Inspiration, Spirituality, Faith

Articles from Worlds Spiritual University (Brahma Kumaris)

Articles from Worlds Spiritual University (Brahma Kumaris)

 

 

The Healing Mind

Q&A with Dadi Janki “I make a point of creating thoughts and feelings of happiness, peace and benevolence, which make me feel better – not worse.” How can I not worry when my body is unwell? Our response to pain can cause as much distress as the pain itself – so we need ...  Read more.

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The Courage to Change

David Cadman, Quaker, sustainability consultant and writer Most of us who read The Inner Wave live in a society that is driven by a very particular form of economy – one based upon rising consumption and endless growth. Although it is hardly ever challenged (least of all by those that govern ...  Read more.

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The Steps to Forgiveness

A Hostage’s experience Camilla Carr At a three day event for professionals from offender management, held at the Global Retreat Centre, Oxford, in October, an audience listened spellbound to a conversation with Camilla Carr, author of The Sky is Always There. Camilla and her partner, Jon ...  Read more.

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Values: the Unifying Factor

Ambassador Ragnar Ängeby I use meditation to give me strength and a clear mind. It helps me to stay in balance and not let ego interfere in my work. Whether you’re a peacemaker, mediator or whatever - you are a human being, a spiritual being, and must act as such. Most people find the ...  Read more.

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The Power to Co-operate by Jill Sawers

“Independence? That's middle class blasphemy. We are all dependent on one another, every soul of us on earth.” - George Bernard Shaw A perfect partnership is said to be not two people gazing into each other’s eyes, but rather standing side by side looking in the same direction.  ...  Read more.

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The Power of Good Judgment - By Kiran Coyote

The sixth in the series “The Eight Spiritual Powers” from the Brahma Kumaris The Power to Judge allows us to make quick, clear, accurate and unbiased decisions. Accurate judgment comes after evaluation and is not influenced by the situation, emotions or the opinions of others. Real, ...  Read more.

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The Power of Discernment By Kiran Coyote

* Every day we face a multitude of choices: * Should you trust what your friend is saying or not? * Should you keep going in the same direction or change course? * Should you express your concerns or keep quiet? Sometimes our choices are instinctive, like when an infant chooses his mother’s arms ...  Read more.

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The Power to Accomodate and Adjust by Alka Patel

The 4th Universal Power THE POWER TO ACCOMMODATE and ADJUST Release the idea of what should be happening, deal with ‘what is’ …. In this series of the Eight Universal Powers from the Brahma Kumaris, the fourth is the Power to Accommodate and to Adjust. The first, the Power to Withdraw, provides an ...  Read more.

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The Power to Tolerate by Alka Patel

“Toleration is the greatest gift of the mind; it requires the same effort of the brain that it takes to balance oneself on a bicycle.” Helen Keller Tolerance is a power that works deeply underground. It is one of the greatest tools in our daily life; a tool for life itself. Each of us has a ...  Read more.

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Pack Up and Let Go...The power to pack-up…

In a second you pack up all wasteful thinking about the past, present and future and remain positive, lighthearted and free of burdens and worries. This article by Helen Northey is the second in a series of articles on the Eight Powers of the Soul. So what is in your suitcase? Remember to travel ...  Read more.

 

Exercise Your Power to Withdraw with Natalie and the Tortoise

Wives and husbands, children and parents, partners, friends, mates…so many relationships colour, if not dominate, our lives and may demand our ‘best’ at every breath. This article by Helen Northey is the first in a series of articles on the Eight Powers of the Soul. “Perhaps this situation has ...  Read more.

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Anger Management

One of the unhealthiest emotions is our old friend anger. It has been connected with cancer and it destroys our ability to think clearly. Yogesh Sharda explains how we can manage it better. What is anger, can it be overcome, and indeed should we even try? If one were to ask a selection of people ...  Read more.

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The Face of Honesty

Sister Mohini holds up a mirror which can provide us all with useful reflectionSometimes ambition without aim, purpose or clarity can be dangerous. Ambition is fine as long as there is discrimination as to how a desire will affect others. This is real honesty. Honesty is something that ...  Read more.

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Don’t Take Sorrow!

Sr. Kiran explains the difference between pain and sorrow, why another’s sorrow is not meant for personal consumption and how to avoid making a meal of it! “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” “Judge not, lest ye be judged.” Having been raised a Christian, the wisdom of the Golden ...  Read more.

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The Art of Window Cleaning

Charles Hogg presents the methods to see the specialities in the self and others In every street there is a Mrs. Judgement and a Mrs. Honesty. One day Mrs. Honesty decided to visit Mrs. Judgement. As soon as Mrs. Honesty arrived, Mrs. Judgement began to complain about her new neighbours, a family ...  Read more.

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Of Frogs, Captains, Iceburgs...and Eagles!

Marc Fourcade reflects on what you need to change the course of your life The world is moving. Either we move with it or we move against it, in which case we may not be strong enough! The forces on the move are enormous and uncontrollable; they are the forces of nature, the forces of life. The ...  Read more.

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Shopping for God in the Spiritual Supermarket

Valerie Coyle interviews Dadi JankiWhy most people are lost and searching, disillusioned and desperate for solutions. Valerie Coyle: The Western world seems inundated with so many different spiritual choices and teachers, and most people seem to be shopping around in the spiritual supermarket and ...  Read more.

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Encounters with God

By Anthony StranoAuthor’s bio: Anthony Strano is Director of Brahma Kumaris Centres in Greece, Hungary and Turkey Anthony Strano explains what happens when we have a direct personal relationship with God and why it is important. I remember when I was thirteen and I thought, “What am I going to do ...  Read more.

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Women and Spirituality

Sudesh Didi describes the unique role which women play within the Brahma Kumaris In a world where women have been seen traditionally as someone's wife, mother, daughter, or sister, why would a woman choose to follow a spiritual path? Perhaps because, deep inside every woman has a longing to “be” ...  Read more.

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The Feminine Principle

By Gayatri NaraineAuthor’s Bio: Gayatri Naraine is the Brahma Kumaris Representative at the United Nations in New York. This article, (copyright 1998 by Gayatri Naraine), was a featured article in “The Fabric of the Future—Women Visionaries Illuminate the Path to Tomorrow”, edited by M.J. Ryan, and ...  Read more.

 

www.bkwsu.org/interactive/articles?page=2

 

Here are some practical reminders and steps we can take to grow spiritually and bring out transformation (change) in ourselves:

Attend a meditation centre


The starting point is knowledge, or understanding. It is not possible to begin this journey without some kind of route map (directions). There are Brahma Kumaris centers of Raja Yoga meditation throughout the world that provide these maps and help a person begin his, or her, practice of meditation. At these centers, information is shared on how the mind functions, the power of positivity, spiritual values and the art of effective concentration. All of these maps help us to know ourselves better and, when translated into our personal daily life, give us strength in the form of self-respect and happiness.

A Raja Yoga meditation centre is a spiritual school, where we can learn the original arts of true living; it is a spiritual clinic, where we receive the understanding of how to apply the healing medicines of peace, trust and respect in our relationships; it is a spiritual family, where we realize that each member has a uniqueness and goodness that needs to be appreciated and genuinely accepted, and where we pay attention to avoiding the trap of focusing on weaknesses and the roles of others.



The one desire for perfection ends all other desires.

Expression: The desire for perfection brings the capacity to keep on learning from all situations. There is something new to learn and so there are no other desires. Since the mind is busy with bringing about perfection, there is no time for waste and negative. There is the ability to transform negative to positive.

Experience: Love for perfection makes me experience constant progress. I have no thought about what I have to get, but continue to attain from each moment and each situation. I am then naturally free from all other desires.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris


 

Self Transformation (Change)

 

Here are some practical reminders and steps we can take to grow spiritually and bring out transformation (change) in ourselves:

 

Meditate with others

Another great help in maintaining a stable base on the path of meditation is collective practice (practicing together). Through personal practice, I keep my sense of responsibility intact and remain independent. However, without losing these, I can also get together with others at the meditation centre, valuing and learning from their experiences and perceptions (ways of looking at situations) - the group energy brings us to another level of experience, a space of mutual (shared) experience and learning. We learn from everyone, everywhere, all the time; it depends on our willingness to accept certain realities.

 

Often we live too much in the past, or future, and so do not realize that the present is the bridge to moving away from the negativity of the past and to creating a confident future. We do not cross this bridge because we live by, or are too influenced by, the other two time zones (past and future).

 

Remember that NOW is the opportunity where newness on any level can be created and for that getting together regularly with people who are on the spiritual path is very important.

 

 

 

Understanding brings happiness.

 

Expression: Happiness lies in understanding the secret of whatever is happening. When one is able to remain happy in this way, he is able to spread this happiness to those around too, influencing the lives of all.

 

Experience: When I am able to remain happy under all circumstances, I am able to be free from the influence of others' negativity. Instead I will be able to become a major source of positive influence to those around me.

 

 

In Spiritual Service,

Brahma Kumaris

 

Soul Sustenance
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Self Transformation (Change)

Over the last few days, we have shared with you some practical reminders and steps we can take to grow spiritually and bring out transformation (change) in ourselves. Noted below is the last of the series, but the most important one.

Get Started!
The main part of any journey is to start. Sometimes we hesitate, sometimes we make excuses, but we must not give in to these thoughts. When we accept the challenge to try, the journey begins. When we agree to take the first steps, success is there waiting for us. Faith in ourselves brings optimism to what we do. Optimism and faith open the Horizon of Possibility, and I begin to see what good could be there on the spiritual path, which as yet, I cannot see, or even imagine.

It is said, 'Nothing ventured (attempted), nothing gained.' So why not venture? Why not gain?


To pay attention to every act is to be a hero.

Expression: A hero actor is one who has great attention for every act of his. He makes sure that none of his words or actions are ordinary or waste. He ensures perfection in everything he does. This naturally brings the best out of him.

Experience: Since I pay constant attention to everything I do, I find that I am able to give my best. I am then satisfied with whatever is happening since I know what I do is not as important as how well I do it.

 

In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris
 


Serving Though The Subtle Body Of Light

Apart from our physical form (body), each one of us also has a form of light - a subtle light body. It is referred to as the aura, and can be 'seen' by some sensitive souls. All of us might not be able to .see. it, but we can become .aware. of the aura of others. through the vibrations they emit. The purity of our subtle, light form is dependent on the purity of our thoughts or mental vibrations. Given below are some thoughts for a meditation to help experience your subtle form and serve through it. Think and visualize each thought alongside:

I become detached from my physical surroundings... I consciously create only the purest thoughts...
Now I visualize my true form. I am a subtle being of pure spiritual light, a sparkling star situated at the center of the forehead...
Gradually, I become aware of my subtle body of pure, white light surrounding rny physical form...
In my body of light, I, the soul, the sparkling energy, consciously stand up and step away from my physical form, which remains seated... I, the soul, inside my subtle body, observe my physical body in a detached way.
Now I slowly fly outside the room I am in. I visualize myself, in the subtle form, suspended in the sky.
White rays of spiritual light radiate from me, the soul, and my body of light into the world... like that of an angel.
In this pure awareness of myself in my form of light, I realize that the greatest gifts I can share with those around me are the light of love, peace and truth.

Sitting anywhere, this meditation exercise can be done to visualize oneself in a hospital, on the site of a natural calamity, accident, next to a friend or relative in pain etc., basically anywhere where vibrations of positivity, peace and happiness are required . the location of visualizing yourself can be hundreds of miles from where you may physically be. As you practice the art of being aware of your subtle body, you will begin to sense how you can have a positive effect on others simply radiating good wishes, pure thoughts and pure feelings.



Words filled with good wishes bring change in others.

Expression: When there are good wishes combined with the words that I speak, there is love. Whatever is spoken with love has its effect on others. Such words are free from all kind of negativity, so they naturally have a lot of power. Only such powerful words can bring about a change in others.

Experience: When I speak with love and good wishes, I find that I am light, knowing that I have no selfishness in whatever I have said. The others too are able to immediately correct themselves. This also enables me to gain good wishes for having taken them a step forward.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

 

Brahma Kumaris


 

 

 

Radiating Positive And Powerful Energy

 

You will notice many people in your life who are very much in need of love but they attract the opposite energy. This is because the negative energy of lack of love for the self and low self esteem which they continuously radiate causes them to attract that same negative energy from others. In the same way, there are many people who are very much in need of success but they attract failure repeatedly. Failure is directly related to the quality of energy we radiate i.e. how positive and powerful our expectations of success are. Once we set the goals that we wish to reach, we need to be careful that we move towards our aim without creating the negative energy of fear inside our consciousness. Failure appears when we make an effort to achieve those goals and we damage the result or attract failure without us desiring so, simply because of our fears of failure. Even then, if at that step we feel that we have failed, we need to have a positive and constructive attitude. We need to emerge the power to face and power of acceptance inside us. That way our creative energies will flow and we will carry on going forward without the failure (whether real or only perceived by us to be real but actually not real) becoming an obstacle in our path from doing so. Although at that time it may seem as though we have missed an opportunity or that some openings have closed for us, have faith and be fearless. If we are fearless and radiate positive and powerful energy, other possibilities will open up. We have this deep rooted belief that our fear will keep us safe, and we treat it like a comfort zone, a red signal that tells us that we should stop. Creating a time every day to do something that you fear, helps you to re-condition yourself internally to begin to see the fear as a green signal and to develop inner courage, so that you can move towards your goal of success. Each day, do what you fear and the fear will soon be removed

 

In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

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