Thursday May 24, 2012, 7:00 p.m. Live Webcast!
Am I asleep? Many people have found themselves asking this question. The great spiritual teacher G. I. Gurdjieff said that human beings actually are asleep in day-to-day life, and that we habitually walk around in a low-grade hypnotic stupor. What is the nature of this waking sleep, and what is the way out of it? Gurdjieff’s teaching, which he called the “Fourth Way,” tries to answer this question. In this engaging presentation, Richard Smoley will introduce Gurdjieff and his ideas and how they can help us awaken today.
Richard Smoley’s latest book is The Dice Game of Shiva: How Consciousness Creates the Universe. He is also the author of Inner Christianity: A Guide to the Esoteric Tradition; Conscious Love: Insights from Mystical Christianity; and Hidden Wisdom: A Guide to the Western Inner Traditions (with Jay Kinney). The former editor of Gnosis: A Journal of the Western Inner Traditions, Smoley currently is editor of Quest: Journal of the Theosophical Society in America and of Quest Books.
$10 guests $5 members
Meditation practice has the potential to affect us on the physical, psychological, and spiritual levels. Simple techniques can produce relatively quick physical and psychological effects, such as releasing stress or improving our attention span and power of concentration. However, the mere practice of simple techniques may not be enough to reach our higher consciousness. Discover how meditation can become a means to move beyond the level of personal emotions and self-centered thinking to that of the transpersonal mind, as we finally become aware of our spiritual nature. 
Explore how Theosophy has permeated our culture through the undervalued art-form of graphic novels. The creators of these books, like many artists, find themselves compelled to express stories both personal and deeply spiritual. Many times they are underground publications, and often, the average comic book fan may overlook the more philosophical aspects of these stories. From the perspective of Theosophy, we will examine how these graphic novels are actually teaching profound truths, whether it was intentional or not. 
Many people believe that everything that happens in their present life is the result of past karma; however the Buddha's teachings on karma differ from those of other religions of Asia. The Buddha taught that there are five distinct laws at work in the cosmos that cause things to happen. They are called the Five Niyamas or Cosmic Laws. Our present circumstances are the result of countless factors that are always in flux—karma being only one. Let us explore the nature and range of these Five Cosmic Laws to arrive at a better understanding of life's experiences. 
Celebrate the Sun at this extraordinary vibrational experience that frees up, boosts, or shifts your energy for a spiritual and physical healing. Allow for a deeper experience by walking our outdoor labyrinth beforehand. Richard Rudis creates transformational waves of sound that bathe you with rising and falling rhythms, tonalities, and vibrations of a huge earth gong tuned to the sound of AUM, the universal cord. Bring a pillow and mat or blanket to lie on. 