Thought of the day 30.6.2016

Developing Good Habits

Develop the habit of getting up early and sitting in silence. Read a peaceful thought and reflect on it. Write down some ideas about this thought. Return to silence, allowing these ideas to take root inside you. Share your ideas with a person close to you. This practice will help you accept and cope with conflicts and difficult situations. It will help you stay happy and peaceful for the rest of the day.

Soul Sustenance

The Art Of Living (Part 3) 

Our mind, body, wealth and relationships are four out of five aspects of each one of our lives and all of us intend to make them successful. It is natural to desire that our mind be content and peaceful, our body be healthy and we earn wealth without facing any obstacles and also our relationships our beautiful. But all of these desires will only get fulfilled if along with taking care of all of them, we include God at every step of our lives. You might ask what has God got to do with my physical wealth or my job? But remember it is your healthy and pleasant mind which influences your physical body positively and makes you healthy and a powerful mind cannot be experienced constantly without a loveful relationship with God. In the same way, without God’s help, we may be able to run our jobs for some time but the journey may be stressful and the money earned may not give to us a lot of happiness. Also, what use is a beautiful relationship if God is not there to share the happiness of that relationship with? A lovely parent or a child for e.g. is a result of our good actions of past lives. So shouldn’t I include God in this happiness? God is like a parent Himself who deserves to be told each and every little thing that I experience in a worldly relationship. By doing this, relationships will be positive and peaceful continuously. 

Sometimes, we start to think that God is just a concept and not a reality. But rememberGod is a beautiful living energy with a heart and all that we have to do is love Him with a pure heart and He will fill our life with happiness and make all the different aspects of our lives, which we have discussed, full of success and our lives will become an inspiration for others. 

Message of the day

To be a well wisher means to think of changing first. 

Expression:Being a well wisher just doesn't mean wishing others well. It also means having good wishes for the self and having the pure desire to bring about a change for the better in the self. So whatever the kind of situations, instead of just judging others and what they need to change, the one who is a well-wisher constantly brings about transformation in the self. 

Experience: For having worked on myself under all circumstances and having used every situation as a chance for self-progress, I constantly enjoy every thing that comes my way. I have no expectations, but just think of benefit for others and myself. I then never find any situation to be an obstacle, but use it as a step for progress. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 29.6.2016

Communication

In prayer you communicate with God, in meditation God communicates with you.

Soul Sustenance

The Art Of Living (Part 2) 

A very important and the fourth pillar of life that we all depend on so much is ourpersonal and professional relationships and interactions which give us strength and are also a medium of give and take. We give peace, love and happiness and get blessings in return. They say that all the people who surround you and make up your life play an important role in shaping up your personality and success filled relationships are a source of immense joy for each one of us. 

The fifth and most important aspect of our lives is God, who makes our life beautiful and our mind, body, wealth and relationships are shaped positively by remembering Him. God does not give us our minds but teaches us how to make our minds beautiful by connecting our minds with His. Also, our physical costume or the precious vehicle, when used in the way God wants us to use it, makes our actions filled with divinity and purity. Even our wealth and the way we use it gets affected positively when we earn it by making God our constant companion and giving Him due respect by keeping a small amount aside from our profits, for the service of people and their betterment. And lastly our relationships can never be successful without including God in them. What that means is that I take from God and share with others. I connect others with Him. These five different aspects of our life define our life. All are important in their own way and how good we are in handling all of them makes us happy and content.These different aspects or pillars are the foundation of our lives and all of them are connected with each other. Even if one pillar is weak, it affects our lives in a negative way. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

The ones who are constantly happy are truly fortunate.  Expression:Whatever the kind of situations needed to be faced, whoever the people and the different kind of personalities they come into contact with, the ones who are fortunate constantly enjoy. They also continue to take benefit and bring benefit to others too. Their fortune lies in their ability to perceive the positive aspect in everything and take benefit accordingly. Experience: When I am able to be happy under all circumstances, I am able to make the best use of whatever I have with me. I then find myself full of all resources. I don't think of what I don't have but I am aware of and make the best use of what I have. So I find myself to be always lucky. I constantly move forward. In Spiritual Service, Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 28.6.2016

Change Skill

There is nothing more certain than that the world will continue to change. Accepting and not resisting this, is the first and most important inner skill in this frenetically changing, modern world. Life tests us every day to see how well we have developed this ability. Equally, there is nothing more real than the inner space within each of us that never ever changes. We may change our thoughts, our feelings, even our sense of who we are, but we fail to visit the unchanging centre of our own self. The ability to be in this inner space, where our peace is found, when all around would prefer chaos and crisis, is the deepest spiritual change skill. It is the eye of the storm, it is the oasis in the desert, it is the place where peace is power. Call in today. You'll be surprised how much it can influence and change everything and everyone around you!

Soul Sustenance

The Art Of Living (Part 1) 

A very significant and beautiful intention that all of us carry inside our minds is of making our lives full of plenty of joy in every sphere that is connected to us e.g. If our relationships lack love then the first thing that comes to our mind is to make ourselves so nice as a person so that people around us respect us and we receive love from them and life becomes fulfilling by doing that. Remember there are five beautiful aspects of our lives that need to be made perfect in every way. One is our physical costume or body which we need to take care of in every way including our health and physical personality which helps us in achieving life’s purpose through it. Spirituality helps us in making proper use of our body for achieving our purpose. This is called karma yoga or the art of performing day-to-day karmas in the remembrance of God for making the actions successful. 

Another aspect is our mind which is also like a temple in which we need to always have pure thoughts and feelings as well as emotions. Our mind is the place where our entire life originates and everything we do on a physical level first takes place in our mind. Remember the negatives and the positives will at times exist in our minds but it is the extent of both which matters. The negative needs to be minimal and the positive needs to be as much as possible. Also, our wealth is a third aspect of our lives, which needless to say, is important in its own way and life would be incomplete without it. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

Faith in one's progress brings contentment. 

Thought to Ponder:Even when the situation is not according to what is expected, there is contentment for the one who has faith in his own progress. Such a person will not just sit back waiting for things to change nor will he just curse his fate. Instead he'll do his best and use all his resources in bettering the situation. 

Point to Practice: The understanding that all life's situations are a training for me, automatically keeps me content in all situations. There is naturally an experience of constant progress and a feeling of having gained something from all situations. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 27.6.2016

Friends and Relatives

If my friends and relatives do not choose to accompany me on my spiritual path, why should I chase after them trying to get them to change? They won't listen to me anyway, no matter what I say. A better approach is to focus on my own change process. A river doesn't need to urge people into drinking its water. People are naturally drawn to it, provided its waters are pure, free flowing and sweet. In the same way become so attractive through your spiritual efforts that everyone will want to join you naturally.

Soul Sustenance

Serving Through Silence 

In meditation you connect to the experience of silence in which both the mind and the heart are calmed. The mental chatter or noise stops. A gentle flow of slow, clear, transparent and peaceful thought is produced. The organs of the senses and the body are calmed and your emotions become peaceful. In this state you can listen to the voice of your conscience, the voice that guides you. That way you awaken the divine intuition. On listening to that voice, you are strengthened. In this way you start to align your life with your purpose, with what you really want. You begin to have more determination to carry out the things that you really want to do, without fear preventing it. 

With meditation you learn to love the silence. A tender, beautiful and sweet silence. That way you value each word more, given that to not lose that experience of the sweet silence, you try to talk less, to speak with sweetness and gentleness. When you generate the love and pleasure in going to the silence, it helps you express the best of yourself. To help others, sometimes it is better not to speak, not to use words; to use the vibration of your thoughts and good feelings that emerge from that state of silence. That way you will enter the hearts that are trapped in darkness. Those hearts are in darkness, they have lost hope, and they are hurt, wounded, discouraged. From your silence you transmit to them the light with which they can find a way out. To receive it, they have to be willing. But if their time has not yet come, at least they will know that there are people willing to help from a silence that does not judge, does not complain. A silence that accepts, appreciates and loves, generating an atmosphere in which one can be oneself and feel free to change at their own speed, without feeling forced, but rather from understanding and love.

Message of the day

To recognize my own uniqueness is to bring beauty to all I do. 

Thought to Ponder:Each one is unique and special and so am I. when I recognise the beauty of who I am, and what I can contribute, I will be able to appreciate myself. This is not ego, but it is talking positively to the self, encouraging and motivating to discover further specialties. When I learn to appreciate myself, I will also have the humility to learn from everything that happens in life. 

Point to Practice: Today I will appreciate myself. I believe I am like a jewel. No matter where I am, whether in a box or in a gold ornament, my worth remains the same. So, today I will recognize my own worth and make time to appreciate it in all I do. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 26.6.2016

See only Virtues and Specialties

An ant is tiny beside an elephant but as soon as an ant enters the ear of an elephant it goes crazy. The elephant’s ears are so big, the elephant itself is so big and yet a tiny ant makes it go wild. In the same way, if I allow the slightest defamation of anyone go through my ears, I lose all my spirituality. I lose all my value because I start interacting with others on the basis of what I have heard about them. Pay attention to this! We have to be very, very selective in what we allow to enter our ears. Let me learn to see only virtues and specialities. Let me not concentrate on anyone’s weaknesses.

Soul Sustenance

The Art Of Forgetting In Relationships 

Sometimes, someone says something in two minutes that makes you feel really bad - they said it in two minutes but it is still there inside the register of your mind two months or even two years later. How could they! Who do they think they are! Something happened in two minutes and you remember it, you repeat it again in your mind and in your words during interactions with others. You keep replaying the scene repeatedly in your mind. Just like an action replay of a cricket match, you see the replays from different angles and judge the scene in many different and negative ways and come to different conclusions, most of which are negative in nature. With this you strengthen that experience in your mental register. Memories and the experiences associated with the memories replayed continuously in the conscious mind enter your sub-conscious, so that even after a long period of time you remember what they said to you. The other person unburdened themselves and forgot it straightaway. 

It's like your neighbour who takes out rubbish, throws it outside his house, into your compound and forgets about it and you allow that rubbish to remain there, without thinking of getting it cleaned. Someone throws a few words at you and they forget, but not only do you not forget but you repeat them in your mind to such a point that at times these action replays do not even let you sleep. We need to learn the art of forgetting memories that generate shadows of hurt or pain in our present. The past has already gone and what you have now is the present moment. 

Message of the day

To celebrate achievements is to get the motivation to do more. 

Thought to Ponder:Normally, we expect great achievements from ourselves or from what life offers. As soon as we sow a seed, we expect instant fruits. In fact, that is not possible. We need to first celebrate small little achievements, which will of course lead us to bigger things. But, first it is important to acknowledge those little steps and appreciate them. Then, I will be able to enjoy the journey of life. 

Point to Practice: Today I will move forward. Whatever is my aim, I will make effort to go one step closer to it. Today I will do something to take me closer. Not only that, I will also watch with detachment and see the beauty of my journey and the milestones I have already achieved. So, today I will take the inspiration to keep moving forward. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 25.6.2016

Knowing My Self

Only in relationship can you know yourself, not in abstraction and certainly not in isolation. The movement of behaviour is the sure guide to yourself, it's the mirror of your consciousness; this mirror will reveal its content, the images, the attachments, the fears, the loneliness, the joy and sorrow. Poverty lies in running away from this, either in its sublimations or its identities.

Soul Sustenance

Experiencing Spiritual Growth Through Group Interactions (Part 2) 

As explained in yesterday's message, if you are living in isolation you don't become aware of the dimensions of your ego and, therefore, you cannot overcome it. 

Also, the beauty of group interactions or being a part of a spiritual community or any other group, is that in groups, various powers like the power to: 
- adapt and mould oneself with people of different personality traits and as different situations in the group demand; 
- tolerate; 
- face negative situations in interactions; 
- forgive and forget; 
- become a detached observer of situations and people's actions, not to get over involved, in order to maintain one's stability and calmness; 
- co-operate; 
- communicate; 
- see and absorb only specialties of each one (inspite of obvious weaknesses being visible) and spreading the specialties (not weaknesses) to the others in the group, by way of praising and not criticizing them; 
- listen, understand and empathize; 
- discriminate and judge different situations and people; 
- go into inner silence, whenever required, amidst the actions and interactions of group activity; 
- show respect to each one and remain in self-respect; 
- remain content or satisfied and make the others content; etc. 

are absolutely necessary to experience success in the groups, either within the relationships with others or even with the self. There is a difference between experiencing success with the self while staying alone and within a group. By bringing the above powers into practice in a group, they increase further inside us. This does not happen in isolation, or if it does, then the extent is quite limited. So basically, being a part of a group, brings about greater spiritual growth and empowerment. 

Message of the day

To check accurately and change instantly is the method to win over weaknesses. 

Thought to Ponder:In any given situation, if I am having negative thoughts, it means I need to bring about a change in some way. So, I need to check accurately, what in me needs to be changed to see things in a positive way. Once, I do this checking, I also need to work on bringing about a change instantly. That is how I move progressively towards removing my weaknesses. 

Point to Practice: Today I will look within and see what is the real cause of my weaknesses. The source could be jealousy, inferior feelings, comparisions, dominance or any other weakness. So, today I am going to find out what aspect in me people are not comfortable with. And today I am going to work on changing that. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 24.6.2016

Crown of Light

There is a crown of light on those who are carefree. If you are worrying about anything you carry the baskets of burden on your head. Which do you prefer? Do you prefer the basket or the crown of light?

Soul Sustenance

Experiencing Spiritual Growth Through Group Interactions (Part 1) 

Anyone who is inclined towards growing spiritually will sooner or later feel the need to taking up a particular spiritual path, which provides him/her with an assigned code of leading a spiritual life and helps him/her to incorporate it in his/her life. This also means becoming a part of a spiritual group or gathering or community and participating in spiritual study, practice like meditation or prayer and perform service along with the group. But, on the other hand, there are also many spiritually motivated people who are not very interested in groups and communities and keep a distance from them. They are of the opinion that it is easier to work it out alone by collecting information from other alternate sources by books, the internet, the television, videos, etc. and progress spiritually. But the relationship between spiritual growth and being a part of or participating in a group is clear. 

For the isolated and solitary person, growth is limited, since the personality is not activated to the same extent as when it interacts with others. In relationships and in living together, the various forms of hidden ego and the different shades of the personality, positive as well as negative, are stimulated, creating the possibility of being more aware and conscious about them, bringing about greater growth and spiritual development. After all, one of the main objectives of spiritual development is achieving victory over the ego and becoming soul conscious, getting rid of the negative shades of the personality and further enhancing the positive traits and skills, so that they can be used for benefiting the self and others. 

Tomorrow we shall explain the various powers that are required to experience success in groups, which as a result, get enhanced in group activities and interactions. 

Message of the day

To be a giver is to understand others' needs and give accordingly. 

Thought to Ponder:When there is a conflict, it is easy to expect from others. But, the other person too is expecting from us. Instead, it is important to make an attempt to understand what the other person needs and provide accordingly. For this, I need to be full too. So, I need to ensure that I constantly recharge myself and replenish my inner treasures. 

Point to Practice: Today I will contribute. Whatever is missing, that's what I choose to contribute. If someone is lacking peace, because of which he is shouting, I need to contribute peace. I don't depend on the external situation to get what I have to but I delve within and find what I have to. This helps me contribute what is required. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 23.6.2016

Members of a Great Family

Values are related to each other as if they were members of a great family. From peace and happiness emerges inner joy. From this state of wholeness love awakens and with is the desire to share and give . Two of its relatives are tolerance and respect. All values have a shared origin which unites them - the peace of spirituality. When you lose peace you begin to lose everything.

Soul Sustenance

Connecting To The Qualities Of Others 

Meditation adds immense value and depth to my relationships. It also brings closeness in them. Many obstacles and barriers, both on a physical as well as a subtle level, come between me and others when my consciousness and as a result, my perception are struck primarily in the physical dimension. If I hardly know five to ten per cent of myself, and that too mostly on the surface, my relationships are going to be similarly superficial. With my self-respect built on very weak foundations, it will tend to be delicate and I'll be prone to trying to maintain it by thinking about and focusing my energies on others' weaknesses, sometimes real and sometimes even imagined. I'll also find it hard to realize and appreciate their qualities. Such is the state of so many human relationships today. 

In meditation, I go into the depths of myself, and deep within my inner being, I find the beauty of peace, love and happiness that is there inside me. I also realize that this same beauty lies inside each soul. Then naturally and very easily, without any effort, I get connected to the same qualities in others. I also find the strength to do the same. I am no longer judgmental seeing others’ temporary sanskaras of negativity. I find qualities that are basically there inside every soul: the original qualities or sanskaras of each spiritual being. It’s like a basic prototype for the whole of humanity, which I deeply see and realize. 

Message of the day

To appreciate all scenes of life is to remain happy and cheerful. 

Thought to Ponder:Every scene in my life has a reason and I need to appreciate that reason. Each scene is an opportunity to express my inherent talent (some quality of mine). If I do not use that quality which I need to use in that scene and slip into some negativity, I have lost the opportunity to act out well in that scene and missed out the joy of my role in the scene. So, I need to ensure that I enjoy every scene of life beautifully. 

Point to Practice: Today I will remain happy. Happiness is a choice and I choose to be happy. Everything that is happening has a reason - I understand and appreciate that reason. So, whatever happens, I choose happiness. I understand that there is no meaning in all that I do, if I don't do it with happiness. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 22.6.2016

Something Worthwhile

Transform regrets into realisations and therefore ensure that what could become waste is made into something worthwhile.

Soul Sustenance

Connecting To The Qualities Of Others 

Meditation adds immense value and depth to my relationships. It also brings closeness in them. Many obstacles and barriers, both on a physical as well as a subtle level, come between me and others when my consciousness and as a result, my perception are struck primarily in the physical dimension. If I hardly know five to ten per cent of myself, and that too mostly on the surface, my relationships are going to be similarly superficial. With my self-respect built on very weak foundations, it will tend to be delicate and I'll be prone to trying to maintain it by thinking about and focusing my energies on others' weaknesses, sometimes real and sometimes even imagined. I'll also find it hard to realize and appreciate their qualities. Such is the state of so many human relationships today. 

In meditation, I go into the depths of myself, and deep within my inner being, I find the beauty of peace, love and happiness that is there inside me. I also realize that this same beauty lies inside each soul. Then naturally and very easily, without any effort, I get connected to the same qualities in others. I also find the strength to do the same. I am no longer judgmental seeing others’ temporary sanskaras of negativity. I find qualities that are basically there inside every soul: the original qualities or sanskaras of each spiritual being. It’s like a basic prototype for the whole of humanity, which I deeply see and realize. 

Message of the day

To appreciate all scenes of life is to remain happy and cheerful. 

Thought to Ponder:Every scene in my life has a reason and I need to appreciate that reason. Each scene is an opportunity to express my inherent talent (some quality of mine). If I do not use that quality which I need to use in that scene and slip into some negativity, I have lost the opportunity to act out well in that scene and missed out the joy of my role in the scene. So, I need to ensure that I enjoy every scene of life beautifully. 

Point to Practice: Today I will remain happy. Happiness is a choice and I choose to be happy. Everything that is happening has a reason - I understand and appreciate that reason. So, whatever happens, I choose happiness. I understand that there is no meaning in all that I do, if I don't do it with happiness. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 21.6.2016

The Secret Ingredient

When we're cooking, our minds are working. When we're stirring and rolling and baking, we're thinking. Thinking creates vibrations because that's what thoughts do. The vibrations affect both the food and the people who eat the food. So, cook with care; pay attention to what you are thinking; and don't forget that in the best of recipes, love is the secret ingredient.

Soul Sustenance

Making The Journey With The Right Realization 

It’s so easy to become caught up in my physical role - my name, physical personality and looks; the social setup or family I’ve been born into, my friend circle, the school I went to, the person I married, the organization in which I work, the various material objects I own or possess. I forget my true identity, the spiritual being, and that it is me, the spirit or soul, who is experiencing life through this physical body and surrounding circumstances. The physical, human side is essential, but it’s the spirit, the being, the energy, which makes the journey. The physical body is the vehicle through which the journey is made. The people who exist in my life are also energies making their journeys through their respective vehicles. Looking at myself and others, when I realize who is making the journey and I remember this and maintain this spiritual consciousness throughout the day, I'm able to access spiritual treasures of peace, of power, of love and joy and see the same in others. It is because of not remaining in this remembrance; I remember and identify with the vehicle and experience my false identity. That is why we find ourselves empty of these treasures today. As a result there is a tremendous increase in interest in meditation throughout the world. Unlike in the past when this interest was seen primarily in the East, today relaxation and meditation is a blooming industry in the Western countries. 

The more I become trapped by a materialistic consciousness, and the more I lose contact with my inner self, the less freedom I experience. The search of happiness through the physical senses brings temporary, short-lived gains. My life lacks depth when the only things I know, realize and feel are related to the loads of information I receive from the physical sense organs, and I become disconnected from the spiritual dimension. 

Message of the day

To look at positive in people is to relate to them well. 

Thought to Ponder:Seeing positive in people earns me multiple benefit. One, I will be able to keep my mind free from negativity. Two, for having seen the positive side of people, I will be able to encourage them to use that aspect of theirs when in interaction with me. Three, I will also be able to earn their good wishes as I am relating to them positively under all circumstances. 

Point to Practice: Today I will only have good wishes for everyone I meet. I will take a good thought for everyone dear to me and also for the ones I come into contact with. For today, I will not think negative about anyone. If the thought does come, I will postpone it. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 20.6.2016

Give Up the Habit of Worrying

As we grow in strength in our spiritual life, we give up the habit of worrying. It serves no purpose other than to make us feel tense and miserable. When I stop fretting about things that are beyond my control and focus instead on generating optimistic and kind thoughts, my life can begin to flow in ever more positive directions. Such a light and easy approach to life enables me to take everything in my stride.

Soul Sustenance

A Journey To Happiness Or A Journey Of Happiness (Part 3)? 

It is said that the power of love can move mountains. We need to look at resources like love that exist in the universe, in our relationships which can uplift our spirits and reduce the tightness that exists due to unfinished tasks and objectives. It is said that any type of intoxication can reduce our stresses and make us optimistic in times of distress. Love is one such type of intoxication and here love can range from the love between two friends to that between a mother and her fledgling (young) child. Love can also be spiritual i.e. the love experienced from a strong relationship with a deity or God. For some even love for the self, nurtured by giving time to an art, music, a sport, a good book, a hobby or a meditation, can be energizing and liberating. For another set of people, love for a figure head who may be a politician, an entertainer, a sportsman or an actor can be an uplifting power. 

So instead of becoming subservient (under the influence of) to time, instead of saying that time will tell and time will heal, let’s use the power of love to remain satisfied to the core in the present. Life is full of so many beautiful relationships (a few mentioned in this message) and the different shades of love that each relationship provides. By emerging these different shades of love in our consciousness at different types depending on the situation scenario, the clouds of unfulfilled expectations or expectations that are to be fulfilled sometime in the future (but uncertainty regarding them exists); will disappear. A roller-coaster life ride full of the rises of will happens and the falls of will not happenswill get replaced by a smooth train ride in which you constantly experience the breeze of satisfaction and joy to the fullest. So do tap the power of love and enjoy every moment without losing focus of your aspirations (goals). This is the method of experiencing true happiness and this is our experience here at the Brahma Kumaris. So do give it a try! 

Message of the day

To have the right understanding is to have the ability to finish the past. 

Thought to Ponder:What happened in the past continues to bother me, unless I make an attempt to resolve it. When I bring understanding to the incident, I am able to finish the pain of the past. That means I need to learn something from it, or see some benefit that has come from it. Either way, once I resolve, I would find myself moving forward with lightness, without the burden from the past. 

Point to Practice: Today I will resolve one thing of the past that is bothering me. I will take some time and try and bring meaning to what happened. There is surely something that it was trying to teach, if I am open to learning. So, today I will get to the bottom of the situation and take the learning. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 19.6.2016

Space for God

The best solutions to problems will not be the result of hard thinking. Use your time better by creating peaceful thoughts, and problems will cease to affect you. Do not try to solve everything on your own. Leave some space for God to come and help you.

Soul Sustenance

A Journey To Happiness Or A Journey Of Happiness (Part 2)? 

It is worth wondering that obstacles on the life journey can be temporary obstructions in our achievements, but not obstructions in our happiness. Only then the journey of life will be a journey of happiness and not a journey to happiness. One of the most important ways of remaining happy during the journey with many challenges co-existing at the same time is increasing the wealth of our thinking. The right type of thinking will make us happy even if there are unfinished tasks or goals or life events which we are keenly anticipating to get over. Raise the bar of your thinking on a challenging day and see how rich and full you feel internally which will make you pure happinessconscious and not challenge conscious and also not date conscious, the date when the challenge will be overcome which you cannot wait to see unfold in front of your eyes. The source of rich thinking is a choice for you to make which we will not thrust upon you but do make a good selection and feed that source every day to your mind before leaving for work or starting any day-long activity which keeps you occupied. 

Also, have you heard the story of the woodcutter who used to work very hard the whole day but used to not cut much by the end of the day without realizing the reason for the same. This went on for many days until one fine day someone suggested to him that why don’t you sharpen your axe? He did that and his tiring days got over. Likewise we go on and on the whole day in search of different life purposes without ever sparing a thought that our axe which is our strengths, specialties and skills, needs to be sharpened. Not a single day should pass without experiencing our strengths, positives and special personality traits including our unique talents. You might wonder how we will experience these? The path is simple – by bringing them into the playing field of practical action. This will not only make you fuller, but along with that, both - the practical application of these unique positives inside you and the pure happiness due to the high self-esteem experienced will pave the path for the faster fulfillment of your ambitions. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

To accept advice is to ensure self-progress.

Expression:The natural state of the self is to ensure progress. Everything that is done by the self is for its progress. But the one who rejects advice rejects the progress of the self. To accept advice means to take the chance for whatever benefit that comes my way. 

Experience: When someone corrects me or gives me an advice or suggestion, if I accept it in the right spirit, I'll constantly learn from it. This will enable me to experience constant progress. I am also naturally able to give regard to everyone I come into contact with and remain in constant happiness. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 18.6.2016

Think First

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Whatever I do, when all is said and done, I do for or to myself. Perhaps I should think before I perform actions because after the seed of action is sown I have to reap the fruit. Moreover, I do not receive only one fruit for every seed sown, I often get a whole crop, good or bad according to the action or seed.

Soul Sustenance

A Journey To Happiness Or A Journey Of Happiness (Part 1)? 

A commonly expressed misnomer (an inaccurate expression), in our everyday interactions is – Wait till I achieve this particular goal, whether it be a promotion, success in a particular exam, marriage, retirement, a birth of a child or an end of a nerve wrecking (tight) situation and I will be happy. Why are all of these misnomers? Aren’t these all life is all about? Isn’t calling all of these misnomers unnatural? Try remembering a single moment in your life without these and you will be left wondering. In this message, we try and convince our readers the futility (worthlessness) of waiting for goals to be achieved and then becoming happy. So we argue is it a journey to happiness or is it a journey of happiness? The wait for happiness is futile because one goal is followed by another challenge; the challenge is followed by another unexpected phase, leaving us without any moments to experience our desired happiness amidst so many uncomfortable pressure points. 

Happiness can be defined as a state of being created, while working towards a goal, not a feeling to be experienced after achieving the goal, simply because life is a journey with a series of goals, sometimes one after the other and sometimes with two or even more than two goals co-existing with each other. So should one anxiously wait for the goals to be achieved or should one take the wait for goals to be achieved, in one’s stride accepting it as a part and parcel of our life journey. For very long, we have associated happiness with achievement and this has become an integral part of our modern day belief system, as the speed of life has become faster and more challenging with each day. We suggest a change in this ideology and associate happiness withexperiencing each day –creative ideas; experiencing strengths, specialties and skills by bringing them in action and also experiencing beautiful relationships with others; the relationship with the self; and love by sharing and receiving it from others.

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

Humility enables one to serve others.

Expression:The one who is humble is the one who is complete and full. So just like a tree which is laden with fruit, bowing down and offering all it has humbly, the one who is full is ready for service. He is available for others to take benefit from whatever resources are there with him. This humility earns respect from others and gives happiness to all.

Experience: When I am able to bow down with the awareness of what I have, I am fully in the stage of my self-respect. the more I am able to bow, the more others also bow down with regard to me and respect my fortune. This enables me to be a giver to those around me and experience contentment - constantly.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Message of the day

Humility enables one to serve others.

Expression:The one who is humble is the one who is complete and full. So just like a tree which is laden with fruit, bowing down and offering all it has humbly, the one who is full is ready for service. He is available for others to take benefit from whatever resources are there with him. This humility earns respect from others and gives happiness to all.

Experience: When I am able to bow down with the awareness of what I have, I am fully in the stage of my self-respect. the more I am able to bow, the more others also bow down with regard to me and respect my fortune. This enables me to be a giver to those around me and experience contentment - constantly.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 17.6.2016

Peace

Peace is not a passive attitude; it is an active state. It requires having constant attention in order to live and to respond as a peaceful being to any upset in life.

Soul Sustenance

The Soul Journey 

A common question asked by many is – Do we go back to the soul world, the incorporeal world (non-physical world), the home of all souls, when we die?
When we understand and experience ourselves as souls, as un-destroyable, eternal beings, we realize that death is only a physical phenomenon. At the death of the body, the soul enters another physical costume and a new chapter in its journey of life begins. Depending on the soul's karmaperformed through the body, its new birth is likely to be somewhere in the company of those souls with whom it has been close in previous births. It is quite a paradox that when a soul leaves a body, the relations which it has left, mourn over the loss of their loved one, and the new relations which it gets attached to celebrate with happiness, over an addition of a new-born entrant in their family. 

The soul only leaves the home (the soul world) once in a unique, personal journey. This journey of the soul is not linear i.e. a straight line, with a beginning and an end. But, on the other hand, it is cyclic i.e. a circle, with neither a beginning, nor an end – although both leaving the soul world and going back to the soul world happen once each in every cycle. This soul journey can be compared to actors who leave home to go to the theatre to play their parts. They change costumes between scenes - they don't return home at the end of each scene, they return home when the play is finished, only to return the next day to repeat their part in the play. Each birth of the soul that it takes can be compared to a new scene of the play, which consists of many different scenes.

Message of the day

A single step of courage brings a lot of progress. 

Expression:The understanding that one can do a lot and reach great heights, enables one to take courageously a step forward. With each step taken with courage, there is a hundred-fold help received. Also courage means to understand the accurate method of achieving things. When there is this kind of courage, there is a lot of progress in whatever is being done.

Experience: The aim to achieve the best enables me to have the courage to take a step forward in all situations. So I am able to be light yet powerful under all circumstances. Because I also find myself receiving help, I am able to further increase my own courage. There is nothing to stop me, but I continue to experience progress, in both the positive and negative situations of life.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 16.6 2016

Harmony

Love dissolves hate;

Kindness melts cruelty;

Compassion calms passion;

Cooperation evokes love and when we bow, others bend;

This creates harmony.

Soul Sustenance

The Gender Of God 

In a large number of religious traditions, all over the world, God is always referred to as a male entity. But, just as the soul does not have a gender and is neither masculine nor feminine, God’s i.e. the Supreme Soul’s gender is neither male nor female specifically. Therefore, as a soul, a spiritual child of God, I can come close to God without any inhibitions or difficulty, which I may experience in any relationship in the physical world, due to the gender of the body I am occupying. 

We need to take a look at the Supreme Being or God closely. The Supreme Being is theSupreme Mother who provides spiritual sustenance and whose love is full of unconditional acceptance. No matter what has happened, how my nature or personality may be, I experience unconditional acceptance from God. It's a love that strengthens me, as well as it purifies me. At the same time, God is also the Supreme Father, a very powerful entity, who provides protection and fills the soul with the inheritance of divine qualities and powers. It's a question of just being an innocent child and claiming that inheritance. These are the first two relationships that have to be experienced with God. The Supreme is a balance of being feminine, having the qualities of caring, giving and full of good wishes and masculine at the same time, having the qualities of power, authority andfearlessness. He is She and She is He. These two relationships with God, whereby God plays both the roles of both parents are the basis of my spiritual development. Spirituality introduces to us the concept of taking a new spiritual birth to the Supreme Father and Mother. This birth is based on a change of consciousness. One needs to let go of the negative, impure and sorrowful past and develop a new consciousness, based on the present introduction to spirituality, which is positive, pure and blissful. The awareness of the self as a soul changes my way of looking at things immensely, but the consciousness of being a child of God, who is the Mother as well as the Father and seeing others with that vision brings respect and love for myself. Then all these qualities start showing in my actions and interactions as well. 

Message of the day

Love for positivity brings progress. 

Expression:When I have love for positivity, I will not be able to have negative thoughts for a long time. I will naturally put in effort, both internally and externally to come back to positivity. So this positivity spreads around to others too and serves in creating a positive environment. 

Experience: Because of my love for positivity, I begin to enjoy creating and maintaining positive thoughts. When there is experience of positivity within, there is the natural desire to sustain it. Then no negative thoughts or feelings are encouraged. Slowly I find myself being only positive. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 15.6.2016

Healing

I gently return to equilibrium, nurtured by a well spring of love. I, the soul, am washed and soothed by the quiet energies of stillness. Embracing the vastness of my inner landscape, I understand the cycles of growth and decay. Today I will fix something broken, or find a new use for it.

Soul Sustenance

The Beauty Of Giving (Part 3) 

A personality of giving comes natural to some people and for some it is the most difficult thing to do. There are people who live only for others. Every single moment they give to others what they require. It’s not about only donating wealth and clothes or food for that matter. That is a different subject of service. We will not discuss that in this message. But here we talk about giving love and happiness to each and everyone you meet. It can become the most beautiful intention of your life. Love in the form of sweet words and warm gestures that make people happy. Even if you have a problem in your life which you are facing since a few days, keep giving during that time. It will ease your problems. You can actually spend many years of your life serving each one with these two qualities – love and happiness. 

Also, other qualities which people would like from you are peace and power. Today, the world is lacking these two qualities immensely. Peace in every individual’s life can be given to them by remaining silent yourself. Silence does not mean talking less only but also remaining free of any unnecessary thoughts which are not important at a particular point of time i.e. they are irrelevant. Such a person with fewer number of thoughts will automatically transmit the energy of peace to others. Also, people today are lacking emotional strength and they weaken under life’s pressures very easily. Are you ready to be the one who can stand as a pillar of strength for others by being powerful yourself? So take up this responsibility and deepen your spiritual personality i.e. make yourself full of spiritual treasures. Become a giver. 

Message of the day

Life's situations are a game for the one who is prepared to face challenges. 

Expression:For the one who is a skilled player, every situation, however challenging it may be, seems like a game. Even the most difficult situation is faced bravely, knowing that it has come to teach something and increase the skill Wiggins . So such a person becomes a source of support to those around during difficult times. 

Experience: When I am aware of my own skills and specialities, I am able to face all life's situations with lightness and confidence. I enjoy everything that comes my way. I also am able to experience progress as I use all situations as a means for further increasing my own potential. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris