A typical day during a congress
Weekly meetings and regularly scheduled congresses are held so that we may deepen our understanding of the Master Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov’s teaching and experience collective life. The following describes a typical day during the summer congress:
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- Sunrise
- Breathing and gymnastic exercises
- Breakfast
- Dance of the Paneurhythmy
- Group projects and individual activities
- A recorded talk by the Master and midday meal
- Group projects and individual activities
- Evening meal
- Choir Practice
- Conduct
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THE SUNRISE
The teaching of the Universal White Brotherhood recommends attending the sunrise every morning, weather permitting, from March 21 to September 29 (or from spring to the Feast of St. Michael). Congress participants gather at a location specifically designated for this purpose one half hour before sunrise in order to be present for the first rays. Even in summer, mornings in the hills are often cool and damp, so warm clothes as well as a blanket and chair are advisable. ‘It is also extremely important to bring sunglasses to protect the eyes.’
In order to benefit from all aspects of the meditation at sunrise, it is important to prepare the night before, freeing our thoughts of all preoccupations. It is advisable to eat lightly, to avoid troubling discussions and to retire early, arranging everything so as to be free the next morning, with a clear mind and a heart at peace.
An exercise you can try on your way to the sunrise
As you make your way to the sunrise, think of the little invisible beings, the spirits of nature who work to create the beauty around you….Walk slowly, be mindful and reverent. Think respectfully of this place as well, which must be consecrated as a Temple. Remember to thank the great spirits who come to visit it.
The Sun’s Role in the Spiritual Life
In 1937, the Master Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov stated that the sun would play an ever greater role in the life of humanity. This has already come to pass in the fields of art, science, technology and even leisure. Only one domain has yet to be affected by this evolution: that of the spiritual life, although it is precisely here, on the spiritual plane, that the sun manifests in its true dimension.
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‘The sun isn’t simply a star that shines in the physical world. By way of its light, it is intelligence. It is also love, an impetus toward all that is positive, constructive. And it is also life, spiritual life, life in all its purity…. The sun is a symbol of these three higher principles: light, warmth and life.
The Creator has deposited seeds in our soul, spirit, heart, mind and physical body, and in order for them to grow, we must draw close to the Sun. Once human beings decide to approach the spiritual sun, all the seeds deposited in them will begin to germinate, grow and bear fruit.’
[/span6][/row_fluid]BREATHING EXERCISES AT THE SUNRISE
Breathing is a form of nutrition. When we breathe, we must retain the air for a long moment, until the lungs have completely assimilated the nutritive substances. By means of deep breathing, the nervous system and many illnesses can be healed; indeed, the purity and vitality of our organism depend on it. By means of respiration we can also attract materials, forces and particles from higher worlds, in other words, light, peace and all life-giving elements.
GYMNASTIC EXERCISES
These movements are practiced immediately after sunrise.
‘In Initiatic Science, there is an important rule according to which each of our activities must touch upon all three worlds: the physical world, the world of feeling and the world of thought. In doing these gymnastic exercises, we must work in these three worlds to produce something powerful, not only for ourselves, but for the brotherhood and even for the entire world.’
Video Extract Each exercise is accompanied by a phrase pronounced silently or very quietly, so as to avoid disturbing others.
MEALS
Breakfast is a communal meal, served about an hour after the sunrise. In summer it takes place on the terrace, offering a pleasant moment for fraternal exchanges. A recorded talk by the Master is usually heard at the midday meal. Here we find answers to both specific and general questions and receive light, warmth and a force capable of improving both our individual and collective lives. The evening meal is similar to that at midday but does not include a talk by the Master. Both of these meals are eaten in silence.
Silence is an expression of harmony – Daily Meditation, November 28, 2003
Silence is an expression of peace, of harmony, of perfection and provides the best conditions for psychological and spiritual activity. Those who love and understand silence gradually come to apply it to everything they do: when they move things, when they speak, when they walk and work, instead of creating commotion, they are more mindful, more delicate and supple. All their actions, gestures and attitudes are imbued with something that seems to come from another world, a world that is poetry, music, dance, inspiration.
Silence and a respect for others – Daily Meditation, March 16, 2003
In your gestures, your activities, in all aspects of your daily life, learn to love and cultivate silence. Why do people allow themselves to talk loudly, to shout, to knock things over and slam doors? This behavior is unpleasant for those around them, but equally harmful to themselves. But are they aware of this? No. They think they are fine as they are, and others must simply put up with them. Well, this kind of egotism is very detrimental to their evolution. Yes, pay attention, if you take care not to disturb others with your noise, you will develop many qualities: delicacy, sensibility, harmony, which create the best conditions in you for contact with the luminous entities of the invisible world.
Silence promotes spiritual creation – Daily Meditation, January 8, 2001
In the spiritual life, silence is never an end in itself; its purpose is to provide conditions favorable for our work with thought. Silence in itself provides nothing of great importance; of course it calms, it relaxes, but nothing more. The true role of silence is to allow our thought and imagination to soar. So each time you enjoy true moments of silence, whether at home or in nature, try to create by thought something pure, warm and luminous, so that the atmosphere around you vibrates, and those who then come to visit you or who are passing by receive an impulse to do good. What use is it simply to be still? We mustn’t sit there like a rock! Even in stillness and silence, we must know how to be alive and creative.
PANEURHYTHMY
The Paneurhythmy is a sacred dance that calls the soul to the light. Beginning in spring, it is practiced early in the morning following breakfast (weather permitting). The word ‘Paneurhythmy’ means supreme cosmic rhythm. It is an expression of the sublime universal harmony of movement, and its effect on the dancer is immense and complete. The fruit of a perfect knowledge of the forces latent in the human organism, the movements contribute to man’s physical development. In performing the Paneurhythmy, the dancers experience an awakening of their spiritual being. There is always a connection between music and thought, and the music of the Paneurhythmy bears within it something new. It corresponds both to the movements and to the ideas associated with them, and it is these ideas that are ushering in the new culture.
‘The movements of the gymnastic exercises and the paneurhythmy are nothing in themselves. They become truly efficacious and beneficial only when executed in the light of the teaching, which provides us with knowledge of the invisible world, the different beings who inhabit this world, the laws governing it, the forces circulating there, as well as the structure of the human being, the power of faith and the Word. You can spend years dancing the paneurhythmy and doing the exercises, but if you don’t understand the significance of each movement and the nature of the forces you project through them into the universe, it serves little purpose.
It isn’t enough for an activity merely to bring you joy, relaxation or a sense of wellbeing. It must become a means for your transformation, for your liberation. Even the way people engage in religion, art and science does not necessarily lead to their self-improvement. This is where something must be changed, and this is why here in the Universal White Brotherhood the individual’s self-improvement is given first priority. This improvement is only possible if we succeed in changing the quality of our vibrations, in rendering them more intense, which is to say, more spiritual. Everything rests on the intensity of our thoughts, our feelings and our life; this is what initiatic science reveals to us. Only on condition that we live an intense life will the gymnastic exercises, the paneurhythmy, meals in silence, prayer, meditation and contemplation at the sunrise bring significant results.
People seek satisfaction and happiness in different ways and in different places: some at home with their family, others in bars, night clubs, casinos, theaters or exhibitions, and others, still fewer, in churches and temples. This is all very well, but it is not the way to improve themselves. Not even in churches will they improve themselves, not even in initiatic schools… They stay the same -- unjust, spiteful, cruel, weak, anxious, ill -- because they have never asked themselves what they can do to transform themselves and become divine beings. They prefer what is easy and enjoyable, which will never bring about their transformation.
If you love the light of this teaching, if you accept it, absorb it and digest it, it will produce miracles in you. But in order for this to happen, you must decide to make sacrifices, to overcome certain faults. Until you do so, you will perhaps understand things intellectually with a few of your brain cells, but you won’t gain true understanding, this understanding that pervades the entire body down to the very last cell. It is when you advance along the path of this understanding that each exercise recommended by the teaching will become effective and useful to you.’
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