Spiritual Odyssey

When I was at the Yasodhara Ashram on Kootenay Bay in Canada, everywhere I turned there were signs saying, “Above all try to find God.” When it was my turn to head the [...]

Softness and continuity are the essence of T’ai Chi Chih. It is the soft water that wears away the hard rock; the tongue outlasts the teeth. Hardness and confrontation are brittle and destructive; [...]

There are two histories of mankind: one is cultural, which is lasting, and the other is the study of aggression and violence, which is fleeting. As an example, there are no remnants of [...]

The great Indian sage, Ramana Maharshi, told his followers to ask themselves the question, “Who am I?” A psychiatrist or psychoanalyst might also want to know the answer to that question, but the [...]

My first day and night in the Himalayas were quite hectic. Contact with a Yogi, who was a friend of mine, led to my agreeing to meet him in Hardwar at noon on [...]

With regularity of practice, the deeper meanings of T’ai Chi Chih become evident after some time. If one does not practice regularly, it is like a pianist who does finger exercises once every [...]

I have stayed with Yogis, in the Himalayan foothills, who are masters of Prana, the Sanskrit word for Chi. They seem to be impervious to the cold and hunger. Since we ate only [...]

Teachers and students are constantly asking me to write a book on “Ultimate Truth.” If I did so, they would resent the very “truth” they asked for, as it would threaten the ground [...]

Two important terms in Japanese Zen are muga and mushin. The latter means “no mind,” but not in the usual sense. It means the kind of mind that does not react, like a [...]

Tantra says that every cell of the body can be brought to a point of Bliss. If one will do T’ai Chi Chih and then remain quiet for a period of time – [...]

Many books are being written by sociologists and psychologists, in which they glibly speak of “higher consciousness” and “Enlightenment,” without in the least knowing what they are talking about. It is fashionable to [...]

People often speak of “higher consciousness.” A man is coming from another state to videotape me in a research project to find those in “higher consciousness.” The truth is, there is no such [...]