Uma Laura Rose, Ph.D.
Uma, the woman with the sunglasses around her neck, has devoted her life to teaching meditation. She began Transcendental Meditation in 1970. It had a profound impact on her life and she decided to become a teacher of TM. She was personally trained to teach meditation by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1972. Uma received her Ph.D. in 1983 from the University of Georgia where she fell in love with the Athens area. She served on the Faculty of Maharishi International University. In 1990 she felt called to leave the TM organization.
Uma met her guru, Amma in 1990 and went to live in Amma's ashram in India. In the ashram she spent hours in meditation, weeks in silence and worked at a variety of ashram jobs. As a meditation teacher she often aided people who were having trouble understanding experiences in meditation. She taught Reiki courses and spent time each day with the international children telling stories.
In 2003 Uma was needed back in the United States to assist her brothers and sisters in caring for their parents. Amma encouraged Uma to continue teaching meditation and gave her guidance on how she should teach. Recently retired from teaching school, Uma is now able to devote more time to teaching meditation and help mediators understand experiences that arise in meditation.
Uma's Hut
Amma gave Uma a hut where she could be in silence and meditate for weeks. While in the hut she also worked on a project for the ashram, which is why you see a laptop in the picture. While the huts were very basic and open to tiny critters, they were a wonderful place to live.
Spending time in silence cultivates an inner stillness in the mind that remains even in dynamic activity. This stillness allows for clearer thought which leads to better decisions.
On Tour in India with Amma
Every year Amma takes several hundred people from the ashram on tour through India. These tours test our capacity to adjust to all sorts of environments and living conditions. People on tour learn quickly that acceptance of what is in the moment is the best attitude to take if you want to be happy.
The Source of the Ganges
High in the Himalayas is a glacier which has been melting for thousands of years. This is the source of the Ganges River. The trek up to the source consists of a 14 hour bus ride along a narrow winding road and an 12 mile hike up the mountains. The silence is magnificent, the surrounding mountains beautiful - the perfect place to meditate.