Brahma Kumaris Florida Service News - June 2018

21 July 2018

Peace While Parenting ~ an Om Shanti Conversation

 

June 24: On Sunday, the BK Miami Center held its 5th Om Shanti Conversation. About 25 souls participated, including several first-timers. 

A panel of three senior BKs - Meredith, Marjorie, and Raju shared experiences and insights on this topic. As a mental health professional and family therapist, Marjorie also offered ideas about communication and self-care.

Kathy facilitated the evening and began by inviting participants to reflect first on their own childhoods. The first thing that emerged was a frequent experience of anger within families. Often that cycle was repeated with their own children. The discussion was animated and at times emotions ran high. 

When asked what attracted participants to attend, most said they were “looking for answers” or “seeking solutions”. When asked why they were so engaged in the conversation, several answered “someone is listening”, “I realized I have something to offer”, “I feel I’m not alone.”

 

Waddy offered spiritual reflections on our divine parent, and gave a guided commentary to return us to a spirit of innocence.

 

Click here for detailed report with photos.

 

 

 

40th Anniversary of Serving the USA celebrated with Sr Shivani at Anubhuti Retreat Center

16 July 2016

Brahma Kumaris Celebrated their 40^th Anniversary serving the USA with Sister Shivani. Three large events were hosted at the Anubhuti Retreat Center in California by Sister Chandru, Celebrating 40 years of Service in the USA with Sister Shivani. There was a public event on Friday, June 15, called ‘Awakening: Gift of Happiness’ with Sr. Shivani. On Saturday, June 16, a speacial morning Celebration with Sr.Mohini, Regional Coordinator of the Americas, including many Instrument souls who attended and are responsible for bringing the message of Love and Peace across the country. Many friends, contacts and special guests who have served along with the Brahma Kumaris over the decades also attended. Events continued in the evening with a series of talks by Sr. Shivani and Sr. Mohini where hundreds of listeners attended from the Bay Area. Topics included 'Gift of Happiness’ and ‘Love & Forgiveness'. Please enjoy the photo album. Om Shanti

 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/n32RfttPVbqEiJYk6

 

 

 

Request for Blessings from N. American BKs

13 July 2018

This year marks the 60^th anniversary for Sister Mohini and the 50^th anniversary for Sister Jayanti of their service to Baba’s yagya.  We will be celebrating them both at the BK retreat at Peace Village from Friday, September 27, through Sunday, September 30.    At that time we would like to present them both with a book of blessings, from the hearts of each of you from the USA and Canadian Brahmin family.

 

If you are so moved, please send a separate blessing of no more than 50 words for Sister Jayanti and for Sister Mohini.  We will incorporate these blessings into a gift book to be presented to them during the weekend.  Note:  If your blessing is longer than 50 words, we respectfully will shorten your blessing to the proper length. 

Perhaps when thinking of the blessing you want to write bring an image of them in your mind and try to touch the essense of who they are and what they mean to you.

 

Please send your blessing no later than August 1^st  to Sister Gayatri at Gayatri.naraine@us. brahmakumaris.org.

 

 

 

 

 

Peace Village Regional Retreat Video by Bhavna Behn from Delray Beach, Florida

29 June 2018

Om Shanti,

 

Please enjoy this beautiful video of the Teachers/Regional retreat in Peace Village.

 

The images are beautiful. Baba’s message is inspiring.

Click above image to play the images.

 

Best Wishes,

Bhavna Bhen

 

 

 

Bostons BK Organize Youth Program: "Discover Your Best Self"

29 June 2018

The Boston USA Brahma Kumaris center brought about newness in service by organizing a program for youth at their Inner Space location in Harvard Square. The theme of the program was ‘Discover Your Best Self’.

 

The youth group was comprised of 13 children between the ages of 11-14 years, and they were accompanied by their two teachers, who also participated in the program. The youth were introduced to the concept of positive thinking and thought vibrations.  An exercise of this energy exchange was demonstrated by having them all participate in exchanging different colored stones. This illustrated to them the constant thought vibrations that are being exchanged during their daily interactions. They physically removed the darker colored stones to illustrate the point that they have the ability to remove negative thoughts and keep the positive ones, highlighting their own inner power.

 

They were taught to honor themselves by not comparing and competing with others, but to appreciate their own qualities. An exercise to reinforce this concept was done with them writing out their own unique qualities on a star card and sharing these qualities with the group. The youth were also taught different techniques to use their breath as a calming tool to reduce anxiety in various situations.

 

The feedback received from the teachers on this program was very positive, and they felt that the children were able to discover their best self.

 

Teacher’s remarks “we both loved the visit to Inner Space Harvard Square. You were so welcoming and all the activities you included were very age-appropriate for our students. In addition, the activities complimented very well our student exploration program 'Discover your best self'. Our students were very positive about our visit and found the activities very engaging. Thank you so much for a fun and educational morning at your place.”

 

 

 

 

 

BK Youth Camp and Retreat: Peace Makers at Peace Village, July 1-6

16 June 2018

Please make sure this gets announced to your BK students this weekend,  June 9th and 10th

You are warmly invited to attend our annual BK Youth camp and retreat to be held at Peace Village from Sunday July 1st (arrivals from 5 PM) to Friday July 6th (departures after lunch).

 

This retreat is intended for youth age 13 and up who are listening to murli regularly and following a BK lifestyle with their parent(s). In the past, the youth participants have been hugely inspired to continue on the spiritual path and stay connected.

 

The retreat will include several educational and fun activities relevant to school, college, spiritual, social and family life and will be facilitated by a variety of BK teachers with various backgrounds and experiences. It will be a chance also for rich inter-generational exchange and possible field trips. 

 

Please note that one parent should accompany the youth during their stay so as to tend to their personal well being and learning. This will also be an opportunity for the parent to benefit from karma yoga and spiritual study. 

 

Please register by June 25th with full details of arrival and departure, using the attached form, through your center/ class. Centers and classes to send BK registration form to registration@peacevillageretreat.org and copy to  Sr.Iris of Boston at bkiris.zur@gmail.com. 

 

Also direct all questions to Sr.Iris. 

 

Peace Village Family

 

To download form, click here.

 

 

Happy Fathers Day to Baba - Smile Box created by Sr Chirya of Peace Village

16 June 2018

Click below image to view.

 

 

Brahma Kumaris Florida Service News - May 2018

14 June 2018

May 4: Srs Waddy and Jenna were interviewed for a movie on women and spirituality, being filmed by Anjula for her master’s degree. Her professor at University of Miami (UM), a friend of the Brahma Kumaris through Images & Voices of Hope (IVOH) recommended she contact the center. Coincidentally the young woman had already met Sr Jenna in CA and was delighted to be able to include her in the footage.

 

Spanish Workshop at BK Center - how to be the best mother?

May 6: Sr. Amparo from Medellin, Colombia was the guest facilitator for this spanish workshop held at the BK center. There was a sweet sharing that being a mother is not necessarily defined by a female body and its the presence of spiritual components in aspects of attitude, vision & consciousness, nutrition, education & protection, etc. which attribute to being best for mother's role.

 

Click here for detailed report with more photos.

 

 

 

USA Living Values Education Newsletter, May 2018

8 May 2018

Dear Friends,

      

Happy Spring greetings -- and my apology for the error in the newsletter below. Yes, the LVE Weekend Retreat at Peace Village in Haines Falls, New York is on August 10 through 12 -- not in September!  Let us know if you would like an extra day for the at-risk materials.  I look forward to seeing you!

 

Diane

 

 

Brahma Kumaris Florida Service News - April 2018

1 May 2018

Miami

 

Reporting on #OmShanti project by Kathy

 

April 4: Kathy shared details from Sr. Mohini's webinar about the Om Shanti initiative for the 40+ years of service in the USA. To present unique & distinctive offering of RajaYoga, Peace is being used as an umbrella title and every month will have a specific application from inculcation of peace.

 

While all over the world leadership is becoming more about authority and control ; this project will provide a powerful contrast experimenting with potential of 'peace' via programs at libraries, homes and BK centers throughout the country.

 

Rosa in Peace Village co-facilitating a Spanish Retreat

 

April 6-8: Rosa was part of the retreat facilitating team for "Inner Peace Inner Power" which was attended by 47 Spanish speaking participants from different countries in Latin America.

 

Peace Village Pilgrims for Madhuban Experience Retreat

 

April 13-15: Two pilgrims Meeta & Tej joined the Madhuban Experience Retreat from Miami. It was a precious opportunity to be part of sharings by Sr. Mohini & Sr. Gayatri on the depths of being a humble instrument in the task of renewal. It was a lovely inspiration to be more and more aware that every second we have an opportunity to mend something and also an opportunity to very humbly co-create something with Baba. Some recorded sessions from this retreat are available via livestream - click here.

 

Click here for the full report of the service news.

 

 

 

Service News from Columbia, MO, USA

17 April 2018

Click here for detailed report with photos.

 

 

Brahma Kumaris Florida Service News - March 2018

1 April 2018

Miami

 

"Workplace Meditation" at the new office of NBC - Telemundo:

 

March 8: The NBC Universal - Telemundo enterprise have recently moved to a new 450,000 sqft facility in Miami which will serve as the global headquarters for all their Hispanic business.

 

They have a dedicated "Employee Experience" team who invited the BK Meditation Center to learn & discuss about possibility of facilitating meditation sessions for their employees. Their Co-ordinator Sandy Pinos-Chin shared that they value the importance of meditation for the wellbeing of employees and requested the meditation center for weekly meditation sessions and monthly enlightenment workshops.

 

Meeting was followed by a meditation session where few employees who have been attending meditation at NBC's earlier Coral Gables office also joined. The group reflected on the aspect of "newness" they experienced by moving to this beautiful big new office and also shared about how the new place also brings new challenges which in turn are more opportunities to bring more newness. It was beautiful to see how meditation offers new understanding and increases the thinking capacity to bring more & more newness. The session concluded with beautiful meditation guided by BK Veronica and all acknowledged the power created by this collective meditative awareness.

 

The BK Center is honored to associate and offer the meditation component to this new state-of-the-art broadcast center. This office is also their first prototype which will be adapted in NBC's new upcoming broadcast centers globally.

 

With a lot of excitement and enthusiasm, the weekly meditation sessions began from Mar 27.

 

For full report with photos click here.

 

 

 

Brahma Kumaris Florida Service News - February 2018

1 March 2018

Miami

 

Spanish Workshop:

 

Feb 10: A group of 22 attendees participated in this experiential workshop on the topic of Conociendo mi Mundo Interior in spanish i.e. 'Knowing my inner world' facilitated by Amar. Workshop comprised of understanding of self as soul and its original qualities, guided meditation experiences and special activity where each participant spent time reflecting on their inner world in light of the spiritual qualities and virtues.

 

Workshop - A Time to be Present

 

Feb 18: Soni from Boston spoke about “The Time to be Present” at the Miami Center on World Peace Sunday. An enthusiastic group of 20 souls benefited from this workshop and stayed further for the World Peace Meditation Hour. Some of the main points shared in the workshop are - “This whole thing of being present takes practice to be introverted..but it’s worth it. I am going to invest in myself... want to be by myself...embracing the calm and serenity. As I look at my own journey, I have overcome a lot. Give yourself credit that you will be victorious. That builds faith.”...click here for the reminder of the news with more photos.

 

 

 

Service News from Nashville, Tennesse

28 February 2018

‘INTRODUCTION TO RAJA YOGA’ NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 11 AM- 12.30 PM

 

About 100 people attended the ‘Introduction to Raja Yoga Meditation’ program at the Nashville Sri Ganesha Temple.

 

About 100 people attended the ‘Introduction to Raja Yoga Meditation’ program at the Nashville Sri Ganesha Temple.

 

Both North and South Indians participated in the meditation and discourse given by Sr. Priya, Brahma Kumaris, St Louis. She was invited and hosted by the Nashville Temple for the weekend service programs.

 

Saturday, February 24, 2018
6:00 - 8:00 pm

 

‘How to manage stress’ program at Radha Kirtane’s residence.

About 20 souls attended the program and did meditation.

 

 

St. Louis BK Family Celebrates Maha Shivratri

20 February 2018

 

About 30 souls murli students along with their families and friends of BK’s attended the Shivratri BK program at the St Louis center. The program had video presentation on 12 Jyotirlingams, cultural program by kids, spiritual talk, meditation and brahma bhojan. Some pictures that captured the day’s program are below. Om shanti!

 

Click here for detailed report with photos.

 

 

Maha Shivratri Celebrations in Milipitas, California

13 February 2018

Omshanti and Greetings of Peace from BK Milpitas Family, USA . We had a wonderful Maha Shivratri 

 

Celebrations program on Feb 4th, 2018. Here are few pictures of the event.

Maha Shivratri Cultural Songs Performance - Praising Lord Shiva

Maha Shivratri Cultural Songs Performance - Q&A about Lord Shiva

Skit on Liberation

Talk by Sr.Kusum on "Can Lord Shiva Grant Liberation"

Candle Lighting by Distinguished Guests, included are Jose Esteves (Former Mayor of City of Milpitas), Rishi Kumar (Council Member City of Saratoga), Sr.Kusum and others.

Audience enjoying the Maha Shivratri Program.

Flag Hoisting on Celebration of Maha Shivratri

Enjoying Brahma Bhojan after the program

 

Here are few videos of the event.

 

Talk by Sr.Kusum on "Can Lord Shiva Grant Liberation" - https://youtu.be/JgNcBE3-B0o

 

Flag Hoisting on Celebration of Maha Shivratri - https://youtu.be/qn1hAs53_jE

 

Candle Lighting by Distinguished Guests, included are Jose Esteves (Former Mayor of City of Milpitas), Rishi Kumar (Council Member City of Saratoga), Sr.Kusum and others. - https://youtu.be/xH6XvT4eCNw

 

Maha Shivratri Cultural Songs Performance 

 

Shiv Aapda Haran - https://youtu.be/1YpVYj8yuRg

 

DHOOP Me Kabhi Chhaon Bankar - https://youtu.be/YebihkI_Ux4

 

Sikhaya Tune Jina - https://youtu.be/QGmXP5t5bAc

 

Ae Khuda Tu Bata - https://youtu.be/hvCZDska5aQ

 

Skit on Liberation - https://youtu.be/0NhGMCet1zg

 

Brahma Kumaris Florida Service News - January 2018

9 February 2018

Miami

A Day of Experience

 

Jan 18 : Family loving came together for this Day of Experience to be in silence and yoga. A special video of ancestor souls (from the UK) was shown and all old and new students benefited from the entertaining and simple sharings by the loving ancestor souls. Was a lovely and silent family time in special remembrance of dear Brahma Baba.

 

Meredith at the annual Images and Voices of Hope (IVOH) Trustees meeting in Virginia

Jan 4-7 : The ivoh Board met the new ivoh Executive Director Ilsa Flanagan and many new plans were explored including an innovative new “strengths-based media” program. Media professionals throughout the world will be empowered to tell stories, create films and other media that bring people and communities together, and inspire action that benefits the common Good....click here for detailed report with photos.

 

 

Celebrating Brahma Baba's life - Peace Day Program in Los Angeles

26 January 2018

On January 20^th, the Brahma Kumaris Los Angeles held a special program to share the life story and teachings of Brahma Baba, the founder of Brahma Kumaris. The event was held at the LA center.

 

The event started with meditation and deep silence, brother Dennis from LA welcomed all the guests and provided the event details.

 

Click here for detailed report with additional photos.

 

 

Brahma Kumaris Sacramento 2017 Diary

26 January 2018

Our Center in Sacramento organized events throughout the year. Also we participated in many community events in Sacramento representing Brahmakumaris.

January 2017

The New Year Day was celebrated with full day program for Baba’s children, renewing our commitment towards Baba, it was welcomed with great enthusiasm and happiness and fill our lives, with new memories and blissful events every Thursday and Sunday and World peace meditation during 3rd Sundays and other special speakers and retreats from time to time.

Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration

More than 30 clergy from around the region participated in one of the largest annual gathering of faith leaders to deliver a community-wide blessings.

Sister Hansa with Interfaith leaders for Martin Luther King’s Day in Sacramento

 

Click here for detailed report with photos.