The Meditation Center

In Person "Yoga for Stress Relief" Series with Eric Ness Tuesdays: October 1-22, 2024
2024-10-15 18:00 - 19:00, 2024-10-22 18:00 - 19:00 (America/Chicago)
In Person “Yoga for Stress Relief” Series with Eric Ness
Tuesdays: October 1-22, 2024
6:00 -7:00 p.m. CDT
Limited to 8 students.
Register here.
Are you a busy professional struggling to find balance in the chaos of modern life? Do you yearn for a moment of calm amidst your hectic schedule? “Yoga for Stress Relief” is designed with you in mind.
Why This Class?

Tailored for busy lifestyles: Flexible attendance – come when you can, leave if you must.
Stress-busting techniques: Learn practical methods to manage stress in daily life.
Accessible to all: No prior yoga experience or fitness level required.
Mind-body connection: Discover how to use your breath and body awareness as anchors in stressful situations.

What to Expect
In this class, you’ll experience:

Gentle, mindful movements to release physical tension
Guided relaxation techniques to reduce stress
A supportive, non-judgmental environment

This isn’t a high-intensity workout – it’s a journey towards inner peace and resilience. Whether you’re on-call, can only stay for part of the class, or need to step out for a phone call, you’re welcome here.
The Benefits

Reduced stress and anxiety
Improved focus and productivity
Tools to manage daily stressors more effectively

Join us and discover a new way of navigating life’s challenges. Your path to a calmer, more centered you begins here.
Eric Ness has been teaching meditation and yoga for over ten years. His teaching is based on the experiences that he had while immersed in a meditational environment. He deepened his study of meditation while participating in the residential program at the Meditation Center. He also trained for three years at the Swami Rama Institute for Meditation in India. His calm teaching style brings students the tools they need to move toward a peaceful state of mind. Eric is a member of the TMC Spiritual Committee.

Meditation I Hybrid Class: "Learning the Basics" with Paul Emerson, Ph.D. Tuesdays: September 17 – October 22, 2024
2024-10-15 18:30 - 20:00, 2024-10-22 18:30 - 20:00
Meditation I Hybrid Class : “Learning the Basics”
Tuesdays: September 17 – October 22, 2024
6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Instructor: Paul Emerson, Ph.D.
Cost $75.00 for the six-week series.
Register here.
Section 1: (live at the Meditation Center, can zoom in when you can’t make it)
Section 2 (zoom only – zoomed from the Meditation Center)
If you have already taken Meditation I and would like to attend this class, the cost is $37.50. Email us at info@themeditationcenter.org stating your intention to retake Meditation I and we will register you at half the cost.
This class introduces the student to the basics of meditation in the Himalayan Tradition. Relaxation techniques, pranayama (yogic breath), ideal sitting postures, and the use of mantra will be taught to help the student focus the mind and relax the body. Beginning Raja yoga philosophy is also included in this class. Treat yourself to the many benefits of a regular meditation practice.
Paul Emerson is a biomedical engineer with a Ph.D. He is the authority on the physiology of breathing for The Meditation Center and has been teaching yoga for over 30 years. Paul has worked as a research scientist, has been a manager of clinical research with a major biomedical company and a university instructor. In addition, he holds eight patents in the areas of dialysis and sleep therapy. he is a scholar of ancient yoga texts. Paul was certified by the Rockford School of Yoga and began teaching in 1975.

Wednesday Evening Writing Sanctuary with Simone De Los Santos "Using Writing as a Spiritual Tool"
2024-10-16 18:30 - 20:00, 2024-10-30 18:30 - 20:00, 2024-11-13 18:30 - 20:00
Wednesday Evening Writing Sanctuary with Simone De Los Santos
“Using Writing as a Spiritual Tool”
6:30-8:00 p.m.
Suggested donation: $15.00
Please join in as Simone facilitates a workshop experience about writing as a spiritual practice.

Within a dedicated time and space we’ll create a circle of safe support to explore and practice this inner work of writing sadhana.

You are welcome to join us in person in the beautiful energy of the Center or enjoy from the comfort of your own home on Zoom. Bring your notebook and favorite pen.

Simone De Los Santos is the current Ashramite at the Meditation Center. Her path is creative and spiritual.

As a youth she spent time in both Chicago and Puerto Rico, nourished by the cultural heritage of both worlds. She moved to Minneapolis and earned a degree in Fine Art, specializing in color and painting. During her college career a color consulting practice was born. She has had the honor of working on many historical buildings throughout the Twin Cities, earning her a Historical Preservation Award from the City of Saint Paul.

All the while, processing her world daily through the practice of writing remains the gem of her work. Through decades of practicing writing, yoga, meditation and ayurvedic practices she has transformed the the darkness and challenge of what it is to be human, into the light of peace, spaciousness, awareness and growth.

Thursday Satsang In Person and Via Zoom: "Swami Hari: A simple forest monk" presented by Daniel Hertz - October 17, 2024
2024-10-17 19:00 - 20:30
Thursday Satsang In Person and Via Zoom – October 17, 2024
“Swami Hari: A simple forest monk”
A presentation by Daniel Hertz MS, BCB, E-RYT 500
5:30-6:45 p.m.: In-Person Gentle Hatha Yoga
7:00-8:00 p.m.: “Swami Hari: A simple forest monk”
A presentation by Daniel Hertz MS, BCB, E-RYT 500
8:00-8:30 p.m.: Meditation Guided by Swami Radha Bharati
8:30 p.m.: Evening Prayers

Swami Hari Harananda Bharati spent many years living in near-isolation at the holy Himalayan Shiva shrine of Tarkeshwar. Over the course of thirty-five years, he pursued Swami Rama to become his disciple, but was always turned down and sent away. Then late one night, Swami Rama unexpectedly showed up at Tarkeshwar and told Swami Hari he would initiate him the next morning. Daniel will share several stories about Swami Hari and also explain how he became Swami Hari’s personal assistant for several years. In addition, he will show several photos of Swami Hari and play a rare recording of Swami Hari leading a kirtan at Tarkeshwar.

BIO:
Daniel Hertz, MS, BCB, E-RYT 500 has been on the faculty of The Meditation Center since 1995. He is the author of a book about Swami Hari entitled Swami Hari: I am a simple forest monk. It is available on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Swami-Hari-simple-forest-monk/dp/1456505874

Global Full Moon Meditation via Zoom from Palatine Guided by Pandit Dabral,, October 17, 2024, 9:00-10:00p.m. CT
2024-10-17 21:00 - 22:00
Thursday, October 17, 2024
Global Full Moon Meditation Via Zoom
9:00-10:00 p.m. CDT
This Full Moon Meditation via Zoom will begin guided by Pandit Dabral followed by a silent meditation until 10:00 p.m.
This event is courtesy of the Palatine Himalayan Yoga & Meditation Center – HYMC.
To get the Zoom link and for more information aregarding the global full moon meditation schedule
visit HYMC’s website here.
“You are lovingly invited to sit in meditation for an hour wherever you are, in your home or with friends. Total beginners and longtime practitioners, non-initiates and initiates are welcome. If you cannot sit for the entire hour, sit as long as you are able; as Swami Veda has said, ‘Let the quietness of the mind continue even after you rise..’” (Courtesy of AHYMSIN.org January 2023 newsletter).
Everyone is welcome!
“Yoga Philosophy views the mind as Universal field; its waves passing through us and becoming our individual minds. This Universal mind is a radiant force and is also known as a Universal Guru within.”
“When all sit together at the same time even in different parts of the world, they connect to the Universal Guru mind and generate a strong field, like so many magnets being joined together and forming a much stronger magnet; the strength of each then equals the combined strength of all.”
– Swami Veda Bharati –

Postponed until November...Via Zoom and Live-Streamed at TMC "Gentle Yoga and Meditation" with Cynthia Gran, E-RYT 500, DAy., YACEP - October 18, 2024
2024-10-18 18:30 - 20:00
Cancelled until November
Via Zoom and Live-Streamed at TMC
Students may drop-in to view the livestream
“Gentle Yoga and Meditation” with Cynthia Gran, E-RYT 500, DAy., YACEP
Cancelled – Friday, October 18, 2024
6:30–8:00 p.m.
Cost:$12.00
In these classes, we will incorporate simple hatha yoga asanas, some pranayama and a short meditation. By doing asanas with a consistently deep awareness of our breathing as we move, we work our way into the deeper realm of our being. We move from the gross to the subtle. We move into stillness. We touch our inner resources for strength and self-healing, with a greater sense of our true nature. Meditation comes very easily after this sequentially profound series. All levels of practice are welcome.
Cynthia Gran, E-RYT 500, DAy., YACEP, has been treading the Himalayan path since the late 1970s. Cynthia and her husband, Gary, DAy. CYT, first attended the old Glenview Center in Illinois where they met and have served the tradition in various capacities over the years. They are both certified yoga teachers and Ayurvedic educators. They have published more than eighty articles on yoga, meditation and Ayurveda.

Nature of Existence and Role of Yoga Practices in Healing: THE ROLE OF NĀDIS AND PANCHA-PRĀṆAS with C. Rajan Narayanan, PhD - In Person and Via Zoom
2024-10-19 10:00 - 12:00
In Person at TMC and Via Zoom
Nature of Existence and Role of Yoga Practices in Healing
THE ROLE OF NĀDIS AND–PANCHA-PRĀṆAS
with C. Rajan Narayanan, PhD

Saturday, October 19, 2024
10:00 a.m. – Noon
Cost $30.00
Register here.

Program focused on presentation, discussion, Q/A, to demonstrate healing
potential within the structure of cosmic existence of the psychosomatic being.

C. Rajan Narayanan PhD, AYTh, former C-IAYT
Dr. Narayanan is the Executive Director of Life in Yoga Institute (https://lifeinyoga.org/) and Secretary of the Board of CYAI. He has been a spiritual guide and trainer for yoga teachers andtherapists. He has conducted many training events since 1998.

"Exploring the Four Flames Part II" with Dr. Dale Buegel on Saturday, October 19, 2024
2024-10-19 13:00 - 16:00
“Exploring the Four Flames Part II” with Dr. Dale Buegel
October 19, 2024
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. CDT
Cost: $40.00
Register here
In this second workshop of the series, we will focus on practices related to the flames at Manas chakra and Bindu Visarga.

Via Zoom – Sunday Morning Guided Meditation with Swami Radha Bharati
2024-10-20 08:20 - 09:30, 2024-10-27 08:20 - 09:30, 2024-11-03 08:20 - 09:30, 2024-11-10 08:20 - 09:30
Via Zoom – Sunday Morning Guided Meditation
with Swami Radha Bharati
8:20 A.M. – 9:15 A.M.
Join for Morning Prayers: 8:20-8:30 a.m.
Sunday Morning Meditation: 8:30-9:15 a.m.

Join Swami Radha Bharati on Zoom for a guided meditation on Sunday from 8:20 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.

Sunday Book Study Group Via Zoom with Swami Ma Radha Bharati, Michael Smith, and Jim Nelson
2024-10-20 10:00 - 11:30, 2024-10-27 10:00 - 11:30, 2024-11-03 10:00 - 11:30, 2024-11-10 10:00 - 11:30
Sunday Book Study Group Via Zoom
with Swami Ma Radha Bharati, Michael Smith, and Jim Nelson
10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Time: 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Swami Radha, Jim, and Michael will continue the study of spiritual topics in the fall of 2024. The Book Study Group is reading “Guru Disciple Relationship Volume-I by Swami Veda Bharati. Join us for very interesting discussions. Everyone is welcome.

Thursday Satsang In Person and Livestream via Zoom : Wudang Mountain Taiji and Meditation" with 14th generation Wudang San Feng Master Zhong Xuecao (Master Bing) - October 24, 2024 - Note Schedule Change
2024-10-24 19:00 - 20:30
Special Thursday Night Satsang – October 24, 2024
Schedule has been modified from the regular schedule…begin time is at 6:00 p.m.
In Person and Livestream via Zoom
“Wudang Mountain Meditation”
with 14th generation Wudang San Feng Master Zhong Xuecao (Master Bing)
Donation $25.00 for the entire evening.
A Zoom link to you after you register.
Register here

6:00-7:15 p.m.: Wudang Taiji with Xuecao Zhong (Master Bing)
7:15-8:15p.m.: “Wudang Mountain Meditation Presentation”
with 14th generation Wudang San Feng Master Zhong Xuecao (Master Bing)
8:15-8:30 p.m.: Meditation with Master Bing
8:30 p.m.: Evening Prayers

Beginning at 6:00 p.m.(subject to change) join us for an Introduction to Wudang Taiji with Xuecao Zhong (Master Bing) Learn from a true master from the mountain… fundamental movements and principles of the beautiful and healing practice of Wudang San Feng Tai Chi. Accessible to all appropriate for all levels of experience.
Following the Taji class, Master Bing will speak on the topic of Wudang Mountain Meditation.
Master Bing, head instructor at the Wudang Dao Cultural Institute in the Wudang Mountains, will discuss and demonstrate various meditation styles (including sitting, standing and reclining) and techniques as they are practiced today and have been for hundreds and some, thousands of years in mountain temples and the remote mountain hermitages of Wudang.
Please join us for this fascinating glimpse into Wudang Mt. culture and internal cultivation.
For more information about Master Bing please visit wudangdao.com

TMC's Sunday Brunch Fundraiser: A Community Family and Friends Celebration of Fall and Halloween! - October 27, 2024, 10:00 a.m. - Noon
2024-10-27 10:00 - 12:00
TMC’s Sunday Brunch Fundraiser
a Community Family and Friends Celebration
of Fall and Halloween!
Our dedicated TMC Teachers will be honored on Sunday morning.
Sunday, October 27, 2024
10:00 a.m -12:00 p.m.
Invite your families and friends…share this invitation with your beloveds!!!
Veda Reinitz (Tiffany’s daughter) will guide a children’s hatha session and Swami Radha will guide a meditation. Enjoy live music with Maja Radovanlija, and delicious food with Center friends.
Wear your costume and join in the fun of the season!
Everyone is welcome
The goal for this fall is $70,000.
This Fall we embark upon a large Capital Improvement Campaign! In order to realize TMC’s goal of hosting mini-retreats, we are starting the renovation of the second floor bathrooms.
We have a $30,000 initial match to start the campaign so your donations will be doubled.
Read the bathroom renovation plan here.
We are also hoping to raise funds for “Outreach.” This includes quality videos of Meditations and Practices of our Tradition to benefit current and future generations. We need to upgrade our equipment to achieve this.
We are looking for more matches and donors to raise $70,000 this fall and raise the rest in 2025. Our total includes money for Operations as well.
Please help with a match, a donation, and volunteer time.
Love, Serve, Remember
Donate Here!
Or donate through PayPal.

Cancelled Thursday Evening In Person: Gentle Hatha Yoga (Drop In) 5:30-6:45 p.m. Everyone is Welcome
2024-10-31 17:30 - 18:45
Cancelled for October 31, 2024
Thursday Evening In Person Gentle Hatha Yoga (Drop In)

Time: 5:30 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.
Instructors: Varies…Chris Young, Michael Snodgrass, Sunita Gangopadhyay, Susan Guthrie, Eric Ness
Fees: $10.00/class
Thursday Evening DROP-IN HATHA CLASSES (ONGOING)
Everyone is Welcome! These classes are for all levels. Instructors excel at leading the class in relaxation, gentle asana (yoga positions) and pranayama (breath). Relieve stress, achy joints, improve balance at all levels and increase your sense of well being. No registration necessary, just show up.

Thursday Evening In Person: Gentle Hatha Yoga (Drop In) 5:30-6:45 p.m. Everyone is Welcome
2024-10-31 17:30 - 18:45
Thursday Evening In Person Gentle Hatha Yoga (Drop In)

Time: 5:30 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.
Instructors: Varies…Chris Young, Michael Snodgrass, Sunita Gangopadhyay, Susan Guthrie, Eric Ness
Fees: $10.00/class
Thursday Evening DROP-IN HATHA CLASSES (ONGOING)
Everyone is Welcome! These classes are for all levels. Instructors excel at leading the class in relaxation, gentle asana (yoga positions) and pranayama (breath). Relieve stress, achy joints, improve balance at all levels and increase your sense of well being. No registration necessary, just show up.

Thursday Satsang In Person and Via Zoom: "Tales from the dark side: Asuras east and west" with Paul Emerson PhD - October 31, 2024
2024-10-31 19:00 - 20:30
Thursday Satsang In Person at TMC and via Zoom
October 31, 2024
“Tales from the dark side: Asuras east and west” with Paul Emerson, PhD
7:00-8:30 p.m. CDT

5:30-6:45 p.m. – Gentle Hatha Yoga – TBD
6:15-6:40 p.m. – Vegan Soup
6:40-7:00 p.m. – Diwali Puja with Emilio Bettaglio
7:00-7:30 p.m. – Meditation with Swami Radha Bharati
7:30 -8:30 p.m. – “Tales from the Dark Side: Asuras East and West” presented by Paul Emerson Ph.D.
8:30 p.m. Evening Prayers
8:40 p.m. Join Us for Birthday Cake in Honor of Paul Emerson

When the seasons change and light becomes less, imagination stirs. We remember departed souls, tell stories of ghosts and think about other creatures that go “bump” in the night. The beings of light are temporarily forgotten and replaced and replaced by shadows. But of course the shadows also point us back to the light. Both eastern and western spiritual traditions have these stories of dark beings and their Ravanas (villain of the Ramayana) are Legion. Today being Halloween I thought would be a good time to tell some of these stories and remind ourselves of the light behind them.
Paul Emerson is a biomedical engineer with a Ph.D. He is the authority on the physiology of breathing for The Meditation Center and has been teaching yoga for over 30 years. Paul has worked as a research scientist, has been a manager of clinical research with a major biomedical company and a university instructor. In addition, he holds eight patents in the areas of dialysis and sleep therapy. he is a scholar of ancient yoga texts. Paul was certified by the Rockford School of Yoga and began teaching in 1975.

Wednesday Mornings In Person and via Zoom – Gentle Hatha Yoga (Drop-In) with Sig Martell and Rosann Chamberlain
2024-11-06 10:30 - 12:00, 2024-11-13 10:30 - 12:00
WEDNESDAY MORNINGS In Person and Via Zoom – GENTLE HATHA YOGA (DROP IN)

Time: 10:30am to Noon
Instructors: Sig Martell and Rosann Chamberlain
Fees: $12.00/class ($10.00 for seniors and students)
DROP-IN HATHA CLASSES (ONGOING)
Everyone is Welcome! These classes are for all levels. Instructors excel at leading the class in relaxation, gentle asana (yoga positions) and pranayama (breath). Relieve stress, achy joints, improve balance at all levels and increase your sense of well being. No registration necessary, just show up.

Thursday Satsang Via Zoom and In-Person Viewing: Showing of Documentary Film on Neem Karoli Baba ﻿"Moved by Grace - Part I", November 7, 2024, 7:00-8:30 p.m. CST
2024-11-07 19:00 - 20:30
Thursday Satsang Via Zoom and In-Person Viewing -November 7, 2024
Showing of Documentary Film on Neem Karoli Baba
“Moved by Grace – Part I”
7:00-8:30 p.m. CST

5:30-6:45 p.m. – Gentle Hatha Yoga with Michael Snodgrass
7:00-8:00 p.m.: Showing of Documentary Film on Neem Karoli Baba “Moved by Grace Part I”
8:00 -8:30 p.m. – Meditation with Swami Ma Radha Bharati
8:30 p.m. Evening Prayers
Everyone is welcome!!!

“An Astounding Mystic” by H.H.S. Swami Rama
Selflessness is one of the prominent signs of a spiritual man. If this quality is missing in the character of one who is supposed to be spiritual, he is not really a spiritual person. There was a well-know master, Nim Karoli Baba, who befriended me when I was still quite young. He lived in Nanital, one of the hill resorts in the Himalaya. He was a man who lived half here and half there…
…In such a high state one becomes like a child. He is not fully aware of mundane things, but he is constantly aware of the Truth.
(Living with the Himalayan Masters pages 107-110)

Using the festive ambience of the 15 June bhandara queue at Kainchi, as a warp and 11 versions of Hanuman Chalisa as a weft, the film weaves together remarkable and endearing stories of faith into a small shred of Maharajji’s blanket of love. Equally the film is a heartful tribute to Maharajji and to the sweet surrender and devotion of so many of Maharajji’s delightful devotees.
The film endeavors to spotlight different facets of the Master’s grace through a few beings who represent us all as the countless nameless, faceless devotees of a Master.
The potent reminder for us is that the subtle movement of grace can occur to any one of us as long as we are receptive.
These “Moved by Grace” stories are interspersed with different verses of the “Hanuman Chalisa” sung by 11 different devotees in their own unique melodies.

To support the work of The Meditation Center and register you can donate here (suggested donation $25.00) for Special Thursday Satsang or make a general donation by clicking on the “donate” button on the “Support TMC” website page.
Or donate through PayPal.

"Wudang Tai Chi Review" Sessions with Nikki Strong In Person at TMC and Via Zoom Saturday Mornings: November 9, 2024
2024-11-09 06:00 - 09:00
“Wudang Tai Chi Review” Sessions with Nikki Strong
In Person at TMC and Via Zoom
Saturday Mornings: November 9 and November 23, 2024
This is a no-cost event.
Register here to RSVP for November 9th
6:00-7:00 a.m.: Silent Meditation (Himalayan Tradition style!)
7:00-7:30 a.m.: Reclining, Standing and Walking Meditation… i.e easing into movement
7:30-8:15 a.m.: Wudang Tai Chi review — easy heart-warming movement to wake up the senses, invigorate, and nourish health
8:15-9:00 a.m.: Tea and protein-rich vegan, GF Fall Harvest Muffins

Chakra Series with Dr. Dale Buegel:Chakras-Upper Granthi and the Minor Chakras on Saturday, November 9, 2024
2024-11-09 10:30 - 12:30
Sponsored Jointly with Milwaukee HYMC
Register now for the session
on November 9th.
Chakra Series with Dr. Dale Buegel
via Zoom
These workshops are being offered in person in Milwaukee AND via Zoom.
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Register here for November 9th
Cost: $30.00 per session
Zoom links and recordings will be sent to those who sign up.
This workshop series will focus on the relationship between two or more chakras, their energetics, the relationship of their elemental essences, and methods to study the chakras and their relationships.
Upper Granthi and the Minor Chakras
Saturday, November 9
This third workshop in the series will study more in-depth methods of working with saṃskāras and their relationships to the chakras, the role of the element ākāśa and the void, and the relationship of ājñā chakra to Rudra granthi.
Register here for November 9th
Zoom links and recordings will be sent to those who sign up.
