Free meditation seminars at Health, Fitness & Wellness Expo

Science of Spirituality, a non-profit network of free meditation groups and centers around the world, will host three seminars at the Health, Fitness, & Wellness Expo on October 28 at the Sheraton LaGuardia East in Flushing.
Based locally in Amityville, Science of Spirituality is under the direction of international spiritual leader Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj.
Usha Hemrajani, who volunteers her time as Science of Spirituality’s Outreach Coordinator for the tri-state region, has been instrumental in organizing the center’s program for the upcoming Expo. Hemrajani explained that her roster of speakers would gear their seminars toward newcomers to meditation.
“In America, people are really coming [to meditation] for the thirst of it. They come to it more aggressively than people in India who are born into it,” she explained. “There is so much conflict in the world, people are searching for something that will give them inner happiness or inner peace.”
Among the speakers is Dr. Matthew Raider who considers meditation “one of our great untapped resources” and “the best active modality we can take as an antidote to stress.”
A physician most interested in the esoteric aspects of meditation, Raider will lead a seminar titled “Discover the Healing Power of Meditation,” as he extols the practice for its ability to put someone in contact with his or her inner energy.
Zelma Chamberlain, Science of Spirituality’s Outreach Coordinator for the Mid-Atlantic region, will hold a seminar called “Staying Sane in an Insane World.” Chamberlain, who teaches at-risk youth in the Fairfax, Virginia county schools, refers to meditation as a tool that has helped her deal with the difficult situations in her life. “I was born Baptist, raised Catholic, converted to Islam, and now I [meditate],” said Chamberlain, describing the spiritually transcending power of meditation. Her motto? “If you don’t go within, you go without.”
Science of Spirituality’s third speaker of the day is Robin Ghertner, the center’s Regional Hispanic Outreach Coordinator. Speaking in Spanish, Robin will lead a seminar he is calling “Meditation: Our Internal Prescription for Peace.” Ghertner will teach about accessing an “inner source” of healing power and is confident “people will come away with a very powerful, very simple meditative practice.”
In between seminars, attendees will have the opportunity to talk one-on-one with speakers and receive meditation instruction. Additionally, Science of Spirituality will station two English and two Spanish speakers at a booth inside the Expo, distributing information about the organization’s free classes and events.
Usha Hemrajani, for one, is eager for the Health, Fitness, & Wellness Expo attendees to experience the benefits of meditation that have shaped her life. “I [meditate] because I found inner peace in it,” she said serenely, pausing as a warm smile crept over her face. “I’m so happy.”
The Expo is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and admission is free but seating at the seminars is limited. For more information or to reserve a seat, call 718-224-5863, Ext. 201.