Analyzing the site of the Self Awareness Institute (www.selfawareness.com) as an example of a spiritual online
offering using critical internet analysis and exploring the site’s content
using discourse analysis.
For the purposes of this paper, I
would like to explore the methods that we have been introduced to, in order to
evaluate the site of The Self Awareness Institute (SAI) as an impartial
observer. I will in fact follow the guidelines of phenomenology and bracketing
as I embark into this exploration, so I will leave any personal feelings aside
and I will solely explore the site found online at www.selfawareness.com (Appendix 1) with
an inquisitive impartial approach.
I typed on Google the words “self
awareness” and a few pages were shown. I followed each of these link on that
first page (Appendix 2). Because self awareness is a common term, there was a
Wikipedia definition as the first search result. Also on that first page there
are paid advertisements for sites promoting self awareness. The page that we
will be exploring on this paper was number 12 in the search results, yet Douglas
Cowen is of the opinion that most people would explore the first few pages of a
Google search. In that case the result was shown in the first page of the
Google search I did. I am in fact regularly using the Google search engine as a
way to find out information about a particular subject so it is a very normal
procedure for me as is for most people to search for a term using a search
engine. The reason that the website indeed showed up in the first page of the
search is more of a technical nature and outside of the scope of this paper to
explore. It is interesting to note.
Cowen provides us with questions
that can be answered regarding the content of the website and I will use the
format of question and answer as I explore the website. I am in this paper
mostly interested in exploring the methodology, not necessarily the content of
the website per se, so I will focus my analysis in that way. Cowen suggests
that I would answer four basic questions: what, how, who and why. In a
methodical way I will answer each of the questions in turn.
1.
Describe
what one finds online
a.
What does
a website contain? The website contains information regarding the SAI, an
institute dedicated to the propagation in the West of Indian meditation
techniques of kundhalini based on teachings of the Vedas. “ The institute was
founded in 1985 by Steven Sadlier at the suggestion of his guru Yogiraj Vethathiri
Maharishi, and has since grown to thousands in over 120 countries.
Steven Sadlier is a recognized Kundalini Master and Siddha Yogi, having
completed Yoga Tapas under Sri Sri Sri Shivabalayogi
Maharaj.”
b. Is it interactive in any way? No the site is static. There are videos attached to the
site though.
c.
Is it
rudimentary or complex? Well-designed or not? The site is professionally
designed and is fast and complex.
2.
Consider
the sources of who provides the content
a. Who is responsible for the content and to
whom is it addressed? The site identifies this info “Website
Designed by Steven Sadleir © 2014 at Homestead™
b. Is
the author of the content identified? Yes it is identified as Steven
Sadleir.
c.
Is the
material original to the site or has it been reposted from another source? The
material on this site is orgiginal
d. Who is actually assessing, using and perhaps
contributing to the content? Customers and members and potential customers
or members of SAI.
3.
The
level of analysis offering an answer to the how of the usage
a.
How is the
material being used? This is an information website.
b. How do content providers intend the material
to be used and how do consumers actually use it? The customers use the
material in the way it was intended to be used since only information can be
obtained from this site. There is a location for comments but it is not
possible to see previous comments posted.
c. Do they repost material elsewhere? No
d.
How do
providers control and manage usage? There is only the information that the
creators of this site choose to post.
e. Do they permit open commenting or are they
solely responsible for the material moderated? No, they are solely
responsible for the material posted.
f.
How
does online usage affect the content over time and how is this reflected in
offline beliefs and practices? I have been familiar with this site for
years and it is regularly updated.
4.
Exploring
what comes out of this behavior
a.
What
explains this behavior? This is an information site
b.
What can
we learn from it? We can learn about SAI, Steven Sadleir, their products,
membership and book offerings on this website.
c.
How do we
explain these patterns of internet usage? This is meant to promote SAI,
membership and book and product offerings.
d. What does this tells us about the nature of
religion online, offline and the relationship between them? There is a real
online community behind this site that meditates together online multiple times
per week.
As I was answering each question about the website as
described in the methodology I realized that one thing that I was worried about,
which is whether I would be able to be an impartial observer to this site, was
indeed accomplished. The questions that needed to be answered left no space for
personal opinions of any kind. For example, I observed that the website claims
that SAI serves tens and even hundreds of thousands of customers. There is
absolutely no way to substantiate this claim from the SAI website, except maybe
the fact that it does come up on the first page of a Google search of a term
common enough to have a Wikipedia link associated with it. In terms of
substantiating the information that SAI provides, it seems that there is simply
no way to do it through the information provided on the site itself. There
seems to be some references to a movie on global enlightment being produced
that could have Russell Brand as an actor, where the producing team would be
meeting the pope and the Dalai Lama, yet no
photos or other tangible evidence to substantiate such claims has been
provided. There is however a link to two movies that have been produced
already, and endorsements for the movie from Mark Victor Hansen co-author of
Chicken Soup for the Soul that by virtue of his success has in fact some
credibility. There also are many links to books from Steven Sadleir, some of
which notably are bestsellers like the book “Looking for God”, a bestseller
book where Sadleir provides an exploration and personal account of world
religions. Again in terms of the analysis it is interesting to note that using
a critical approach seems to involve a dispassionate observer approach that is
consistent with the religious studies research techniques yet depending on my
personal bias I do offer evidence to substantiate the credibility of SAI, under
the veil of evidence collected. I do happen to have personal experience for the
veracity of these claims yet this is not provided by the internet, rather it
was out of the internet experiences that gave me the certitude personally that
this is not a good hoax. It is interesting to observe of course that it would
not be an economically smart approach on the part of SAI to invest in lying
about all this.
On a second wave of analysis, it is also interesting to
explore using discourse analysis a portion of the SAI site. For this method I
will use the methodology of discourse analysis as described by Titus Hjelm
(Hjelm 2014) I will apply discourse analysis to the excerpt from the site
stated in Appendix 3.
For the discourse analysis
portion I used all of the techniques described by Hjelm in an effort to evaluate
which one seemed most useful or from which one I was able to draw the most
powerful conclusions. The steps I used in the discourse analysis were:
1. All
passages analyzed must be explicitly considered in full context. (see Appendix
3) The passage that I will use to explore the method of discourse analysis is:
“The Self
Awareness Institute ("SAI") provides courses in Self Realization
& Siddha Yoga. We were founded in 1985 and have grown to thousands of
students in over 120 countries and offer an ongoing Self Realization Course
(teleconferened), home study courses, seminars, retreats and numerous books,
CD's and other media.
Steven S. Sadleir is
Director of th Self Awareness Institute which was founded in 1985 at the
suggestion of his guru Yogiraj Vethathiri
Maharishi, and has since grown to thousands in over 120 countries. He is a
recognized Kundalini Master and Siddha Yogi, having completed Yoga Tapas under
Sri Sri Sri Shivabalayogi Maharaj.
Swamiji is also a best-selling author, host of Enlightenment
Radio, and appears in two recent movies on spirituality. He received a Master's
in Economics from the University of Wales, in the United Kingdom, worked in
economics and finance for many years, but retired early to teach and write full
time. Swamiji now conducts distance learning programs, meditation teacher
training and conducts seminars and retreats world wide.”
Using narrative paraphrasing the
above passage can be described as an account of what SAI is about and of who
Steen Sadleir is. I will focus on the meaning of the text as opposed to the
linguistics except to note that there seems to be adequate usage of the English
language.
The results from each technique
were:
1. Macroanalysis:
·
The Self
Awareness Institute ("SAI") provides courses in Self Realization
& Siddha Yoga. (M1)
·
We were founded
in 1985 (M2)
·
and have grown
to thousands of students in over 120 countries (M2)
·
and offer an
ongoing Self Realization Course (teleconferened), home study courses, seminars,
retreats and numerous books, CD's and other media.(M3)
·
Steven S. Sadleir is Director of the Self Awareness Institute (M1)
·
which was founded in 1985 (M2)
·
and has since grown to thousands
in over 120 countries. (M2)
·
He is a recognized Kundalini
Master and Siddha Yogi, (M1)
·
Swamiji is also a best-selling
author,(M3)
·
host of Enlightenment Radio, (M3)
·
and appears in two recent movies
on spirituality. (M3)
·
He received a Master's in
Economics from the University of Wales, in the United Kingdom, worked in
economics and finance for many years, (M1)
·
but retired early to teach and
write full time. (M1)
·
Swamiji now conducts distance
learning programs, meditation teacher training and conducts seminars and
retreats world wide (M3)
M1: who is
described?
M2: what is
described?
M3: how are they
interacting with their customers?
M4: why are they
doing this?
In this excerpt I addressed the
four basic questions as macrothemes of who, what, how and why. A lot more
information is given on the site to answer these specific questions but a
complete scholarly discourse analysis that analyzes the full, complete texts or
all portions of a text is outside the scope of this project. In this project I
use a less formal discourse analysis that analyzes portions of a text to
explore pre-determined thematic concerns, specifically addressing the 4 basic
questions that are thematically important of who, what, how and why.
2. Discursive
psychology: This material is very concise and is substantiated by references
and claims to teachers and facts or products that are sprinkled in the rest of
the site. It is a short passage but there seems to be almost no variability in
discourse. The only exception is the word “swamiji” used to describe Steven Sadleir
that denotes a religious title that is attributed to him.
3. Critical
Discourse Analysis: Using the constructive approach of discourse analysis I
noted that the reality of describing SAI and Steven Sadleir is built by making
claims that can be verified and cross-referenced. Using the critical approach
of discourse analysis I note that there is no place for comments of criticism
to Sadleir’s claim to be a guru referred to as swamiji. So in that sense he
does use a hegemonic turn of phrase that establishes him as a leader in his
field and as a teacher of kundalini meditation.
After performing this detailed analysis on the website of the
Self Awareness Institute I feel more prepared to approach other sites with a
similar methodology. As a plethora of new sites emerges every day and as data
is more readily available online, in an era where books and journals are become
obsolete, it is necessary for me to be able to perform in a readily applicable way
a critical evaluation of a website both as a portal as well as on the context
of the website.
References:
Cowan, Douglas (2014) “The
Internet” The Routeledge Handbook of Methods in the Study of Religion,
Routeledge New York, NY
Hjem, Titus (2014) “Disource
Analysis” The Routeledge Handbook of Methods in the Study of Religion,
Routeledge New York, NY
Sadlier, Steven (1992) “Looking
for God: A Spiritual’s Seekers Guide to Religious and Spiritual Books of the
World” Self Awareness Institute Publishing, Laguna Beach, CA
Website:
Appendix 1: The landing page
Appendix 2: Google search results
for the term “self awareness”
About 33,000,000 results (0.43 seconds)
Search Results
1.
1. Self-awareness is the capacity for introspection and
the ability to recognize oneself as an individual separate from the environment
and other individuals. Researchers have demonstrated that the awarenessof ourselves begins to
emerge at around one year of age and becomes much more developed by around 18
months of age.
2. Self-awareness -
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-awareness
Wikipedia
3. Self-awareness -
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-awareness
Wikipedia
Self-awareness is the capacity for introspection and the
ability to recognize oneself as an individual separate from the environment and
other individuals. Researchers have demonstrated that the awareness of ourselves begins to emerge at around one
year of age and becomes much more developed by around 18 months of age.
4. Self Awareness - Pathway
to Happiness
www.pathwaytohappiness.com/self-awareness.htm
Self
Awareness is having
a clear perception of your personality, including strengths, weaknesses,
thoughts, beliefs, motivation, and emotions. Self Awareness ...
5. Self-Awareness
and Personal Development
www.wright.edu/~scott.../selfawareness.htm
Wright
State University
Consequently, many of us
have a pretty low level of self-awareness. That's
unfortunate, because self-awareness is an essential first step toward
maximizing ...
6. Coaching
to Develop Self-Awareness - From MindTools.com
www.mindtools.com/pages/article/coaching-self-awareness.htm
With better self–awareness, we can
improve our relationships, and reach our goals more effectively. Find out how
you can use coaching to build self-awareness.
8. 7
Signs You're Not Self-Aware | Inc.com
www.inc.com/.../7-signs-youre-not-as-self-aware-as-you-think.html
Mar 29, 2013 - Self-awareness is a really big deal for everyone,
especially executives and business leaders. Failure to face reality can destroy
your career and ...
9. What
Is Self-Awareness? How Does It Develop? - Psychology
Self-awareness is one of the first components of the
self-concept to emerge. While self-awareness is something that is central to each and
every one of us, it is ...
10.
Self Awareness Articles
- Self Creation
www.selfcreation.com/self-awareness/index.htm
Self-awareness and self mastery is understanding your
personality, behaviors, habits, emotional reactions, motivations, and thought
processes.
11.
The
Importance of Self-Awareness, and How to Become ...
lifehacker.com/the-importance-of-self-awareness-and-how-to-...
Lifehacker
Aug 21, 2014 - They say the first step is admitting you have a problem, and
that's true in every aspect of life. Self-awareness and introspection have the ring of ...
12.
Self
Awareness Institute
www.selfawareness.com/
Self
Awareness Institute
teaches spiritual enlightenment through Shaktipat Kundalini Yoga and self- awareness meditation as taught by Vethathiri
Maharishi and ...
You visited this page on
11/4/14.
Why
this ad?
1. Self
Awareness
Adwww.guyfinley.org/
o
Gain Insight W/
Spiritual Exercises Through The Writings Of Guy Finley.
1.
Gain Insight W/ Spiritual Exercises Through The Writings Of Guy
Finley.
Searches
related to self awareness
1
|
Appendix 3: Discourse analysis excerpt from the page “about
us”
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