Tuesday, November 29th, 2011

Walk the Lines

Montreal, Quebec

On the previous night I had a group of about twenty people memorize this verse from the Gita:

"This knowledge is the king of education, the most secret of all secrets. It is the purest knowledge, and because it gives direct perception of the self by realization, it is the perfection of religion. It is everlasting, and it is joyfully performed." (Bhagavad-gita 9.2)

The technique for learning this verse was itself joyfully performed. I apply this simple method of going over each word, but in Sanskrit, then line by line, and have each participant recite them to a beat, meaning someone is thumping at the end of a mrgdunga drum. I will do a drill of this and the memorization of the verse would really be moving. I guess you could say we were putting into practice 'a drill thrill' going at the verse forward, backward, inside and out and incorporating the meaning of each word at the same time.

The next time I render some kind of acting workshop I'll use this method. Within 30 minutes our test crew here had the verse memorized through our method. Let's say 80%of those sitting there in front of me in the lotus position were becoming transcendentally immersed in the verse.

Here's the Sanskrit of the verse in Roman transliteration, and it's beautiful:

raja vidya raja guhyam
pavitram idam uttamam
pratyakshavagamam dharmyam
su-sukham kartum avyayam

I usually propose that participants chant this verse which expresses the depth of Vedic wisdom while they walk down the street. That always brings a smile.

8 Km