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The Symbolism behind the IIH and IAIH Logos

by Matthew Brownstein

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[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]In 1996, what I call The Anahat Teachings and The Anahat Meditation System came to me while meditating for many hours per day in a quest to tap into the highest possible mystical experiences while still remaining grounded and functional in the world.  These teachings can be fully explored at www.OnlineMonastery.com and in my books The Sacred Geometry of Meditation and The Anahat Meditation System.  The essence of the meditation system is the hexagram, also known as the six-pointed star.

The hexagram consists of two interlacing equilateral triangles, where the descending triangle represents Spirit’s movement into matter, both macro-and micro-cosmically, and where the ascending triangle represents the return of consciousness back into its Source as Spirit. The symbol for the energy center (chakra) of the heart in yogic philosophy is the six-pointed star within twelve lotus petals.  The name of this chakra is Anahat, which can be translated as “unstruck,” referring to that which is not vibrating in a state of pure potentiality – such as a bell that is not yet making any sound.  Anahat is the heart of our being as well as the heart of all Being.  Anahat is the Divine beyond all imagining and beyond all intellectual reasoning.  It is beyond what the mind can understand, yet it is not beyond what can be directly experienced by any sincere meditator.  This symbol is at the heart of our logos for the IIH and the IAIH.  The original artwork for this was done back in 1996, yet I no longer know the name of the artist to give him credit.

The IIH logo contains a squared circle surrounding the Anahat symbol.  The circle in sacred geometry represents Spirit and the square represents matter.  The squared circle shows the integration of Spirit and matter, just as the ascending and descending triangles do.  However, the squared circle has two circles that relate to the divine proportion found in the relative size of the earth and moon.  It contains geometries found in the human body and in all of creation.  A version of it can be seen in Leonardo da Vinci’s famous Vitruvian Man.  This symbol is also essential in the geometries of the Great Pyramid of the Giza Plateau.

The Anahat Symbol and the squared-circle were in the logo for Anahat Meditation Center, which was first founded in Massachusetts where I taught The Anahat Meditation System.  I also used it for Anahat Center in Gainesville, Florida when I reponed that in 2005. When we opened the hypnotherapy school in 2006, the symbol received a wreath of leaves around it, as a sign of wisdom and education.  In time, we changed the corporate name of the school from Anahat Meditation Center to Anahat Education Group to better represent how our work had evolved, yet the essential philosophies, teachings, and values have always remained the same.

In about 2011, we began the IAIH as a certifying and regulatory body for Interpersonal Hypnotherapy.  The Anahat Symbol remained the same, yet it was surrounded by a circle, a square, and a twelve-pointed lotus, within a larger triangle. The circle still represents Spirit, the square represents earth, and the twelve-petaled lotus still refers to Anahat chakra.  The larger triangle represents relationships – the relationship of one person to another on the horizontal axis and the relationship of each individual to their Source on the vertical axis.  The proportions of these geometries are not exact, as we allowed an artist’s creative license to make the logo look good, while still getting the essential symbolism in there.

Detailed explanations of each of these symbols and the philosophies surrounding them can be found in the following:

• Interpersonal Hypnotherapy CEU Course
• The Sacred Geometry of Meditation book
• The Anahat Meditation System book
• The videos and workbooks on www.OnlineMonastery.com

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