June 2000 Resting in the Rockies by Cynthia Goldstone

When the teachers at the Denver TM Center organized a Residence Course in Estes Park, we were eager to see what it was all about. Arriving at the mountain retreat we settled into our rooms, and then went to join the group for an introduction to the weekend’s schedule. No campfires, no canoeing, no hiking—this weekend in the mountains would be spent in extended meditation called "rounding." It sounded rather circular and as it turned out, it was.

First, we were taught a simple set of asanas or Yoga postures, very pleasant to do. Then a simple breathing exercise, pranayama, also very easy. These activities, followed by our regular meditation, constituted one "round." The weekend’s schedule consisted of rounds in the morning and rounds in the afternoon. A simple routine punctuated by delicious meals, restful walks in the clear high air and inspiring videotaped lectures from Maharishi. At night, "light’s out" was promptly at ten.

The whole idea was to rest and meditate and rest some more. All this rest was a little foreign to us, but the course leaders explained that deep rest was the best thing we could do to remove the stress we had built up over the years. And removing the stress was the path to enlightenment. During that first course my mother must have removed a lot of stress. "I was so relaxed I kept falling asleep," she recalls.

That course was 27 years ago, but I’ll never forget the moment I heard Maharishi’s voice for the first time, speaking on a videotape about consciousness and enlightenment. I wanted those things.

Maharishi’s words gave my mother and me a new understanding of the purpose of meditation. And the experience of consciousness growing in our lives set us both on a life-long path of commitment to achieving enlightenment.

My mom remembers how alert and alive she felt during the drive home and the days that followed. She says, "My senses, being rested, were so keen and alert, and life decisions became effortless. I was infused with peaceful confidence and delight in life. I wanted to go on a residence course every weekend."

We did go to another one not long after that—and many more in the years that have followed.

Cynthia Goldstone is an editor of Enlightenment magazine. Her mother, Eleanor Ditzel, is a writer living in Fairfield, Iowa.

Click here for the Calendar of Advanced Courses and Programs. Here you will find a list of some of the upcoming Residence Courses in North America.

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