Please read the article and let me know what you think
Showing posts with label Pune. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pune. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Osho, Bhagwan Rajneesh, and the Lost Truth
I came across an interesting article on Osho today. What is particularly fascinating is that this is written by someone with first hand experience of the man's great power, but he is also aware of the failings of Rajneesh as a true honest guru. To access the article click on this post's tittle.
Monday, February 12, 2007
OSHO Tales of a Madman
Jose and I have both joined a robe wearing, mad dancing, cathartic releasing, hugging and laughing, crazy cult. Ok so I became a card carrying member a long time ago, but this time I brought along another victim!
The Osho Ashram continues to grow in ways I'm not so supportive of, but at the same time the loving essence of a brilliant teacher still remains, and those on a spiritual quest can begin here. It's a great place to learn the language and teachings of spiritual masters from around the world. From Jesus to Mahavaira, Hasidism to Buddhism - you will find all these at Osho's commune (now commercially known as a Meditation Resort).
Is healing to be found here? Absolutely. As long as you have the money to come and stay for an extended period of time. If this is available to you than there is a lot to learn, and many opportunities to connect with meditation and spirituality both of which are inextricably linked to health and healing. When we find awareness disease is no longer necessary. Illness is a signal that something is amiss, but when we're fully aware, fully awakened the warning light is not required. There is a growing amount of medical evicence to confirm this ancient knowledge. Click here to read about it on the BBC, or click here to read about what NCAM has to say about it.
My favourite meditation at the Ashram, is the evening meditation, also known as white robe (becaues everyone must come in dressed in a white robe). This provides the best opportunity to hear and see (on video of course) Osho. It combines the best of Osho's teachings and meditations: dancing, giberish, satsang, silent sitting, and most of all celebration Osho was very adamant about life being a cause for celebration. Here is what seems to me a great unbiased article from Wikipedia you can make up your own mind. But the one thing I can say is Osho taught people to find joy in life, to let go of their hang-ups and concentrate on the most important things. For the religious and political establishment this was considered was sacrilege, and immorality. Explore your sexuality with love and awareness, meditate, find the truth for yourself, be kind, radiate love, stand up for what you believe in, don't follow societal construction if you do not agree with them, work to bring awareness to the world. Universal teachings that to me work towards global healing.
Friday, February 9, 2007
Cambia, todo Cambia
Things That Change, Things That Stay the Same:
As a week in Pune comes to an end there have been many changes I’ve noticed in this old home of mine. Everything changes – nothing remains the same, and that is truly evident in this place, even after only 5 years.
I notice many of the people who I regularly interacted with still toiling away at their same old jobs. Like the guy at the German Bakery who says he's been there for 15yrs. And I run across people all over the place who seem to remember me. I find this insane considering the amount of foreigners who come through this town – how is it that I’ve been so memorable? It’s been incredible to connect with good friends from another lifetime. It feels like people around me are confirming my past life, and that my experiences here were not just figments of an over active imagination. Something you begin to believe when there is no context for your past. The magical world I once experienced is overwhelming me again.
Pune is a mystical place. Many Gurus have based themselves here, and I believe that there is a reason for this. It seems to be one of those energetically powerful places. Things here really do happen as they should. Thoughts materialize rapidly here, energy is tangible, and trust is any easy thing to find.
However this paradise is transforming, it doesn’t attract the same people anymore. People now come here to seek their fortunes, to find work in the IT industry – and slowly the city is becoming a web of traffic. Honking, engines, touts, beggars, and loud, random, indeterminate noises from a myriad of construction sites interrupt that peaceful easy feeling.
Tibetan Prayer Bowls:
I never paid much attention to this new movement of using the viibrational power of prayer bowls for healing. Jose and I happened to venture into a shop selling a variety of Tibetan goodies. The shopkeeper insisted on putting a prayer bowl on my head and knocking it (to Jose's exited yelps of "hit it harder") – and WOW, the vibrations reverberated down my spine through my entire body. The vibrations produced a different state of mind in me, quiet, aware and joyful. The next day as I walked past the same store I decided to go in and give it another try. After a succession of 3 different prayer bowls I was flying – the perma-smile on my face lasted for hours.
Maybe there is something to this, something worth further exploration. I have heard of different sound and vibration therapies including the use of didjeridoos on different parts of the body. In reiki we talk of the attunements increasing your vibrational frequency, in the Indian chakra system every energy centre has a sound and vibrational frequency associated with it. And even Rajan Sankaran a well respected Homeopath conducted homeopathic provings on different India Ragas.
Does this mean that any sound will affect change or be used as a vehicle to healing? Will different sounds activate different parts of you body, mind, and soul? I welcome your comments and suggestions.
This One's For The Homeopaths:
I’ve had the great opportunity of observing for the last week in Dr. Sunil Anand’s. He sets an extraordinary example of how to use Sankaranian thought and methodology. He has a developed a deep understanding of how to find core sensations within a case, and then to recognize that sensation within the right remedy.
On my first day at the clinic I got to observe an amazing case of mansanilla. The patient came in complaining of anal fissures. He had a very logical way about him – even within his proffesion as a computer programmer. He drew pictures that reflected order, and to me took the form of a crystal. However when the patient spoke about the drawings he experienced them as disorder – he talked about how his illness affected his ability to be a social and respected person. He said that he felt like he had hit a wall and there was no logical way to break through. I saw what I obviously thought were mineral themes. Dr. Anand was able to show me the deeper level that I was ignoring – there was a clear sensation in the case. The patient talked of feeling bound, chained down, his picture actually resembled a box being chained down. The key sensation in the Euphorbiaceae family. He spoke of being afraid as a child of the dark – that something would come and take him away to another world. A key rubric in the remedy Mancinella is delusion that he will be taken away by the devil. And as the Dr. continued to explain the case clearly fell into place. So much to learn and every day demonstrates how little I know.
As a week in Pune comes to an end there have been many changes I’ve noticed in this old home of mine. Everything changes – nothing remains the same, and that is truly evident in this place, even after only 5 years.
I notice many of the people who I regularly interacted with still toiling away at their same old jobs. Like the guy at the German Bakery who says he's been there for 15yrs. And I run across people all over the place who seem to remember me. I find this insane considering the amount of foreigners who come through this town – how is it that I’ve been so memorable? It’s been incredible to connect with good friends from another lifetime. It feels like people around me are confirming my past life, and that my experiences here were not just figments of an over active imagination. Something you begin to believe when there is no context for your past. The magical world I once experienced is overwhelming me again.
Pune is a mystical place. Many Gurus have based themselves here, and I believe that there is a reason for this. It seems to be one of those energetically powerful places. Things here really do happen as they should. Thoughts materialize rapidly here, energy is tangible, and trust is any easy thing to find.
However this paradise is transforming, it doesn’t attract the same people anymore. People now come here to seek their fortunes, to find work in the IT industry – and slowly the city is becoming a web of traffic. Honking, engines, touts, beggars, and loud, random, indeterminate noises from a myriad of construction sites interrupt that peaceful easy feeling.
Tibetan Prayer Bowls:
I never paid much attention to this new movement of using the viibrational power of prayer bowls for healing. Jose and I happened to venture into a shop selling a variety of Tibetan goodies. The shopkeeper insisted on putting a prayer bowl on my head and knocking it (to Jose's exited yelps of "hit it harder") – and WOW, the vibrations reverberated down my spine through my entire body. The vibrations produced a different state of mind in me, quiet, aware and joyful. The next day as I walked past the same store I decided to go in and give it another try. After a succession of 3 different prayer bowls I was flying – the perma-smile on my face lasted for hours.
Maybe there is something to this, something worth further exploration. I have heard of different sound and vibration therapies including the use of didjeridoos on different parts of the body. In reiki we talk of the attunements increasing your vibrational frequency, in the Indian chakra system every energy centre has a sound and vibrational frequency associated with it. And even Rajan Sankaran a well respected Homeopath conducted homeopathic provings on different India Ragas.
Does this mean that any sound will affect change or be used as a vehicle to healing? Will different sounds activate different parts of you body, mind, and soul? I welcome your comments and suggestions.
This One's For The Homeopaths:
I’ve had the great opportunity of observing for the last week in Dr. Sunil Anand’s. He sets an extraordinary example of how to use Sankaranian thought and methodology. He has a developed a deep understanding of how to find core sensations within a case, and then to recognize that sensation within the right remedy.
On my first day at the clinic I got to observe an amazing case of mansanilla. The patient came in complaining of anal fissures. He had a very logical way about him – even within his proffesion as a computer programmer. He drew pictures that reflected order, and to me took the form of a crystal. However when the patient spoke about the drawings he experienced them as disorder – he talked about how his illness affected his ability to be a social and respected person. He said that he felt like he had hit a wall and there was no logical way to break through. I saw what I obviously thought were mineral themes. Dr. Anand was able to show me the deeper level that I was ignoring – there was a clear sensation in the case. The patient talked of feeling bound, chained down, his picture actually resembled a box being chained down. The key sensation in the Euphorbiaceae family. He spoke of being afraid as a child of the dark – that something would come and take him away to another world. A key rubric in the remedy Mancinella is delusion that he will be taken away by the devil. And as the Dr. continued to explain the case clearly fell into place. So much to learn and every day demonstrates how little I know.
Sunday, February 4, 2007
no ricksha, no one rupee, no balloon, no magnets, no problem!
I know I know, it's been a long time and the pics I promised have not appeared! but I promise some nice things to look at before the end of the week.
We're now ssettling down in Pune for the next couple of weeks so I hope to have more time for this blogging thing (I have to admit the infinitely slow connections are a bit of a detraction)
So on the health front: it's been 10 days since my reflexology and Su Jok treatment and my knees and back have responded after only 1 treatment. My knees have been completely pain free and my back has given little hastle - especially considering long train excursions and carrying an ever increasing load (somehow my backpack keeps getting heavier - could this be correlated with shopping?) This seems like something I need to learn and explore further.
In the meantime Jose and I have visited Udaipur - home of octopussy! No one here will let you forget that this classic Bond movie was filmed on location in Udaipur. It is a majestic city on the shores of a quiet lake - and provided much more atmosphere than little touristy Pushkar. We left after 5 peaceful days to attack the crowds and the wallas in the sprawling metropolis of Mumbai.
In Mumbai I visited the Shree Mumbadevi Homeopathic hospital. What an amazing institution! A complete hospital with every department imaginable from a gynaecology department to a rheumatology department. There were even 2 women that had gone into labour waiting to give birth. And they tell me around 80% of all patients are treated homeoapthically. Here life and death situations are treated using homeopathic remedies with full confidence - something Homeopaths in the Western world can learn a great deal from.
There is even a government sponsored research department that for the last 10 years has been focusing on the treatment of HIV/AIDS, and have found success with patients returning to a viral load of zero! I filmed some scenes in the hospital and will have them up on the site at some point (even if it's only after I return)
One thing I've really enjoyed in India is that when I tell people what I do they nod and call me Doctor. Nobody asks what Homeopathy is, and nobody doubts whether it works. Even the tourists, like this French woman I met who works for big pharma and was carrying around her vials of Boiron remedies. People know and have embraced Homeopathy, though there are still many misconceptions about it. Many think that it is only for chronic illness and can be of no help in serious acute conditions - but my time at the Homeopathic Hospital has proven them wrong.
And now I find myself in Pune, home of the famous and indeed infamous Osho Ashram. What was once a true place for meditation, awareness, and hence healing, (and maybe I'll go and check it out once again to see if it's still true to its roots). Tomorrow I begin my internship with Dr. Sunil Anand and I'm sure I will have lots to report.
We're now ssettling down in Pune for the next couple of weeks so I hope to have more time for this blogging thing (I have to admit the infinitely slow connections are a bit of a detraction)
So on the health front: it's been 10 days since my reflexology and Su Jok treatment and my knees and back have responded after only 1 treatment. My knees have been completely pain free and my back has given little hastle - especially considering long train excursions and carrying an ever increasing load (somehow my backpack keeps getting heavier - could this be correlated with shopping?) This seems like something I need to learn and explore further.
In the meantime Jose and I have visited Udaipur - home of octopussy! No one here will let you forget that this classic Bond movie was filmed on location in Udaipur. It is a majestic city on the shores of a quiet lake - and provided much more atmosphere than little touristy Pushkar. We left after 5 peaceful days to attack the crowds and the wallas in the sprawling metropolis of Mumbai.
In Mumbai I visited the Shree Mumbadevi Homeopathic hospital. What an amazing institution! A complete hospital with every department imaginable from a gynaecology department to a rheumatology department. There were even 2 women that had gone into labour waiting to give birth. And they tell me around 80% of all patients are treated homeoapthically. Here life and death situations are treated using homeopathic remedies with full confidence - something Homeopaths in the Western world can learn a great deal from.
There is even a government sponsored research department that for the last 10 years has been focusing on the treatment of HIV/AIDS, and have found success with patients returning to a viral load of zero! I filmed some scenes in the hospital and will have them up on the site at some point (even if it's only after I return)
One thing I've really enjoyed in India is that when I tell people what I do they nod and call me Doctor. Nobody asks what Homeopathy is, and nobody doubts whether it works. Even the tourists, like this French woman I met who works for big pharma and was carrying around her vials of Boiron remedies. People know and have embraced Homeopathy, though there are still many misconceptions about it. Many think that it is only for chronic illness and can be of no help in serious acute conditions - but my time at the Homeopathic Hospital has proven them wrong.
And now I find myself in Pune, home of the famous and indeed infamous Osho Ashram. What was once a true place for meditation, awareness, and hence healing, (and maybe I'll go and check it out once again to see if it's still true to its roots). Tomorrow I begin my internship with Dr. Sunil Anand and I'm sure I will have lots to report.
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