School of Philosophy and Economic Science#Worldwide operations

The School of Economic Science was founded in 1938, in the UK, by Andrew MacLaren {{post-nominals|country=GBR|MP}}{{Cite journal|date=1923|title=The First Hundred Years|journal=Land & Liberty Magazine}} and his son Leon MacLaren, under the name Henry George School of Economics.{{cite web |url=http://observer.com/2011/05/poster-children-of-new-yorks-happiness-academy-the-school-of-practical-philosophy/?show=all |title=Poster Children of New York's Happiness Academy – The School of Practical Philosophy |work=New York Observer |first=M. H. |last=Miller |date=24 May 2011 |access-date=15 December 2013}} It was an economics study group that expounded the economic theories of the American economist Henry George.Land and Liberty, Henry George Foundation of Great Britain, 1933 p.231; 1935 p.89; 1936 p.94, 1937 p.97.Land and Liberty, 1936 pp.129, 161, 164.{{cite book |first=John |last=Stewart |title=Standing for Justice |publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn Publishing |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-85683-194-2 |page=65}} The group initially met in a Parliamentary committee room of the Houses of Parliament.{{Cite book|title=The science of economics: the economic teaching of Leon MacLaren|last=MacLaren |first=Leon|isbn=978-0-85683-291-8 |location=London |publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn |oclc=827258190|year = 2013}} Leon MacLaren inherited the organisation from his father, Andrew, and changed its focus to "the study of natural laws governing the relations between men in society." He considered science to be a study of laws that already exist in nature; economics the study of human nature and its interaction with the natural universe.{{Cite book|title=The science of economics|last=Makewell|first=Raymond|year=2013|isbn=978-0-85683-291-8 |location=London |publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn |oclc=827258190}} In 1942 the name of the group was changed to the School of Economic Science; this name stayed on until the change of the name on publicity material in 2019 to the School of Philosophy and Economic Science.{{Cite web |url=https://www.schoolofphilosophy.org/our-new-name/ |title=Archived copy |access-date=7 August 2020 |archive-date=15 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220515184948/https://schoolofphilosophy.org/our-new-name |url-status=dead }}

MacLaren studied the book The Realm of Art (1946), a wide-ranging survey of ideas about the nature of humanity, society, art, science, religion, evolution, creativity, free will, mind and matter, knowledge and consciousness.{{Cite book|title=THE REALM OF ART|last=Goffin|first=Peter|publisher=Lindsay Drummond|year=1946|asin=B000XEGRM8}} It was this book which first introduced him to the ideas of Ouspensky; he incorporated its ideas to the SES and invited the author, Peter Goffin, to give lectures.{{cite book|title=Standing for Justice|last=Stewart|first=John|publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn Publishing|year=2001|isbn=978-0-85683-194-2|page=67}}{{cite book|title=The Power Within: Leon MacLaren, A Memoir of His Life and Work|last=Tolley|first=Dorine|year=2009|isbn=978-1-4392-1030-7|pages=76–77|publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform }}

P. D. Ouspensky was a pupil of G. I. Gurdjieff and their philosophy, called the "Fourth Way", was incorporated.{{Cite journal|last=Petsche|first=Johanna|date=2015|title=Gurdjieffian Overtones in Leon MacLaren's School of Economic Science|journal=International Journal for the Study of New Religions|volume=6|issue=2|pages=197–217|doi=10.1558/ijsnr.v6i2.28443}} Gurdjieff is both praised as a charismatic intellectual who brought greater insight to Western thought, and rebuked as an egomaniacal charlatan who worked followers to exhaustion to break down personality.{{cite journal |url=http://www.icsahome.com/view_document.asp?ID=28798 |title=Book Review: "Secret Cult: The School of Economic Science" by Andrew Hogg and Peter Hounam |first=Linda |last=Blood |journal=Cult Observer |volume=2 |number=9 |year=1985 |pages=17–19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131221015518/http://www.icsahome.com/view_document.asp?ID=28798 |archive-date=21 December 2013}} In 1953, MacLaren met Francis C. Roles, a pupil of Ouspensky who had established the Study Society in 1951 to continue the teaching of the Fourth Way. MacLaren systematised the Gurdjieff system and incorporated these ideas into his courses;{{cite web|url=http://www.studysociety.org/|title=Home|work=The Study Society|access-date=15 November 2013}} the ideas were blended with sociology, and man's inner nature was considered in the context of the forces that govern society.{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/rhythmsofvisionc00blai|title=Rhythms of vision: the changing patterns of belief|last=Lawrence|first=Blair|publisher=Warner Books|year=1977|isbn=0-446-81232-3|location=New York|oclc=6115649}}

When Maclaren died in the mid-1990s, the SES gradually underwent a change in approach, choosing to be more open.{{Cite web|url=http://www.loughboroughecho.net/news/local-news/the-history-of-nanpantan-hall-11282842|title=The history of Nanpantan Hall|last=Rush|first=Andy|date=6 May 2016|website=loughborough|access-date=22 February 2019}} Nowadays, SES seems to have phased out most of its Gurdjieffian material (it no longer uses MacLaren's lectures) although it acknowledges Gurdjieff and Ouspensky as a source of the first Philosophy courses on its official SES website.

Ouspensky believed that Gurdjieff's teachings were incomplete and both Roles and MacLaren were eager to discover the missing elements.{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/bookofenlightene00rawl|title=The book of enlightened masters: western teachers in eastern traditions|author=Rawlinson, Andrew|date=1997|publisher=Open Court|isbn=0-8126-9310-8|location=Chicago|oclc=36900790}} In 1959, MacLaren discovered the teachings of Advaita Vedanta after meeting the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, and began to practice Transcendental Meditation (TM). Both Roles and MacLaren became pupils of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.{{Cite book|title=Gurdjieff: the key concepts|author=Wellbeloved, Sophia|date=2003|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-135-13249-1|location=London|oclc=842264578}} On 13 March 1961, MacLaren organised a meeting, called the "1961 World Congress", for the Maharishi at the Royal Albert Hall. Two days prior to the event smaller meetings were held at Caxton Hall.{{Cite book|title=The Maharishi: the biography of the man who gave transcendental meditation to the world|last=Mason |first=Paul |isbn=1-85230-571-1|location=Shaftesbury, Dorset |publisher=Element |oclc=31133549|year = 1994}} The Royal Albert Hall meeting was attended by 5,000 people, nearly all SES members.{{Cite book |title=The new believers: a survey of sects, cults, and alternative religions |last=Barrett |first=David V. |date=2001 |publisher=Cassell |isbn=978-0-304-35592-1 |location=London |oclc=44933824 |url=https://archive.org/details/newbelieverssurv00barr }}{{Cite book|title=Dandi Swami: the story of the guru's will, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the Shankaracharyas of Jyotir Math, & meetings with Dandi Swami Narayananand Saraswati |isbn=978-0-9562228-4-8 |publisher=Premanand |oclc=898150908|last1 = Mason|first1 = Paul|year = 2014}} One attendee described the effect of the talk as "tremendous", causing him to feel like a prisoner that had just been released. He speculated that meditation was the missing link of the incomplete Gurdjieff-Ouspensky system.{{Cite book|title=MAHARISHI, THE GURU: An International Symposium|last=Ebon|first=Martin|publisher=Signet Books|year=1968 |page=129|asin=B00005WBYQ}}

The particular type of meditation used by SES was developed by Brahmananda Saraswati (Gurudeva). MacLaren was taken through its initiation ritual, and speculated that he had found the source of Gurdjieff's ideas. Shantananda Saraswati taught that the practice of meditation in a regular and disciplined manner is of the very highest importance. Meditation became central to SES' philosophy program and Maclaren, together with Roles, was instrumental in founding the School of Meditation (SoM) in London. Meditation is taken up by all senior members of the group.{{Cite book|title=Mindful philosophy|author=Snow, Michael J. |isbn=978-1-5462-9238-8|location=Milton Keynes |publisher=AuthorHouse UK |oclc=1063750429|date = October 2018}}{{unreliable source?|date=November 2023}}

File:Swami Santanand saraswathi.png]]

On a trip to India to study meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Roles met the Shankarcharya of Jyotir Math, Swami Shantanand Saraswati, who Roles believed was the spiritual advisor both the Study society and SES were seeking. He introduced MacLaren to Shantandand and they both became his students. Swami Shantananda Saraswati had been a disciple, with the Maharishi, of the previous Shankaracharya of Jyotir Math, Swami Brahmananda Saraswati.{{Cite book|title=The book of enlightened masters: western teachers in eastern traditions|last=Rawlinson|first=Andrew|date=1997|publisher=Open Court|isbn=978-0-8126-9310-2|location=Chicago|oclc=36900790|url=https://archive.org/details/bookofenlightene00rawl}} From this point on, MacLaren's teachings became predominately based on Advaita Vedanta, which he disseminated within SES.{{Cite book|title=Historical dictionary of new religious movements|author=Chryssides, George D.|date=2012|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-7967-6|edition= Second|location=Lanham, Md.|oclc=828618014}} During the mid-1950s, Practical Philosophy became the central subject of teaching and practice at SES and remains so today.{{Cite book|title=A Celebration of the Life of Leon MacLaren|last=The Fellowship of the School of Economics|publisher=Royal Festival Hall|year=1994|location=London}}{{Cite book|title=Modern and global Ayurveda: pluralism and paradigms|date=2008|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-1-4356-6328-2|location=Albany|oclc=244771011}} MacLaren's discussions with Shantanand Saraswati solidified the central principle of SES' philosophy as "unity in diversity", a merger of Eastern philosophy and Western wisdom.{{Cite book|title=Dadi Janki A Century of Service|last=Hodgkinson|first=Liz|year=2016|isbn=978-81-8430-382-7}}

From 1965, every second year for the rest of his life, MacLaren conversed with Shantananda Saraswat and these conversations were taped and transcribed. These conversations are published in a four volume series. Teaching is disseminated by SES advanced students who are volunteer teachers, and is maintained by the successors of MacLaren and Shantanand Saraswati, these being Donald Lambie and SES guru Sri Vasudevananda Saraswati respectively.

MacLaran also met another Indian sage, Daṇḍī Svāmī Nārāyaṇānanda Sarasvatī, who was a student of both Shantananda Saraswathi and Brahmananda Saraswati. Daṇḍī Svāmī Nārāyaṇānanda Sarasvatī was also linked with the leader of the SES branch in Holland.

In his conversations with MacLaren, Shantananda Saraswati stated the importance of Sanskrit language in the study of Advaita.{{Cite book |title=Language and truth: a study of the Sanskrit language and its relationship with principles of truth |last=Douglas |first=Paul |date=2010 |publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn |isbn=978-0-85683-370-0 |location=London |oclc=704434256}} The study of Sanskrit language at SES began in the late 1960s and became a formal part of what was called the "middle school" in 1977.{{Cite book|title=Annual Language Lecture 1997|last=Elias|first=Richard|publisher=School of Economic Science|year=1997|location=London|page=93}} SES is considered a world-class centre for the study of Sanskrit.{{Cite book|title=The book of one: the ancient wisdom of Advaita|author=Waite, Dennis|date=2010|publisher=O Books|isbn=978-1-84694-347-8|edition=2nd|location=Winchester, UK|oclc=573397586}}

In 1977, the Art Department at SES began an annual, four-day art festival called Art in Action at Waterperry Gardens;{{cite web |url=http://www.artinaction.org.uk/_Assets/LIB/PressReleases/Press%20Release%20January%202012.pdf |title=Press Release January 2012 |work=Art in Action.org |access-date=15 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120518184651/http://www.artinaction.org.uk/_Assets/LIB/PressReleases/Press%20Release%20January%202012.pdf |archive-date=18 May 2012 }}{{Cite news|title=Getting in on the Art|last=Pearey|first=Julia|date=May 1998|work=Illustrated London News}} the first event attracted 14,000 visitors and recent events have each attracted about 25,000 visitors.{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/14620591.thousands-flock-to-waterperry-gardens-for-final-art-in-action-festival/|title=Thousands flock to Waterperry Gardens for final Art in Action festival|website=Oxford Mail|date=15 July 2016 |access-date=13 February 2019}} The purpose of the event was to demonstrate the principles of SES by allowing artists and craftspeople to be observed in the act of creating their art, the aim being to bring masters and beginners together in a bid to encourage creativity.{{Cite news |last=de Burton |first=Simon |date=12 July 2008 |title=Collect and create at a country retreat |language=en-GB |website=Financial Times |url=https://www.ft.com/content/10588c1c-4eee-11dd-ba7c-000077b07658 |access-date=5 March 2019}} Over the years the number of artists exhibiting increased from 51 to 400, specially selected for the quality of their work.{{Cite journal|last=Vetta|first=Sylvia|date=June 2012|title=Guardian of Waterperry|url=http://www.sylviavetta.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Bernard-Saunders.pdf|journal=Oxford Times|pages=10–14|access-date=16 February 2019|archive-date=2 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802003948/https://www.sylviavetta.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Bernard-Saunders.pdf|url-status=dead}} The event also included lectures by experts from the National Association of Decorative and Fine Art Societies, and 3,000 places on practical courses in 20 different subjects. Around 900 volunteers from SES staffed the event.{{Cite web|url=https://www.haberler.com/ilk-altin-madalya-ebru-ile-geldi-3825985-haberi/|title=İlk Altın Madalya Ebru ile Geldi!|date=31 July 2012|website=Haberler.com|language=tr|access-date=22 February 2019}} The event was started by steward of Waterperry Estate, Bernard Saunders,{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/14396694.obituary-bernard-saunders-founder-of-art-in-action-at-waterperry-house/|title=Obituary: Bernard Saunders, founder of Art in Action at Waterperry House|website=Oxford Mail|date=31 March 2016 |language=en|access-date=22 February 2019}} and was organised by Jeremy Sinclair CBE between 2005 - 2014, and later Simon Buchanan{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordtimes.co.uk/leisure/art/features/14619121.2016-is-art-in-actions-40th-and-final-year-so-what-happened-to-oxfordshires-most-successful-art-festival-katherine-macalister-investigates/|title=2016 is Art In Action's 40th and final year. So what happened to Oxfordshire's most successful art festival? Katherine MacAlister investigates|website=The Oxford Times|date=14 July 2016 |language=en|access-date=27 February 2019}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.artinaction.org.uk/best-of-the-best/|title=Best of the Best Exhibition at Art in Action|website=Art in Action|access-date=16 February 2019}}

After 40 years, the organisers announced that Art in Action would "pause", and that their vision is for Waterperry Gardens to "develop as a centre for the arts in the years to come".{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-oxfordshire-36794657/large-crowds-flock-to-last-art-in-action-festival|title=Crowds flock to 'last' arts festival|work=BBC News |access-date=13 February 2019}} Since then the organisation has hosted the Handmade in Britain festival,{{Cite web|url=https://www.handmadeinbritain.co.uk/events/handmade-oxford/|title=Handmade Oxford - The International Contemporary Arts Festival|website=Handmade in Britain|access-date=17 February 2019}} Celebrating Ceramics,{{Cite web|url=https://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/articles/cchq-weekly-round-up-7-december-2018/|title=CCHQ Weekly Round-up, 7 December 2018 - Crafts Council|website=www.craftscouncil.org.uk|access-date=1 March 2019|archive-date=2 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190302093548/https://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/articles/cchq-weekly-round-up-7-december-2018/|url-status=dead}} the Oxford Storytelling Festival{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordstorytellingfestival.co.uk/|title=Oxford Storytelling Festival|website=Oxford Storytelling Festival|access-date=17 February 2019}} and the Waterperry Opera Festival.{{Cite web|url=http://www.waterperryoperafestival.co.uk/ourstory.html|title=Our Story|website=Waterperry Opera Festival|access-date=17 February 2019}}

In 1992 Shantanand Saraswati advised Leon MacLaren to choose a successor.{{Cite book|title=The Power Within: Leon Maclaren, a Memoir of His Life and Work|last=Tolley|first=Dorine|publisher=Booksurge Publishing|year=2009|isbn=978-1-4392-1030-7|location=London|page=282}} He chose Donald Lambie, a lawyer, who had joined SES aged 17 in 1973.{{Cite book|title=Leon MacLaren: Memories and Tributes|last=Ward|first=David|publisher=School of Economic Science|year=2014|page=3}} Donald Lambie succeeded Leon Maclaren upon his death in 1994.{{cite web |url=http://www.dialogueireland.org/dicontent/a2z/ses/index.html |title=School of Philosophy And Economic Science |work=Dialogue Ireland.org}} His succession was approved by the 200-strong Fellowship of senior members of the organisation. Sri Shantanand Saraswati died in 1997. Donald Lambie established contact with his successor, Sri Vasudevananda Saraswati, who took on the role of guru to SES. Sri Vasudevananda Saraswati continues to act in that role.

File:Waterperry House New Hall.png

Following a project by SES architects and artists' groups to plan and construct a new hall at Waterperry House, which began in 1971. In 1999–2001, frescos spanning three floors, illustrating SES' philosophies, were added to the property to create a sacred space intended to last at least 500 years.{{cite web|url=http://www.cacioppe.com/writings/waterperry-fresco-01|title=Waterperry House Project 1999–2001|work=Cacioppe.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219024009/http://www.cacioppe.com/writings/waterperry-fresco-01|archive-date=19 December 2013|access-date=15 November 2013}}{{cite web |url=http://www.cacioppe.com/files/waterperry-fresco.pdf |title=Initial Concept: Architecture: Fresco Techniques & Methods |work=Cacioppe.com |access-date=15 October 2013}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.courtneyart.net/mural.html|title=Jeffery Courtney - portrait - landscape - still life - copies - conceptual - mural - gallery artist|website=www.courtneyart.net|access-date=16 February 2019}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/uk-travel/england/london-travel/school-of-economic-science-supports-art-in-action-festival-sw3gg3vpgmc|title=School of Economic Science supports Art in Action festival|last=Morrison|first=Richard|date=12 July 2008|work=The Times|access-date=27 February 2019|language=en|issn=0140-0460}} The architects and artists let their designs arise from reflection on a passage from one of the great texts of Advaita philosophy, the Brihadaranyaka Unpanishad: "In the beginning this self was indeed Brahman. It knew only itself as 'I am Brahman'. Therefore, it became All."{{Cite web|url=http://www.artinaction.org.uk/see-the-most-ambitious-example-of-fresco-painting-in-britain/|title=The most ambitious example of fresco painting in Britain|date=26 February 2015|website=Art in Action|access-date=16 February 2019}} MacLaren's intention was to create a place fit for King Janaka; accordingly the bridge and staircase was planned in glass.

In 1975, SES founded the St James Independent Schools in London, comprising one school for girls and one for boys, both catering to children from 4–18 years of age.{{Cite book|title=Hindu children in Britain|author=Jackson, Robert|date=1993|publisher=Trentham Books|others=Nesbitt, Eleanor M.|isbn=0-948080-73-6|location=Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England|oclc=29847701}}{{cite web |url=http://www.stjamesschools.co.uk/seniorgirls/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/6-Information-about-the-School-and-History-Dept.pdf |title=Information about the School |work=St James Senior Girls School |date=2015 |access-date=3 February 2017 |archive-date=19 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220819104405/http://www.stjamesschools.co.uk/seniorgirls/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/6-Information-about-the-School-and-History-Dept.pdf |url-status=dead }} Today, only around 10 per cent of the children at St James have parents involved with SES. They're ranked in the Sunday Times' top UK schools guide.{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/best-schools-league-table|title=Parent Power 2019: Best UK Schools Guide|last=Times|first=The Sunday|newspaper=The Times|access-date=6 March 2019|language=en|issn=0140-0460}} St Vedast's School for Boys, at Sarum Chase in Hampstead, London, was also founded in the mid-1970s and closed in 1985. Other schools included the Ficino School in Auckland, New Zealand; St James Preparatory Schools in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg, South Africa; John Colet School, Sydney, Australia; Erasmus School, Melbourne, Australia; the St James Independent Schools in London; Alcuin School in Leeds (closed in 2009); St James' primary school in Stockport (closed in 2015); and John Scottus School in Dublin.{{Cite web|url=https://www.johnscottus.ie/|title=Home|website=John Scottus School}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.iol.co.za/saturday-star/sanskrit-script-opens-the-path-to-spirituality-and-helps-improve-focus-13127550|title=Sanskrit script opens the path to spirituality and helps improve focus {{!}} Saturday Star|website=www.iol.co.za|language=en|access-date=2 March 2019}} St James Junior Boys merged with the Junior Girls School to form St James Juniors in 2015.{{cite web |url=http://www.stjamesschools.co.uk/juniorschools/ |title=St James Juniors |work=stjamesschools.co.uk |access-date=4 February 2017 |archive-date=16 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190216035334/http://www.stjamesschools.co.uk/juniorschools/ |url-status=dead }}

Greek philosophy, Eastern philosophy, Vedic dancing, Shakespeare, Renaissance art, meditation, mindfulness, Latin, Greek, Sanskrit language, calligraphy, and Vedic maths are taught in some of these schools from a very early age, in addition to the regular curriculum.{{Cite web|url=http://hillpost.in/2016/02/sanskrit-and-vedas-what-the-learning-means/105048/|title=Sanskrit and Vedas – what the learning means|last=Katoch|first=Prakash|date=9 February 2016|website=Hill Post|language=en-US|access-date=12 March 2019}}{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8714177.stm|title=The joy of daydreaming|date=31 May 2010|access-date=12 March 2019|language=en-GB}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.iol.co.za/saturday-star/sanskrit-script-opens-the-path-to-spirituality-and-helps-improve-focus-13127550|title=Sanskrit script opens the path to spirituality and helps improve focus {{!}} Saturday Star|website=www.iol.co.za|language=en|access-date=12 March 2019}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/london-school-teaches-students-vedic-maths/article5490237.ece|title=London school teaches students Vedic maths|last=Ranganna|first=T. S.|date=23 December 2013|work=The Hindu|access-date=12 March 2019|language=en-IN|issn=0971-751X}}{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/sectscultsaltern00barr|title=Sects, cults, and alternative religions: a world survey and sourcebook|last=Barrett|first=David V.|date=1996|publisher=Blandford|isbn=0-7137-2567-2|location=London|oclc=36909325}} There is also a strong emphasis on sport through team games, music and arts. Children are taught the virtues of politeness, courtesy, truthfulness and honesty.

File:Art in Action Waterperry.png festival at Waterperry Gardens]]

In the early 1980s the St James and St Vedast children schools founded and run by the SES received complaints from parents and were subject to a critical [http://reference.ses-forums.org/?p=237 series of articles]"{{cite web|url=http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/NA5-SES-+-ST-JAMES-SES-and-its-strange-schools.pdf|title=SES and its strange schools|date=9 June 1983|work=London Evening Standard|access-date=3 February 2017|archive-date=22 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230722202253/http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/NA5-SES-+-ST-JAMES-SES-and-its-strange-schools.pdf|url-status=dead}} in the London Evening Standard, focusing on the School's harsh discipline regime and its links to the School of Economic Science, which the journalists described as a "cult".

In 2004, an [http://www.ses-forums.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=105 internet message board] was set up on which former St James and St Vedast pupils shared recollections including many complaints of mistreatment, unreasonable punishment and assault.

In 2005, following complaints on the [http://www.ses-forums.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=105 internet message board] from former pupils, the Governors of the St James Schools initiated a private inquiry, chaired by British QC, James Townsend, into the allegations. The investigation found that during the 1975 to 1985 time period, children had been "criminally assaulted" while attending the schools.

The chairman of the inquiry described cases where boys were "punched in the face or in the stomach, cuffed violently about the head, had blackboard rubbers thrown at them causing injury in some cases, had cricket balls thrown at them violently when they were not looking at the thrower and were struck with the end of a gym rope. Other students were kicked, struck from behind, slapped about the face, thrown across a classroom". The report stated "Whatever the provocation nothing could justify this mistreatment. It was clearly unreasonable and criminal".

In response to the report the school stated the teachers named in the report "will receive disciplinary warnings", but that "there is no plan to remove them from the schools". The teachers no longer work at St James.

The Inquiry report was publicised by a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cnv1tTcm6t4 Channel 4 television news special report] on 15 March 2006 and [http://reference.ses-forums.org/?p=237 in national and local newspapers].{{cite web |url=http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/IP5-TES-20-1-06.pdf |title=Inquiry reveals culture of violence |last=Paton |first=Graeme |date=2006 |work=Times Education Supplement (TES) |access-date=3 February 2017 |archive-date=19 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220819104341/http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/IP5-TES-20-1-06.pdf |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/IP4-KCnews-19.1.06.pdf |title=10 years of abuse |last=McDermott |first=Jo |date=19 January 2006 |work=Kensington & Chelsea News |access-date=3 February 2017 |archive-date=19 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220819104455/http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/IP4-KCnews-19.1.06.pdf |url-status=dead }} The Channel 4 social affairs correspondent, Victoria Macdonald, interviewed former St. James pupils and the then-headmaster, David Boddy, who said this was the first time the Governors had heard of the complaints. The program reported that there had been complaints about punishment regimes in 1983 and that meetings had been held with parents which Boddy himself attended.

The report also stated that "there has been a real change in the ethos and conduct of the schools is established by the evidence of those witnesses, not naturally well disposed towards the SES, who speak of them as happy places where there appears to be a relaxed atmosphere between pupils and teachers".

In December 2020 a [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-55342669 BBC News report]Pupils' historical abuse at London schools claims total £1m By Rianna Croxford, Correspondent, BBC News, 17 December 2020. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-55342669 stated that "nearly £1m in compensation had been paid to dozens of former students at St James and St Vedast schools following historical allegations of abuse". Following the legal action, which was launched against the school in 2016, the BBC reported "45 former students who attended the schools between 1975 and 1992 had so far received payments of up to £30,000 each. All of the cases were settled without an admission of liability and did not come before court".

Legal claims were led by specialist abuse compensation solicitor Malcolm Johnson, of Hudgell Solicitors, in a scheme set to close on 31 January 2021. One of the recipients of the compensation stated: "I still have not had an apology and I do not believe there is any real remorse on their part, but I don't believe that we ever would have got this far without Malcolm's involvement. They've not admitted being liable for what happened, despite paying damages to so many, so I feel it has still been done with contempt after all this time."{{Cite web|date=17 December 2020|title=St James Schools compensation: Schoolboy 'beaten and constantly made to feel worthless' from age 9 to 15|url=https://www.hudgellsolicitors.co.uk/news/abuse/st-james-schools-compensation-schoolboy-beaten-and-constantly-made-to-feel-worthless-from-age-9-to-15/|access-date=18 August 2021|website=Hudgell Solicitors™|language=en-GB|archive-date=22 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322173949/https://www.hudgellsolicitors.co.uk/news/abuse/st-james-schools-compensation-schoolboy-beaten-and-constantly-made-to-feel-worthless-from-age-9-to-15/|url-status=dead}}

The Plato children's school in Amsterdam was founded by the Dutch branch of SES, with close links to the UK St James Schools.

It was subject to Dutch Police investigations in 1996 and 2000 into incidents of illegal physical punishments and mistreatment of children. The headteacher of the school was prosecuted and found guilty of assault.{{Cite web | url=https://www.trouw.nl/nieuws/spirituele-platoschool-gaat-dicht~b4e9a3ea/?referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F | title=Spirituele Platoschool gaat dicht | date=May 2002 }} The school closed in 2002 after the second police investigation and around the time of a permanent split within the SES in the Netherlands.

Actress Emily Watson attended St James, where in a [https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/emily-watson-i-saw-incidents-of-cruelty-that-have-been-very-scarring-6nckv722m 2020 Times interview] she says she witnessed "incidents of extreme cruelty that I know have been very scarring for people going forward in their lives".

In 2009 actress and former St James pupil Clara Salaman published Shame On You, a novel based on her own experiences with the school and an organisation she was brought up in; she did not name it for legal reasons, but other sources identified it as the School of Economic Science. She described the organisation as "a self-styled, extremely strict, truth-seeking, spiritual society that demanded an extraordinary amount from its members."{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/jul/25/family-spiritual-organisation-clara-salaman|title=They stole my parents|last=Salaman|first=Clara|date=24 July 2009|work=The Guardian|access-date=15 February 2019}} In an interview she told Radio New Zealand that 75% to 85% of her book is an account of real events from her own childhood. These included teachers marrying former pupils, and mental and physical abuse that led her to contemplate suicide, another girl to attempt suicide, and a third to successfully carry out suicide. "Now it's a very different place, I'm always told," she said.{{cite web |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/audio/player?audio_id=2051283|title=Clara Salaman |work=Radio New Zealand Audio Player |access-date=6 March 2021}}

Teaching at SES is done in small groups, in the form of a dialogue between tutor and students following the Socratic tradition, rather than establishing a set course with a curriculum, textbooks and examinations. All of the SES tutors are advanced students; none is paid. Courses include Philosophy, Economics, Art, Vedic Mathematics and Practical Philosophy in Business. SES teaches a variety of 10 week courses, beginning each January, May and September.

SES teaches a philosophy drawn from Eastern and Western traditions. Differing from academic philosophy courses, "SES is closer to the ancients' conception of a philosophy school in which students are taught one particular philosophy or ethical way of life, which they commit to in an effort to completely transform themselves."{{Cite book |title=Philosophy for life and other dangerous situations |last=Evans |first=Jules |publisher=Rider |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-84604-321-5 |location=London|oclc=820781877}}

An underlying idea is that the great teachings of the world all point to the same central truths, and that wisdom is the key to a better life. Teaching is based on the precepts of Advaita Vedanta as translated, taped and transcribed from interviews in India conducted by MacLaren with Swami Shantanand Saraswati (d.1997), a colleague of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, from 1961 - 1996.

Advaita means literally "not two"; vedanta refers to the knowledge underlying the creation. Together these are said to explain the essential unity of everything in creation and the source from which it arises. SES considers Advaita to be "the clearest and most systematic expression we have found of the common philosophy that lies at the heart of many of the world's great religions and philosophies".{{Cite news|url=https://www.schooleconomicscience.org/advaita-philosophy/|title=Advaita philosophy|newspaper=The School of Philosophy and Economic Science|access-date=16 February 2019}} Non-dual philosophy arises from ancient vedic scriptures expounded by Shankara. This teaching, along with the expansion of it in relation to the modern age by Santanand Saraswati, is the foundation of the philosophy course.{{Cite book|title=Sheila Rosenberg: A Renaissance Lady|last=Crammond|first=Joan|publisher=Godstow Press|year=2004|location=London|asin=B00TYZJ300}} The course operates on the principle that the teaching achieves nothing unless put into practice in everyday living. Through practice, it eventually becomes understanding and a part of one's own nature.

According to SES' web site, the relationship between the organisation and Advaita Vedanta developed as follows:

{{quote box|The initial founder of the school of Economic Science Mr Leon MacLaren first met with the then Shankaracharya of the North, Shantananda Saraswati, in 1964 and under his direction developed the school in London. Since then there has been a regular dialogue between the school and Shantananda Saraswati. These conversations have become an essential part of the study of the School and it became obvious that some of the subject matter that conveyed the essence of this philosophy, should be the basis of the works for the hall. The Advaita Vedanta philosophy is a teaching that is traditionally conveyed orally from teacher to student, containing many stories, analogies, examples, principles, etc. It is not possible to show everything, but a selection has been made for the Waterperry project that would illustrate the main tenets of this philosophy.

| quote = The initial founder of the School of Economic Science, Mr Leon MacLaren, first met with the then Shankaracharya of the North, Shantananda Saraswati, in 1964 and under his direction developed the School in London. Since then there has been a regular dialogue between the School and Shantananda Saraswati. These conversations have become an essential part of the study of the School and it became obvious that some of the subject matter that conveyed the essence of this philosophy should be the basis of the works for the hall. The Advaita Vedanta philosophy is a teaching that is traditionally conveyed orally from teacher to student, containing many stories, analogies, examples, principles, etc. It is not possible to show everything, but a selection has been made for the Waterperry project that would illustrate the main tenets of this philosophy.

}}

The introductory philosophy course draws from a variety of sources, including the Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads, the Bible, Plato, Marsilio Ficino, Hermes Trismegistus, Shakespeare and Emerson.{{cite news|url=https://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/film/mad-about-hugh/2008/11/20/1226770604500.html|title=Mad about Hugh|last=Souter|first=Fenella|date=20 November 2008|newspaper=Sydney Morning Herald}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hq988pEebSAC&q=%22School+of+Practical+Philosophy%22&pg=PA287|title=The A to Z of New Religious Movements|last=Chryssides|first=George D.|date=2006|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-5588-5|page=287}} As students progress through SES they don't learn deeper truths, but gain a deeper understanding of the same truth with which they're presented on the first night.

What the SES calls 'The Exercise' is a central element of its practice; instructions have been published by the New York Times.

Members are encouraged to do volunteer work with and for fellow students, and for the communities in which they live. Service to fellow human beings, without personal reward or gain, is considered an important part of the organisation's philosophy of seeking the truth.

SES hosts retreats for those students who've graduated from foundation courses. On the retreats, such students spend longer periods of time practising what they've learnt and furthering their study. The retreats provide a setting in which students can dedicate themselves more fully to the philosophy. These can be between 2 and 10 days in length.{{Cite book|title=Back to the Truth: 5000 years of Advaita.|last=Dennis.|first=Waite|date=2010|publisher=O-Books|isbn=978-1-84694-624-0|location=Lanham|oclc=727648341}}

SES says that discovering the conditions which allow every individual to find a fulfilling life is the true goal of Economics, and that the current economic situation where "Some men work to maintain others who labour not" is unjust.{{Cite web|url=https://www.schooleconomicscience.org/course-category/economics/|title=Economics with Justice Archives|website=School of Economic Science|access-date=15 February 2019}} Economic science is normally considered the mathematical approach to Economics, but SES uses a different definition, rooted in the philosophy of Advaita Vedanta.{{Cite web|url=https://www.voiceamerica.com/episode/74067/practical-philosophy-and-economics-with-justice|title=Practical Philosophy and Economics with Justice|website=The VoiceAmerica Talk|language=en|access-date=14 March 2019}} A four-term economics course is taught seeking to show that "Freedom and prosperity are possible for people everywhere, providing we follow economic laws and aim for a fair outcome from economic arrangements".

SES has published its economic theories and principles in a 2013 book "The Science of Economics".{{Cite journal |last=King |first=Mike |date=Summer 2013|title=Can Economics be a Science? |journal=Scientific and Medical Network Review |volume=112|issn=1362-1211}}{{Cite book |title=The science of economics: the economic teaching of Leon MacLaren |last1=MacLaren |first1=Leon |last2=Makewell |first2=Raymond |isbn=978-0-85683-291-8 |oclc=827258190|year=2013 |publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn (Publishers) Limited }} It has made written submissions to the Scottish Government Commission on Local Tax Reform,{{Cite web |url=http://localtaxcommission.scot/submissions/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314115225/http://localtaxcommission.scot/submissions/ |archive-date=14 March 2016 |title=Submissions |work=THE COMMISSION ON LOCAL TAX REFORM |date=14 March 2016 |access-date=2 March 2019}} the London Assembly Inquiry into Land Value Taxation for London{{Cite web |url=https://www.london.gov.uk//about-us/london-assembly/london-assembly-publications/tax-trial-land-value-tax-london|title=Tax Trial: Land Value Tax for London?|date=22 February 2016|website=London City Hall|language=en|access-date=2 March 2019}} {{cite report |url=https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/final-draft-lvt-report_2.pdf |title=Tax Trial: Land Value Tax for London? |publisher=Greater London Authority |date=February 2016}} and the House of Commons, Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee on Land Value Capture.{{Cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmcomloc/766/76605.htm#_idTextAnchor021|title=Land Value Capture - Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee - House of Commons|website=publications.parliament.uk|access-date=2 March 2019}} It has been described as "Georgist",{{Cite web|url=http://ceihg.org/georgist_orgs.htm|title=Henry George International Education Center - Georgist Organizations Worldwide|website=ceihg.org|access-date=2 March 2019}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.cgocouncil.org/showcgo.php|title=Council of Georgist Organizations Directory|website=www.cgocouncil.org|access-date=2 March 2019|archive-date=30 December 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091230085120/http://www.cgocouncil.org/showcgo.php|url-status=dead}} but has widened its scope of enquiry beyond George to include financial reform and debt.{{Cite book |title=Henry George: political ideologue, social philosopher and economic theorist |date=2008 |publisher=Blackwell Pub |last=Moss |first=Laurence S. |isbn=978-1-4051-8751-0 |location=Malden, MA |oclc=226356135}}

SES members are introduced to meditation and given a specific mantra; those who have already been initiated into the Transcendental Meditation technique are allowed to keep their own mantra. SES encourages students to meditate for 30 minutes, twice a day.{{Cite book|title=Mind your head: an emotional intelligence guide for school leaders|last=Boddy, David.|isbn=978-1-908095-62-6|publisher=John Catt Educational|oclc=828415050|year = 2012}}{{Cite book|title=Mindful philosophy|author=Snow, Michael J.|isbn=978-1-5462-9238-8|location=Milton Keynes |publisher=AuthorHouse UK |oclc=1063750429|date = October 2018}}{{unreliable source?|date=November 2023}}{{Cite book|title=Nāmaliṅgānuśāsanaṃ, nāma, Amarakoṣaḥ: Mahāmahopādhyāyaśrībhaṭṭojidīkṣitātmajavidvadvaraśrībhānujidīkṣitakr̥tayā 'Rāmāśramī' (vyākhyāsudhā) vyākhyayā vibhūṣitaḥ|last=Amarasiṃha.|date=2012|publisher=Caukhambhā Saṃskr̥ta Saṃsthāna|others=Bhānuji Dīkṣita., Miśra, Haragovinda.|isbn=978-81-86937-29-7|location=Vārāṇasī|oclc=830954572}} Students are introduced to meditation in the second year of the course, after which the regular practice of meditation is central to the teachings. There is a simple initiation ceremony as described by one of the organisation's American websites:

In the School, a traditional system of mantra meditation is made available to all students who have taken Philosophy Works followed by the Foundation Courses. Seated comfortably in a balanced and upright position, the activities of the mind and body are brought under observation, and then allowed to fall away as the attention is directed to the sound of the mantra. This results in an experience of quiet stillness. Remaining still and listening to the sound of the mantra is all that is required. The rest unfolds naturally. The introduction to meditation is marked by a simple, dignified ceremony. Students are asked to present traditional offerings of fruit, flowers and a gift of money that is used solely for making meditation available throughout North America. Following the introduction, ongoing assistance is offered in the form of one-on-one tutorials and classroom discussions.{{cite web |url=http://www.philosophyworks.org/meditation/ |title=Meditation |work=School of Practical Philosophy |access-date=3 March 2017}}

Renaissance studies by SES have led to the publication of several works, including translations from Latin of many of Marsilio Ficino's letters.{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/lettersofmarsili0000fici |title=The Letters of Marsilio Ficino. Vol. 1 |publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn Publishers |year=1975 |isbn=978-0-85683-010-5 |url-access=registration }} The translators were led by Clement Salaman.{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2018/05/21/clement-salaman-authority-philosopher-ficino-obituary/|title=Clement Salaman, authority on the philosopher Ficino – obituary|last=Obituaries|first=Telegraph|date=21 May 2018|work=The Telegraph|access-date=5 March 2019|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}} SES members have also translated the works of Hermes Trismegistus, after whom Hermetic Philosophy is named.{{Cite book|title=The way of Hermes|last=Trismegistus.|first=Hermes|date=2001|publisher=Duckbacks|others=Salaman, Clement., Oyen, Dorine van., Wharton, William D., Mahé, Jean-Pierre.|isbn=0-7156-3093-8|location=London|oclc=59544774}}

SES members have contributed to the BBC programs on renaissance topics, in 2005 providing insights into the historical meaning of the word heaven and its possible implications,{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p003k9lf|title=BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Heaven|website=BBC|language=en-GB|access-date=11 March 2019}} and in 2009 on the influence of Plato and Aristotle on the Renaissance.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00j7txt|title=BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, The School of Athens|website=BBC|language=en-GB|access-date=11 March 2019}}

SES represents the largest body of Sanskrit students in the UK.{{Cite book|title=Sanskrit for Seekers|last=Waite|first=Dennis|publisher=MANTRA BOOKS|year=2014|isbn=978-1-78279-227-7|location=London|page=12}} SES currently teaches Sanskrit from beginner level to IGCSE{{Cite news|url=https://www.schooleconomicscience.org/course/sanskrit-foundation-course-part-6/|title=9.30am: Sanskrit Foundation Course - Part 8|website=School of Economic Science|access-date=7 February 2019}}

SES has been an informal networking centre for individuals interested in Ayurveda, however, it has never taken any formal initiatives related to ayurvedic medicine. Since the 1970s some well-known ayurvedic practitioners have had loose associations with the SES.

Course fees are kept low to encourage recruitment; they are a small part of the organisation's income, while donations and wills have enabled the SES to own substantial properties.

Donald Lambie is supported by a nine-member Executive Committee elected by the 230-person governing body of the SES, known as the 'Fellowship'. It has 240 'Ordinary Members' and 41 'Associate Members' in its Fellowship. The principal of SES is Ian Mason, a barrister{{cite web |url=http://strand-chambers.co.uk/ian-mason/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160225064926/http://strand-chambers.co.uk/ian-mason/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=25 February 2016 |title=Ian Mason |website=Strand Chambers |access-date=5 November 2016}}{{cite web |url=http://www.gcgi.info/index.php/events/gcgi-award/2nd-school-of-economic-science |title=2nd: School of Economic Science |last=Mofid |first=Kamran |website=www.gcgi.info |access-date=5 November 2016}} and a global facilitator for the UN Harmony with Nature project.{{cite web |url=http://www.harmonywithnatureun.org/ |title=Harmony with Nature |website=www.harmonywithnatureun.org |access-date=5 November 2016}}

The Fellowship rules include 6 objects,The Fellowship of The School of Economic Science RULES (As amended on 21 July 2009) the first and principal one being:

1. To promote the study of natural laws governing the relations between men in society and all studies related thereto and to promote the study of the laws customs and practices by which communities are governed and all studies there to.

Any person Enrolled on a Philosophy of Economics course can be invited by the Executive Committee to become an Ordinary Member of the Fellowship.

In the UK courses are held in nearly 50 towns and cities.

File:Waterperry House - geograph.org.uk - 1484508.jpg, Oxfordshire, UK]]

In 1972 the UK branch of SES purchased the Waterperry Estate in Oxfordshire, including its horticultural business, which it continues to run to generate revenue for the SES.{{cite news |url= http://www.schooleconomicscience.org/waterperry-house/ |title=Waterperry House |work=School of Economic Science |access-date=15 November 2013}} In 1986 Nanpantan Hall in Loughborough was bequeathed to the SES,{{cite web |url= http://www.schooleconomicscience.org/nanpantan-hall/ |title=Nanpantan Hall |work=School of Economic Science |access-date=15 November 2013}} and it also owns Brinscall Hall in Preston,{{cite web |url=http://www.practicalphilosophy.co.uk/resources/ |title=Brinscall Hall |work=Practical Philosophy |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110205082425/http://www.practicalphilosophy.co.uk/resources/ |archive-date=5 February 2011}} as well as eleven further freehold properties and one long leasehold. These include Mandeville Place in London,{{cite web |url= http://www.schooleconomicscience.org/ |title=School of Economic Science |access-date=15 November 2013}} SES owns Belmont House in Stockport and Park House in Glasgow. Other properties are in London, Leeds, Croydon, Edinburgh, Guildford and Colchester. In 2005, the SES sold one of its mansions, Sarum Chase in Hampstead, for £9.3 million.{{Cite web| title=Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2005 | publisher=The Fellowship of the School of Economic Science | url=http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/ses-financial-statement-march-2005.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151104235213/http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/ses-financial-statement-march-2005.pdf | archive-date=2015-11-04}}

In 2017 the UK charities commission shows the organisation had an income of £5.1m and spending of £4.0m. The organisation also has £15.5m of own use assets, £10.0m of long-term investments, and £2.3m of other assets. The UK organisation has 9 trustees, 98 employees, 500 volunteers and lists its area of operation as the UK. Slightly more than half of the tutors and half the students are female. SES has been described as an "exclusively a British organisation".

Apart from two office staff, all the SES's work is done on a voluntary basis.

File:School of Practical Philosophy.jpeg

SES is one of the most widespread organisations related to Advaita, in addition to the campuses in the United Kingdom, most of which are called The School of Economic Science, there are several dozen associated branch organisations worldwide, most of which are called the School of Practical Philosophy or some variant of that name. The first such operation was established in Wellington, New Zealand in 1957.{{cite news|url=https://www.schooleconomicscience.org/overseas-schools/|title=Overseas Schools|work=School of Economic Science|access-date=10 January 2019}} Another source shows that in Canada, the SES was chartered under the Companies Act of Ontario as a non-profit body in 1939.{{Cite journal|date=December 1939|title=Canada|journal=Land and Liberty|page=205}} One of the best known is the School of Practical Philosophy in New York City, founded in 1964.{{cite web |title=A school for self-discovery |url=https://www.philosophyworks.org/about/ |publisher=School of Practical Philosophy |access-date=10 January 2019}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/nyregion/17critic.html|title=Practical Philosophy Aims to Cultivate an Everyday Wisdom|last=Kaminer|first=Ariel|date=15 January 2010|work=The New York Times|access-date=19 December 2018|issn=0362-4331}} There are branches in USA, Canada, Venezuela, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Trinidad, Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, Holland, Malta, Spain, Ireland, Hungary, Germany, Israel, Fiji and Argentina.{{Cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.tt/neo/NeoProxy.dll?app=NeoDirect&com=6/2/435840/750e3ab07d|title=School of Philosophy stages quiet walk at Trinity Cathedral|last=Clarke|first=Camille|website=www.guardian.co.tt|language=en|access-date=13 March 2019}}{{Cite book|title=Encyclopedia of occultism & parapsychology|date=2001|publisher=Gale Group|isbn=978-0-8103-8570-2|edition= 5th|location=Detroit|oclc=45211020}}

According to the spokesperson for the New York branch, Dr Monica Vecchio, SES and the School of Practical Philosophy are "the same thing with different names. There are 70 or 80 [branches] around the world. Each share the same course curriculum, with the same content. The principles are the same, the practices are the same, the stream of discussion is the same."

A branch of the organisation called the School of Practical Philosophy opened in 1964 in New York City.{{cite web|url=http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080831/COMM/808310312/-1/NEWS|title=Practical Philosophy puts thinking to the test of daily use|last=Medenbach|first=Deborah|date=31 August 2008|work=Times Herald-Record|access-date=15 November 2013}} The New York facility was launched in 1964 as a not-for-profit corporation chartered by the Board of Regents of the State of New York. It received tax-exempt status in 1982.{{cite web |url=http://nonprofits.findthecompany.com/l/76950/The-School-Of-Practical-Philosophy |title=The School Of Practical Philosophy |work=findthecompany.com}}{{cite web |url=http://www.philosophyworks.org/content/new-york-state-certification |title=New York State Certification |work=School of Practical Philosophy |access-date=15 November 2013}}{{cite book |last=Hausman |first=Catherine |title=The Manhattan Family Guide to Private Schools |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sHHWQHXy5cQC&q=%22School+of+Practical+Philosophy%22 |date=1997 |publisher=Soho Press |isbn=978-1-56947-086-2 |access-date=15 November 2013}} It has branches in the Hudson Valley; Rochester, New York; Albany, Georgia; Scottsdale, Arizona; South Florida; San Francisco; Boston; and New Jersey. The main branch is located at 12 East 79th Street in Manhattan. There is an additional property in Wallkill, New York, in a mansion once owned by Marion Borden.{{cite web |first=Meghan E. |last=Murphy |url=http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091231/NEWS/912310321/-1/NEWS |title=Loss of 18th-century home to blaze revives road dispute |work=Times Herald-Record |date=31 December 2009 |access-date=15 November 2013}} It bought an Upper East Side mansion from millionaire Charles Ogden in 1975, and put it on sale in 2014 for $51 million.{{cite web|url=http://observer.com/2016/04/size-mattered-upper-east-side-mansions-of-the-gilded-age-retain-their-cachet/|title=Size Mattered: Upper East Side Mansions of the Gilded Age Retain Their Cachet|last=Nonko|first=Emily|date=6 April 2016|work=New York Observer|access-date=3 March 2017}} Many New Yorkers are aware of the School of Practical Philosophy and its 10-week foundation course, Philosophy Works, due to extensive advertising in the subway, featuring the taglines "this poster can make you happier than any other on the subway" and "sustainable happiness".{{Cite web|url=https://observer.com/2011/09/school-of-practical-philosophy-changes-the-tagline-on-its-subway-posters/|title=School of Practical Philosophy Changes the Tagline on Its Subway Posters|date=20 September 2011|website=Observer|language=en|access-date=25 March 2019}}{{cite web |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/1190444691.html?dids=1190444691:1190444691&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jan+07,+2007&author=Judith+Lewis&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=A+reverie+runs+through+it;+Room+for+Doubt+Wendy+Lesser+Pantheon:+206+pp.,+$23.95&pqatl=google |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629005100/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/1190444691.html?dids=1190444691:1190444691&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jan+07,+2007&author=Judith+Lewis&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=A+reverie+runs+through+it;+Room+for+Doubt+Wendy+Lesser+Pantheon:+206+pp.,+$23.95&pqatl=google |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 June 2011 |title=A reverie runs through it

|last=Lewis |first=Judith |date=7 January 2007 |work=The Los Angeles Times}} The Philosophy Works series is offered several times a year.{{cite web |url=http://www.philosophyworks.org/content/curriculum-%E2%80%93-philosophy-works-%E2%80%93-introductory-course |title=Curriculum – Philosophy Works – Introductory Course |work=The School of Practical Philosophy}} The actor Hugh Jackman has been involved with the organisation since 1993.{{cite web |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/hugh-jackman-relishes-performing-wbna4893079 |title=Hugh Jackman relishes performing |work=Today.com|date=6 May 2004 }}{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/starsandstories/3833405/Hugh-Jackman-X-appeal.html |title=Hugh Jackman: X appeal |first=Claire |last=Scobie |date=18 December 2008 |work=The Daily Telegraph}}

{{very long|section|date=May 2019}}

The organisation has been described in a variety of different ways: a "human potential movement",{{Cite book |title=Exploring new religions |last=Chryssides |first=George D. |date=1999 |publisher=Cassell |isbn=978-0-304-33651-7 |location=London |oclc=319493623}} as providing "mind discipline" for achieving mental quiescence,{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GdJeKf50EMQC|title=Learning as self-organization |last=Gregory|first=Alan|publisher=Routledge|year=1996|isbn=978-0-8058-2586-2|editor1-last=Přibram|editor1-first=Karl H.|editor1-link=Karl H. Pribram|series=INNS Series of Texts, Monographs, and Proceedings|pages=453–478 |chapter=Language as an Instrument for Self Reorganization|quote=There are many mind disciplines (Silva Mind Control, Zen, The School of Practical Philosophy, etc) for helping one to achieve quiet (quiescent) mind |editor2-last=King |editor2-first=Joseph}} as a cult, sect or new religious movement,{{*}}{{cite book|title=New Religious Movements: Challenge and Response |url=https://archive.org/details/newreligiousmove00wils |url-access=limited |last=Slee |first=Colin |publisher=Routledge|year=1999|editor-last1=Wilson|editor-first1=Bryan R.|page=[https://archive.org/details/newreligiousmove00wils/page/n188 170]|chapter=New Religious Movements and the Churches|author-link=Colin Slee|editor-last2=Cresswell|editor-first2=Jamie}}{{cite book |title=Exploring New Religions |last=Chryssides |first=George D.|publisher=Continuum International Publishing|year=1999|page=374}} as a non-religious organisation,{{Cite journal |last1=Walsh |first1=Yvonne |last2=Russell |first2=Robin J.H. |last3=Wells |first3=Pamela A.|date=September 1995|title=The personality of ex-cult members|journal=Personality and Individual Differences |volume=19|issue=3|pages=339–344|doi=10.1016/0191-8869(95)00074-g|issn=0191-8869}} or a platonic community, a "Gurdjieff fringe group" or neo-Gurdjieffian movement,{{Cite journal|last=Petsche|first=Johanna J. M. |date=2015|title=Gurdjieffian Overtones in Leon MacLaren's School of Economic Science|journal=International Journal for the Study of New Religions|volume=6|issue=2 |pages=197–219|doi=10.1558/ijsnr.v6i2.28443 }}{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/worldsreligions0000suth|title=The World's religions|date=1988|publisher=G.K. Hall|isbn=0-8161-8978-1|location=Boston, Mass.|oclc=17353850}} as "Georgist". Commentators have pointed out that SES members do not consider it to be a religion, rather a philosophy, and some members, for example, may well be committed to mainstream churches.{{Cite book |title=Encyclopedia of new religions: new religious movements, sects and alternative spiritualities |date=2004 |publisher=Lion |editor-last=Partridge |editor-first=Christopher H. |isbn=978-0-7459-5073-0 |location=Oxford |oclc=53390430 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofne0000unse_d3h6 }}{{cite book|title=Exploring New Religions|last=Chryssides|first=George D.|publisher=Continuum International Publishing|year=1999|page=374}} SES state that "Advaita does not stand in the place of religion. Rather, as many students in the School of a religious disposition have found, it has the capacity to expand and deepen an understanding of their own religion, whatever it may be. It is equally valuable for, and applicable to, those who practise no religion." Shantanand Saraswati stated that people do not need to change their religious beliefs to follow the principles of Advaita.{{Cite book |title=Good company: an anthology of sayings, stories and answers to questions |last=Shantanand Saraswati |first=Swami |date=2004 |publisher=The Society for Study of Normal Psychology |isbn=978-0-9547939-0-6 |location=London |oclc=70043618}}

In the early 1960s, British Buddhist teacher and writer Sangharakshita (Dennis Lingwood) returned to England after 20 years in India. His book Moving Against The Stream includes descriptions of SES member Terry Delamare's experience at the organisation during this period. SES is described as "the organisation whose meetings Terry attended most regularly, and whose teachings he took most seriously" during difficult times. The philosophy taught was described as "a curious amalgam of Western Esoterism and brahminical Advaita Vedanta." "The School's teachings were therefore sufficiently broad, not to say eclectic. Students moreover were encouraged to read the philosophical and religious classics of both East and West. In particular, it seems, they were encouraged to read Plato". The author also states SES regarded the music of Mozart, in particular, as having a positive, spiritualising effect on the mind. Lingwood concludes "Contact with the School of Economic Science had, in fact, widened his (Delemare) intellectual horizons, and he had much to be thankful to it for".{{Cite book |author=Sangharakshita, Bhikshu |title=Moving against the stream: the birth of a new Buddhist movement |date=2003 |publisher=Windhorse |isbn=1-899579-11-7 |location=Birmingham |oclc=51870972}}

In 1983, the day before the UK General Election, reporters Peter Hounam and Andrew Hogg, writing in the London Evening Standard, alleged the SES was a cult infiltrating the Liberal Party. They said it "enforced a severe diet, persecuted women and kept its members closed off from the outside world". They also criticised the School of Economic Science's links to the St James Independent Schools for children in London and the discipline regime at the children's schools.{{cite web|url=http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/NA2-St-james-Cult-schools-parents-seek-say..pdf|title=Cult schools: parents seek a bigger say|date=9 June 1983|work=London Evening Standard|access-date=3 February 2017|archive-date=22 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230722202250/http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/NA2-St-james-Cult-schools-parents-seek-say..pdf|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/NA1-secrets-of-secretive-sect.pdf|title=The secrets of the secretive sect|date=8 June 1983|work=London Evening Standard|access-date=3 February 2017|archive-date=4 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151104230306/http://reference.ses-forums.org/wp-content/uploads/NA1-secrets-of-secretive-sect.pdf|url-status=dead}} The articles were described by SES as "largely politically motivated". SES leadership initially chose to ignore these allegations.

In 1984, Hounam and Hogg wrote a book, Secret Cult, which said that the organisation aimed to establish psychological control over its members and had caused personality change, mental breakdown and divorce. They did not consider every SES member to be a cult member; they excluded, for example, the thousands that attend only the introductory courses and potentially those in the senior echelons that live normal lives; of concern was a group they called the 'lumpenproletariat' who joined after the religious fervour of the 1960s and are "dependant on SES to make decisions in their lives". They also said the SES was "penetrating the corridors of power" with particular links to the Liberal Party, whose then chairman, Roger Pincham, was an SES member.{{cite book |title=Secret Cult |last1=Hounam |first1=Peter |last2=Hogg |first2=Andrew |publisher=Lion Publishing|year=1984|isbn=978-0-85648-837-5|page=142}} The book contained a reply from Pincham disputing allegations, and also included interviews with ex-students who said they had gained much from their attendance. The authors commented that, in hiding from publicity, the School might have made secrecy its worst enemy. Critics said the book contained errors and had a political agenda against the Liberal Party, which was undermined when it turned out that the spokesman for the SES, David Boddy, had been a press adviser to Conservative Party leader Margaret Thatcher. Shaw (1994) said: "the more obvious conclusion" is that members might be "in the cult simply because they shared the elitist upper-middle-class professional values that the school espoused".{{Cite book |title=Spying in Guru Land: inside Britain's cults |last=Shaw |first=William |publisher=Fourth Estate |year=1994 |isbn=978-1-85702-329-9 |edition= paperback |location=London|oclc=34900500}}

Colin Slee, Provost of Southwark Cathedral, who had contributed to the book and saw the organisation as a cult, in 1999 said he had shifted his attitude and saw it as a New Religious Movement instead.{{Cite book |title=New religious movements: challenge and response |date=1999 |publisher=Routledge |last1=Wilson |first1=Bryan R. |last2=Cresswell |first2=Jamie |isbn=978-0-203-15991-0 |location=London |oclc=49569353}}

Journalist William Shaw wrote a 1994 book Spying in Guru Land: Inside Britain's Cults, in which he attended SES along with several other organisations. "In the whole colourfully eccentric splatter of cults, there has never been one as genteel, stiff-upper lipped and absurdly British as the School of Economic Science. In many ways, it's quite the strangest cult I join," Shaw said. He reported that during the introductory course he did not witness brainwashing and that the "...yearning dedication of those who stay, turning up week after week in their quest for the big answer to life, is somehow ignored by those in the anti-cult movement who try to tell us that behind the fluty-voiced Miss Crammond lurks a malicious agent of mind control." Characterising Leon MacLaren as authoritarian, he described a "regime of holy servitude - part Gurdjieffian discipline, part oriental mysticism, part Christian mysticism, part social snobbery". Shaw interviewed "Giles", a former SES tutor, who blamed SES for losing two relationships and that he "suffered a complete mental breakdown, during which he says he came very close to suicide."

In 1994 Religious Studies Lecturer at the University of Wolverhampton, George Chryssides wrote: SES does not consider itself to be a religion, it runs classes in philosophy, "by which is meant Vedic philosophy", with some Christian and Esoteric elements, together with the practice of meditation. It is an exclusively British organisation.

Writing in the Independent in 1995, in an article titled Philosophy for grown-ups, Hester Lacey described how a diverse group of 50 people attended a philosophy class at SES in London. Lacey listed the motivations of some of the participants including: "I started coming because I felt there had to be more to life", "You need to take care of your mind and soul", "The class is like being at a big, brilliant dinner party and not being stuck beside one person all evening","As an actor, the more I understand others, the better I can do my job", "I work in a hospital, and these classes are very much like the group therapy sessions we run". Lacey points out "None of the teachers is paid, and there are no exams; the pupils study simply for the enjoyment of the lessons."{{Cite web|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/philosophy-for-grown-ups-1611889.html|title=Philosophy for grown-ups|date=19 March 1995|website=The Independent|language=en|access-date=5 March 2019}}

Sociologist of religion David V. Barrett, in his 2001 book The New Believers based partly on interviews with David Boddy, described SES as not a religion, but as having at the heart of its teaching a very distinctive philosophy which draws on elements of Christianity and esoteric origins and beliefs but is largely Eastern. The path of the SES is "a case of personal development rather than attaining knowledge". He points out SES follows the teaching of the Shankaracharya because they say "his wisdom, which we have followed, works".

Writing in the Times in In 2008, journalist Richard Morrison, observes that SES was behind Oxfordshire arts festival, Art in Action. He states "I know people who have found the SES to be a helpful and entirely benign influence on their lives; and others who have encountered it and found it weird. Not for a moment do I expect Art in Action to be anything other than a showcase for high-quality craft skills."{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/uk-travel/england/london-travel/school-of-economic-science-supports-art-in-action-festival-sw3gg3vpgmc|title=School of Economic Science supports Art in Action festival|last=Morrison|first=Richard|date=12 July 2008|work=The Times|access-date=23 March 2019|language=en|issn=0140-0460}}

In 2010, Ariel Kiminer of The New York Times reported on her attendance of an introductory course at the School of Practical Philosophy, for which 400 people signed up. She said that passengers on the New York City Subway were familiar with its advertising placard which stated: "This poster can make you happier than any other". Attendees were "young immigrants and wizened retirees, pretty actresses and tired parents" and that it was touching that "...so many people from so many backgrounds join in the pursuit of wisdom". She said fellow attendees recounted the effect of the classes on their lives with candour and eloquence, and that the teaching was "not esoteric but practically conventional wisdom." After the initial meetings, attendance fell off considerably and she started to dread it; however whenever she would lose patience with the instruction, "one of the students would talk about incorporating these lessons into life, and the honesty and eloquence would win me over again." Commenting on allegations that it is a cult, she said: "If so, it must be an unsuccessful one: no one tried to sign me up for the next course, let alone get me to donate my earthly possessions." Kiminer stopped attending the course and doing 'The Exercise', and said: "I do still think about what I give my attention to, though. And I do still feel touched by the enthusiasm of the other students."

In 2011, M. H. Miller of The New York Observer considered the organisation's practices to be "obscure bordering on impenetrable", but also describes the central tenets as "through meditation, achievement of happiness and higher self-awareness–the school warns against the pollution of a scattered mind and cautions students to rid themselves of 'unnecessary thoughts'–and the belief in a universal connectedness that can be tapped into". Quoting former members found through internet forums, the article said that the organisation had caused divorce and child abuse and that its leadership had ingrained sexism and homophobia; also that the organisation seeks to "gain control over students by a slow process of conflating obedience to God with obedience to those who claim to know God–that is, S.E.S. and its "tutors.". The author says SES "follow a hierarchical structure in which students advance to new levels of study with money and time, but are not told the specifics of what awaits them when they do." On investigating the attendees to their programs the author notes room was a mix of races and fairly evenly split between men and women, most in their 40s. The author attended a philosophy class and found it to be sold out, the students motivation for attending included finding "Purpose in life. A higher level of understanding in my existence" and to "To learn how to live again"

In his 2012 book Confusion No More, Vedanta teacher and disciple of Nisargadatta, Ramesh S Baleskar, includes the accounts of a student of the School of Philosophy, the SES branch in Holland. The student had been at the group for 12 years and describes it as inviting and stimulating resulting in a "complete change in the way I looked at things".The philosophy course is described as involving a "lot of practising, exercises, meditation - a lot of volition", "there were some very clear experiences of peace of mind". His experiences led him to further explore Advaita.{{Cite book|title=Confusion no more: for the spiritual seeker|author=Balsekar, Ramesh S. |date=2007|publisher=Watkins|isbn=978-1-905857-14-2|location=London|oclc=148999783}}

In his 2013 book Philosophy for Life: And other dangerous situations, Jules Evans said the SES relationship with an Indian guru was key to its development, because its members "like Plato himself, were trying to invent a religion." Describing the historical abuse of SES children confirmed in a 2006 report, he said that they often received no sympathy from their parents because of their membership of the "deeply hierarchical organization". He added that the day schools are today "apparently run a lot better now by professional teachers, attracting the children of well-to-do parents" and that there has been a shift towards the mainstream of society. Evans also reported that 18-year-old St. James School girls were introduced to older SES members at two specially arranged parties and that Principal Ian Mason and SES Leader Donald Lambie have both married former St. James girls; Evans said that the organisation wanted to encourage in-group marriage to preserve its values, Mason pointed out the women in question were adults in their 20s when married, nevertheless Mason admitted "It's a bit weird." Evans concluded, "I personally don't think SES is a 'secret cult'. It has lost its charismatic and authoritarian Leader. Its membership is declining", "SES seems to me to be an interesting experiment, an interesting attempt to turn Eastern and Western ancient philosophy into a genuine community and way of life". In 2012, he said SES is "a neo-platonic sect which tries to bring its members closer to a divine union" similar to the communities created by Plato and Pythagoras that had the aim of completely

transforming personalities, "close to what we would think of today as religious cults"."The philosophical communities created by Plato and Pythagoras are close to what we would think of today as religious cults: the members of the community committed to a particular way of life with the aim of completely transforming their personalities. Some contemporary philosophical communities are close to this religious model: the School of Economic Science, for example, which offers courses in practical philosophy, is a neo-platonic sect which tries to bring its members closer to divine union." Connected Communities: Philosophical Communities: A report for the Arts and Humanities Research Council, Jules Evans (2012) https://philosophypathways.com/download/Connected-Communities-Philosophical-Communities2.pdf

In 2019, a writer for The Outline enrolled in the School of Practical Philosophy introductory course. She reported that "There was something surreal about leaving work on Thursday evening and taking the subway to a mansion where I would be told a bunch of weird lies." She read Secret Cult midway through the course and commented that "it was hard to square its horror stories with the SPP, which, like a lot of Americanised British things, wasn't quite as compelling as the original." The reviewer opined that it seemed strange the SPP had so much money and attributed it to low overhead. She observed that "teachers are unpaid, students perform custodial work, and the SPP owns its own building."{{Cite web|url=https://theoutline.com/post/6889/school-of-practical-philosophy-philosophy-works-new-york-subway-ad|title=Enlightenment can be yours for just $10|first=Katie|last=Bloom|website=The Outline}}

In 1963, writing in Land & Liberty, A J Carter describes coming "into contact with one of the most important influences on my development" at SES. The economics program introduced him to, land-value tax and Progress and Poverty, by which "a vital seed was sown, but it was not yet to flower". The philosophy course he describes as "directly and indirectly, altered my whole outlook on the deepest aspects of life."{{Cite journal|last=A J|first=Carter|date=Jan 1963|title=The Road to Realisation|journal=Land & Liberty|page=14}}

On 26 May 1982, Roger Pincham, who had been a member since 1955, wrote a letter to The Evening Standard challenging criticisms made by Hounam and Hogg. He said that an account based on the views of a few disaffected former or current students, or on reporters' attendance at programs on two or three occasions, could not present a balanced view. He said that thousands of students have attended the program over the preceding four decades and most have gathered great value from doing so. He added that the authors had mischaracterised the relationship between SES, the independent day schools founded by some of its members, and the Liberal Party, suggesting that the journalists had distrusted the organisation simply because it was "new and rather unusual".{{Cite book|title=Secret Cult|last1=Hounam|first1=Peter|last2=Hogg|first2=Andrew|publisher=Lion Publishing Plc (1985)|year=1985|isbn=978-0-85648-837-5|pages=280–287}}

Commenting on the book Secret Cult, SES member and author Brian Hodgkinson responded to its allegation that the program encourages "destroying the personality". He said that description conceals the actual focus of the teaching, which is to free the mind from the limitations imposed by the ego. He added that "of course, no actual force was used. The whole teaching of the school is word of mouth. Anyone can walk away from a School meeting or event at any time. Some do!"{{Cite book|title=In Search of Truth: The Story of the School of Economic Science|last=Hodgkinson|first=Brian|publisher=Shepheard-Walyn (publishers) LTD|year=2010|isbn=978-0-85683-276-5|location=London|page=250}}

Hodgkinson later wrote a history of the SES called In Search of Truth: The Story of the School of Economic Science, published in 2010. It included details of its economic and philosophical thought, and examination of positive and negative aspects of the organisation. In response to reports that some people had become emotionally disturbed while attending the program, he pointed out that such cases may have been caused by "outside circumstances, such as family relationships or careers" or pre-existing mental health problems. He added, "When they sought help from School tutors, the advice given may sometimes have exacerbated the situation, but there have been a great deal more cases where tutors' help has been much appreciated."{{Cite book|title=In Search of Truth: The Story of the School of Economic Science|last=Hodgkinson|first=Brian|publisher=Shepheard-Walyn (publishers) LTD|year=2010|isbn=978-0-85683-276-5|location=London|pages=248, 29}}

In 2019, actress Emily Watson spoke of her upbringing in SES, which she described as "a quasi-religious organisation/cult" where people are "taught to think a certain way about the world, and about yourself, that is very denigrating to the individual and to women."Financial Times 10 April 2019 https://www.ft.com/content/52918bd6-56e1-11e9-91f9-b6515a54c5b1 When Watson took the role for Breaking the Waves (1996) the SES "told me to go on my undignified way," which she said she found "terribly painful" but didn't tell anyone, only confiding in her co-star of that film about it in 2018. She said that she drew from her SES experience for Chernobyl in that it explores the resistance to a dogmatic culture: "I related very strongly to that; being within a system where you were supposed to think a certain way and you weren't really allowed to think any other way. And breaking out of that is a very, very powerful release in your life."{{Cite web|url=https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/film-and-tv/emily-watson-on-her-new-tv-drama-chernobyl-1-4920211|title=Emily Watson on her new TV drama, Chernobyl|website=www.scotsman.com|date=4 May 2019 }} In 2014, she described the SES central teaching of Advaita Vedanta as "a kind of spiritual communism where everyone is one and the same... which in principle is great but [it was] an organisation that had a lot of problems." At its day school, she said children were treated with "a sort of emotional cruelty that was utterly out of place in a place of education that purports to be based on love and understanding."{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/10599146/Emily-Watson-interview-Ive-never-done-anything-gratuitous.html |title=Emily Watson interview: 'I've never done anything gratuitous' |first=Chris |last=Harvey |date=25 February 2014 |work=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=3 March 2017}} In 2020, she described SES members as believing "that they are in the one true light and everybody else is in the darkness" and knows "the effect that that has on people's sense of power and self-worth".{{Cite news|last=Potton|first=Ed|title=Emily Watson: 'I saw incidents of cruelty that have been very scarring'|newspaper=The Times|language=en|url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/emily-watson-i-saw-incidents-of-cruelty-that-have-been-very-scarring-6nckv722m|access-date=5 September 2020|issn=0140-0460}}

In her 2002 book, Nothing Left Over: A Plain and Simple Life, Tionette Lippe, who attended SES in London and New York, describes how she remained in this organisation for a "considerable number of years, studying the philosophy of many of the world's great traditions, and what I heard and put into practice there laid the groundwork for the rest of my life". Her own philosophy of wanting to be of service to other people and share with them whatever has comes her way, to live so that supply does not exceed demand or consumption, and to trust that the universe will respond to you in the same way that you respond to it, is of no surprise as she "began my training at a place called the School of Economic Science!".{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/nothingleftoverp00lipp|title=Nothing left over: a plain and simple life|author=Lippe, Toinette|date=2002|publisher=J.P. Tarcher/Putnam|isbn=1-58542-160-X|location=New York|oclc=48249006}}

In a 2006 interview with Oprah Winfrey, actor Hugh Jackman said he had been a member of the School of Practical Philosophy since 1991. He said, "now I meditate twice a day for half an hour. In meditation, I can let go of everything. I'm not Hugh Jackman. I'm not a dad. I'm not a husband. I'm just dipping into that powerful source that creates everything."{{cite web |url=http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/Oprah-Interviews-Hugh-Jackman |title=Oprah Interviews Hugh Jackman |work=O, The Oprah Magazine |date=June 2006}} In a 2010 interview with GQ Australia, Jackman said: "Really, the spiritual pillar for me has become the School of Practical Philosophy. I'm a regular attendee there and I suppose that has become my church." Jackman has stated he is a devout Christian, active in his local Anglican church, but in addition to following this religion he meditates every day and also follows the School of Economic Science,{{Cite web|url=https://www.tomatazos.com/articulos/216564/Hugh-Jackman-datos-curiosos-que-tal-vez-no-conocias|title=Hugh Jackman: datos curiosos que tal vez no conocías|website=Tomatazos|language=es|access-date=22 February 2019}} stating "I just find the evangelical church too, well, restrictive. But the School of Practical Philosophy is nonconfrontational", "We believe there are many forms of scripture", "What is true is true and will never change, whether it's in the Bible or in Shakespeare. It's about oneness. Its basic philosophy is that if the Buddha and Krishna and Jesus were all at a dinner table together, they wouldn't be arguing. There is an essential truth. And we are limitless." Jackman has attended SES branches in the US and Australia{{Cite web|url=http://www.gospelherald.com/articles/58544/20151009/hugh-jackman-opens-up-about-christian-faith-says-he-seeks-to-honor-god-with-his-films.htm|title=Hugh Jackman Opens Up About Christian Faith, Says He Seeks to Honor God With His Films|last=Klett|first=Leah Marieann|date=9 October 2015|website=Breaking Christian News: World, Business, and More {{!}} The Gospel Herald|language=en|access-date=22 February 2019}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/apr/01/hugh-jackman-apostle-paul-christian-film|title=Hugh Jackman to star as the apostle Paul in high-profile Christian film|last=Child|first=Ben|date=1 April 2015|work=The Guardian|access-date=22 February 2019|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.insights.uca.org.au/features/spirituality-connects-me-better-to-life-hugh-jackman|title="Spirituality connects me better to life" – Hugh Jackman|website=Insights Magazine|language=en-US|access-date=22 February 2019}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/mad-about-hugh-20081120-gdt3lj.html|title=Mad about Hugh|last=Souter|first=Fenella|date=20 November 2008|website=The Sydney Morning Herald|language=en|access-date=22 February 2019}}{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/peoplealmanac00cade|title=People almanac. 2003.|date=2002|publisher=Cader Books|isbn=1-929049-96-X|edition=1st|location=New York, N.Y.|oclc=223601243}}

Author of the 2007 book, There's No More Dying Then, Stephanie Wilson, a consultant Histopathologist at St Mary's Hospital London, was confirmed into the Church of England at an early age and saw Christianity as a good thing. However, during her career as a junior doctor, doubts started to arise and she found her faith did not answer fundamental questions such as "who am I?" or "why am I here?". The exploration of eastern philosophy shed new light on what faith is, and illuminated what she already knew about Christianity. Wilson says "the effect on me of further exploration of the words of the wise opened the heart and brought light to my mind".{{Cite book|title=There's no more dying then: words of comfort and illumination|author=Wilson, Stephanie|date=2007|publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn (Publishers) Ltd|isbn=978-0-85683-252-9|location=London|oclc=233787385}}

In her 2009 book The Power Within, MacLaren's secretary Dorine Tolley wrote: "The philosophy course he (MacLaren) had developed over the years had slowly become a life-changing method with all its consequences. The advertisements were not explicit enough and did not indicate that one's habitual patterns of life would come under scrutiny.". "In spite of attempts to malign Leon MacLaren and his methods his critics were vastly outnumbered by his supporters and none of the sceptics have ever been able to explain why so many thousands of discerning people flocked to the school".

In July 2012, political advertiser Jeremy Sinclair CBE, chairman of M&C Saatchi, told The Drum that outside of work, his other passion is teaching at the SES. "The philosophy that I teach is to be useful, and not just about mind expanding," he said. He added that it has "heavily influenced" his book, Brutal Simplicity of Thought.{{cite web |url=http://www.thedrum.com/news/2012/07/20/drum-speaks-jeremy-sinclair-mc-saatchi-talk-about-brutal-simplicity-thought |title=The Drum speaks to Jeremy Sinclair of M&C Saatchi to talk about the brutal simplicity of thought |first=Mairi |last=Clark |date=20 July 2012 |work=TheDrum.com |access-date=3 March 2017}} His colleague Tim Bell thought SES gave Sinclair a sense of equilibrium, keeping him well enough balanced that he never got affected by blowups at the agency.{{Cite book |title=Saatchi & Saatchi: the inside story |last=Fendley |first=Alison |date=1996 |publisher=Arcade |isbn=978-1-55970-363-5 |edition= 1st U.S. |location=New York |oclc=34996064}}

in 2013, Martha Dewing, raised Episcopalian, now an Interfaith Minister, said studying Advaita Vedanta at the School of Practical Philosophy in New York changed the way she saw her inherited faith, stating "It opened me up and broadened my perspective" and "I see a bigger Jesus. I see what he meant rather than what they say he said.". Dewing's two primary spiritual practices are mantra meditation twice a day, and a heartfelt practice of gratitude.{{Cite book |title=American Veda: from Emerson and the Beatles to yoga and meditation--how Indian spirituality changed the West |last=Goldberg |first=Philip |publisher=Three Rivers Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-385-52135-2 |edition= First paperback |location=New York |oclc=808413359}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.onespiritinterfaith.org/our-programs/seminary/faculty/|title=Interfaith Seminary, Faculty/Teachers - New York, globally over webinars|website=One Spirit Learning Alliance|language=en-US|access-date=2 March 2019}}

In 2011, invited by a reporter to reply to allegations that SES and its branches are a cult, spokeswoman Monica Vecchio said: "I've known Mr MacLaren for many years," referring to SES leader Leon MacLaren. "I met him when I was a very young woman in my 20s. For anybody to call anything Mr MacLaren started a cult is just ridiculous. I've never met a man who was more a man in the greatest sense of the word than Mr MacLaren was."

In 2012, David Boddy, former SES spokesman and Thatcher press secretary, describes MacLaren as "my first mentor" and "my first real teacher". "He knew things others didn't appear to know, and he was totally fearless when it came to proclaiming them. He couldn't abide 'experts' or religion but he did believe that humankind could be lifted out of its torpor and misery by the power of philosophy, or love of wisdom.". He said "the London Evening Standard sought to brand MacLaren a 'cult leader' because of his Indian connections.". The book led to "severe misunderstanding, and in some cases libel and slander". He pointed out that "the School of Economic Science, which has never had a political or religious agenda; it is, in fact, a rather interesting, if somewhat pedantic, philosophical school in the classical Platonic tradition."{{Cite book |title=Mind your head: an emotional intelligence guide for school leaders |last=Boddy |first=David |isbn=978-1-908095-62-6 |oclc=828415050|year=2012 |publisher=John Catt Educational }}

According to the SES's 2013 website, its critics "greatly misrepresent the aims and activities of the School, but they have alerted it to the need to provide more information about the way its courses and associated activities progress."{{cite web |url=http://www.schooleconomicscience.org/index.php?page=issues |title=Issues |work=School of Economic Science |access-date=15 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090606163110/http://www.schooleconomicscience.org/index.php?page=issues |archive-date=6 June 2009}}

SES representative Ian Mason responded to criticism in Jules Evans' 2013 book. He said: "The idea is not to break down the ego for the sake of it, but rather to put you in touch with yourself, to help you distinguish what's real or not, and to nourish and strengthen the mind. But perhaps there was too unquestioning an attitude to the leader in those earlier years. People took things that MacLaren said and applied them without intelligence." About the parties reported by Evans, Mason said, "The balls were a response to requests from young women for opportunities to meet some eligible young men in the SES and were pretty innocent occasions. I should emphasise that there was no coercion involved." In a 2013 interview with Voice of America, Mason stated that life is a voyage of discovery and deepening understanding and the courses are designed to support this. The participants are the judges as to the successes of the programs, no certifications are offered, and the aim is to liberate people. It's really about being the best kind of person you can be, knowing your potential.

Notable current members include M&C Saatchi chairman Jeremy Sinclair CBE,{{cite web|url=http://www.stjamesinquiry.org/WHOSWHO_page/whoswho_page.html|title=Who's Who|work=Stjamesinquiry.org|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120224080557/http://www.stjamesinquiry.org/WHOSWHO_page/whoswho_page.html|archive-date=24 February 2012|access-date=15 October 2013}} actor Hugh Jackman,{{cite web |date=28 November 2010 |title=Hugh Jackman |url=https://www.gq.com.au/life/people/hugh+jackman,6495 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160112222256/http://www.gq.com.au/lifestyle/people/hugh+jackman,6495 |archive-date=12 January 2016 |access-date=15 October 2013 |work=GQ}} and Canadian entrepreneur Douglas Freeman.{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/newentrepreneurs00goul|title=The new entrepreneurs: 80 Canadian success stories|author=Gould, Allan|date=1986|publisher=McClelland and Stewart-Bantam|isbn=0-7704-2092-3|location=Toronto|oclc=23900735}} Notable former members include actress Emily Watson and author Laura Wilson, both of whom were brought up in the SES by their parents;{{Cite news|last=Thomas|first=David|date=30 September 2000|title=Rising from the Ashes|work=Irish Independent}} David Boddy, former press secretary to Margaret Thatcher; and Richard Stokes, politician.

• Letters of Marsilio Ficino Vol 1{{Cite book|title=The letters of Marsilio Ficino|author=Ficino, Marsilio|date=1975|publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn|isbn=978-0-85683-010-5|location=London|oclc=1899379|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/lettersofmarsili0000fici}} - Vol 10{{Cite book|title=The letters of Marsilio Ficino|author=Ficino, Marsilio|date=2018|publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn|isbn=978-0-85683-010-5|location=London|oclc=1899379|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/lettersofmarsili0000fici}}
• Reminders, Extracts from Lectures by Leon MacLaren{{Cite book|title=Reminders: extracts from lectures.|last=Leon.|first=MacLaren|date=2010|publisher=School of Economic Science|isbn=978-0-9565968-0-2|oclc=678881536}}
• Self Illumination, a translation of Sri Sankara Acarya's Svaatmaprakasikaa{{Cite book|title=Self illumination: the Svātmaprākaśikā of Śrī Śaṅkara Ācārya|last=Śaṅkarācārya|translator=Jessup, Warwick |publisher=School of Economic Science |location=London |isbn=978-0-9565968-9-5 |oclc=993268581|year = 2016}}
• The Teaching of Reality: A Translation of Shankara's Tattvopadesha{{Cite book|title=The teaching of reality: Sri Sankara Acarya's Tattvopadesa|last=Sankara |first=Acarya |date=2014|publisher=School of Economic Science|translator=Jessup, Warwick |isbn=978-0-9565968-5-7|location=London|oclc=909158023}}
• The Eternal Way: An English translation of Sadacaranusandhanam, attributed to Sankara{{Cite book|title=The Eternal Way|last=Jessup|first=Warwick |publisher=The School of Economic Science|year=2018|isbn=978-0-9955172-6-4|location=London}}
• Reflections of Brahman: Brahmanucintanam, Sri Sankara Acarya, a new translation{{Cite book|title=Reflection on Brahman : Brahmānucintanam. Śrī Śaṅkara Ācārya: a new translation|author=Śrī Śaṅkara Ācārya|date=30 April 2017|isbn=978-0-646-96913-8|location=Wahroonga, N.S.W |publisher=School of Practical Philosophy |oclc=981123890}}
• The Teachings of Astavakra{{Cite book|title=The Teachings of Aṣṭāvakra in simple Sanskrit|publisher=Sanskrit Faculty of the School of Economic Science|year=2016|location=London}}
• London Language Lectures 2009-2012{{Cite book|title=London Language Lectures 2009-2012|last=Jaiswal|first=Sitaram|publisher=School of Economic Science|year=2013|location=London}}
• Leon MacLaren: Reminders
• Music: The Foundations of Harmony{{Cite book|title=Music: the foundations of harmony|author=MacLaren, Leon|year=2013|isbn=978-0-9565968-4-0|edition=Revised |location=London |publisher=School of Economic Science |oclc=874928840}}
• Nature of Society{{Cite book|title=Nature of Society: and Other Essays|last=MacLaren|first=Leon|publisher=School of Economic Science|year=2010|isbn=978-0-9565968-1-9|edition=2nd|location=UK}}
• Justice - The transcript of a lecture delivered on 19 December 1951 by Leon MacLaren.{{Cite book|title=Justice - The transcript of a lecture delivered on 19th December 1951|last=MacLaren|first=Leon|publisher=The School of Economic Science|year=2001|location=London}}
• One World One Wealth - Exploring the Possibilities of Economics with Justice{{Cite book|title=Music: the foundations of harmony |last=Leon |first=Maclaren|date=2014 |publisher=School of Economic Science|isbn=978-0-9565968-3-3|oclc=922599805}}
• Dialectic - Five principles are presented using the Platonic Dialogues
• The Dhatupatha of Panini, Practical Aid for the Study of Sanskrit DhatusA practical aid for the study of Sanskrit dhātus. (2003). London: The school of economic science.
• Sanskrit Dictionary Page-Finder
• Sanskrit for Philosophy Students Vol 1 -3
• The Laws of Manu, a new translation.{{Cite book|title=The laws of Manu: a new translation|last=Manu |year=2018|isbn=978-0-85683-523-0|location=London |publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn |oclc=1019591595}}
• Nine Vedic Prayers and the Alphabet (CD)
• Sounds of Sanskrit (CD)
• Isha Upanishad (CD), Music performed by School Choir and Orchestra
• His Holiness Sri Shantananda Saraswati on Love (CD)
• HIs Holiness Shantananda Saraswati & Mr. MacLaren (CD)
• Going Home (DVD)
• Philosophy for Life (DVD)

• Advaita Vedanta
• Neo-Vedanta
• Leon MacLaren
• George Gurdjieff
• P. D. Ouspensky
• Transcendental Meditation movement
• New religious movement
• Spiritual bypass
• Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
• Andrew McLaren (Labour politician)
• Adi Shankara
• Henry George

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.schoolofphilosophy.org/ SPES homepage]
• [http://www.schoolofphilosophy.org/economic-monitor/ Economic Monitor (SPES Economic Journal)]
• [http://www.platoforum.org/ School of Economic Science - Study Forums]
• {{EW charity|num=313115 |name=The Fellowship of the School of Economic Science|ref=none}}
• [http://www.artinaction.org.uk/ Art In Action]
• [http://www.stjamesschools.co.uk/ St James Schools]
• [http://www.philosophyworks.org School of Practical Philosophy] (United States affiliate)
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20101006175720/http://www.henrygeorgefoundation.org/cej/the-school-of-economic-science.html History of the founding of SES] (Henry George Foundation)
• [http://reference.ses-forums.org SES reference materials]
• [https://www.schoolofmeditation.org/ School of Meditation home page]

{{Indian philosophy}}

{{Schools of economic thought}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:School Of Economic Science}}

Category:1937 establishments in England

Category:Organizations established in 1937

Category:Advaita Vedanta

Category:Georgist organizations

Category:Hindu new religious movements

Category:Meditation

Category:Philosophy organizations