Thought of the day 23/4/2015

At Peace with Time - The Key To Relaxed Living (Part 1) 

To live in freedom you have to live at peace (harmony) with time; live the dimension of time as a creator of time and not a slave of time; live without being either a prisoner or victim of time. To live at peace with time is to live in harmony with nature, beginning with your inner nature. When you plant a sapling today, you cannot accelerate the process so that the next day you have a tree. When it is summer, you cannot make the earth revolve around the sun quicker or slower for winter to arrive before or later. Everything has its rhythm in nature. We have distanced ourselves from the natural rhythm and our accelerated mind exercises pressure, creates stress and causes anxiety. We plan the future, we are stuck in the past and the present escapes us. 

Many worries have to do with how we live time: the past, the present and the future. Worrying about what might happen (future), when the moment has not yet come for it to happen, takes away from us the necessary energy to deal with it when it finally arrives. Living in memories drains our energy; the past already happened and no longer exists, except in our memory. We feed memories, not realizing that emerging the memory in our mind distracts us from the present and weakens us. It is like being a plug that connects to a socket with no current passing through. We lose our energy. We want to relive an experience that already happened, and in the end we feel disappointed, feeling a mental and emotional waste. 

(To be continued tomorrow …)

Soul Sustenance

The Wheel Of Time Turns (Part 6) 

Even today, there are real life recorded instances in nature where metal spoons can be bent and the growth of plants can be influenced positively just by the power of thought, without touching. The process of reproduction in humans of the pure world, explained in yesterday’s message, has not been recorded in history books but evidences of the same are found in the form of references in many of our religious books or shastras. Even in Christianity, it is believed that Jesus Christ was born without any physical contact to virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit of God, that too just about 2000 years ago. That, at a time, when lust had started becoming prevalent in the world and had begun to be seen as natural and existing from the beginning, which was an incorrect perception. Also, the souls coming down from the soul world at that time were not as pure as the ones that descend in the pure world and souls that have descended in the pure world i.e. in the beginning, have also lost their purity after having gone through many lifecycles of birth and death. Approximately 500 years before Christ and after 2500 years of a pure world existence, is the gradual beginning of the impure world. 

When purity is lost, slowly over a period of time, the emotions that are born from purity – peace, love and joy also slowly started reducing in human hearts and human relationships leading to hatred, peacelessness and war in the human state of affairs, which is the story of the next 2500 years. This period of 2500 years is called the dark night of humanity while the first 2500 years is the day. This dark period is the time when humans started disobeying the spiritual laws of karma and lost their way due to a lack of spiritual wisdom. Also, God was remembered a lot in this night and temples, churches and mosques were created as a symbol of this remembrance and to remind man of the higher spiritual parent. It is a wonder of the 5000 year world drama that God descends on Earth only after impurity and sorrow reaches its maximum i.e. when a few years of the 2500 years long night are remaining, approximately 100 years before the 5000 year period is about to end, to perform His task of creating a new world order based of complete purity. 

Message for the day

To receive respect from others comes more with responsibility than as a right. 

Expression: The one who gets respect is the one who becomes worthy of it rather than the one who just expects it. True respect comes from how well a task is done rather than what is done. The more one's speciality is expressed, the more one becomes worthy of respect. 

Experience: When I go on giving my best in whatever is expected of me, I will start receiving respect from those around me. I will then never expect from others but will naturally be able to give respect to all. This further makes me earn their love and regard. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 22/4/2015

Identify The Filters In Your Life 

As there are different types and colour filters on a physical level; on a spiritual level, there are many different types of filters that work in our lives e.g. the jealousy filter, hatred filter, attachment filter, fear filter, greed filter, etc. and many more. Due to these filters, we do not see people and things as they are, but as we are, because the filters are our own self-created ones. If we want to see people and things as they are, we need to check which filters are working most in our lives. Each one of us has different filters working to different extents, depending on our personality e.g. someone might have the jealousy filter working more regularly as compared to the fear filter in his/her life. 

Because of these filters, everything that we see is not only coloured by the colour of the filter we are using at that time, but our look is also biased as we choose what to see, what to give more importance, what to be affected by more, what to let through the filter etc. and what not to. We have and form a deceptive vision of the things and people that surround us inside our minds. And the longer this deformed vision lasts, the more we will convince ourselves that that is the true image of the world, because our filters continue to process new data depending on what they see that make the image stronger. This reinforcing of the incorrect image builds up our database of incorrect beliefs based on different filters and makes them stronger and stronger as we go through our life journey. Beliefs are fixed ways of looking at reality. Thus, the world that we perceive is no longer the real world, but a world created by our own mind. So in a way we become deaf and blind on a spiritual level towards the world. To heal this deafness and blindness, we do not have to remove each filter one after the other, which may become a difficult task; but we have to discover the pure, original internal self and start seeing everything without the filters, based on the pure-self point of view. As a result of that, gradually our incorrect beliefs start dissolving and correct beliefs start setting in based on our clean unfiltered view.

Soul Sustenance

The Wheel Of Time Turns (Part 5) 

God was always a permanent resident of the soul world and a spectator of everything happening below for the first 2500 years of the 5000 year world cycle, when the world was completely pure. Even conception or reproduction or the process which initiates the formation of the birth of a child or offspring in this world is a subtle process and a completely non-lustful process although the actual process of the creation of the baby inside the mother’s womb is very much a physical one. Non-lustful processes of reproduction or conception without the physical union of two genders exist even in the present world in a few animals, plants, fish, birds, insects and lesser developed organisms. 

The method can be compared to the theory of psychosomatic illnesses, wherein the thought patterns of the mind, whether positive or negative have a beneficial or harmful effect respectively on the recovery of the illness which exists inside the physical body of a human, which is an example of the non-physical influencing the physical. In the same way, the non-physical technique of reproduction is a meeting of pure thoughts between the two parents i.e. the male and the female, wherein both carry a powerful and positive thought to bring the new creation or baby in the world, which causes the sanskaras of the new child to become like the sanskaras of the two parents on a non-physical level. On looking at the makeup of the systems in the present human body, one might wonder that this is impossible. But, an important point to note is that the systems of the body have evolved (changed) from what they were 5000 years ago. The five elements of nature which make up the physical body and its systems have also changed and become more impure as compared to what they were around 5000 years ago, resulting in a rise in physical illnesses or ailments. Physical body processes, related to the systems, have also changed and gone down in their purity levels. Also, the power of thought in the pure world, where extremely pure souls that have just come down from the soul world is immense which can influence nature much more than our thoughts today. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message for the day

Greatness lies in revealing one's own speciality. 

Expression: Greatness means recognising one's own speciality and being a donor with it. It also means being royal and great in what is given to the mind - that means giving the mind only the positive. When there is greatness in this way there is speciality and uniqueness seen in every act of mine. 

Experience: When I am able to perceive my inner greatness, I am able to be content because there are no expectations, but there's only a feeling of being a giver. I find myself to be light and easy and enjoying each moment of my life, slowly moving towards perfection. I am also able to attain the blessings and good wishes from others. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 21/4/2015

If you live in a shared space, you might find that often the issue that creates tension is housework.  

But like it or not, household chores need to be done.  So try to divide the chores fairly & agree on who does what around the house.

Keep in mind that everyone does things differently & has different cleanliness standards.  

So relax your expectations & trust each other to get on with the chores.  And when someone neglects to do their bit, give a friendly reminder, lend a hand if you can or communicate without nagging.  

Soul Sustenance

The Wheel Of Time Turns (Part 4) 

God has been remembered all over the world as the Ocean of Knowledge. That does not mean He knows everyone’s heart and the minutest detail of each human being’s thinking. But, He has in Him the complete knowledge of world events which took place throughout the world cycle, although He is a player on the planet Earth for a very short period of time and He does not see the events of the complete cycle with physical eyes because He is a resident of the soul world for most of the time. He gives the knowledge of these events of the world cycle in a nutshell (brief) when He incarnates on the Earth at the end of the world cycle. This is a wonder of nature and His unique role. Also He knows the activity of all human souls, on the planet Earth, as human beings in different phases, as they slowly descended number wise on Earth from the soul world, the other souls being in the soul world up above the sun, moon and physical stars – the soul stars, the non-physical beings of consciousness or living beings of light which shined in the pure realm (world) of soft golden red light, a world which we call paramdham or shantidham or nirvandham in Hindi and soul world or incorporeal world in English. 

God has also in Him stored the knowledge of each soul in the soul world, when it left the soul world to play its part through the physical body on the planet Earth below and the different roles it played on Earth. Souls start leaving the soul world at the beginning of the 5000 year repetitive cycle. As time progresses, the soul world starts emptying. God plays the role of creator or transformer at the end of one cycle and before the beginning of the next cycle by filling souls of all species with the seven primary virtues of peace, joy, love, bliss, purity, power and spiritual wisdom or truth, when all souls have arrived on planet Earth and have reached a state of impurity; which brings them back to their original purity levels and gives birth to the new cycle. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message for the day

The method to finish a weakness is to be detached from it. 

Expression: When there is some weakness working within that has to be overcome, it is very essential for one to get detached from it, that means not to identify with the weakness. If there is an identification with the weakness, it is further strengthened and there is the inability to get rid of it. Since it is there in the consciousness, it is visible in the words and actions too. 

Experience: When I am free from the identification with the weakness, I am able to bring about a change very quickly. I find it very easy to stabilise myself in the awareness of my strength and allow that strength to be revealed in all my words and actions. There is no heaviness of the weakness nor is there the feeling of having to give up something, but transformation takes place very easily. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 20/4/2015

To Be Aware But Not Judgmental 

On the path of Raja Yoga meditation (as taught by the Brahma Kumaris) there is a saying, "See, but don't see! Hear, but don't hear!" which means to remain aware of all realities, including the negative, but not to focus on them. We get caught up in the negative because we react and the reactions are expressed in the form of judgement, accusations, criticism, or labeling. As soon as we judge or criticise, we put everything into convenient boxes and, just as convenience foods are not always so healthy, such conveniences at the mental and attitudinal level are a great danger, because we mentally seal (close) the fate (destiny) of the person or situation: they are like this and so must be treated accordingly. Unfortunately, this is often done in an unconscious way, which is why Raja Yoga meditation is used to bring such attitudes and behaviours to the surface, conscious awareness. 

When our vision and attitude remain judgmental or critical, they do so because there is no input of positivity from the self to encourage or allow a positive change. 

There cannot be a positive output when there is a negative input. 

We often work in this way, wanting others to be better in some way, but, instead of helping them, or having faith in them and seeing their good qualities, we hinder (obstruct) them by concentrating on their past, their weaknesses and their mistakes. Our focus is completely negative, but still we expect them to change for the better! 

When our awareness is more detached, rather than focusing on what is wrong, we look at how we can put something right by contributing a positive feeling, or attitude. This anonymous (not known to anyone) contribution is a generous act, which offers a solution, instead of the usual complaints by critical and judgmental people. 

Soul Sustenance

The Wheel Of Time Turns (Part 3) 

As per the laws created by science, human existence has been limited to a one birth affair because the concept of the subtle (non-physical) and eternal (it is never created or destroyed) soul has been put into the category of spiritualism by science, although there is nothing spiritual about living a soul conscious existence; it is a basic reality of living, in fact living in the right spirit, we would call it per se (exactly). Science and spirituality contradict each other and have opposing beliefs and laws on which they work. Science, in the field of human existence, works on the Big Bang theory and Darwin’s theory of evolution and spirituality works on the wisdom or knowledge given by the Supreme seed of the human world tree, whom we commonly called God. God is not an imagination but a player in the world drama just like human souls and souls of other species. He is not a theoretical concept but our Father with whom, many of us, under the influence of the science minded, have cut off our subtle connection and again put him into the category of spirituality and religion. Is God more of a Father of the religious minded and spiritually inclined and less of a Father or not a Father of the followers of science, who have questioned his role of the creator (explained in yesterday’s message)? 

Every soul on this planet, belonging to any species of life, has a fixed part of certain number of births in bodies of different genders, names, physical looks and roles, which it plays in one rotation of the wheel of time or one round of the circle of time. The total part of a fixed number of births is repeated in every circle of time. Souls of one species do not take the bodies of other species, since the souls of each species have their own unique characteristics or sanskaras and do not possess the characteristics or sanskaras of the other species. One complete round of the circle of time, as revealed by God, takes 5000 years and the circle of time keeps getting played repeatedly. That is why we commonly say the universe is billions of years old. The true fact is that the universe is eternal and it has not been created by God, although God plays the role of creator in the universe when the world is in disorder, by bringing it back in order. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message for the day

The one with zeal and enthusiasm is constantly tireless. 

Expression: Zeal and enthusiasm brings the willingness to move forward under all circumstances. Never are there are any excuses given, whatever the difficult situations or challenges that one might be faced with. Instead whatever has to be done is done without any tiredness. Also the best is made out of all situations. 

Experience: When I am able to be enthusiastic under all circumstances, I am able to be tireless. This tirelessness gives me the courage to move on and experience constant success. I become aware of my own resources and make the best use of them. So I also experience internal progress, constantly. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 19/4/2015

Concentration has been described as holding the mind to one thought so that it takes the shape of that thought. 

Raja Yoga meditation (as taught by the Brahma Kumaris) means to collect together the scattered forces of one's thoughts, establish them in the real self and then connect with the Supreme Soul. Initially when a practitioner begins to practice Raja Yoga, it can be difficult to concentrate the mind on the self and God for more than a few seconds, because thoughts are easily distracted. This happens naturally. During the initial attempts, the moments of concentration are bound to be few, short and erratic, but even a single moment of concentration is extremely valuable because it gives a taste of that inner bliss which sustains further concentration. This should be treated as a period of test and trial. 

Negative sanskars will come to the surface. Thoughts of one's physical identity and burdens will create hurdles. Any attempt to drive them out will merely encourage them more intensely. The practitioner should take it cheerfully and transform the interfering thoughts by thinking about positive points of spiritual knowledge. When the mind experiences a flow of powerful, pure thoughts, then the pure experience of the soul's qualities is possible. Some meditation practitioners try to forcibly create a mental void by driving out all thoughts in an attempt to control the negative and excessive ones. Such a mental vacuum is only temporary and expels the good thoughts also along with the bad ones. Pure thoughts are nourishment for the soul which leads to a practical meditation experience.

Soul Sustenance

The Wheel Of Time Turns (Part 2) 

Time, we thought, was a straight line, with a beginning and probably an end which we don’t know exactly when. The Big Bang theory gave time a beginning, when the universe began. Time in fact is a circle, without a beginning or an end i.e. it is eternal. Also, the universe not only includes nature but also human souls and souls of other species, all of which are eternal i.e. they are never created or destroyed, but they do undergo change. God, who is also a part of the universe, is eternal but He is the only one who does not undergo change. Not only you but everyone, whether a child or a grown up believed that time had a beginning and God is an imagination, with no role to play in the creation of the world as per the scientific principles taught in schools, which we grew up with at the back of our heads. These scientific principles were primarily the Big Bang theory and Darwin’s theory of evolution. We lived believing that our ancestors were apes never questioning the credibility of these theories and where they had gone wrong. 

God, who smiled all this while, as He was given the status of a man created concept by the supporters of these theories, since God is the creator of the world was forgotten. God, the Father of all of humanity, purifies and transforms human souls, souls of other species as well as nature, once on the wheel or circle of time, each time the time wheel turns completely and reaches the point of disorder in terms of divine qualities, and nature becomes destructive. This process is commonly called creation of the world and this process keeps the wheel spinning. He does not create humans and nature out of nothing but gives souls of all species, which are eternal, a new life or rejuvenates them when they came down in virtues and powers and become impure and he also brings nature’s elements in order. This process of transformation is the act of creation performed by God, the Father of each of the more than 7 billion human souls of the world once on the circle or wheel of time and this wheel of time keeps turning again and again, without a beginning or end. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message for the day

True courage brings benefit to the self as well as to others. 

Expression: When there is fear, there is some kind of danger, either for the self or for others. The one who fears, or the one who doesn't have the courage to accept and face situations, is not able to bring out the best form within himself. Such a person is constantly thinking of excuses and is trying to blame others for the mistakes that happen. 

Experience: With courage, if I am able to take up responsibility for every situation that I am faced with, I am able to be free from worry or tension. I will then be in a position to learn and so I find progress at every step in my life. I find others giving me a lot of good wishes for my sincerity. I also become an inspiration for all others too to bring about a positive change. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 18/4/2015

Memories pop into our minds out of nowhere, bringing with them buried feelings. If it's a happy memory, it gives us a boost. If it's not, it triggers the associated negativity, causing heaviness in our minds.

Reframe the negative memories & free the mind. How? When a memory comes up, accept it & then spotlight the positive. What good came out of this? Did I gain something new, a skill, a friend, an opportunity, a lesson, resilience, confidence?

Reframing takes the sting out of the memory. If reframing doesn't work with certain memories, talk to someone you trust.

Soul Sustenance

The Wheel Of Time Turns (Part 1) 

Remember the sweet bed time stories of your childhood which were narrated to you by your grandmother which got you off to sleep, her soft hands on your forehead and on your closed eyes. What did the story say to you? What was the message it conveyed? What was so nice about the story that you even saw the story in your mind’s eye when you slept i.e. in your dreams, which you used to call childishly – sweet dreams? The dream was a world full of happiness like Alice In Wonderland that you must have read and fantasized about many a times as a child. But Alice’s land of wonder was an imagination of its author, which brought fun in many a children’s lives. 

God, who is the author of the world creation i.e. the One who has seen the wheel of time turn right from eternity and who is the divine eye which resides in the soul world up above all the galaxies of our universe and sees the world and has in Himself recorded the good as well as the negative events of the world, once wondered to Himself that what makes me God in this complete universe and what differentiates me from the humans – this particular characteristic – He knows the accurate history and geography of the world, not what we read in story books and history books but the correct chain of events as they happened without a single mistake. Mistakes did occur when history was recorded due to the limitations of the methods used in recording the history and the methods used in calculating the ages of artifacts that were found down the history lane at different points of time. Mistakes kept getting multiplied as they rode over assumptions and errors of the past. Even Darwin’s theory of evolution had its share of false beliefs on which the theory was based. The world built on Darwin’s theory to create further theories, not realizing that even Darwin, in his last days had expressed doubts regarding the evolution theory. His theory questioned the role of God as the creator and stated that man had evolved from apes. Also the Big Bang theory assumed that nothing existed before the universe was created i.e. there was no space, no matter, no energy and no time before the universe was created, which is not possible. Both these theories were challenged by many other scientists and by religion itself, but their theories were not widely accepted which left us with many incorrect beliefs that we continue to carry. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message for the day

True knowledge brings humility. 

Expression: True knowledge inspires and encourages one to bring about a practical change in one's life. The one with knowledge naturally imbibes it, which is also revealed in his practical life. This is because he is humbly willing to learn from all situations. As much as there is knowledge, so much there is divinity and elevatedness revealed in all words and actions. Also such a person keeps learning from all life's situations

Experience: To have the ability to learn from all that life brings is to have love for knowledge. Since I have love for knowledge, I am able to experience self-respect. This self-respect gives me the humility to accept situations and people as they are and keep learning. So whatever the situation or whoever the person I come across, I only find myself enriching myself and moving forward.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 17/4/2015

Sometimes in relationships, you believe that the other person is hurting you because they do not meet your desires, but in such cases how can you know if it is really true? 

Let’s go a step ahead; does the belief that they are going to hurt you influence the situation until in the end it happens? Perhaps they won't hurt you. Your belief that the other is going to hurt you is not so powerful that it will necessarily affect the other person. But it affects you yourself. They may not hurt you at all finally, but you will end up hurt, you will become emotionally ill, even psychically ill sometimes. The symptoms will begin to show themselves and you will say: "Did you see? I feel hurt, I keep telling you so." So your belief caused you to get hurt and not the other. 

The other person isn't you. In relationships, a moment comes when you don't know if it is their fault or yours, if it is their responsibility or yours, if that person has caused the irritation inside you, or if it was you, if that person began the argument or it was you, if they created the conflict or if it was you, because we project (throw) our energies onto each other. All of this drives us to frustration. A lot of power, negative or positive, is needed for a person to be able to influence others with their consciousness, it is easier to influence ourselves. This is a basic principle of human relationships, which we don't understand. We don't understand, and the reason is that we don't see ourselves, because we are always looking at the other, putting the responsibility onto them, blaming them, criticizing them.

Soul Sustenance

The Power Of Concentrated Thought (Part 3) 

Yesterday we had discussed external influences. Some of the internal influences or voices include the influence or voice of: 

selfish or impure desires of name, fame, revenge, greed, remaining in control of a situation or a person or dominating a situation or a person; 
the ego; 
the past; 
our inner conscience; 
pure desires; 
the Supreme Being or God; 
our worries of the present or of the future; 
temporary negative sanskars or personality traits; 
original or inherent positive sanskars or personality traits; 
attachments to people, situations, material objects, etc.; 
jealousy or dislike for a particular person, etc. 

We are exposed to some or all these influences, whether external or internal, all the time. If we are not strong, our mind weakens under so many influences, which as a result, becomes unclear, confused and unfocused. Because of all of this, on the one hand, we need to have good judgment power to remain connected to what is essential, important and true, and on the other hand, you have to strengthen your thought, that is, think less; think more slowly; more concentrated and clearly with focus, a sense of purpose and positivity. That thought is like an arrow; it has positive force and clarity and it always bears powerful fruit. This kind of thought is called concentrated thought. The practice of introversion or meditation for a minute or few minutes at regular intervals during the day helps us remain above all influences and constantly feeds our mind with the power of silence, which helps us remain in this experience of concentrated thought easily. 

Message for the day

To a truly contented and enlightened soul everything in the world, which means the way the world is right now, is just fine. 

To the unenlightened and discontented soul this will sound like a massive avoidance. But think about it. Does the masterful actor go to the theatre for their evening performance, and on entering the stage start shifting the backdrop, altering the scenery and moving the props around? Of course not, they are totally concentrated on the role they need to create and play to the best of their ability. And so it is with the world. The backdrop to our life is the way things are at this moment in time. The props are exactly where they are meant to be at this moment in time. Many people spend their whole lives trying to change the backdrop and move the props around, little realising the futility of the exercise. Yes they may succeed in altering an angle here, a minute part of the picture there. But all at the cost of the focus and the energy needed to put on their best performance. Little did they realise that if they had fully focused on their performance and achieved their own highest standards of excellence, not only would those around them be immensely enriched, but the backdrop and the props of their life would have changed automatically, as the invitations roll in to perform their life elsewhere. Excellence is a much more powerful influence in the world than discontent. So everything is fine out there. No one said it's perfect. But it is exactly the way it should be ...at this moment. So here is the paradox of effective change - if you want to influence change for the better, then the most effective way to begin is with contentment with the way things are. The way things are, are the way things are meant to be!

Thought of the day 16/4/2015

To a truly contented and enlightened soul everything in the world, which means the way the world is right now, is just fine. 

To the unenlightened and discontented soul this will sound like a massive avoidance. But think about it. Does the masterful actor go to the theatre for their evening performance, and on entering the stage start shifting the backdrop, altering the scenery and moving the props around? Of course not, they are totally concentrated on the role they need to create and play to the best of their ability. And so it is with the world. The backdrop to our life is the way things are at this moment in time. The props are exactly where they are meant to be at this moment in time. Many people spend their whole lives trying to change the backdrop and move the props around, little realising the futility of the exercise. Yes they may succeed in altering an angle here, a minute part of the picture there. But all at the cost of the focus and the energy needed to put on their best performance. Little did they realise that if they had fully focused on their performance and achieved their own highest standards of excellence, not only would those around them be immensely enriched, but the backdrop and the props of their life would have changed automatically, as the invitations roll in to perform their life elsewhere. Excellence is a much more powerful influence in the world than discontent. So everything is fine out there. No one said it's perfect. But it is exactly the way it should be ...at this moment. So here is the paradox of effective change - if you want to influence change for the better, then the most effective way to begin is with contentment with the way things are. The way things are, are the way things are meant to be!

Soul Sustenance

The Power Of Concentrated Thought (Part 2) 

One important component that doesn’t let us remain in the healthy and positive experience of concentrated thought is the many different types of influences we are exposed to in our life. There are two different types of influences – external and internal. These influences can also be called voices. Voices from outside as well as inside speak to us. 

External influences or voices are of people whom we come in contact with at home, at the workplace, at school or college, at the club, in the media etc. or elsewhere. These people are those whom we either see as equals or look upto. They could be our friends, our parents, our spouse, our teacher, our guru, our doctor, our neighbor, our colleagues, our boss, actors or sportsmen whom we admire, even the daily newsreaders or writers, etc. We have been exposed to these influences right from the time we were born. The influences from all these people are not necessarily on a physical level, they can also be on a subtle level of mental vibrations from others. We interact with all or some of these people and spend time with them and whenever we do that they advise us or give us their opinion on a physical level and we also listen to their voices on a subtle, emotional energy level e.g. we spend a lot many hours in the office. We may not interact with our boss all the time but his personality is constantly influencing everyone in the office on a subtle level, including us. The office environment is shaped largely by the head of the office. In the same way, we may be taking care that we listen only to the positive voices of the media and we do not listen to the negative ones, but the all pervading negative atmosphere that exists everywhere due to everyone being exposed to the news of violence, sorrow and impurity from the media, definitely influences us on a subtle level, even though we might not realize it. As children, we have been listening to the subtle voices of our parents, even when we were taking shape in our mother’s womb. 

In tomorrow’s message, we shall explain what our different types of internal influences or voices. 

Message for the day

The power of cooperation enables the most difficult task to be successfully done. 

Expression: To have the power of cooperation means to have the ability to see and use the specialities of others in any task that is to be done. It is the ability to respect and use the suggestions and ideas of each and everyone which contributes for the success of the task. So the one who is able to use this power is able to be successful in any task that he takes up. 

Experience: When I am able to give cooperation and take cooperation from those around me, I never experience fear for any task that has to be done, but am able to be at ease, knowing that everything is possible. I am also able to earn the respect of those around me for having made the best use of their specialities, which further facilitates the success of the task. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 15/4/2015

What Should We Value More - The Soul Or The Body? 

When the soul leaves the body, it's not just the body that dies but it's as if all the connections with the world of that individual are simply switched off. Not only the relationships but all specific plans, projects and desires suddenly have no further means (medium) through which they can be expressed or put into practice. The powers of thinking, deciding and the personality traits (sanskaras) connected with the life that is being left behind, stop and get hidden momentarily to emerge again in a new body, a new life. All the material things that belonged to that particular individual are passed on to others. 

It's interesting to note that even when the body is sick it can only be treated when the soul is still present. If we take out the soul no one remains to look after the body. 

On the other hand, the body is a truly marvelous vehicle for the soul to express itself through. No manufactured machine could hope to compete. For example, it is calculated that in just one day, the brain is able to complete a hundred times more connections than the entire telecommunications system of the planet. Or compare the human eye with any manufactured camera or the heart with any manufactured pump. The body's importance cannot be played down or not taken into account.

Soul Sustenance

The Power Of Concentrated Thought (Part 1) 

The thoughts that we create are of different nature, different intensity and their quantity also varies from time to time during a particular day as well as night and also depending on what action we are performing at that particular moment of time or not performing any action at all. They possess immense potential or power, both positive and negative. They can either liberate (or empower) us or limit (weaken) us. This depends on what we think and how much we think. 

The mind tends to jump from one place to another. Many of our thoughts filled with doubts, dejection, fears, insecurity, irritation, worry, comparisons which give rise to emotions like jealousy or inferiority / superiority complexes, desires, un-enthusiasm, etc. are useless thoughts and weaken us. They defocus us and cloud our inner clarity. Sometimes we keep repeating certain type of thoughts inside our mind, we keep going round in circles. Most of the time, these repetitive thoughts are negative or waste in nature related to the emotions mentioned above. Sometimes the repetitive thoughts can be necessary or positive also. Even necessary and positive thoughts, when repeated again and again, turn into the superfluous (excess) or waste. So it’s important to think in a higher, concentrated way – think less and think powerful; such thoughts have a lot of clarity, focus and spiritual force that help us to put them into practice more successfully. A single thought or a series of thoughts can block the capacity to feel content and awakened spiritually and make us sorrowful. On the other hand, a single thought or a series of positive thoughts can be the key to open the door that allows us to access, enjoy and experience the richness of our inner self. But it has to be a pure, strong, clear and concentrated thought or thoughts. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message for the day

Success comes through maintaining self-respect. 

Expression: Where there is self-respect, there is naturally a stable state of mind, even in the most challenging and difficult times. This in turn brings right judgement at all times, which allows discrimination between right and wrong. Right judgement leads to right actions. So there is constant success for such a person. 

Experience: Self-respect is the state of mind where I am able to appreciate my own uniqueness and give regard to myself. When I am able to be in my stage of self-respect, I am able to be stable in all situations. This seat of internal stability keeps me light and easy under all circumstances. I am also able to experience constant success even in the most difficult and challenging times. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 14/4/2015

We have filled the self with a particular quality and it starts flowing out of us. We allow this quality to touch the atmosphere around us and consciously donate this vibration to the world, enabling those in need to feel it and to absorb it. 

This is the ultimate step of a true meditator, often referred to as the lighthouse stage. A lighthouse stands still and stable in one position in the rough sea and beams the light all around so that ships are shown the way. We are able to bring an original quality of the self into our consciousness, fill our self with it and then, very naturally, let it radiate from the mind. 

One of the most important aspects in this the link with the Supreme Energy. We make this link with the Supreme Source, we absorb from that Source, we fill the self from that Source and then donate all that the Source has given us. 

This is called angelic or instrument consciousness. It is said that an angel is a human soul who has fallen so deeply in love with that Source of Light that it has transformed completely. It is totally filled with Light and Peace and its task is only to serve, to share Divine Love and Peace with others.

Soul Sustenance

Unloading Your Pressure Baggage (Part 3) 

Sometimes the pressure we are carrying is related to the situation we are in, sometimes we even carry a pressure of one situation in another situation i.e. it is unrelated pressure. All this continues throughout the day, day after day. What all this pressure does is increase the quantity of thoughts that we carry in our mind, which in turn reduces our efficiency and discriminating and judging power. The words and actions coming out from such a state of mind are improper and lacking in power, conviction and clarity. To ensure that we do not carry pressure baggage on our emotional back, as per our pressure equation (shared in the first message of this series), we need to change the incorrect beliefs that we carry, which are the root cause of our pressure and at the same time increase our ability to bear the different life forces. We carry thoughts that are determined by our belief of what success is and what failure is, what winning is and what losing is. Although we perceive such beliefs to be true, they are not true; they are like a facade that influence our perception of reality and generate in us feelings of pressure. The truth, on the other hand, is deeper than beliefs. 

While meditation will serve as an important tool to increase our inner power to tolerate or resist life forces; spiritual knowledge, understanding and wisdom will serve as an immensely important tool which will help us in correcting our beliefs. So in times of pressure, stopping yourself for a minute and assessing your thoughts, then going backwards, and checking the beliefs which are the root cause of the thoughts at that particular moment and then changing them requires strength and clarity, which we will obtain through the medium of spiritual wisdom. Once the beliefs are corrected, the thought patterns will change. Thoughts like: Maybe I won't arrive on time or If I don't finish this assignment successfully, I will lose my next promotion or If I lose my money in this financial investment, my family will stop appreciating me etc.which we create all the time - will be replaced by more positive thoughts of security, fearlessness, patience, peace, faith, determination, certainty etc. 

Message for the day

To be elevated is to perform every task with understanding. 

Expression: To understand means to know what to do. So the one who understands and performs the task with this understanding surely performs only elevated tasks. No task is negative, or waste. Nor are actions ordinary, but each and every action is special because there is clear understanding. Others too get inspiration from such actions. 

Experience: When there is clear understanding of what I have to do, I am able to do what is right. So in this process, I find that there is a lot of time and energy saved and I am able to move forward very easily. I find that I am able to use my speciality in the right way bringing benefit to myself and others. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 13/4/2015

We all want to be understood.  But when we're not, we feel hurt, frustrated, ignored....  So how about, shifting from being understood to understanding?

Understand that we don't always understand each other.  Understand that we're different in our abilities to understand each other.  And that's OK.

Approach others with understanding and you open the door to being understood.

Soul Sustenance

Unloading Your Pressure Baggage (Part 2) 

Can we experience freedom only when there is an absence of outside pressure? We feel pressured from many sides. At work, we feel the pressure to do tasks as per fixed guidelines of set systems and within boundaries of time, of keeping up our performance as per others’ expectations and as good as our compatriots. In relationships, we feel the pressure of experiencing success in them, of satisfying others and gaining respect from them. In studies, we feel the pressure of having to excel in them, not only because that is instrumental in building our future but because of the desire to be seen in a positive light by others. We feel the pressure of having to earn more and more wealth to satisfy the necessities, comforts and luxuries of the family and to maintain a certain image in society. In the face of problems, we feel pressure when we are not able to solve them quickly or in the way that we want. Failure or its fear, in any sphere of life, generates pressure in us. Sometimes we experience pressure because the mind is not functioning as per our desires or directions or we are not able to transform our negative personality to a positive one as much as we want. When we believe that something harmful can happen if we don't reach our set objectives on time or in a certain manner, we feel pressured. Physical illnesses or their fear can also create pressure for some of us. 

And so life turns into an endless amount of pressure crests, like speed breakers that appear one after the other, unsettling us and not giving us time to relax. When we feel pressured, it seems that the life forces rule our life and we do not feel free. In the long-term, this repetitive habit of creating feelings of pressure and carrying such baggage ends up leaving us exhausted on an emotional and spiritual level. 

(To be continued tomorrow…)