Hi Divinefurball and Krish:
Great stuff. Others are bound to pick up on these things and the synergies will continue to occur. The more we can reveal the rising trend of spiritual science here, the better.
Thank you for sharing!
The guru is in you.
Hi BellaMente:
That’s great. All in good time. It is a marathon, not a sprint.
We are going to have to work on the acronym though:
“Applied Spiritual Science” = ASS. 
A better one:
“Department of Applied Spiritual Science” = DASS
Much more respectable. 
It doesn’t matter what it is called, as long as the work gets done.
As for what it turns out to be structurally in the academic/research community, I don’t have preconceived notions other than the fact that it will likely follow normal university protocols, which is fine.
What will make this significant is the fact that increasing numbers of people around the world are going though the process of human spiritual transformation. So, rather than only looking back, we are looking at what is happening now, how it can be optimized, and its implications for the whole of humanity. It is what AYP is about, and as the phenomenon grows, so too will interest in the research institutions.
Machart raised a good point earlier: Why attempt to measure the unmeasurable? Why not just let the divine love flow? My reason is a simple one. The more embedded this kind of knowledge becomes in our society, the greater will be its long term relevance. It takes a certain amount of structured knowledge to facilitate a spiritual awakening on a mass scale. For millennia, it has been the job of religion to develop and preserve the knowledge. Now we are in a position to see it migrate into the scientific institutions, which offers important advantages.
All the best!
The guru is in you.
DASS sounds OK but college kids would still call it Department of ASS, or ASS department.
I guess the word “spiritual” is the most ambiguous of the three. Maybe you could come up with something like “Science of Enlightenment” or “Evolutionary Enlightenment”.
I don’t like the word “enlightenment” though - too much baggage.
or Science of Applied Spirituality
Well I can definitely talk to the president of my last college about it, I know he will be able and willing to help me or at least point me in the right direction. I can at least find out what has to be done to get this going. I can also talk to the provost of the school I am currently attending.
In my opinion, I think that the courses would have to come before the actual department / degree. Most schools would probably want to introduce the classes first to see how many students sign up. If there is a demand for it, then most likely they would be willing to set up the department. I have seen this happen at my last college. They would start to offer non-accredited classes on rare subjects (the most common example is languages - they offer classes in foreign languages that are not usually taken and see how many people enrolled, if there was a sufficient interest they would add it to the accredited classes, and if there was a growing interest then they would add higher level classes and depending again on the interest of these, they would set up a degree.) I have seen classes such as ‘comparative religions’ move from non-accredited to accredited. I also have seen a philosophy type class based on studies of the ancient texts of different religions offered, and I am sure it will move up to the credited courses soon. This is even more true now, with all the budget cuts in departments. Many universities are cutting programs and closing departments to cut costs. So if this is the case, that the school would want to offer the classes first to see how many people are interested, I would think then that the main problem besides funding would be publicity and finding the teachers. But I don’t know for sure, I will have to talk to the right people to find out.
So Yogani you don’t know what kind of curriculum there should be? Do you have any ideas for subjects, classes? (I can let these people know some ideas and see what they have to say…)
Also, I might be wrong, but I can see this happening a lot faster than you think…
Another thing, I just wanted to back my claim up that schools set up some of the most uncommon and strange majors, so I’m sure Applied Spiritual Science would not be much different. Plus there are universities where you can create your own major:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/other-college-majors/24591-weird-unusual-not-common-rare-creative-create-your-own-majors-2.html
Hi BellaMente:
Thanks much for your interest in this. It needs dedicated “fire starters” and “implementers” before much can happen. It will take a sustained effort to build the necessary momentum.
It can be either the gradual evolution of classes you suggest, or a big fat grant (most likely CAM-related) on the front end to undertake extensive research on human spiritual transformation. One would eventually lead to the other. Both occurring at the same time would be even better.
As for curriculum, the AYP lessons and books are very much that. After independent practitioner support, it has always been an objective that the two AYP Easy Lessons textbooks (#2 coming next year) and the nine (maybe to become 10) small Enlightenment Series books could support classroom instruction in just about any environment, including university at the undergraduate and post graduate levels. So the AYP writings can be used for that. The curriculum is already there, at least from this author’s point of view.
This forum is also a model for how open source communications on spiritual research in a multi-national academic environment can flourish. It is happening here “non-academically” on a high level already, and there is no reason why it could not happen in a similar fashion in the academic community as well. All it will take is more practitioners in the research field, gathering together online for that purpose. It is common in many other fields of research.
The sooner the better. 
The guru is in you.
wow this is very exciting!! If something like that can happen, it would be really amazing…
Hi Yogani,The Birla Institute of Science and Technology, in Pilani, Rajasthan, is running an MS Program in Spiritual Science for several years now.A Mr. Ravi Gomatam, who is in charge of the Bhakti Vedanta Institute in San Francisco,and who has conducted seminars on “Science and Spirituality” with several Nobel Laureates as speakers, is the lead faculty for this program. You might like to contact him. His “Ashram” name in ISCON is “Ras Raj Das”
Thank you, Krish.
I don’t know if these two people have been mentioned here before but I am reading a book by one Patricia Carrington M.D. (http://www.amazon.com/Book-Meditation-Patricia-Carnington/dp/1862042365/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_3), who is a psychotherapist and did some research in the use and effeciency of meditation. I think she tried to fill in a gap in studying a standardized form of meditation and how it affects different types of people and how different types of meditation may suit different kinds of people. A very big gap in meditation scientific research in my opinion. Apparently this author is from University of Princeton. I know that is USA but don’t know where exactly . The book I read is apparently from 1977 and I am sad to see how little meditation scientific research has advanced since - though the author states in it she is convinced areas with little research will with no doubt become very well studied in the not-so-long future!
In that book she also mentions the studies of one Herbert Beson (defined the famous “Relaxation Response”) who apparently was pioneer in meditation scientific research. Maybe this gentleman is stil an active researcher?
Just my 2-cent.
Yogani, I am going back to Detroit tomorrow and I am going to try to meet with the president of my last college on Monday. I will let you know what he says about everything…
Hi Bellamente,
Kirtanman recently posted this:
Direct Link To PDF Article: Buddha’s Brain:
Neuroplasticity and Meditation
in this thread:
http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6490#6490
It might be good ammo for when you talk to your college president.
Peace
cosmic
Well, I didn’t get to stop by my old college Monday because we were having trouble with the car and had to get it fixed before coming back to Chicago… But I sent him a detailed message about everything so I will be waiting for his reply…
Thanks for that link cosmic, very good stuff!
Hey Yogani…
I figured I’d let you know…
I don’t want to include the entire conversation here but I talked to my former college president and figured I’d share with you what he said. He did say it might take several years to get a program up and running, but he also said he believes I can get my foot in the door. He suggested I start here at my current college, but since I go to a smaller more technical oriented school and I agree with you in that something like this should be done at a bigger university that is also very diverse and advanced, I was wondering your ideas on trying to get something going at either Emory University (ranked up there with Cornell University, Emory is known for its diversity, both academically and culturally) or at a university in Chicago, somewhere like Northwestern, UIC, etc etc.?? The reason why I ask is because I have more connections at those schools and both are very big and very diverse. I don’t even know if I can get something in the works going, but I sure would like to try. As mentioned earlier, I would love to be a part of it, I think it is an awesome idea, and most importantly I would love to give something back to you after all you have done for us here!
So let me know your thoughts on this… I personally don’t think it would take too long if you have the right people involved and if they are willing to put in the extra hard work… But again I can’t say for sure… But it doesn’t hurt to try…
Hi BellaMente:
Your interest in promoting spiritual science in the academic community is much appreciated.
The universities you mentioned sound like suitable candidates. As much as we would like to choose one (Harvard is my first choice), it will ultimately be a university that chooses to pursue applied spiritual science on both the teaching and research sides. So, we should inquire with as many as we practically can, and look for one to grab hold.
Eventually, we will see many universities involved in this, because it is the next great frontier of human scientific knowledge. But not likely in the near future. So we are looking for the few pioneers in research and education for human spiritual development, those who can see beyond the limits of traditional approaches and into the emerging wide-open science of human spiritual transformation – that which is verifiable cause and effect, applicable within any cultural or religious framework.
Preferred university components for supporting applied spiritual science include:
- A medical school with research capability in neuroscience and related fields.
- Interest/background in complimentary and alternative medicine (CAM), with interest/ability to obtain grant funding. This growing area of research funding can be applied potentially to spiritual science.
- Schools of philosophy and religion (non-sectarian).
- Schools of psychology and social sciences.
- Schools of physics and physical sciences.
Ideally, a department of applied spiritual science would draw on all of these, and provide course curricula and degrees of its own. Obviously, this will not all happen overnight. It will start somewhere, perhaps with one class or one research grant, likely with one person in the lead, and evolve from there. It is a long term project.
A journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step.
Thanks!
The guru is in you.
No need to thank me! Thank you!
I am going to talk to someone here at my school who has a lot of connections. So I will bring this up and see where he points me…
In the meantime I will keep you posted- I’ll let you know any additional feedback I receive.
God bless you Yogani, you are a beautiful man!!
Yogani and others, just got up to speed on this thread and recognize the challenge of creating interest in a research grant or other vehicle for creating a class(es)in Applied Spiritual Science. I have racked my brain on how to create an opening at the University of Florida. Has anyone approached them yet and who is the point of contact? I have worked in the nuclear division at Florida Power & Light for just over 30 years and a number of our employees are Florida graduates. Most significant is our current President, a Florida alumni who is poised to retire in March 2010, has always provided funding to the university and is a strong advocate of the university. I’m certainly willing to talk with him and see if there is a potential opening. My sense is that we would draft a letter with his concurrence (or a reference to his standing) and send it to the right location for consideration. I would draft the letter with Yogani’s final approval and provide a copy to our FPL President to show him our intention. The relationship of nuclear science and Applied Spiritual Science starts with the sanskrit work “anu”(atom),and as a pefix denotes together or similar. What better way to introduce the university to this relationship. Please let me know what everyone thinks and I will move forward with a draft, if agreed.
Thank you,
Mark
A better one:
“Department of Applied Spiritual Science” = DASS
Much more respectable.
Well in Norwegian that means toilett
I met an Iyengar teacher and ayurvedic doctor this summer that had a masters degree in yoga from an indina university. He said this degree is basicly a research degree but combines study of classical texts, practice of yoga and mediation with learning modern research methods.
THere is a huge amount of qigong research in china. There is also pure qigong hospitals and to a large degree a good integration between western and traditional chineese medicine and qigong at many of the hospitals. I know also that they have very formal trainings for becoming qigong healers and medical qigong “doctors”. I dont know if any of that is connected to universities and medical schools but I am under the impression that they sometimes are.
Naropa is already more or less a university doing some of this stuff but also so o"out there" that it is not the place that will bring this to the attention of the world. Harvard would do a better job . HArvard is already quite open to these things and has done quite a bit of mediation and yoga research.
How about Yogani aproaching Yogajournal and asking them to interview him about aplied spiritual science and the wish for it to get established at conventional universities? I think they would like the idea of promoting such an idea and interview Yogani. The what is enlightenment magazine would love the idea I think.