"From the spiritual point of view," he said later on, "eating junk food is fine—as long as you do so in moderation and as long as you exercise regularly."
Jaws dropped. I figured that many of them ate unprocessed rice and seaweed.
When the meditation began, Atmananda played fast-paced electronic music by Tangerine Dream.
More jaws dropped. I surmised that many of them meditated to flute and chime melodies.
During the meditation, Atmananda briefly gazed at each person in the audience, as if he were sending them Spiritual Light.
I closed my eyes... tried to slow my thoughts... opened my eyes... gazed intensely at Atmananda... perceived light emanating from his eyes!... kept gazing without blinking... perceived the entire room go white!... .
"How many of you saw Light in the room?" he asked several minutes later.
No response.
"Be honest now."
I raised my hand.