Another Side of this Life: 2010

In November I again spent two weeks in Fairfield, Iowa for some extended meditation. I'll attempt to not duplicate items in the earlier post, focusing instead on changes and events that were new to me -- and there were several.

On the first day I learned that Maharaja Adhiraj Nader Raam, Maharishi's successor as leader of the Transcendental Meditation organization (TMO), had moved his residence from the organization's international headquarters in the Netherlands to Fairfield. This change in the center of gravity of the TMO seems to me part of an ongoing modernization process: the TMO now does a blog, twitter, facebook, a youtube channel, and so forth.

To everyone's astonishment, Nader Raam (photo from 2008 here) revealed a wife and two young daughters, not known except to a very few until the announcement was made. Their existence was kept secret for the privacy of the children, until they reached school age. Everybody in Fairfield assumed that Nader Raam, or "King Tony" as Joan and I informally refer to him, was celibate. Not so. A thoroughly modern man, Nader Raam has even been known to pick up his children from the Maharishi School. So now, while England is enthralled with Prince William's engagement, Fairfield has its own royal family.

Another change was that John Hagelin had remarried, but this was greatly overshadowed by the news about Nader.

The very day that I arrived was Dhanvantari, the day in the Divali or Dipavali (spellings vary) celebrations that is dedicated to the knowledge of Ayurveda, traditional Indian medical knowledge. In the West we might call it a form of complementary medicine. The Dhanvantari program was in the evening at the Student Union auditorium, but given that I'd just spend two days driving, I only stayed for about half an hour. The chanting was on videotape, not live, diminishing its attractiveness.

Then on Friday the 5th November there was a major Mahalakshmi yagya in the dome, performed live by the Maharishi Vedic Pandits with Nader Raam in attendance. This was a big deal, with people arriving early to get the best seats and continuing to arrive even as the activities began. Many of the TMO luminaries were there in addition to Nader Raam, some dressed in suits, and some -- the Rajas -- dressed in their white robes, medallions, and costume-party crowns. I have no pictures, for unauthorized photography within the dome is, well, unauthorized.

It began, 15 minutes late (usual for the TMO), with an introduction; then the pandits began their observance with a puja (dedication) to Brahmananda Saraswati, Maharishi's teacher, which I have heard dozens of times before. But not like this. The pandits, who for traditional reasons tend to chant briskly, have been urged by Nader Raam himself to take it more slowly and clearly, and this time they were doing so. The effect was quite striking, as if an independent baritone voice rose from their group as an emergent phenomenon (something that cannot be predicted from its constituent parts). As they moved on into the main Mahalakshmi portion of the afternoon I felt this effect diminish. In fact I had experienced enough after forty-five minutes and stepped out, went to the campus library to check my email, and then to my room for some yoga stretches. On leaving the dome, I saw the chariot that Nader Raam and his retinue had arrived in.

I doubt that he uses this to pick up the kids at school. I approached the dome at 4:30 expecting that the event would be letting out, but it was still going strong. Thus I was able to bookend the afternoon with another fifteen minutes of chanting, an address by Nader Raam, and redundant statements of appreciation by video feed from other parts of the TMO, including the Netherlands. I'm now accustomed to Nader Raam's Lebanese accent after decades of Maharishi's Indian one. Needless to say the usual schedule for afternoon group meditation was completely out the window.

Now for some of the physical changes on and near campus.

The construction of the new, off-the-grid Sustainable Living Center has resumed after a delay due to the economic crisis. This is a remarkable building, certified Platinum LEED, which means that the sustainability of the materials used is as important as the energy-use aspects. Here's a view from the library.

There was only one fellow working inside, and he didn't seem to mind my ducking in for a few pictures of the interior-in-progress.

Just next door is the utility building for the new Center. I didn't go inside, but peeking through a window I could spy banks of batteries cabled together.

Various minor but meaningful campus-area upgrades were taking place. The sidewalk in front of the library was being widened, and extended to the north.

The sidewalk on "B" Street has been extended north to connect to the Jefferson County Trail System. The recreational cyclists who would rather not ride on "B" Street are pleased.

A last-minute grant allowed repairs to be made at the dome, where the parking lot meets the narrower road, before winter set in. The damage has something to do with differing expansion rates of concrete and asphalt.

One mystery on the Jefferson County trail was finally solved for me. I had seen, in earlier visits, that a concrete pad had been poured just off the trail. I couldn't figure out what it was, and the few people that I asked didn't know. Now, it was finished.

It is the Matkin Memorial Plaza, honoring the engineer who designed many of the structures in Fairfield, including the bow-string truss bridge that carries the trail over Highway 1. One of the plaques is about Charles Matkin and his life and activities in Fairfield.

The other is a bit of history of the bow-string truss bridge technique.

On the topic of construction, one walk (near the women's dome) took me by this sign advertising the impending construction of 23 apartments next door to the dome.

Click on the photo if you care to read the text. One item that caught my eye was the mention of fiber optic Internet -- specifically pointing out that it was not wireless. This is an example of life amongst the meditators in Fairfield; you never know what minor taboos you might stumble across. Wireless is commonly known there to be not good for you. This I consider a case of misplaced emphasis; cellphone use exposes you to more radiation than WiFi will, and taking an airline flight much more than that. Here, a fiber optic connection will be superior to wireless anyway -- except for some iPad users -- but it gives you a taste of the campus/TMO atmosphere.

Along one of the paths between the Student Union (SU) and the dome was an installation, probably from one of the art classes, that reminded me, in a lesser scale, of Patrick Dougherty's work. I'd seen some of his constructions at the Franklin Park Conservatory.

Being 6'3" I had to stoop to walk through this tunnel. So I did it a couple of times for the experience, and then bypassed it.

Speaking of art ... the hallway between the library and the "old" sustainable living classrooms had an interesting exhibit on the wall.

Impressions, coatings, or molds, I'm not sure what the technique was for these pieces. Here are some closeups.

In downtown Fairfield I found (well, I was directed to) more art, hidden art. In an alley beside the Revelations Café was a cheerful mosaic.

A little closer, please.

The Jefferson County courthouse renovation is finished, putting it possibly in both the art and upgrade categories.

And guess what I found at Everybody's -- Truffle Pig chocolates, which Joan and I had discovered only two months before in Field, British Columbia! (Every flavor has a different pig drawing.) It's a small world, eh?

And at Finnywick's, I found two pigs that had to come home with me. They are finger-puppets.

And they have a strong magnetic snout.

As a cyclist, I'm happy to see that Fairfield offers a local resource.

My last few days in Fairfield were busy with special events. Thursday, I had a one-on-one meditation refresher with Doug Birx, a TM-Sidhi administrator. It had been decades since I'd had any review of the advanced program, so it was time! Friday evening was a poetry reading at Revelations with Bill Graeser, Rustin Larson, and Glenn Watt. I already knew Bill, having chatted with him many times in the campus cafeteria. My photographs of these luminaries are not the best, but these poets are worth mentioning. First, Bill Graeser.

Then, Rustin Larson. (The reading rotated among the three several times.)

And Glenn Watt.

Sunday was the biggest event of my visit. Every so often the Vedic Pandits allow the meditating public to view their performance on a Sunday. This performance is called Rudrabhishek, and we're told it creates an influence for world peace. One must apply in advance to attend, because capacity is limited and because the public will be invited only once or twice a month at most. In my previous trips I hadn't even applied, but on the recommendation of friends I did this time. On Wednesday I was startled to receive an email inviting me to attend Sunday, a possibility I had discounted.

I was familiar with some of the points in the email. "It is traditional" to bring some washed, organic fresh fruit, some flowers (with stems already removed), and a donation. These I managed to round up, but I was unsure about the presentation. Do I carry them in a sack, or is something nicer, such as a plate, suggested? My landlady, who had been to many of these performances, said an untorn bag would be fine.

More interesting were some of the additional instructions:

Please read these important points:

1. Leather (purses, belts, wallets, watch bands or cell phone cases) should not be brought into the building. However, shoes will removed in an indoor entry area. We also ask that you don't bring cameras, video or other recording equipment into the Hall.

2. Ladies' dress - Saris, long skirts or dresses (avoid pants or punjabis). Also, please cover your head with a scarf, shawl or sari when entering or exiting the Performance Hall.

3. Men's dress - Dignified dress (avoid jeans, shorts or t-shirts).

4. We have been asked to remind everyone not to wear any perfume or other scents.

5. Younger children should not attend the Vedic performance. If you have older children who are interested in attending, please email or call me at the number below to make arrangements.

6. It is very important not to attend if you are not feeling well or coming down with a cold or flu or if you have a cough.

Plus, regarding the parking and being allowed onto the pandit campus:

Because the bus and van need to finish transporting everyone by 10:20, we ask that you arrive at the corner of 170th Street and Invincible America Avenue (directions below) at 10:00 a.m. Someone will direct you where to park. From there everyone will board the bus or van and be driven to the Performance Hall.

With all of these instructions I found myself getting nervous with anticipation. I left the dome earlier than necessary by about 15 minutes, and after killing some time was the second vehicle to park. The parking director was a fellow I hadn't seen in eight or nine years. Two vans took our group into the pandit campus. Some of my fellow passengers hadn't caught the point about removing the stems from the flowers, but they learned in the van and made quick adjustments.

I can report that there were no X-ray machines or security guards frisking you down for contraband leather. (My only leather item, a belt, was back in the car.) We entered through the guest door, removed our shoes, and there was a long table with a plastic tub for everybody's fruits, another tub for everybody's flowers, and a wooden donation box. The coordinator, Eloise, checked our names off a list. Then we were inside.

It was chilly. Eloise explained that the heat had been balky and had come on only half an hour ago. Everybody kept their jackets on. Half the ladies were wearing saris, half were wearing long skirts; daringly, one or two of the skirts were less than floor length. I was in the middle of the pack sartorially, having donned a tie of a typical TMO color, light yellow. The front ranks of viewing chairs were plush models, and reserved; the last two ranks were padded folding chairs, unreserved, and that's where I sat. On my left was a young man from Austria, attending his second performance.

The hall was divided by a five or six foot screen, essentially a one-way glass. We could see the pandits, tinted a little, but they could not see us. Their isolation is always protected. From my seat, a pillar blocked my line of sight, and I could see little of the activity in the ceremonial center (fire, offerings), just the pandits' faces. I did not mind.

The walls and ceilings were decorated with truly eclectic variety. There were chariot wheels, posters of palm trees with a cityscape (four copies of the same poster), red, green, and silver tinsel garlands, painted stripes with embedded traditional symbols, such as the swastika, a white "40" medallion that looked like it had originally been a birthday decoration, one Indian flag, and several red-white-and-blue pleated paper bells from the 4th of July. Behind us was an arch, painted in multiple colors in the exuberant Indian style, with a large walk-in alcove beyond that could hold a dozen people. I didn't find out its purpose.

The performance began with the pandits again creating the striking baritone über-voice. As time went on, the tempo increased and the chanting became more normal. It was a long performance, at least 2½ hours, so I can understand the pandits preferring it not stretch to 3 hours. Still, the metamorphosis was noticeable and allowed my mind to wander. After the pandits had left the building and we were allowed to exit the hall to wait for the vans, the Raja who looks after the pandits -- I forget his name -- remarked about how difficult it was to keep them at a deliberate speed on such a long performance, especially one that delays lunch. Counting our van transport times, Eloise's orientation, and a slight starting delay, attending the performance took up 3½ hours. I was pleased to have finally attended, and also ready for lunch myself. Would I attend again? I liked hearing the über-voice, but the necessity of investing four hours makes it a tossup.

Monday, my last night in Fairfield, included an evening presentation on "Maharishi Light Therapy with Gems." This is a modern addition to Ayurveda, created, according to the presentation, by a German gemologist over a couple of decades under Maharishi's guidance. In a nutshell, bright light is beamed through gemstones at you, and it's good for you. There is a little more about it here. Interestingly, the treatments also include some amorphous -- non-orderly, non-crystalline -- gems such as coral. If you check the picture in the first link above, the patient is under a blanket. Questioned about this, the presenters said you can wear clothes during your treatment, because the beams are working not on the physical body but the "light body." (Think of people who can see auras.) In fact, the beams affecting the head are aimed not at the head, but just above the head. This contradicts some of the explanations in the second link above, but that is what they said.

So you can see the last five days of this visit had something novel each day.

In November the hours of daylight were such that I caught good photographs walking to and from the dome, both on daylight savings time and standard time. Indulge me, and take a peek at a few now. We'll start with the ladies' dome.