I first self-published Emotional Clearing in 1993. I didn’t even try to find a publisher because it seemed impossible, but when I printed up those first 2500 copies and started sending them out free to bookstores, an amazing thing happened - bookstore owners recognized there was something different here, and put out the book, and buyers took them home. The results they had with the book are documented by the extraordinary testimonials I have received, 100+ of which are reprinted on this website.

After the book went to number 1 at Watkins Books, the UK's largest new age bookstore, I started to get foreign publishing offers, and gradually I was able to awaken the interest of the big boys. In 2000, after I had sold 22,500 copies on my own, Random House released a revised, updated hard cover edition. The Emotional Clearing movement itself has grown so that now I’m training therapists in the approach, and we're on the way to establishing a world-wide network.

How did I get into this? Or, maybe more to the point, how did somebody with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell U. get into this?

Right after I got out of college in 1964, I realized there were other things I needed to do instead of working in the corporate environment. For me, it was the arts - I found that in spite of, or maybe because of my academic training, I had a burning urge to see how far I could go as a songwriter-singer. I knew I wouldn’t be happy if I didn’t try it. Breaking with mainstream values, I found myself at home in New York City.

Along with the intense interest in music and the arts was an intense interest in consciousness. I felt that working on myself - evolving my consciousness - was also one of the important things I needed to do. I was quickly led to an association with Babaji’s Kriya Yoga, through a “chance” meeting with Yogaji SAA Ramiaah, a direct disciple of Babaji. Yogaji picked me up with his radar in a bookstore where he was working weekends on the Lower East Side, and invited me to his classes on East 4th St., then a wild frontier. All of us young kids - we were dedicated to pursuing yoga with this real guru from India with a zeal not often found today.

Making a living during this time had to be something alternative, and I tried a number of things. I did a year stint as a caseworker in NY. I became a yoga teacher. Finally I settled into being a woodworker, designing and building. The music was going strong, and after ten years, I bought a loft in NY and built a recording studio and went into the studio business. All during this time, consciousness was a major concern. Practicing yoga, meditation, reading Eastern philosophy voraciously, living holistically - this was important.

After a while, I phased out of the studio business, not finding it stimulating any longer. In looking around for the next thing, I found myself involved in a major reevaluation of my spiritual path, getting into new ideas and exposing myself to new teachers. It seemed that this was now crucial for me, because in spite of 20 years on the path, I was an emotional wreck - this was what I needed to work on. Anger, sexual compulsiveness, being driven for success and artistic burn-out were at the top of the list. I started putting some of these new principles to the test, and I discovered they worked. In meditations, I experienced cleansing and catharsis like never before, just because I had moved into a new relationship with my feeling self. It was incredible.

In fact, it was so incredible I thought I should write a book about it. I looked around, and I didn’t see any other books that seemed to be saying the same thing. I took the next two years off, put together a system and philosophy that seemed to sum it up.

And so, the work has continued into the present. I started getting correspondence from readers immediately after the book came out, and began doing one on one counseling. I discovered I was a natural for this kind of deep, meditative, psychological work - obviously, I have had much experience along these lines in the past. Presently, I feel quite at home in this field, and I am completely confident about training others. I feel I’ve connected to what I’m to do in this life - what the tight yod in my astrology chart represents - and I feel fulfilled.

So, if this work appeals to you, please join it. I feel it really is what’s most important for all of us, perhaps especially spiritual seekers, since there’s very little guidance for them about how to really incorporate feelings work on the path, and the feelings must be clear before any significant spiritual progress can be realized.

Best regards on your journey,

John

PS: My dual-career involvement with music still continues full-speed. I describe the music I do as downtempo electronic-acoustic ambient trip-hop with vocals. I hope you'll be curious enough to listen to some of it at my other web-site: www.johnruskan.com