Raja Yoga for breath

The word Yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root ‘Yuj’ meaning to join or to yoke or to unite.  As per yogic scriptures the practice of Yoga leads to the union of individual consciousness with that of Universal Consciousness, indicating a perfect harmony between the mind and body, between man and nature.

We focus on exercises as yoga, however, it is the union or rather harmonizing of matter which is body and spirit or consciousness.  In many ways humanity, with the influence of materialism, has become disconnected from the inner self, the spiritual self. This disconnect has resulted in internal conflicts and discontentment in everyday life, which gets exasperated by the continuous change in our external world.  That is one reason why we are finding how this discord and conflict is being revealed through our bodies.

We all know that mental stress leads to lowering of our immunity and a varied number of other psychosomatic illnesses. That is why yoga is so relevant in today’s day and age – we need to realign and harmonize internally first so that we can then harmonize with our world.

The various asanas of yoga are helpful to relax and center oneself; however, an internal alignment can only truly occur when we understand and give time to reconnect with our spiritual nature.  This is the alignment of our mind and intellect with our innate qualities or inherent divinity of the soul – the attributes of peace, love, bliss, purity and power.  This is Raja Yoga – to realign with this inherent self.

So, it begins by firstly recognizing and understanding that the true nature of the self is non-physical.  I am consciousness, I am soul, and the soul is eternal.  Perhaps we have this as an understanding but we have to translate this into an experience and further into an attitude so that I view my world and I respond to my world from this premise that I am a soul.  When I come from soul consciousness, I come from the awareness of being eternal, of being energy, of being divinely created – so it results in me creating a capacity within me or attitude within me to respond from a place of love and peace.  Why?  When I truly connect with myself as being eternal I am secure and I free myself from the most basic fear, the fear of death.  This internal security, this internal peace, this internal attitude of focusing on what is beyond the stream of constant change emerges two powerful personality traits. Firstly, I build the capacity to be stable emotionally and mentally irrespective of the change around me.  Secondly, it helps to engage with others with the attitude and understanding that the innate nature of every soul is goodness.  So a spirit of love and respect for all emerges, not only for people but also for nature and all creatures. When love emerges then love creates a feeling of connection and harmony.

How to begin this practice?

Just as when we are unwell we end up breathing in a shallow way, sometimes gasping for breath – in the same way, a mind that is too busy and has far too many thoughts is a soul gasping for inner peace. How do we create silence in the mind?  Silence is not emptiness, but silence is a mind resting on a pure thought.

Extract: the Man who loved angels by Anthony Strano.

A second is the unit of time, just as a thought is the basic unit of consciousness.  A body has many cells and so do time and consciousness.  Whether we measure time in terms of eternity, ages, cycles centuries years…hours minutes, the basic unit or cell is a second.  We may measure consciousness in terms of awareness, attitudes, beliefs, feelings, behaviour, aliveness, responses but the basic unit or cell is always a thought.  If these basic units of time and thoughts are weak then the whole of time and consciousness suffers.  So how do we create inner silence, we begin by a practice of taking one thought in one second and make them work together.

Take one second to think one thought

Slowly and faithfully think: I am

Add another second and another thought: a soul

Add another second or two and think: I am peace

Add another second or two and think: I am a being of peace.

Repeat these thoughts gently to yourself, paying special attention to them.  There is no need to rush, no need for second thoughts or ideas going anywhere else.  Just focus on the original self.

Practising this daily several times, we teach ourselves to think the right thoughts at the right time.  We free ourselves from the internal chatter and begin to feel more, listen more and be more.  As we reconnect with ourselves we harmonize mind with breath, spirit with body, consciousness with nature.  When I am aligned internally I can easily harmonize and connect with others and nature, but moreover, I open myself to connect with the Divine Source, with God.  This allows me to draw spiritual power and truly experience the state of Yoga – which is Union with the Highest Source.  The experience of this highest love then flows through my being, my relationships, my work and I become an instrument to create a better world.

Author: Pratiba Daya

As we step into a future, shaped by the 4th industrial revolution, it asks of us to reflect on the quality of leadership needed and the values we hold for that future.

At the turn of the millennium, the UN hosted The Millennium Summit to which faith leaders were invited.  It was evidently clear that we live in a world where we have more resources; access to more information and data, communication and travel has become increasingly easier and we have better technology to deal with our global challenges.  Despite all of this, we seem to have regressed in our endeavor to improve the lives of people. Why is this? We lack the political will to make the fundamental changes that are needed.  Again, it is not a question of resources or technology or information, but the need for a change of heart; a change in consciousness.

Many of you may have walked through the corridors of the UN buildings in New York. During my visit in 2002, I was struck by a wall hanging outside the doors of the General Assembly hall.  It reflected a pyramid showing world expenditure. At the tip of the pyramid was what the global financial resources need to ensure that everyone on the planet has safe drinking water.  The second level was to enable 100% literacy.  At the base of the triangle, it reflected what the world spent on arms and war, on a daily basis.  What we spend on war is a 1000% more than what is needed to enable every person to have fresh drinking water.  What will it take to turn this pyramid the other way – so that we invest in health, literacy and dignity rather than fear, greed and destruction?  Again it’s not a lack of information or technology – a change in heart, a change in consciousness is needed.

In the teachings of the Brahma Kumaris, one of the fundamental spiritual principles we base our work on is, that the world around us is a reflection of the world within us.  I quote here from Sister Jayanti, “The spiritual truth which is a basic principle, that whatever is within is reflected without. The inner state of human beings creates the outer state of the world.”  Instead of seeing ourselves as passive passengers on this stage called life, it is our collective consciousness that manifests the world around us.  So, any sustainable and transformative change has to begin with ourselves, the transforming of our consciousness.

Our inner personal world and the systems we find ourselves in are integrated, and so, any real change has to begin with ourselves.  If we want to dissolve patriarchy and the oppressive power it holds over us as women, we need to begin to see ourselves outside the confines of how the patriarchal world sees us.  As much as we may fight these systems, we have internalized them and unless we challenge our own mindsets, we will keep feeding into them.

A change in consciousness implies a change in the way one sees oneself.  We have an outer identity, or physical identity which is based on the context we find ourselves in, in terms of gender, race, nationality, class, religion, education, positions and roles etc.  When we live with this physical identity as our primary identity, then it influences our vision of ourselves and the other – we begin to quantify our value in terms of these external labels.  This limited or material mindset is the very basis on which we have built systems, processes and policies.  This limited mindset inevitably triggers comparison and competition which in turn triggers insecurity and a survival mindset.  Today we have become consumed by a global culture of materialism.  In this culture, we see people as consumers and markets to be exploited, rather than contributors and individuals worthy of dignity.  Therefore, today the advancements in technology and transport, instead of truly serving humanitarian needs, have become a means to exploit markets and increase profits for the limited few.  Our systems are built on greed and greed can never be satisfied, so it gives birth to fear, anger and sorrow.

But, for a moment, if we could consider the eternal question of ‘who am I, really?’ that innate self, beyond the labels, we discover, at our core, a universality; at the core of our being we are soul, consciousness.  This inner consciousness embodies peace, love, compassion and joy.

To identify with this inner self is the method to free myself from the confines and constraints of the physical limitations. The practice of returning to one’s original identity and remembering ‘who I am, always’, as we play our different roles and honour our various responsibilities, is crucial.  It enthrones us on our seat of self-respect.  When our subtle inner abilities are integrated in the wholeness of our being and allowed to be expressed with the support of self-respect, actions are performed with a high level of integrity.

Our worth comes from the original and innate qualities of the soul; truth, love, purity, joy and peace. It is from these values that a women’s beauty is derived and radiated through her features.  To believe in the beauty of one’s innate worth and to see the self in the context of this eternal reality, rather than just the transitory physical appearance, gives a tremendous boost to one’s self-esteem and self-confidence.  This leads to a deep inner security and stability which enhances ones capacity to serve, to appreciate and encourage those around me and to have clarity of thought and purpose.

If we have a fragmented vision of ourselves, we create and sustain a world of fragmentation.  If we see ourselves as a whole, interconnected with all life, then we live with the conviction ‘your peace is my peace, my joy is your joy’. This awareness then begins to influence and dominate our values – from competition to co-operation, from materialism to simplicity, from ambition and self aggrandizement to humility, from power to dignity and from control to an attitude of serving.  So in essence, our consciousness leads to our vision which creates our values.  Without changing consciousness there cannot be sustainable transformation.

To meet the challenges of the future, we need leadership that holds the practice of self awareness as a key focus.  Only when I am self aware can I continue to undo the internalization of prejudice, and recalibrate my own internal compass on a deeper truth, the truth of who I am, always, and who you are, always.  This inner awareness builds inner trust and self trust leads to self respect and respect for others, which lies at the heart of authentic leadership.  Integrity and ethical standards then sustain it. Leaders must constantly look within to take power and support from the essence of their self worth, and then turn, look outward and see others through the lens of equality and respect.

It is no longer enough, if ever it was, to lead from the front.  What we must learn to do now is to lead from within, because effective leadership of any kind is built on inner strength; the strength of vision that sees and brings out the best in others, the strength of example that inspires action in others and the strength of self-respect that enables one to serve and care for others

Power is no longer in the hands of others who make decisions for us, but within our own hearts.  To lead, is then simply, to be visible as one who follows his or her own inner principles, conscience and truth.

That inner truth is within each one of us, and the more we draw from it, the more we become leaders who inspire others to join us, making us together, the co-creators of our common destiny; a destiny in which justice, freedom, equality, respect and individual potential flourish in a world at peace with itself, a destiny for which we have been waiting for too long.

Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University
www.brahmakumaris.org

There has been an article on CNN where an interesting experiment has been carried out in a school in Baltimore, the USA.  This is a school in an impoverished area and has had many discipline and behavioural issues with the children.  Instead of detention for the children who misbehave, they started introducing mindfulness meditation and yoga to the children.  This has had amazingly positive impact.  It reflects a very important principle, our usual approach to a child who is misbehaving is to punish them.  In punishing them we are creating the perception, that since the child has done something ‘wrong’ that means that they are bad.  And because they are bad they need to feel bad.  I am saying this very simplistically but it has an interesting impact on our lives.  We are not bad, we just behave badly. 

Our behaviour and ability to respond to situations is a cultivated response – meaning it is a learned behaviour.  Being able to distinguish helps us to recognise that bad behaviour means that a person is unable to draw on their positive innate qualities.  We can only strengthen our higher values and qualities when we learn to self regulate ourselves and this means learning to self reflect and learn empathy.  So teaching a child to be more mindful and transform the emotions of anger to peace by breathing out the anger and meditating a child learns to become more reflective and learn to develop alternative ways to respond to situations that may trigger anger.  Taking time to reflect, to pause and become peaceful and calm will help us to draw out and strengthen within ourselves our deeper more positive qualities.  We are aware, that in any situation we have a choice.  common wisdom tells us, that in the moment don’t react but respond.  Reacting is automatic and habitual.  Being responsive is more powerful.  This ability to respond and not react needs to be developed within the self, and that begins by creating the practice of being more mindful, reflecting on yourself and meditating on positive and life affirming attitudes. 

How different our world would be if people really thought about the impact of what they were saying or doing rather than reacting from fear, anger or greed.  Perhaps we would be able to have more constructive dialogue, be creative in exploring solutions and live with greater harmony.  We all desire a more peaceful world, however that begins with ourselves.  In order for me to be more peaceful I need to invest in myself and in daily routine time and space to pause, reflect and redirect myself.

ca. 2001 — Woman’s Eye and Globes — Image by © Royalty-Free/Corbis

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”  Margaret Mead

These words epitomises the premise of Seeing into Being from my perspective.  A few years after being released from prison, after 27 years of incarceration by the Apartheid government, I had the good fortune to interview Ahmed Kathrada, an anti apartheid activist.  My inquiry of him was how did they manage to sustain their courage and hope throughout those years?  His response was that firstly, they knew that they were on the right side of the cause.  That morally it was the right thing.  Secondly, they did not wait for freedom to come but prepared for it.  In their discussions and reflections they contemplated the kind of democracy and society they wanted to create for all South Africans.  Did they know they would live to see a democratic, free South Africa?  It didn’t matter, they just knew that a democratic free South Africa will happen.  They lived the dream, not only desired it.

We create the worlds we dare to see or dream of.  However what we see cannot be driven by simply desire and want.  When a dream is simply on desire, it becomes an obsession which imprisons us.  The power of a vision lies on a strong foundation of wisdom and knowing that it holds righteousness and benefit for humanity.  Such a vision has no boundaries and is timeless.  Irrespective of the challenges one faces, this inner conviction gives courage and births a capacity to act on that vision.  Such a vision, can never be alone, but will always inspire a collective vision which begins to create its own ripple and influence.  It is a vision that lives long after the dreamer has passed on.

We live in a time where the fragmentation of the world is no longer subtle, but almost seems like a domino of events cascading.  All that was built was created on the basis of materialism, and so it is no surprise as we see its breakdown.  But when we step back and look, we see beneath the destruction a new way of being coming through.  Living in a fynbos environment, each year in summer are the threat of wild fires.  The fires destroy vast tracks of land on the Cape Nature Reserve mountains.  In the heat and intensity of those fires, the seeds of the fynbos are dispersed.  So within a few weeks, the darkened fields are scattered with new plants bursting through the ashes.  can we see the seeds of our deeper nature and being.

Our ability to see a new way of being, to see a new world is embedded in the awareness that, we can only conceive a vision if it is a part of our reality, if the experience of this lies merged in our consciousness.  As Ahmed Kathrada had said, we knew it will happen.  We are driven to see a new world because the experience of that lies within our consciousness.  Time and circumstances are simply triggers to reveal “what we know and what we are”.

The greatest challenge, to seeing into being, in some way is our own fears.  We fear what is not visible.  We are so accustomed to thinking of ourselves as physical beings and that  we perceive reality to be,  that which can be measured, manipulated and controlled.  That which we cannot measure or control we either dismiss as “not real” or fear it.  When we awaken to the awareness that we more than the physical, that our deeper self is consciousness manifesting itself as thoughts and vibrations, then we can begin to see how our thinking and feeling is the seed which  influences the physical.  The world we know today is as a result of how we thought and felt collectively, and the world that we want depends on how we choose to think and feel today.  

Often, we conditioned into believing ourselves as being insignificant or powerless.  Growing up in apartheid South Africa, whether directly through the laws or indirectly you were constantly given the message of being less because of your race.  As a child it was the influence of a school teacher when I was ten, that made me realise how that conditioning was being internalised, particularly remembering the first history lesson when he defied the set textbook and said the first peoples in South Africa were not the Dutch but the indigenous San people with a unique culture and nature of not controlling but sharing the earths resources – you can imagine what our school curriculum was at that time!!!  In my experience, intellectually one can defy this conditioning, but it takes deep introspection to see how the collective pattern has been internalised.  It was after  my travels to Australia when it became very apparent to me – Australia reminded me so much of South Africa but the people there seemed to have a natural confidence.  And it struck me, that in South Africa there is this talent and creativity but its waiting for permission to be expressed… it lacks the natural confidence of its worth.  This almost offers a powerful example of how entire generations and societies can be influenced by a powerful vision – be it flawed.  It is for this reason that it was so significant to all of us when Nelson Mandela during his inaugural speech as President quoted the following from Marianne Williamson, “We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

We are afraid of our own greatness, to embrace it is to take complete responsibility for what we think and feel.  But greater than our fear is a truth that cannot be denied, suppressed or ignored.  Its the paradox of our times, as all that has been built on the basis of arrogance, prejudice, manipulation and greed falls apart – it reveals that our true nature as human beings is love, compassion and selflessness.  What makes us human, in Africa is the principle of Ubuntu.  I am because we are, we are because I am.  The individual creates the collective and the whole reflects the individual.  What makes us human is recognising that society is the cooperation of every individual to a greater whole, be it through our thoughts, attitudes and actions of kindness and consideration for each other.  No society can call itself successful, if the individual within it is left deprived.  We are called upon to see a greater whole of a co-existence of harmony, respect equality and openness.  When we dare to take on the responsibility of such a world, it inevitably calls upon the individual to examine oneself deeply to free the self from patterns of prejudice and judgement.  It is only through this individual “cleansing” of the self, can our actions truly hold the integrity and power to create the transformation we seek.  

The courage to dare to embrace such a vision, is more than just a moral imperative –  it is a vision that can only be awakened through Divine intervention –  there is a Higher Source who is silently awakening this deeper truth in us.  Ultimately, it only love that is pure, unconditional and Divine that can rekindle truth.  When we become still in our minds, we invite the presence of Divine Love to transform our hearts.

Seeing is the seed…. feeling is the capacity …. so that we can step into being.

By Pratiba Daya

South Africa

Personal growth and human development are perhaps two of the more popular banners flapping in the breeze at the eve of the 21st century.  So what’s new? Aren’t these two old chestnuts that humanity has been chewing over throughout history?  The issues may indeed be the same but what is new is the emergence of a suppressed part of the human dynamic that can be called the feminine principle.  This principle does not cater to a prejudiced belief in the superiority or inferiority of one group compared to another.  Nor does it seek to replace male chauvinism with female chauvinism. Its aim is to allow the blossoming of a full and balanced personality that is at once vigorous and serene in an era of both light and might.

The feminine principle is a subtle energy, which has remained untapped within the psyche of both men and women.  It is merged in the essence of our spiritual identity and is marked by qualities attributed to the more gentle side of the human being—care, respect, trust, patience, loyalty, love honesty, empathy, and mercy.  When this principle is understood and realised, it is a force so powerful that it awakens us to new realities and realigns us to the true purpose and meaning of life .Both men and women possess this feminine principle but throughout history it has often been equated with emotion, weakness, and vulnerability and, in the context of social, economic, and political issues, flushed from the mainstream of development to a backwater and then labelled as ‘women’s issues’.  The feminine principle was thereby controlled and crushed by the iron hand of patriarchal power, which almost invariably demanded nothing less than the sacrifice of intuition at the altar of rigid logic, the suppression of gentleness for the sake of brute strength, and the compliance of women with the dominance of men.

If the problems which have arisen through the suppression and control of this principle are to be corrected in a way that will last, then this must be done through a change of consciousness rather than a reversal of positions, roles: a change of consciousness which takes its birth from a base of spirituality and not from a base of sexuality.  The feminine principle, this untapped subtle potential that lies at the core of our being, must now be realised to restore a balance between intellect and intuition, facts and feelings, reason and realism.

At the brink of the new millennium, in the midst of the most turbulent of times, the feminine principle is the clear, cool spring that can give life to humanity’s arid wasteland; the sacred water from which to draw purpose and meaning.

Lessons Come From Hindsight

Looking back at the twentieth century, one my say that the progress of women has been slow and laborious, for up until the ‘60s women were best known for their roles as wives, mothers, sisters, nurses, and secretaries.  As women’s liberation movements asserted that women were also entitled to human rights, the international community responded with a series of women’s conferences that have contributed to the great strides made in putting women’s concerns high on the global agenda.  Yet most women who managed to claim the positions they deserved in the world did so at the expense of the feminine principle and were either caught in the power play of sexuality or achieved their positions only by developing an iron-fisted control over others.  While such measures were doubtless successful in the short term, any individual who has to compromise on who she is, and knowingly or unknowingly deny herself access to the source of her own strength, will sooner or later succumb to the trap of exploiting, manipulating, and discriminating against others—the very evils she sought to dispel.  Deprived of the strength that comes from within, these are the only tools available to a person living outside the borders of their own being.

Twentieth-century women will be remembered as pioneers of a hard and perilous path to freedom and liberation.  Their efforts brought phenomenal breakthroughs and taught significant lessons.  The starting point was action-oriented and was influenced by characteristics associated with the left hemisphere of the brain—courage, determination, will-power, and advocacy.  The result was the formation of an international network of women’s organizations and groups whose fingers are on the pulse of political, social, and economic changes, and who know how these impact the lives of women all over the world.  Faced with the paradox of some material and professional success but very little emotional and spiritual fulfilment, such women continued to feel a sense of inner depletion and a lack of self-worth and self-esteem.  Recognizing that the advancement of women was an uphill task, a whole of many parts, it became apparent that progress on the outside had to be nurtured by growth on the inside.  Soon, programs on self-development and personal growth began to mushroom. Conferences, seminars and forums were replaced by dialogues, discussions and conversations.  The significant lesson learned was the patience to trust that whatever happened was part of a process that would lead to a successful outcome and the rediscovery of characteristics such as intuition, creativity, spirituality, nurturing, sustenance, care, love, and compassion. This shift in consciousness became the backbone of their stories.

Vision Comes From Foresight

Women of the twentieth century have developed guidelines and set standards for women of the twenty-first century to pursue and develop further.  The feminine principle, which has come to be seen as the light at the end of the tunnel in the latter years of the twentieth century, will become a natural way of being in the future.  Trust, respect, and wisdom will lie at the heart of authentic leadership by women and men; integrity and high moral standards will sustain it.  Power will no longer lie in the hands of others who make decisions for us, but within the hearts of each one of us.  As natural leaders, we will lead from the core of our inner strength and will follow our own inner principles, conscience, and truth, thus creating our own disciplines.

It will be an integral part of the awareness and attitudes of women responsible for the growth and development of children that every child has the right to participate fully in all areas of society and to equality of opportunity.  These guardians of humanity’s future will ensure that the worth of an individual is not determined by gender and will bestow the love and respect with which the true self of each young person may flourish.  To a great extent, it lies in the hands of women to master a process that will rescue us and succeeding generations from being restricted by discriminatory attitudes, abusive patterns of physical and emotional behaviour, and the limitations we may have put on ourselves.  This will be the sine qua non of our ultimate freedom.

Wisdom Comes From Insight

“Who am I, always keeping an ‘eye’ on ‘I’?”

At the confluence of the two millennia, one of the most challenging insecurities to be overcome is that felt by people in relation to themselves—the question: Who am I?

By using the feminine principle as the premise to explore this mystery, we can embark on our journey of discovery from a perspective of faith in one’s self.  We are often reluctant to look within ourselves because we lack the confidence to come face-to-face with the person we fear the most—our own true selves.  

Spiritual knowledge gives a deeper level of understanding that can remove the fear of the unknown and open the door to insight.  Insight gives the spiritual clarity to recognise the self and the inner strength to accept the self, including our present limitations.  Insight also serves as a searchlight with which to see through the layers of limitations we have acquired by overemphasizing the temporary or physical aspects of our identity and with which to focus on the realization of our original and eternal identity— “Who I am always.”  

To identify with the inner self is the method to free myself from the confines and constraints of the physical limitations.  Faith in myself elevates and divinises my intellect and opens my third eye of wisdom.  This is the kind of faith that creates trust and gives me the courage to accept the past, enjoy the present, and create the future I want.  It is the wisdom that women must embody.  This wisdom is born from the depth of a spiritual consciousness and has been remembered as shakti—will-power received directly from God.  Such wisdom, when brought into action, has a truly transforming effect on our lives and the lives of those around us, bringing about integration with integrity. 

Using the feminine principle to bring about integration with integrity is the most powerful tool now at our disposal.  The practice of returning to one’s original identity and remembering “Who I am always”, as we play our different roles and honour our various responsibilities, is crucial—as it enthrones us on our seat of self-respect.  When our subtle inner abilities are integrated in the wholeness of our being and allowed to be expressed with the support of self-respect, actions are performed with a high level of integrity.

The feminine principle has often been mistaken for femininity on a physical level and so respect for inner beauty has often yielded to an obsession with beauty that knows nothing deeper than the skin.  A women’s worth comes from the original and innate qualities of the soul: truth, love, purity, joy, and peace, and it is from these values that a women’s beauty is derived and radiated through her features.  To believe in the beauty of one’s innate worth and to see the self in the context of this eternal reality, rather than just the transitory physical appearance, gives a tremendous boost to one’s self-esteem and self-confidence.

To feel is a basic human trait, yet when it comes to expressing our feelings in a particular relationship, our passion for a task or admiration for a piece of art or music, often we either overindulge ourselves and lose our sense of reason or we suppress ourselves with the fear of being rejected or of being too emotional.  Something somewhere has gone wrong with feelings and so we need to understand deeply what true feelings are.  Feelings are linked to motives, intentions, desires, and expectations, and I can control the way I feel when I am in touch with these.  I am empowered when my feelings are based on the strength of what is true to me and come from respecting and believing in myself.  I am disempowered when I allow external influences to create doubts and fears in the way I feel, causing me to look outward to validate my own feelings.  Looking outside myself is the way to let loose waves of victimisation, uncertainty, and insecurity and so feelings are often suppressed and never dealt with.  This suppression of feelings leads to depression as I am unable to trust my own feelings and I am reluctant to talk about them, fearing being misunderstood, criticized, or rejected.  Staying close to my own truth, innate values, and inner strength enables me to trust my feelings.  I am responsible for the way I feel and I have the capacity to remove any painful feelings and to create pure feelings in their place.

Capacity building is the art of balancing feeling with reason.  This balance is especially needed in areas of trust, honesty, loyalty, and love.  Reason tells me that when I begin to cultivate and nurture any of these values, my own insecurities, fears, and doubts will arise to test the strength of my commitment and to stretch my capacity. Every test has a benefit merged in it.  What needs to be understood during these battles is that I must not shrink my capacity to trust just because someone betrays this trust, or my capacity to be honest just because someone lies to me.  It is so easy to be influenced by someone else’s behaviour and to internalise their weakness in a way that causes me to lose faith in my own capacity and to waver from staying in alignment with my own values. This is where space is required to maintain healthy and long-standing relationships and not to become so wrapped up in another that I lose all sense of who I am.  This stepping back to maintain my own independence and integrity nurtures my growth and increases my capacity to exercise freedom of choice rather than succumbing to the pull of external influences or the expectations of others.

It has been observed that a woman’s intuition guides her ability to make decisions, almost like a sixth sense.  However, intuition on its own is not enough for effective decision-making.  It is only when motives are clean and devoid of selfish desires that the intuition can give clear signals to help make objective decisions.  These subtle abilities must be applied or expressed in relation to facts and not fancy or imagination.  Walking the tightrope of daily life can also challenge our ability to make decisions with integrity.  This is why it is so important to periodically keep an ‘eye’ on ‘I’ to see whether my actions, words, thoughts, and values are in alignment with my principles.  If they are not we must use our sense of self-worth to allow us to delay the decision and, if they are, then that alignment gives us the authority to take a stand, make the decision, and be committed to it.      

Within the heart of the human soul, a new world is waiting to be born.  The gift we can, and must, offer —to ourselves and to each other—is to rekindle within ourselves the flame of the feminine principle and then to keep that flame glowing strong and steady in our souls, sustaining it with the oil of pure feelings, faith and determination.  A commitment to live by this principle is a commitment to ignite the spirit of the twenty-first century in the hearts of all humanity.  If I don’t make this commitment, who will?

By Gayatri Naraine

Author’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 published by Conari Press, Berkeley, California. Written 8 years ago, the article is still vitally relevant today.

Gayatri Naraine anticipates the emergence of the feminine at the level of spirit.

 

Ah yes, the intelligence that is associated with emotion in these two words that have crept into almost every area of the training, tutoring, self-development and personal growth industries during the last twenty years. Emotional intelligence infers that when you are emotional you are more intelligent! But when we take a moment to reflect we may notice that any time we are emotional we are not capable of being very intelligent! That’s because emotion is an ‘agitation within consciousness.’ And when we are agitated we cannot think very clearly. But more importantly we stop being able to hear the wisdom of our heart, sometimes referred to as our intuition. That’s the inner resource of a deeper ‘knowingness’ that we need to draw on if we are to make intelligent decisions, create intelligent responses and interact with intelligent behavior. All are impossible during any emotional moments. Emotional intelligence is yet another oxymoron. 

Emotional Control 

It’s not possible to control emotion. When emotion arises it is in control of you! All we can do is learn to notice it and not be ruled by it. All we can do is lessen its life span by adopting practices like meditation in which we learn to step back from our emotions as and when they flare. Eventually it is possible to stop creating emotion in the first place. And when that happens then we remain calm and fully attentive, loving and fully available, compassionate and contented, joyous and fully present.

Extracted from Being Your Self by Mike George

There are times in our outer and inner worlds when we experience tumultuous change and uncertainty. These moments seem to be escalating in frequency and intensity. Managing and responding calmly to challenging times —in our relationships, workplaces, the environment, globally and even in our own state of mind—is a vital skill for everyday living.

For  50 years Sr Meera has been a practitioner of Raja Yoga meditation with the Brahma Kumaris.  Born in India, however since the mid seventies she has lived and served in many countries.   Sr. Meera is the director of the Brahma Kumaris in Malaysia. As an international speaker, she focuses on  topics pertaining to the quality of life, specifically  researching the subject of the mind and developing techniques to deepen the experience of inner peace and silence.

Bookings:  info@brahmakumaris.org.za  or Whatsapp  076 3792404 

Gauteng
14/04/18 4.00 – 5.30pm Greyville Primary School Hall. Gardenia & Anemone Street Ext 2 Lenasia

Mpumalanga
15/04/18 3.00 – 5.00pm Mercure Hotel Nelspruit Cnr N4 Graniet Street Nelspruit
16/04/14 6.00 -7.30pm Fortis Hotel,Financial Square, c/o Woltemade & Mandela Street, Witbank

Gauteng
17/04/18 6.00 – 8.00pm Red Theatre, cnr Bolani Link & Bolani Rd Jabulani Soweto
18/04/18 6.30 – 8.00pm Morninghill Country Club,26Hans Pirow Road, Bruma
19/04/18 6.30 – 8.00pm Banquet Hall,Club House, Gary Player Boulevard,Blue Valley Estate,Midrand

Kwa-Zulu Natal
21/03/18 3.00pm-5.00pm Raisethorpe Arya Samaj, 137 Khan Road,Raisethorpe,Pietermaritzburg
22/03/18 2,00pm-4,00pm Stanmore Regional Hall,213 Grove End Drive,Grove End Unit 18,Phoenix
22/04/18 5.00pm-7.00 Kharwastan Community Hall, 6 Oak Avenue,Kharwastan,Chatsworth, Durban
23/03/18 6.30pm-8.00pm DJ Centre, 44 Old Fort Road ,North Beach,Durban

Western Cape
24/04/18 7.00 – 8.30pm Sunningdale bowling Club, 2 Waterville Street,Sunninghill
25/04/18 7.00pm- 8.30pm Novalis Ubuntu Centre,39 Rosemead Avenue, Wynburg

There is an old proverb, where there is health there is happiness. We have a multimillion industry of “selling health” to us through products and treatments. Fundamental to health is having a strong Immune System. While so much of the emphasis is on the physical health, current research points to the fact that a strong factor in our health is influenced by our mental and emotional state.

For this month we will focus on the Immune System of the Soul – going a step further than just our mental and emotional state but to the state of our consciousness.

The immune system of the soul is designed to maintain our well-being. While the body develops such physical diseases as asthma, diabetes, allergies, arthritis and heart disease, so too the soul i.e. the self, develops the equivalent dis – eases within our consciousness. Your feelings and emotions will always let you know your current state of being. Mike describes how to diagnose and heal the 12 spiritual dis – eases that we all suffer from by eliminating the viral beliefs that cause all dis – eases of the soul.

The ‘Immune System of the Soul’ suggests a three stage process for restoring wellness to our being, to our self. Subsequently the health of the body benefits naturally.

Mike George describes the ‘healing process’ as he identifies the 12 main dis-eases that we all suffer from. In his simple yet clear way he continues on from his last book ‘The 7 Myths about Love…Actually!’ to explain ways to be happy and well again.

The health of your body and the wellness of your being are different. Each has their own ‘immune system’. While the body develops many kinds of pain, which we call disease, the soul ‘suffers’ from many forms of dis – ease! While the body develops such physical diseases as asthma, diabetes, alergy, arthritis and heart disease, so too the soul i.e. the self, develops the equivalent dis – eases within our consciousness. Physical disease has many causes, but all dis – eases of the soul have just one cause. While the body can heal itself ‘naturally’, the soul needs to heal it’s self ‘consciously’, by becoming more aware and generating self realisation. Only ‘realisation’ can create the transformation that heals the soul.

This book will be on a special offer for R120.00 at all of our local centres in SA for the month of March.

The health of our body is no longer just an occasional conversation for a few. It is now an obsessional pre-occupation for many. But the real question today is not how healthy can your body be, but are YOU a well being? Health and well-being, obviously connected, are two different things.

Good health refers to the form, the body but ‘well being’ refers to … your being. You could have a healthy body but not be well in your being. Over time however, the unwellness of your being will likely translate into deteriorating health of the form that you occupy! You could be a well being while your body could be a catalogue of different ailments. Yet we now know that if you maintain your wellbeing it will more than likely have a good effect on your body’s health and even empower the healing of many of those ailments.

In the age of medical expert, its easy to detect, define and describe both a state of “good health” and the various conditions of “ill health”. As our body is both visible and tangible it’s easy to work out the what, why and how things go wrong. But it’s obviously not so easy to see and understand why we are not well in our being, simply because you can’t get being into a test tube.

Gradually an increasing number of people have grown both wiser and more intuitively aware of the direct link between the wellness of their being and the health of their body. While we can all benefit from such wisdom, there is still no substitute for turning our attention in wards and seeing for our self.

Being able to see and identify the causes of any loss of wellbeing and know the ways to restore our being to wellness, are the primary abilities of someone who is able to be well at will, stay well wherever they are, and go well through the challenges and tests that life presents us all each and every day.

• extracted from Immune System of the Soul by Mike George