the earth quakes and hurricanes connected with our state of mind and our actions?

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." M.K. Gandhi

100 years ago on September 11, 1906, Mohandas K Gandhi rose in a packed Johannesburg hall and launched the modern movement of Satyagraha by pledging to use non-violence in the quest for justice and peace.

What can we do as individuals to follow our hearts yearning to reduce violence and destruction?

It seems that the violence we experience at large comes from a culture rooted very much in aggressive behavior coming from fear, repression and communications inconsiderate of one's own feelings and others.

Our suggestion at IAM is the following:

May the Blessings of Peace be with you.

Note: A series of 5 CD's on the power of prayer, based on the teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan and Mohandas Gandhi will be available in October, from recordings of morning meditations at the group retreat at The Abode, 2006.

Abstract

Research at the University of Kassel in Witzenhausen, Germany, in 1997, showed that it is possible to produce visible light from the chest area under certain conditions. The first condition is that the meditation technique must be heart-centered, not transcendent. Secondly, a specific person with an actual need must be identified as a receiver of the transmitted light. Under these conditions, a sustained light emission of 100,000 photons per second was measured, where only a background count of 20 photons per second was observed without meditation.

Equipment Description

Photomultiplier Tube: The Tube was an EMI Type 9635 QA with very high efficiency, specially selected for single-photon count mode. Light intensities down to 10E-17 watts are measurable with this tube. The tube is sensitive in the range of 200 nm (ultraviolet) to 630 nm, where sensitivity drops sharply so as to exclude thermic photons (infrared) to be counted. Dark count rate without substrate was 12 photons/second, dark count rate within the dark chamber was 20 photons/second.
Preamplifier/Discriminator: The preamplifier/discriminator amplifies the initially very small signal to a 5 Volt level and suppresses "artificial" photon sources.
Cooled Housing: The cooling serves to keep the dark count rate extremely low. A Peltier-type cooling system was able to cool the tube housing from room temperature down to -25C. Measurements were taken at -20 C.
Hardware and Software: The software and the hardware were specifically designed by ALV of Langen, Germany, an internationally renowned specialist for laser applications and measurements of very small particles (one of their projects was with NASA). Software was designed to operate the equipment in single photon count mode.
Dark Chamber: For this experiment the dark chamber was completely lined with light-absorbing black cloth, so that the total photon count without object to measure was as low as 20 photons per second.

Experimental Procedure

The equipment was set up and monitored by Winfried Fuchshofen, PhD, who was at the time a PhD candidate at the University of Kassel. The meditator was Puran Bair, co-founder of the Institute for Applied Meditation.

The meditator disrobed and entered the air-conditioned, dark chamber, which was then sealed. Inside the chamber, the size of a closet, were black blankets that the meditator wrapped around himself for warmth. After approximately one hour, the computer showed a background count in the chamber of 20 photons/sec, regardless of whether the meditator was naked or wrapped. The delay of an hour was necessary to dissipate the florescence of the body as it gives off the light that it had absorbed from the ambient outside light. Nudity was required to eliminate florescence from fabrics and to prevent static electric discharges.

Initially, the meditator tried to sit with the end of the cooled housing against his bare chest. However, this proved to be uncomfortable as the metal tube was quite cold, connected to the liquid-helium cooled photomultiplier, and he was not able to put his legs under the table, so sitting was awkward. A decision was made to sit upright in a chair with his chest approximately three feet from the housing.

At this point, the meditator began a series of meditations designed to increase energy in the spine and heart and radiate light. These meditations included kundalini practices, invocations of divine light, and dhikr.

Kundalini Practices: In these meditations, energy is drawn up the spine from the earth by using a strong inhalation with that visualization. Then the breath is held, with attention placed above the crown. The exhalation is full and complete, forcing energy down the spine (as seen from above) and then forward from the heart. The practice is extremely energetic, resulting in a feeling of ecstasy and radiance. [Note: IAM does not recommend this practice. Kundalini energy can be dangerous.]
Invocations of Divine Light: These are Sufi meditations that use chanting, out-loud and silently, to create vibrations that stimulate the heart and third eye. Specifically, the Arabic words Nur and Mu-now-wirr are spoken slowly, with emphasis on the vowels, placing the resonance of the sound in the throat and chest. This produces the sensation of having a miniature sun in the chest.
Dhikr: The repetition of the Arabic phrase, "La illaha illa 'llah Hu" is an ancient prescription for entering into the consciousness of the One and Only Being. It is performed with attention on the heart as the center of the experience and results in a feeling of profound heart-centeredness.

Initial Results

There were some brief and erratic measurements of 37,000 to 45,000 photons/second while the meditator was meditating. Then there were periods of 10 to 20 minutes with no readings, then again brief periods of a few seconds of light. When light was measured, the experimenter told the meditator of the results through a one-way audio link. (The experimenter had a microphone and the meditator was wearing headphones.) This erratic performance was very frustrating to the meditator, who was trying to use the feedback as a guide toward more reliable light output. None of the meditations produced consistent results, yet all produced light at some times.

Intermission

After approximately ten hours of meditation, the experiment was called off and the meditator emerged from the chamber. The experimenter and the meditator retired to the experimenter's home for dinner. The experimenter's son, approximately four years old, had come down with a severe cold. The meditator, discouraged from the day's efforts, retreated to his room and slept.

Early in the morning, the meditator awoke with an intense insight: the young boy needed light for his healing. By 8:00 AM, the experiment was begun again.

Results

After the meditator spent an hour in the dark chamber, the background count returned to 20 photons/sec. Then the meditator did a healing meditation in which he mentally placed the sick boy in front of himself and "sent light" to the boy on the exhalation coming from his heart. This is a technique of Heart Rhythm Meditation. This was, in comparison to the complex and intense meditations of the previous day, a rather simple and easy meditation. The effort required by the meditator was emotional rather than mental and very minor in comparison to the previous trials of intense concentration.

The computer measured 100,000 photons/second consistently for half an hour, until the meditation was stopped. This would be enough light to be barely visible. It has been estimated that 1000 photons/sec entering the eye are enough to create a visible sensation. Actually, only a few photons/sec striking the retina are sufficient, but the eyeball absorbs nearly a thousand photons/sec in its lens and fluid.

As a comparison, the meditator then unwrapped his wristwatch which had a florescent dial and held it in front of his chest. The computer indicated 1 million photons/sec. In the dark chamber, with his eyes adjusted to the absolute darkness, the light of the wristwatch's dial seemed to be bright enough to read by.

Conclusion

Light generation was eventually achieved by the combination of effective meditation technique and the intention of sending light to a specific patient in need of healing. The meditation technique used is called Heart Rhythm Meditation and is detailed in the book, Living from the Heart (Random House, 1998), authored by the meditator. Without healing intention, in spite of his best efforts using a variety of meditations he had mastered, the meditator was not able to generate consistent light emissions.

The amount of light emitted from his chest and reaching a photomultiplier directly in front, three feet away, was two orders of magnitude greater than what is required for visibility, and one order of magnitude less than what is required for reading with dark-adjusted eyes.

The results serve as a warning to those conducting objective experiments in subtle energy where there is not a need for actual healing. It seems that a known, specific receiver subject is necessary to empower the transmitter subject.

The emission of light from other angles and from other parts of the body was not tested. Furthermore, the frequency of light was not measured, only the total of all photons in the instrument's range of sensitivity.

New Webcourse Sampler

Would you like to try a webcourse without commiting yourself to the full expense before you know what it is? We're now offering a way to sample the Introduction Webcourse for $20. You'll receive a password for the virtual Meditation Dome where we hold the webcourses, and there you'll be able to read the first two rooms, plus the "Introductions" room, as the course progresses. You'll receive all the instructions and materials for those rooms, and see all the messages that the full members are writing, together with the teacher's responses. After the first two rooms (about 3 weeks into the webcourse), if you want to continue, you can pay the remainder of the webcourse fee - then you'll be able to write messages and get your own questions answered as the practice is completed and applied to your life through the remainder of the 10-week course.

Sign up for the webcourses here.

Introduction to Heart Rhythm Meditation Beginning Oct. 11, $225. This was the first ever webcourse in meditation, which proved it is possible to learn meditation without the physical presence of a teacher. The teacher is very present, however, to your concerns and questions and responds quickly, even though he's in a different part of the world. The live teacher and the engaging group make the course easy and compelling, drawing you into a daily meditation practice. Following Puran's book, Living from the Heart this webcourse offers a thorough training in the basics of Heart Rhythm Meditation. No prior experience is assumed. At each step, you'll use your physical sensations as feedback to guide you along. Taught by Alistair Beattie, one of our most experienced and popular webcourse teachers. The course lasts 10 weeks.

The Heart of Sufism Beginning Sept. 29, $195 Qahira Warrick and Yaqin Berggren offer a ten-week introduction to the teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan using the reader The Heart of Sufism (click to buy). This reader includes excerpts from all 13 volumes of Hazrat Inayat Khan's collected works and serves as a wonderful introduction to his major teachings. Each week of the course, participants will delve into about 36 pages of the reader. There are a set of about 20 questions for each week's reading to ponder and stimulate discussion on the ideas themselves as well as their application in life. A second short reading from other writers supplies contemporary information that enhances or supports the thought of Hazrat Inayat Khan who was decades ahead of his time in understanding modern life, science, and history. The teacher, Catherine Qahira Warrick, is a senior teacher in IAM and has an extensive background in all the humanities. This enables her to place these teachings in the wider context of history, philosophy, and comparative religion. You will find her a kind, respectful, and challenging teacher.

The Heart of the Economy Beginning Sept. 27, $400 This webcourse was very successful in its first offering last July, so we're repeating it again for those who didn't get to participate and those who want to go through it again. What we had foreseen more than a year ago is now coming to pass, and other parts of the changes are still to come. Those who followed our advice have benefited greatly so far - the fall in real estate and the rise in commodities are underway, leading to the fall of the dollar and the emergence of a true currency. These are critical times; people of good-will need to position themselves to be able to help through their generosity. If this is your intention, you can accumulate real wealth through the application of spiritual principles and have a resource to apply to your ideals. A four-week intensive in spiritual economics, led by Puran Bair and Professor Asatar Bair, PhD in Economics. For more details see Description.

On July 29, 2006, nestled in the Berkshire mountains, Puran and Susanna Bair began the Institute For Applied Meditation's 8th Annual Retreat at "The Abode" in New Lebanon, New York. There, in a beautifully renovated building called "The Meditation Hall," we heard a poem of Rumi, "Collect the Pieces," as translated by Coleman Barks:

The gold of your heart is scattered over many clippings and bits of wanting.
Bring them all together in one place.
How else can I stamp it?
Think how a great city concentrates around a point. Damascus or Samarcand.
Grain by grain, collect the pieces.
The Beloved then becomes food and water, lamp and helper, dessert and wine.
Many-ness is confusion and intellectual talk.

Collect the pieces we did as, over the next five and a half days, we mined the gold of our heart, drawing specs of it together to let the beauty and function begin to appear. This was done first through mental purification, then expanding our concept of reality from our heart's perspective, followed by digging into our heart to make it ready for illumination, and finally, purifying and illuminating it with light. By the time the retreat ended on August 2, we had been led through a multitude of inner and outer experiences to facilitate the uncovering of our heart so that its light could break through the clouds of doubt and fear that confuse the mind, and we could radiate behavior that is "Living from the Heart."

Many people who have attended retreats at the Abode for the last several years felt that this was the most powerful retreat that they had ever attended. Here is what some of them said:

I am so glad I did not resist the pull of the Abode this year and there were many compelling reasons not to go. What gifts I would have missed...

Night synchronized swim, watching the shooting stars with Ghani, Majida and Gerred,
Glorious ecstatic dancing, night after night after night,
The choir, the angelic realm, music of the spheres, and Amadeus did not chide me for moving while singing (smiles),
My wonderful co-conspirators in fire on fire where student becomes teacher and teacher becomes student. Hakim, Sharif, Mark, Kalimi, Munira, Tony melting, burning, emerging in flames!

This by far was the best group retreat ever! Phenomenal, fantastic, and FUN! Missing each and every one of you, feeling you in my heart, much love to all, Karen Poulson

P.S. There will be a winter retreat in Santa Barbara, CA in February!

I went to the Abode this year with the intention of developing a meditation practice. I have the skills, but haven't sat down regularly. So I put myself in the Earth group to ground myself. Starting my first meditations, I felt so agitated and restless. But the group energy helped so much, and after the first day, I found that it took less and less time for me to settle in and calm. By the last day, when each Element group did their presentation, I was amazed to find that in our's, in front of an audience, I was supposed to be entertaining. I went so quickly and deeply into the meditation that when I finally peeked just to check and see where we were, my whole group and the audience were quietly waiting for me to resurface! Since I've been home, I've been able to meditate for twenty minutes each day, usually in the morning. And this is just one piece of how much I enjoyed and received from this year's retreat.

From the heart, Amy Torres

One of the greatest gifts to me at the Abode this year was the emphasis on personal prayer, and the correlation to several things: Remembrance, Invocation and Love. The retreat blended very practical, manifesting issues with very deep, internal experiences.

It is my hope and prayer that we will find a way to periodically come together in very large numbers. A retreat in a "manageable" size is wonderful, we can truly bond with each of our fellow retreatants, but to all share together in the same physical space must be a sweet moment. The time together in retreat is a wonderful gift for us: we are in a womb within which we can practice a sacred manner of being with each other; we have a ripe environment for group meditation, enabling those of us who are not as accomplished in our practices to go deeper; we share time and fellowship and consider how each of us is spreading the message of the heart through our everyday living.

I thank everyone who had a part in the retreat's creation. I already look forward to when we are next together. Love, Munira

Much Love and Many Good Wishes, Liz Smith

...and finally, a comment from someone who was not able to attend the retreat:

I was, indeed, sad to miss the retreat. A couple of mornings, in fact, I felt simply SUFFUSED with sadness. I missed being in the presence of all my beloved IAM community. I missed my teachers. I missed Madeleine Susanna's morning meditations. I missed my mentor - I have not been with her in person now for two years. I missed walking with Peanut through the cool dawn Berkshire mornings. (Were they cool this year, or just not as brutally hot as the rest of the day?) I missed the bookstore. I missed shopping at the Sunday bazaar. I missed the young Abodian ladies, Jameela, Kaya and Victoria, adoring Peanut. I missed singing in the Abode choir. And I knew HuDost was supposed to perform this year, and I was very sorry to miss that. Moksha's singing inspires me!

But some times are times for sadness and missing, and so it was for me this year in regard to favorite Abode retreat moments.

With love, Jody Curly

"Wide space, the womb of my heart, conceive my thought, I pray, and give birth to my desire."

All that you desire in life comes from the heart. The human heart has the ability to attract or generate all that it wishes, while the divine heart continuously creates all that exists, out of love.

For the second year, IAM is hosting a winter retreat, this time in the mountains on the southern edge of Santa Barbara, CA, about a 4-mile walk from the Pacific Ocean. It is a beautiful setting, situated on a 26-acre site of oaks, fruit trees, meadows and gardens. There are hiking trails, a river on the eastern edge, tennis, volleyball courts and swimming pool, along with two chapels for meditation that are open 24 hours a day. Massages may also be scheduled. The lodging consists of rooms for 1 to 3 people, and each room has a private bath. The retreat center has asked that we not disclose their name in our publicity, as they do not wish to receive or handle inquiries about our retreat. Their name and directions will be given upon registration.

The Santa Barbara Airport is about 15 miles from the retreat center, and there is shuttle or taxi service available. Los Angeles International Airport is 100 miles away. From there, participants can take a commuter flight to Santa Barbara, rent a car, or use the Santa Barbara Airbus. Rail service is accessible from the Burbank Airport.

The total cost for the retreat with 15 meals and 5 nights lodging in double occupancy is $1055, in a single room is $1266, and for 3 in a room is $990.

We are offering discounts for early registration. For registration received by October 1st, the discount is $200; for those registering by December 1st, the discount is $100. This retreat is scheduled over a 3-day weekend.

Please contact Porter at porter.underwood@sbcglobal.net if you have any questions about arrangements for the retreat. Registration for the retreat can be done online at www.Applied-Meditation.org.

You can register here for most of the events listed.

TWO KNIGHTS, TWO DAYS (and a dog called Finn)

Put two knights together for two days and there's bound to be an adventure somewhere!

I arrived at Karima's cottage deep in the English countryside on a beautiful summer Saturday morning. I hadn't met Finn (Karima's lurcher dog) before, but he met me at the door by leaning his whole weight on me!

I hadn't been to Karima's home before, so it was new and exciting. We hugged and of course (this is England you guys) we had a cup of tea!

"Finn hasn't been well" said Karima.
"No", I said "I can see that."

Finn was lying on the floor, head on paws, looking very unhealthy indeed. He rolled over and yelped in pain. He'd been like this for a couple of days.

"I think we have to go to the vet" said Karima.
"I agree" said I.

So we phoned the vet who agreed to be at his surgery in an hour.

Finn was loaded into the car and off we went down the country lanes of Wiltshire. By the time Finn realized we were arriving at the vet, he was feeling a little better and a slightly bewildered vet couldn't find anything wrong with him. We were sent off with instructions to "watch for developments."

"It is one of those days when England takes some beating for beauty," I thought as we drove back through the lanes and villages to Karima's cottage.

Finn collapsed on the floor as soon as we got in, refusing all offerings of food and water. We thought it best to leave him quietly alone. Unusually, that night Finn slept alone downstairs. (Unshared thoughts later revealed that we both thought he may be dying).

The following morning, we decided to take action to do whatever we could. We decided to contemplate Finn to see if we could experience his ailment. We sat on either side of him and for about 20 minutes we breathed Ya Shafee, Ya Kafee. Then we left him alone, lying, unmoving on the floor and went out for a walk.

On our return, half and hour later, a tail-wagging Finn greeted us at the back door. (I swear he was smiling). From then on his recovery was swift. He ate, he drank and he lay beside us in the sunshine in the garden.

Finn had been dying of a broken heart. Karima had been very busy at work for over a week and her partner had moved into the cottage with another dog and a cat. Finn had been feeling neglected and heartbroken. Karima is his lifelong partner and he felt he had lost her. Happily his optimism has been restored and he is a happy and healthy companion once more.

I drove back to London, feeling open hearted, loved and 'healed'. "What a wonderful thing," I thought, "when I heal, I too am healed - and what a satisfying adventure for a knight!"

With love to you,

Caroline Dale

My part in putting this newsletter together was very fun for me! I loved including writing from some of us who were at the summer retreat this year. It took me back to those golden days at the Abode, and my eyes filled with tears as I felt so much love for all of our heart-rhythm community of seekers. Thanks to each of you who contributed to this newsletter.

Please write to Porter and me if you would like to share any comments or experiences with us or have them printed in our next newsletter in our Community Voices section. I'm with Munira: I hope that someday, we are all gathered together in one place! Until then, I hope to see many of you at our winter retreat.

With love, Jeanie Underwood

Jeanie.Underwood@sbcglobal.net
Porter.Underwood@sbcglobal.net

Our next newsletter will be November, 2006. The deadline for submitting items is October 15, 2006.

Please send your comments or suggestions to either Jeanie Underwood or Porter Underwood. We would find your imput very helpful, and where appropriate and with your permission, we will print your letter.