Albert Einstein was a profound philosopher as well as a superb mathematician. Paradoxically however, his world wide fame, and the many honors bestowed upon him, resulted almost entirely from his mathematical formulae which hardly anyone truly understood, while his philosophy, which was far more significant and always readily understandable, was largely ignored.

Humanity has, of course, always tended to take for granted, that which is readily grasped, and to worship that which is just beyond the fringe of understanding. In the case of Dr. Einstein however, there were two specific reasons for his relative lack of fame as a philosopher. The first was his own great humility. He almost always appended a note of self depreciation to his comments on humanity. For Example-“Let every man be respected as an individual and no man idolized. It is an irony of fate that I myself have been the recipient of excessive admiration and respect … through no fault, and no merit, of my own.”

A more potent factor however, was that, while mathematics are impersonal and embarrassing to no one, his comments on humanity and society too often struck home to individuals or groups: and their obvious validity did little to lessen their sting. “That a man can take

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pleasure in marching in formation to the strains of a band is enough to make me despise him. He has only been given his big brain by mistake; a backbone was all he needed.” Can you imagine this statement being adopted as a motto by any infantry regiment?

One of the simplest and most concise statements concerning the basic problem of society, is to be found in his memoirs. “Communities (Including nations and governments, ed.) tend to be less guided than individuals by conscience and a sense of responsibility. What a fruitful source of suffering to mankind this fact is! It is the cause of wars and every kind of oppression, which fill the earth with pain, sighs and bitterness.”

It is true, though not too often realized, that while we as individuals, have developed some sort of conscience and sense of morality, we have not yet evolved sufficiently to have any genuine group conscience. The result is that men, acting as a group, whether it be a lynch mob, a military command or even an international assembly, will often make plans and commit acts which none of those involved would ever consider doing as an individual. Each person feels free to follow the dictates of his emotion or his passion, secure in the belief that, since he is acting as a part of a group, he cannot be held responsible for whatever acts result. When the fallacy of this position is universally recognized, the world will become a much better place in which to live.

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THE SIGNIFICANCE, OF GANDHI

Gandhi was a little man with a big following – that much we know and can agree on about him. But do we read him right, do we “dig” what he was? And what, if any, is the statement that his life makes to us today?

The known facts, those of an encyclopedic nature, are simple enough. Gandhi, Mohandas Karamchand, was an East Indian political leader, born in Porbandar in 1869. He studied law in London and upon his return to India became an advocate of the Bombay High Court.

In 1893 he inaugurated a policy of passive resistance in South Africa in protest against the inhumane conditions imposed upon his people. Following World War I, during which he organized an Indian Ambulance Corps, he sought self-government and the betterment of living

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conditions for his people. He promoted home industries, himself weaving cloth by hand.

As a result of his example of passive resistance, strikes and riots broke out. He was imprisoned (1922-24) ; later, upon his release, he became president of the Indian Natural Congress in 1925. In 1930 he was again briefly imprisoned for civil disobedience.

His bestowal of wealth upon the poor, his own life of asceticism, his deep religious fervor, his earnest endeavors for the uplifting of the oppressed classes, and his eloquent preaching won for him the surname “Mahatma” (“Great Soul”) and the reputation of being a saint. His writings include his autobiography, Indian Home Rule, and Young India.

The background against which his aims were set up is clear enough. His blueprint for a free India, his lifetime dream, he based on uniting religion with ethics and with politics.

His revolutionary significance, according to the analysts and biographers, lay in his attempt to release the energies contained in the en-durance of the Indian people. This lie thought to do by his complete” identification with the average Indian. It was from his strong sense of unity with the starving, naked and ignorant masses of India that he derived his own power. And by his identification with them, he sought to transfer some of that power to the masses themselves.

But even knowing all this about the man, do we in the U. S. catch on to the secrets of what he was up to, and how he went about it? Let’s check ourselves with a few questions.

1) Have we a clear conception of what it is to be a creator of destiny? (This is not the same as a sense of guilt at being creators of our own problems.) Gandhi was such a figure, riding in the saddle, and he saw to it that he was recognized as such.

2) Have we understood well enough the nature of non-violence within ourselves? According to subtle Gandhian principles, non-violence begins inside, with doing no violence to the self, and that includes silent violence and subconscious violence.

3) Whatever it is that we are attempting to achieve, are we setting out and abiding by righteous methods? If not, it is not “swaraj.” Gandhi said we must have “swaraj” by righteous methods which can-not be attempted by violence. Therein lies part of the secret. His

4 UNDERSTANDING

method for achievement of all aims was “swaraj,” which means self-control. “Only he is capable of self-control who observes the rules of morality, does not cheat or give up truth, and does his duty to his parents, wife and children, servants and neighbors.”

Gandhi’s life can make a statement to us today. Let us suppose that, by the light of his example, we have come to right understanding of principles. Can right action now follow? That is, after envisioning, can we enact and enforce a passive restructuring of society? Gandhi followed the path of social action, called Karma yoga. But he knew how, through his own sacrifice and inner discipline, to stay in the saddle by maintaining under his control the emotional reactions of the masses to his actions. Could we accept that as the criterion for separating the men from the boys in the field of politics-ethics-religion that he wanted to see as one?

If so, then we might conclude that Gandhi’s significance lay in knowing not to escalate downward for democratic inclusiveness, but upward through discipline fed from the inside. When he went some-where, he knew just how- to take the people with him and just how far to go by an example of self-restraint with which they could identify. That is precisely the way of “swaraj.”

What can we say that Gandhism is, then? Perhaps that it is the constant demonstration of freedom as the opportunity to discipline oneself through self-control. It is a path, or a way, along which there are few long-term shortcuts. Man is a long time coming, but he can prevail.

– Juliana Lewis

 ♦ 

ON BEING AWARE

Part Four

(With the special permission of Janice Aurah Kramer, from her forth-coming book On Being Aware and Expanding Your Consciousness. The full text of this serialized article may be had from Miss Kramer, P. O. Box .6515. Edendale Sta., Los Angeles, Calif. 90026. A donation for printing and postage would be appreciated.)

Below is a discussion of emotions-how to understand and gain control of them in ways that suit you best. While there may be some

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repetition, actually, it is necessary to go over and over the “problem” areas in your life until the lesson is learned. Therefore, the different emphasis on awareness in this section will firm up your understanding and use of what has been said and allow you to approach awareness from new directions.

You, in a sense, may be taking some “tests” – if you choose to spend time doing so. However, there will be no pass or fail. Rather, these experiences will introduce you to yourself, your conscious to your unconscious mind. You will begin to understand more how your mind operates. Chances are, though, you already- have some ideas as to your mind and/or body function(s). Going one step further, by under-standing of how the deeper, soul part of self functions. Herein lie the gifts.

Begin to be observant of yourself as much as you can. Notice extremes of behavior and who, if anyone or any type, triggers. Or if no one is needed to start a negative chain, how do you begin events? Who falls into your trap? You may be surprised how often you’re the culprit. But when you begin to become more honest with self, you’ll find this amusing-that you needed to fool yourself! What a sad joke!

Realizing that you’ve been harming yourself and others by this dishonesty, you’ll want to more quickly learn ways to change behavior which is in opposition to your higher self. Here are some hints: Do you need the last word? Are you always “wrong” or usually “right?” Do you make snap decisions or is it hard for you to decide? If you can’t turn to yourself for answers, who, then? Was this answer “right” for you? And if you knew it wasn’t right, did you follow- through on it? Why? To please someone else? Because you didn’t trust yourself? If you can’t trust yourself, who can you trust?

To be more adept at this aspect of getting to know self, you must be able to identify the “games” you have been playing with others. Do you need to be the martyr, dictator, ruler, queen, scapegoat, child? Who plays with you? What role do they play? Do you switch roles with that person? With others? Are you, for example, a delight at work and a monster at home-or vice versa? Are you a secret sinner or do you flaunt your behavior in public? What’s your facade-braggart, winner, loser, clown, rebel, critic and or? What are you inside where it counts?

To identify some of your games, be aware of a few “rules” you

6 UNDERSTANDING

sometimes will criticize in others what you don’t like in self, or male fun of something you admire or are afraid of. Or you may seek to get attention by negative behavior-like yelling, crying, or having tantrums. Or you may not be able to give gifts or accept them. Or you might be too “good or “right.” Or you may not be able to ask for help, but be aware that it is your mind that caused the problems. Until you become more efficient in calling the games you want to play, remember that others often may be able to see you more clearly. Ask the ones you trust what games you are playing-or tell them the destructive ones you’ve put on them. Can you admit to being “wrong” with-out blaming others’. Learn from your mistakes.

As you begin to identify your destructive behavior, you’ll learn to modify. Don’t be disappointed when you fail to maintain the positive self. Remember that the habit tools years to build, and that you often will be between where you were and who you want to be. This is unsure territory, for you will feel pulled by the past (which often was “safe,” even if destructive) and to the future, which is unknown. Each time you retreat, you will feel less comfortable there. The past is for learning. If you live there, you are carrying excess emotional burdens that keep you from living more productively in the NOW. How can you function well in the present if you have not understood or forgiven yourself and others for immature, naive behavior:’

To be more aware, visualize yourself as having three selves: high, acting, and inner. The high self is somewhat removed from you but is your ideal self. It can be visualized’ as you above yourself-your soul-looking down on and watching your behavior rather abstractly. What you say or do, or don’t say and don’t do, is observed rather unemotionally. This is the part of yourself you will grow into as you become more aware and modify your destructive behavior. This is your impersonal self.

The acting self is the part of you that walks, talks, sits, dances, sleeps, moves in any fashion-or doesnt move. Some of this movement is functional and part of the body motions-like the heart beat and blood flow. Other movements are directed by the inner self, which has many facets. But the extreme positive and negative usually vie for control. If your inner self is in conflict, the result of this internal civil war may at times be destructive, sloppy, disjointed, depressing and/or clumsy behavior. When particularly unsure, the result may

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be indecision. But as you learn that you can control yourself in a healthy way, you will find yourself making better decisions. You’ll live more graciously and experience life as a challenge. Use all your emotions, but don’t let them rule you.

Remember that you can observe self as you live each moment, but at particularly important times, watch yourself more closely. Do this by outwardly seeing looking at self in the mirror, watching others as they reflect your behavior, and inwardly listening to your voices. Listen to what the different parts of self are saying, and how they say- it. Is your dominant inner self your friend, lover, stranger, mother, father, therapist, what? Is the inner self in operation your higher self? Is it an adult, or are you ashamed of your behavior? You are responsible for your actions?

To be continued

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WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING

Appointment With Tomorrow

(Daily Courier, Grants Pass, Oregon, December 10, 1969)

NEW YORK (UPI)-If it is true that a basic human need is “an appointment with tomorrow,” then many- of today’s rebellious young people are laying themselves open to psychosomatic ill health. Doctors were tipped to this prospect by the medical scientist Dr. Morton D. Bogdonoff. He had in mind rebellious young people in whom there is a very- definite tenor of despair and hopelessness.” They seem to have no appointment with tomorrow.

“Christmas in Vietnam?” Bogdonoff asked. “Summer in Harlem? Are these the promises for the future which ask enthusiasm? Many people seem to be saying *No.'”

Doctors are “responsible for all components of a patient’s health,” he said. “If the larger ground rules and policies of our society are unfavorably modifying that health, then articulate and effective proposals for change do merit our attention.”

In Bogdonoff’s view, the mind’s subtle influences on body health make social scientists of all doctors. This means that “attempting to have the patient view the future with a hue of hope and to plan for tomorrow with a posture of commitment, may be one of the most important jobs a physician ewer undertakes.”

3 UNDERSTANDING

He took off from the findings of the Center for the Study of the Aging at Duke University, Durham, N. C., where he is professor of medicine. Characteristically, people upon retiring from their life’s work develop psychosomatic illnesses.

“The requirement to be some place each day, to be performing some task, to provide some service, to be with certain people in some planned manner may not necessarily be the `chains’ of responsibility so much as the lifeline links to the future,” he said.

“If this be the true state of affairs, then what the physician must prescribe is not more pills but more people, and what the patient will need is not an appointment with the physician but an appointment with tomorrow.”

Young people have, in general, a greater “physiological reserve” than older people; hence, psychosomatic distress can take longer to show up in them. But “there are now many young people who state quite candidly that the cross-currents and hostilities of society are so threatening to them-and seemingly so unnecessary-that they, too, do not have any appointment with tomorrow.”

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UNDERSTANDING “UNDERSTANDING”

“Knowledge” and “wisdom” have always been commonplace words in the English language, but until the last few years, the word “understanding was rarely rarely used. Now however, it is coming into more and more frequent use, as its vital importance in the welfare, and even the survival of mankind is, at last, beginning to be realized. One of the major problems of society has always been its failure to distinguish carefully between wisdom and understanding, or even between knowledge and understanding. Actually, the three words have separate and quite different meaning, as Soloman pointed out when he said, “Therefore, get ye knowledge and wisdom, but with all thy getting!” Knowledge and wisdom are tools by which mankind may reach its goals, but only through understanding can we determine whether those goals, when reached, will benefit or harm us.

It has been said, “When a fool errs, he will pay for his folly, but when a wise man errs, all humanity may suffer!”

Some of our greatest achievements in science and technology are

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now threatening, not only our welfare, but our very existence. Knowledge and wisdom alone will not suffice to avert these perils. Security can come only through the achievement of complete understanding.

Even the most modern dictionaries give halting and sometimes paradoxical definitions of the word, often confusing it with knowledge or wisdom. Apparently, even the most expert of lexicographers fail to realize that, while knowledge and wisdom are centered in the head, only true understanding can reach the heart.

Dr. Einstein once said, “Religion, without science, is blind; science without religion is lame.” He should, perhaps, have added, “Science and religion, without understanding, become terrible juggernauts hurt-ling along unpredictable courses, with neither steering equipment nor brakes.”

–Dr. Daniel W. Fry

FROM THE DIAMOND JIM SUTRA

The Etheric Wall has been breached-the Door between the Physical and the Astral opening up all the way clown the line–acid trips, light shows, neon signs, color TV punch their way in with diamond knuckles – a flood of images coming through, swarms of ghosts flooding our cities-hypersonic energy-chains and identity-rays firing through the slot, entering through the Door of the Third Eye-and we meet our ancestors as visions of the next step in Human Evolution, in Spaceships studded with eyes-what we are to become beams in from deep space to meet us-it was always there, the Once and Future Face-thin filament lightning establishes connection and along this ladder spirits ascending and descending like Jacob’s Angels!-the Moonflight cracked open the Sky! – Flying Saucers over the Great Pyramid-William Blake in a Spaceship, a Chariot of Fire, descending, surrounded by the Four Living Creatures, to perch on Zion’s Hill-all chains broken lay bare the Original Child-the Mushroom Cloud is a fiery character signifying: Explosion of Consciousness-the Cross, the Cloud, the Amanita and the Snake, One Image stamped on the heavens-the Great Symbol of our Age-we are the energy – E equals MC squared, the formula for Ego-loss and Vision-we are the Fire in our own bodies bleed away nuclear destiny, and dance with Terror-

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We take our place on the Great Mandala-our birth is accomplished, the umbilicus bitten through-now we can see our Earth for the first time for what she really is-a Jewel in Space-we love her, and she is wounded-so we light our nerves on the Zodiac, raise one hand up in the Light of God, lay one hand down to heal her wound – gently -then take her arm, rise up and dance along the night….

–Charles Upton

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world report

Unidentified Object

The- Middletown (Ohio) Journal, November 12, 1971

Local UFO buffs are trying to locate other individuals who saw a large oval-shaped blue-green object traveling east-southeast Thursday evening a week ago.

The sighting by Mrs. Bonn Roman of Middletown Rt. 3, her husband and a friend, is apparently only one of a number of varied sightings reported since last summer by area residents.

The object was also seen at approximately the same time by a woman who turned her car from Central Avenue onto Curryer Road about 8:15 p.m.

Roger Hoefer of the Dayton Museum of Natural History said a very bright meteor had been sighted by two of his observers at 9:34 p.m. Nothing had been reported earlier.

A local NICAP (National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomenon) spokesman, said Mrs. Roman had called him immediately after the sighting. “If this was a meteor it would have rocked the whole state,” he said. He reported that from Mrs. Roman’s comments she viewed the object for approximately one minute, there was a five-minute interval and then she watched it again for one minute from a different direction.

Hoefer said a two or three-minute sighting would rule out a meteor but added his feeling that people tend to misjudge time.

The woman who contacted the newspaper reported a fire trail. Mrs.

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Roman’s friend, who was the first of the three in that group to see the object, said it was leaving a trail with purple color on the bottom and yellow on top. Mrs. Roman saw no trail.

She said that from its location it was past Ohio 63, maybe around the Monroe or Lebanon area. It appeared to have a solid outline and no outer glow. “I saw it going through the top of the tree line and then the light quickly went out,” she said.

She said that same evening they were watching gold lights, some of which were maneuvering, both in the south and north.

Among reports given to her from area residents this fall was the sighting by an Armco security guard in August of a grapefruit-sized object over Armco which stayed for six hours and then sped away, shiner stuff falling over Lemon-Monroe High School at 4 p.m. on Oct 28 and numerous objects with light patterns. She said the increasing collection of sightings she is gathering this year go back to July and include those from Dayton and Cincinnati.

Help for Men in Role of God

The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, October 3, 1971

WASHINGTON-Georgetown University is forming the world’s first institute to study perplexing questions of modern medicine such as whether doctors should prolong the life of a dying patient or save a critically ill mongoloid child.

The new institute, funded by a $1.35 million grant from the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation, will put theologians next to doctors who make daily decisions on who shall live and who shall die.

The Rev. Robert J. Henle, president of Georgetown University, said recent developments in medicine have made necessary the marriage of biology and ethics–which he called “bioethics.”

These developments include artificial kidneys, organ transplants, experiments leading to test-tube babies, new techniques to discover before birth if a baby will be retarded, and medicine’s growing ability to keep nonfunctioning patients technically alive.

Father Henle said the unique aspect of the new center is the “introduction of ethicists into laboratories, clinical areas, operating and delivery rooms where the life-and death decisions involving both science and ethics are daily being made.”

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Good for Pictures

Daily Courier, Grants Pass, Ore. November 16, 1971

AMSTERDAM (UPI)-Dutch river water is so polluted by chemicals that you can develop a film in it, the daily De Telegraaf said today. As proof the newspaper printed a picture developed in water taken from the Rhine-Meuse rivers which unite in Holland. The printed picture clearly- showed the houses.

Waterless Life

Time, November 29, 1971

Could life evolve on planets unlike the earth-say on a completely waterless world? Experiments performed by Goesta Wollin and David B. Ericson of Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory suggest that it could indeed, although without water any organisms would probably be totally unrecognizable.

Wollin and Ericson mixed the molecules of gases recently detected in the far reaches of space-ammonia, methanol, formaldehyde and formic acid-in various combinations. Then, keeping the gases completely free of water, the scientists exposed them to ultraviolet radiation and they found that they combined to produce small quantities of some of the amino acids essential to life. Says Wollin : “Perhaps liquid ammonia, with its physical and chemical properties so similar to water, could serve as a solvent medium for waterless life.”

The Thing left a Ring

Salina (Kansas) Journal, Nov. 7, 1971, by Bob Kelly

Delphos-Ronald Johnson, 15, was putting a roof on a small shed Friday afternoon. Less than 50 yards away from the shed was an area of scrub trees where young Johnson saw something that startled him-something “really bright like a welder.”

The “thing” whistled like a jet plane and rose rapidly into the sky, he said. He ran into the house to summon his parents, and they watched the “thing” in the sky. Ronald’s estimations were that the “thing” was some 8 feet in diameter and perhaps 10 feet tall. As it left, a dead Chinese elm tree was toppled near the shed.

Since Tuesday, law enforcement officials and personnel from the Concordia weather bureau office have visited the area to check for possible indications of what it might have been.

Ronald says the “thing” left behind a phosphorescent ring on the ground, and one picture of the ring is now at the Ottawa county sheriff’s office while officials study the case. One tree still glows

JANUARY, 1972 13

in spots at night but the ring on the ground has almost stopped glowing. An official in the sheriff’s office said there had been another sighting of an object heading north, near Minneapolis, on the same night, reported by a Minneapolis resident.

Ronald can’t say for sure if the “thing” ever landed on the ground. No indentation of any kind was left in the area.

Cameras Steal Their Souls!

Grit, Publishing Co.

Primitive people all over the world share a common fear of the ordinary camera.

This fear can be so great that some of the more hostile tribesmen will even kill a person who dares shove a camera before their face. Fear of cameras comes from a belief that when a person’s picture has been taken, so has his soul.

A St. Petersburg (Fla.) writer, C. Winn Upchurch, has been attacked physically on several occasions while snapping pictures of natives in the interiors of both Africa and South America.

One native woman in Port Gentil, a bush town in the African nation of Gabon, threw a heavy metal canister she was carrying on her head at Upchurch when the journalist snapped a photograph of her son. After being the target of numerous other marksmen, Upchurch reports he found a solution-a Polaroid camera.

With the 10-second camera, Upchurch found he could “take the souls” of his subjects and, in a few seconds, “return their souls to them. Upchurch gave a group of young Shipibo Indians the first glimpse of what they looked like when he took their photographs during a visit to their Peruvian village. The pictures erased their fears.

Painting By ESP

Medford (Oregon) Mail Tribune, Nov. 17, 1971

By Marjorie O’hara, Mail Tribune Staff Writer

PHOENIX (Ore.)-Berths Lorton is a demure gray-haired, gray-eyed lady of 59 who lives in Phoenix.

She has an unusual skill, one that she doesn’t really understand her-self. “I feel something is taking place beyond me,” is how she describes it quietly, and with a smile.

Bertha produce pictures with what she calls her “ESP-extra sensory perception” for lack of a better interpretation.

“Sometimes I know I have to stop doing other things and go draw,”

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she says. “I see a sort of luminous line on whatever piece of paper I pick up to work on, and I follow it with a pencil. I work fast, because when it goes, its gone.”

Later, she says, she may “hear” a color, or “it just comes to me.” She applies this and is surprised to see the end result.

She has produced all-over designs of strong flowing lines, and designs of happy whimsy. She has produced pictures that resemble illustrations for the fairy tale classics, and some that recall the myths of the ancient Greeks. She has done things that are Egyptian and Oriental in influence. She has done maze-like things she calls “cartoons,” and likenesses of pottery urns and ceramic vases. One of her paintings is a totem, with a poem that explains the story it tells.

“I never know what will be next,” she says. “They seem to come in a series, with sometimes as long as 18 months elapsing between each grouping that represents a specific kind of expression.”

She has painted other pictures of her own intent, and they bear no resemblance whatsoever to those that materialize -when she follows the luminous lines.

Otto Wilda, associate professor of art at Southern Oregon College said, “These are highly sophisticated in terms of approach, organization and form. They are not naive. Any design student would be proud of them.”

“Have you had any art training?” he asked. “No,” she answered.

“What intrigues me,” he went on, “is that you imply you use an extra sense. What bothers me is, where do the ideas originate? From outside stimulus? Could this be an intuitive thing? And if it is, then why can’t you do it all the time. What generates it? Some of your drawings and patterns are seemingly inspired by a point of view that was prevalent centuries ago….

Bertha said she is of Indian ancestry on her paternal grandmother’s side, “but would this explain how a sense of pattern, design and form is transferred?” she asked. “And, if it did, how would the Greek, Egyptian and Oriental influence be explained?”

She said she did no ESP work until she fell on the banks of the Applegate River and hit her head on a rock. She was hospitalized and when she recovered, she said she was suddenly able to “forecast things, not about the outside world, but for people.”

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She did not try to develop this ability, in fact, she worked to sup-press it.

Her first ESP art work came during a time of severe nervous strain because of the illness of her father.

She still doesn’t understand what is happening, but she accepts it as something that satisfies her.

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dear Sir:

Recently, while reading through some books that a friend had, I came across one of your Understanding Magazines. I must confess that I had never seen one before, so I started reading through it.

I really think that what you are doing is great, and I hope that Understanding will continue to grow. I truly believe that this world would be a much better place if the people in it could get together to create a better and richer understanding of just what is going on around them: to be able to exchange ideas and thoughts, and to listen with an open mind. This is one of the reasons I decided to write you.

For the past five and a half years I have been incarcerated in a California State Prison, and during this time I have often thought that there must be somebody out there who cared enough to write and perhaps listen to me.

When I came to prison I was 19 and I am now 25. I know that there are a lot of things happening in the outside world and I would like to hear about them.

One thing that means more than anything else to a person in prison is the fact that he is not really forgotten. If he gets letters then he strives that much harder to obtain parole and to try to make some-thing of himself. But, when a person feels that the entire world is against him, then he really can’t see any reason for going back into the outside world. I know, because there have been many times that I have felt this way.

Perhaps through letters I could help people to stay out of places such as this, and at the same time have the joy of receiving letters. To a person in prison mail is the most important thing there is. I truly hope that you will be able to help me, and at the same time allow me to help you.

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I am a high school graduate with one and a half years of college. During the time I have been in here I have learned the trade of drafting, so that I will have something when I get out. I enjoy all sports, and I love the outdoors, along with camping, etc.

Because I live in a world of men I would like to write women, but to tell the truth, mostly I just want to receive and write letters. I would like to write to other countries, but it really doesn’t matter.

I hope that you will be able to send me a list of people who would like to write me.

Very truly yours,

Frank Hubbell

(Our readers may write to Mr. Hubbell at P. 0. Box A-E, San Luis Obispo, Calif. 93401.)

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book reviews

THE BIOLOGICAL BASIS OF RELIGION AND GENIUS

by Gopi Krishna

Available from Kundalini Research Foundation, 440 E. 62nd St., New York, N. Y. 10021

The awakening of the Kundalini, or “Serpent Power” is the Eastern nomenclature for our Western and Christian Re-birth, but where the former requires careful supervision and can lead to disaster when handled before necessary preparation, the other is a natural development. This book, as with all others touching upon the subject of Kundalini urges caution-suggesting that the work of attempting to awaken this latent power be done under the guidance of one who has the knowledge of the experience.

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It is believed by the Research Foundation that open knowledge of the potential of this Kundalini-power is the surest safeguard against its use by the wicked as a weapon to be turned against humanity. spiritual rebirth should provide a sublime activity for the pure-minded and intelligent adventurers. All evolution should be gained through self-mastery if our evolution is to proceed on a positive vibration; drugs, hypnosis, etc., are not the answers to this great need.

Through all the vicissitudes of life and living humanity has held to many ideas and truths proffered by earlier seers and sages, because it has been known, even if only subconsciously, that within these teachings are to be found the answers that will eventually lead to the salvation of the present races-through evolution.

There is a deep-rooted religious need within each man, and this can be satisfied through the experience of an awakened Kundalini. The wide-spread development of various cults, sects, Yoga groups, drug sessions, etc., are the outward signs of this inner urge to achieve the ultimate religious or spiritual experience.

Today we are well aware of the results of repressions and hidden ideas and ideals that can fester within the soul or spirit of a man-and the proper development of the Kundalini can alleviate such repressions and any spiritual frustrations.

It is an accepted scientific fact today that few people use even a small portion of the available brain-power, and the evolution possible through intelligent use of the Kundalini can enable man to accept his latent divinity and use the entire resources that were put at his disposal at the time of his birth.

Much research is still necessary before we can accept the truths presented in THE BIOLOGICAL BASIS OF RELIGION AND GENIUS, and the author, himself, is earnest in requiring that what he has to offer should appeal to our reason, should be open to personal testing, and should be researched with infinite care before his personal experiences are accepted and offered to the world as a way of spiritual development.

Gopi Krishna believes that the inner religious instincts are not satisfied by repeated “feedings” of the same mental or spiritual food, and seek and more nourishing tid-bits if such instincts are not to become atrophied and left under-nourished and unable to perform

18 UNDERSTANDING

the work they were to have done to drive mankind on to spiritual heights as yet unknown to the majority of us.

This is a fascinating subject to those who seek occult knowledge, and it is encouraging to know what can be done, although it should not be done by an untutored neophyte. The Kundalini Research Foundation should be cheered on by those who deplore the way drugs, hypnosis, meditation, fakirs, etc., are set before the unwary- today. There is no easy way, to spiritual perfection-but the more difficult the Way, the more blessed the results.

–Dorothy low

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Personal Project for 1972

For the widest possible dissemination of the principles of Understanding-“to promote a better understanding among all peoples of earth and those not of earth” we need your help.

There are many people throughout the world who would be most grateful to receive your used copy of the Understanding Magazine. So, in 1972, as a gesture of world-wide friendship, why not regularly mail your copy overseas. All that is required is an unsealed manila envelope and 8 cents postage.

Names and addresses may be had by writing to our Friendship by Mail Chairman, Mrs. Aleta Johnson, P. O. Box 206, Merlin, Ore., 97532, May we count on you?

JANUARY, 1972 19

Sounds in Space

“Sounds in Space” is the quarterly bulletin of the Buffalo Unit 37 of Understanding, Inc., and is published by and for the members of the Unit and for true seekers of Truth.

The booklet covers the aims of Understanding, the Unit’s activities, President Marie Hale’s message, as well as interesting articles contributed by the membership, plus a page of humor.

We congratulate the Buffalo Unit for its excellent publication!

If other Units are interested in a similar project, we suggest you write to Mrs. Marie Hale, 58 Berwyn Ave., Buffalo, N. L, 14215 for a copy of the December 1971 “Sounds in Space.”

San Jose Unit 80 to Sponsor Lecture

Mrs. Becki Chenoweth of Unit 80, San Jose, California, announces a special lecture on Macro Philosophy will be offered by the Plyms, who have authored several books on the subject.

The lecture will be given at the West Valley College in Cupertino, California at 8 P.M. on January 22nd. Donation $3.00.

With no time to check details at press time, we suggest you personally contact the “Orbit,” P.O. Box 3051, San Jose, Calif. 95116, or Heather Buckley at 379-2465 for further information.

A Reminder

May we again remind our readers and all Exchange Publications to send all mail to our Merlin Address: P. 0. Box 206, Merlin, Ore., 97532. Our Pasadena address is being discontinued. Your cooperation is appreciated.

June Convention

The Third Annual Understanding Convention at the International Cultural Center of Understanding, Merlin, Oregon, is scheduled for the weekend of June 16th, 17th and 18th.

Program plans are already being made and so we ask you to mark your calendars and make your plans to be with us once more for another experience in sharing enlightenment, understanding and fellowship.

Tony’s Healing Church

Tony Agpaoa, famous Philippine psychic surgeon has established his healing ministry on a legal spiritual basis. As Rev. Mons. Antonio

20 UNDERSTANDING

C. Agpaoa he now heads the Philippine Spiritual Church of Science and Revelation, under government permit 37582. The address is: Camp 7, Kennon Road, or P. 0. Box P, Baguio City, Philippines.

Questions and Answers

It has been suggested, again, that Understanding Magazine feature a Question and Answer page monthly. The editors are willing if the readers will submit the questions. It has been tried before but reader questions were few.

Its your turn now!

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THOUGHT

(Four Winds Newsletter, September 1971)

As you think, you travel. You are today where your thoughts have brought you. You will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you. You cannot escape the result of your thoughts, but you can endure and learn, can accept and be glad. You will realize the wisdom (not the idle wish) of your heart, be it base or beautiful or a mixture of both, for you will always gravitate toward that which you secretly love.

In your hands will be placed the exact results of your thoughts. You will receive that which you earn-no more-no less.

Whatever your present environment may be you will fall, remain, or rise with your thoughts, your wisdom, your ideal. You will become as small as your controlling desire, as great as your dominant aspiration.

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Please enter a one year subscription to Understanding Magazine for:

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City ________________ State ______________ Zip __________________

Payment enclosed ___ $2.50 per year

Understanding, Inc. P. O. Box 22, Sta. C. Pasadena, Calif. 91104

KNOWLEDGE FROM OUTER SPACE

While researching, with an Edgar Cayce technique, for answers to technical questions, John Langdon Watts and his associates were contacted by people from outer space-from Venus.

Discourses took place for over one year. The author, John Langdon Watts, was requested to write two books. One concerns the life of the Venusians, the other their religion. Religious Philosophies of the Planets, now finished, is available for $1.50, plus 25 cents for postage and handling. If not available from your favorite bookstore, can be ordered direct from

DIXIE VENUS CORPORATION

Distributors

P.O. Box Venus 275 Port Orange, Fla. 32019

“TO THINE OWN SELF BE TRUE”

Writings

JANICE AURAH KRAMER

God and Me and Everything

On Being Aware

On How to Become a Universal Citizen

On Living Life As An Adventure and a Trip

On How to Have An Honest Relationship With Self, Others and the Universe

Donation

P.O. Box 26515, Edendale Sta. Los Angeles, California 90026

BOOKS AVAILABLE

A Spacewoman Speaks

Rolf Telano …. $1.50

A Call At Dawn

Kelvin Rowe …$3.00

Secret of Success (soft) $1.65

R. C. Allen (hard) $4.50

ESP and Your Superconsciousness

(soft) $1.45

Gilbert Holloway (hard) $4.50

Stranger at the Pentagon

Dr. Frank E. Stranges .. .. $3.98

Please add 15c per book for postage and handling.

Merlin Publishing Company

P. O. Box 105

Merlin, Oregon 97532

Memberships in Understanding

Understanding, Inc. is a non-profit corporation dedicated to the propagation of a better understanding among all the peoples of the earth so that they may live in harmony and be better prepared psychologically and sociologically for the space age.

Several types of membership are available to those who wish to support our endeavors either with dollars or with time and service, or both.

The Associate Membership is Two Dollars per year; the Contributing Membership, Ten Dollars per year, including the Understanding magazine; Sustaining Membership, Twenty-Five Dollars per year, including subscription; and Life Membership, Five Hundred Dollars, including subscription to Understanding magazine.

Welcome to the Understanding family!

UNDERSTANDING, INC.

P.O. Box 206, Merlin, Oregon 97532.

Understanding Volume 17 Number 1

MATHEMATICS VS. PHILOSOPHY

THE SIGNIFICANCE, OF GANDHI

ON BEING AWARE

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING

UNDERSTANDING “UNDERSTANDING”

FROM THE DIAMOND JIM SUTRA

world report

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

book reviews

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THOUGHT