SEEKERS AND FINDERS AT PRINCETON RITES
by Linda Brown, Trentonian


Shyam Bhatnagar emerges from the vestibule at 56 Jefferson St. in Princeton into a cloud of fresh floral incense rising from the shrine room. In pairs and alone, the faithful drift into the small, dimly lit house, silently removing their shoes and sinking into the lotus position.

Stepping into the roseate light, Shyam whispers a few words of greeting and sweeps into an adjoining room. Seated at a table drenched in a liquid blue light, he smiled and the light sparkles in his dark eyes and the incense hangs heavy in the warm evening air. In pale tunics, in beads and sandals, come students and very Princeton housewives and silent ones with wide silent eyes blending into the omnipresent shadows.

A dozen, 20 at the most, moving through the doorway under the sacred symbol "OM" and easing themselves onto the madras covered mattress, the scattered rough-textured rugs in the room where Shyam will soon strum his tamboura and the chanting will begin.

"After the therapy," reads a small, hand-lettered sign beside the door, "leave silently and try to sustain the effect. Do not throw away Energy."

Mrs. Harriet Wills, unexpectedly beautiful with her graying hair swept back from her simple black tunic, smiled when asked why she returned week after week. "I am a seeker," she said softly.

"The value of meditation," said Shyam, "is exactly the same as day is opposed to night. It is only after meditation that you experience what life is all about.

"Meditation is an art to still the mind and then to be able to see what is beyond it.
"We cannot really understand the nature of Absolute Reality with the rational mind. The object of meditation is to explore minds that lie beyond our regular minds.

"Union with God is impossible with logic and rationale. It is the rational mind, which keeps us from experiencing our own Godhood. Meditation is the first step to overcoming the rational mind. But it is only the beginning."

At 8:30 p.m. Friday they sit cross-legged on the floor, facing the shrine where Shyam plays his tamboura, a four-stringed droning instrument, which sets the mood for calming the mind. Gradually the chanting begins: a low moaning, the rising and interweaving of voices in the dark fragment room. When the hypnotic rhythms die away, the atmosphere rings with the silence of the infinite.

"Beyond meditation," said Shyam, "are secrets which cannot be described. If you are courageous to look beyond this doorway, you come in touch with that Consciousness.

"There are two aspects to meditation, external and internal. In a group, we observe certain external conditions. You must not have eaten for two hours and what you have eaten must be light. When you go into meditation, you do not hear the sound of your own breathing. Your hands, feet and body are clean and you sit in a place you don't associate with any social roles or games. You play, if you like, the holy game.

"Closing your eyes, you say you won't think about anything. You reach the contentment of the mindless state. "Internal meditation can only be practiced after you have a guru, or guide. Not one single method, however, is applicable to all.

"Why do we meditate in a group? Why do people drink in social groups? The more the merrier! Reaching a total state of contentment, you make the mind go out of its mind. We call it 'Ananda.' Bliss."

Shyam Bhatnagar began training in Tantra Yoga when he was 12. Tantra Yoga incorporates knowledge of kundalini, or "serpent power," the spiritual energy in all living things, according to the ancient philosophy of India. This power is believed to be "coiled" at the base of the spine and rises through several levels until it matures at the base of the brain and enlightenment is achieved. A strenuous program of physical and spiritual disciplines is undertaken to achieve this state.

In 1966, Shyam established the Self Development Institute in Bareilly, India, for the practical study of Tantric Yoga. He has since established other institutes in New York City, Princeton and Akron, Ohio.

Last June, Shyam and Dr. Joseph Campbell co-led a two-day workshop at Bucks County Seminar House Inc. on Freud, Jung and Kundalini Yoga.

Among Shyam's other accomplishments, he has played his tamboura with Ravi Shankar in New York City's Lincoln Center and with the singer Pran Nath, professor of vocal music at the University of Delhi, whom Shyam considers one of the greatest of all Indian musicians. Since 1960, Shyam has worked in this country, conducting groups here for the past three years, including the past year in Princeton.

Shyam employs mainly traditional methods such as mental and physical exercises and Bija Mantras, psychically potent sound syllables.

Krishna speaking in the Bhagavad Gita:

"The light that lives in the sun,
Lighting all the world,
The light of the moon,
The light that is in fire:
Know that light to be mine."
The aroma of hot spice cider floods the kitchen as the first hour of meditation concludes with light refreshments and a question period.
Over Jefferson St., the moon dangles like a white sapphire from a thousand groaning branches.
The moon alone will not break.

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