Store Offers Oasis From the Hectic
By Alicia Gallegos
Caught between the souvenir huts and accessory havens of St. Pete Beach, a shop draws its visitors into an alcove of sweet-smelling incense, hypnotic music and a sense of peace from the bustling outside.
Lemuria Metaphysical specializes in everything from philosophy books to healing crystals to pint-sized aromas for pet anxiety. But what may be unusual about this type of store is how common it has become. Metaphysical stores, specializing in the mind, body and spirit, have joined the mainstream, popping up in malls, main streets and even on Corey Avenue, where Lemuria opened in October. And though categorized as "the New Age Movement," some say it's not new, nor does it define only one stream of thinking.
"It's a global phenomenon." Trilby Seiber, owner of Lemuria, says. "Some people prefer a healing group, meditation or prayer. In order to grow you have to take a good, hard look at yourself."
The number of people affiliated with "New Age" religion in the United States more than quadrupled from 1990 to 2001, according to a study by the City University of New York. And companies that once had most of the "New Age" market to themselves now face aggressive competition.
"The market has changed a lot," Wesley Morris, spokesman for New Leaf Distributing, says. "Our competitors have seen there's money to be made."
New Leaf is a wholesale distributor that began in 1975 and sells more than 40,000 "New Age" items, primarily self-help books and meditative music. The company is tied more to independent retailers than larger stores, Wesley says, and when big names such as Barnes & Noble want a piece of the pie, smaller retailers suffer, in turn affecting New Leaf.
"It's been a rough going for a few years," he says. " It's very hard for an independent mom-and-pop shop to compete with a larger market."
According to Jules Herbert, a Barnes & Noble buyer, steady sales in the area have led to most B&N stores featuring a "Spirituality Bay" with various books and kits. This could be a book on runes, characters of ancient alphabets, with a kit of runes stones. For Barnes & Noble, the term "New Age" spans astrology, divination, psychics, UFOs, Wicca, meditation, and various occult and supernatural subjects, according to Herbert.
Seiber, 47, says business at Lemuria has been good. Her store, she says, focuses on "people that are looking to find themselves." Inside the soft beige walls are shelves of hanging porcelain angels, body adornment kits, herbal health remedies and statues of gods from a rainbow of religions. Tarot card readers are available five days a week, and the store offers everything from yoga to belly dancing.
"A lot of people are opening up to wanting something more in their lives," says Christine Pace, a card reader at Lemuria.
Bill Denny lives in Treasure Island and began his first yoga class Monday, at Lemuria. The bearded man, dressed in a black baseball cap and jeans, says that taking time to do some self- reflection and meditation has helped him through a rough divorce.
"I've had complete mental change," he says.
When his 27-year marriage ended four years ago, Denny's friends suggested a number of meditative books to keep his mind off his broken heart. It was also a way for him to focus on healing by himself, he says.
"Nobody at the bar wants to hear your cries anymore," he says.
"I guess you realize you're not as self-sufficient and in control as you think you were."
His perspective is broader, Denny says, and he wanted to take the yoga class to deepen his mental outlook.
Religion expert Carl Raschke says the number of people looking for alternative ways of thinking has already brought "New Age" methods into American culture and scattered it into cultural trends at large.
Raschke is chairman of the religious department at the University of Denver and author of "New Age Spirituality," in "Spirituality and the Secular Quest." He says the term "New Age" is overused and there are better ways to describe the genre.
"When we use the word it means 'eclectic,'" he says. "An attitude of spirituality."
This attitude could mean adding bits and pieces from different religions and molding it around a certain lifestyle, Raschke says. A dash of Hinduism, a speck of Buddhism, a bit of meditation and a lot of Zen possibly. Kind of a "build your own religion," he says.
The presence of holistic and alternative methods surfaced in the 1960s Raschke says, along with a slew of counter-culture practices following the Vietnam War. "New Age" religions surfaced with changing gender roles, the Civil Rights movement and the general rejection of traditional ways of thinking. The "New Age" movement became more pronounced during the late 1980s and 1990s, he says.
Now what used to be thought of as "New Age," such as the Indian practice of yoga, is as common as lifting weights, Raschke says.
For Carol Schuldt, the need to explore non-traditional ways of thinking hit her 25 years ago.
"I turned 40," she says. "I really thought, 'Wow, what is life all about?'"
So Schuldt, now 65, went searching. She came upon the metaphysical community and the practices of "New Age" religion, and says she found the truth she was looking for.
For more than 20 years, Schuldt says she has been to yoga classes, participated in healing circles and learned the art of meditation. Right now, she is more into "mind science" she says, which is acknowledging her thoughts and being responsible for what she thinks.
"It's definitely transformed me inside," she says. "I'm more at peace." Raised Catholic, Schuldt says she still loves Catholicism and calls herself a "Metaphysical Catholic." She has worked as a secretary for 15 years at the Temple of the Living God in St. Petersburg, a church for the metaphysical community.
Though the value of "New Age" techniques varies from person to person, those experienced with them agree on what it doesn't mean and scoff at common misconceptions about their beliefs.
"Hoodoo" is what Dennis Alexander says the majority of people think of his practices.
Alexander, pastor of the Sentient Temple, says people don't look past their fear of the unknown.
"We don't teach a religion, we teach a philosophy," he says.
The Sentient Temple, was started 12 years ago by Alexander and his wife, Fern, and provides training in healing and naturopathic medicine. The temple recently relocated from Treasure Island to St. Petersburg.
Alexander, 63, has had years of training in holistic healing and says it's not true that those using alternative methods of medicine have turned their back on religion but rather they embrace all forms of it.
Fern Alexander says the term "cult" is too often used loosely with groups of people having similar beliefs. She believes people should become more informed on groups they don't understand.
Seiber says a central theme of Lemuria Metaphysical is balance. Sinking into the relaxed mood of the shop, it's easy to see how hurried customers can walk away calm and refreshed. Helping people take the time to slow down and take a deep look at inside is a service that's a pleasure to provide, Seiber says.
The store's namesake is taken from the legend of Lemuria, an ancient civilization that was supposed to have existed prior to and during the time of Atlantis, Seiber says. The tropical paradise was supposedly in the Southern Pacific, between North America and Asia/Australia. Because of their deep spiritual connections, Lemurians were said to have been highly evolved and free from stress and disease.
If only the majority of people today could use their scientific knowledge with their strength of spirit, Seiber says, the combination would be amazing.
But as for now, Seiber and Lumuria Metaphysical will be teaching the value of balance and inner peace one healing herb at a time.
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