IN THE NEWS: 21 Apr 2009

Nithyananda calls for return to Vedic traditions.
Source: India Post News Service[Link]
Sunday, March 29, 2009.

MONTCLAIR, CA: On Sunday, March 29, Paramahamsa Nithyananda (Swamiji) conducted his first public event in the City of Norwalk in nearly two years.

This landmark event also marked the first time ever that the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) and representatives of various temples and organizations gathered together to welcome an enlightened master and conduct a spiritual event.

At the program, organized by the Indian Community of Southern California, Swamiji was honored by city and state representatives, including Mayor of Artesia Sally Flowers, who presented Swamiji with keys to their city and commended his service around the world, Mayor Pro Tem of Cypress Prakash Narain, who shared his appreciation for Swamiji's message and mission, and CA State Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, who presented him with a proclamation.

Swamiji delivered an engaging and inspiring talk on the importance of the Vedic tradition to Indian communities here in the US and around the globe. Many traditions are born from the Vedic philosophy, but the underlying goal and truth of all of them is "Living Enlightenment."

Living Enlightenment consists of four dimensions: shakti, awakening the energy inside you to change whatever needs to be changed; buddhi, the intelligence to accept what need not be changed; yukti, the clarity that the whole world is a dream; and bhakti, a strong feeling of connection to that what is unchanging (be it the divine, God or your guru).

Swamiji also spoke on the importance of internalizing the Vedic inner software and the Indian dharmic tradition. Living a happy fulfilled life based on these traditions will inspire the younger generation to follow, said Swamiji. Furthermore, temples should become educational centers, and not a place for politics or just for worship.

During the talk, Swamiji also spoke on his unique technique of "unclutching," which he defined as the state of being where you, "relax into the silence from where your thoughts are arising." The constant and intense practice of "unclutching" takes you beyond attachment and detachment. It allows you to evolve into higher consciousness.

Swamiji then explained how the technique of "unclutching" is expressed through the 12th aphorism of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras. In the previous discourses, Swamiji elaborated on the five modifications of the mind, which can lead you to pain or joy. They are: right knowledge, wrong knowledge, imagination, sleep and memory. Patanjali is teaching us to continually come back to the source - to the Vedic tradition - through constant remembrance. This intensity is the ultimate technique for achieving the truth.