Thought of the day 27.4.2017

Contentment

The more positive the thoughts flowing through my mind, the more contented I will feel. It is easy to feel contented when we are praised and appreciated but to remain contented when we are being criticized and rejected is the mark of real spiritual strength. The way to develop this level of strength is to learn about God's way of loving. Only when I am in deep contemplation can I see God showing me the kind of love I need to express so that I myself never reject or criticize and always generate good wishes for others. Then I will feel satisfied no matter what life throws at me.

Soul Sustenance

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 …) 

Message of the day

To have focus on the self is to become praise-worthy. 

Projection:I normally try to do things for others - to seek their recognition or appreciation. So I am busy trying to prove myself to others as being special and different. I then am not able to appreciate my own inner qualities. 

Solution: Instead of trying to prove things to others and trying to get their appreciation (which I don't always get anyway), I need to focus on myself. I need to make my actions such that I am proud of myself. This will automatically bring speciality in my actions and I become praise-worthy. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 26.4.2017

Letting Go of Sorrow

If I allow bitterness and resentment to fester inside, it will make my relationships guarded and unsatisfying. The more I close down to others, the more I become a stranger to myself. By letting go of sorrow and negativity, I can keep my nature open and loving. Remaining open to life, with its constant adventures and opportunities to grow, is the only way to reach my full potential.

Soul Sustenance

The Invisible Support System Of Life (Part 3) 

The most important and primary influence on our relationships and making them full of love and happiness is of our own mental state. Very often, we talk very positively with people or act very sweetly with people but our mind is full of emotions like jealousy, revenge, hatred and even doubt, suspicion and insecurity. This can harm our relationships immensely and make them internally weak. Sometimes the effects of these hidden emotions don’t show up very soon but they keep harming the relationships internally, without us realizing it. So, a mind which is always light and transmitting the energy of sweetness as a form of love, contentment as a form of joy and calmness as a form of peace, gets the same energy back in all its relationships. This makes relationships full of success and free of obstacles that arise primarily from different personalities and different view-points. 

Lastly, all of us live our life in this world and we play different roles. One person will play different roles of father, son, husband, brother, engineer etc. in one’s life and all these roles require different qualities and powers as well as skills and attitudes. The more the mind is calm and stable and an embodiment of the three primary virtues of peace, love and joy, the more it is focused and positive. As a result, it can not only choose the right qualities for every role but also implement them in action. Also, the mind saves a lot of its energy and can remain powerful in every situation when it is charged with positive thoughts full of these three virtues. The more powerful the mind is, the more it can take right decisions and discriminate between right and wrong easily, which is the primary key to success. So, roles benefit immensely, under the influence of the mind.

Message of the day

To be powerful means to be stable and unchanging inspite of the changing situations.

Projection:My moods and feelings normally change according to the changing times. If things are going on well, I have a positive state of mind, or else I am not able to maintain my own positivity. So I am actually dependent on the environment for my own state of mind and so I sometimes tend to feel powerless.

Solution: I need to remind myself that I am the master of my own thoughts. I definitely have no control over the situation, but I do have control over my own thoughts. The more I am able to maintain my own positivity, the more it is easy for me, with my positive state of mind, to change the situation to a positive direction.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 25.4.2017

Creating Thoughts of Benefit

Acts of virtue emerge from deep within, from an inner sanctuary of silence from which inspiration flows. Every action has its seed in a thought and every thought is a creation of the thinker, the soul. I choose what thoughts I want to create and as is my thinking so are my actions and also my experience in life. Going within, I touch the stillness and pure love that lie at the core of my being and every thought that I create is of benefit to myself and of benefit to humanity.

Soul Sustenance

The Invisible Support System Of Life (Part 2) 

The mind is the basis of all existence. Nature, which is made up of five elements is eternal, but it undergoes change from good to bad, from positive to negative. The mind possesses the power to transform nature positively and also can negatively influence nature if it is negative. Every cell of the body is influenced by each and every thought that we create. It is said that our mind is constantly talking to each cell of our body. We are, at every moment, giving a positive or negative message, through our thoughts, to our body and all its systems which are made up of these billions of cells. The message is positive if our mind is full of peace, love and happiness and the message is negative if it’s the opposite. The mind possesses immense power to heal the body just by creating good thoughts and it can also increase the intensity of physical illnesses or create illnesses by creating negative and toxic thoughts. 

Also, the more the mind always radiates peace, love and joy to everyone around, the more the different mediums in your life which are responsible to bring you physical wealth, become positive. E.g. a positive mind will attract positive circumstances and appropriate people, which will help you in earning more money. Many a times it’s about the right opportunities and they need to come to you at the right time, from the right people. Sometimes people call it luck, but it’s more a direct result of the energy we radiate to the universe and the more positive this energy is, the more the universe will give back to you in many positive ways. So, always think, speak and act positive and you will create positive circumstances in your life, of gaining financially. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

Constant effort gives an experience of constant success. 

Projection:I usually expect the same kind of results constantly. Although the effort that I put in is not so constant, I expect good results always. Yet I do not find it happening all the time. When I do not get the desired results, at that time I don't remember that it is my lack of effort which brought me poor results. 

Solution: The only way to experience constant good results is to put in effort constantly. Whether the situations are bad, or even if I do not get any encouragement from others, I need to go on giving my best. Only with this will I be able to experience constant success. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 24.4.2017

Let Be

Many of us spend most of our life trying to live someone else's life. We are great fixers, and as we watch others we can hear ourselves attempting to 'sort them out'. We hear it in our conversations with others and with ourselves. It sounds like, "They shouldn't...weren't they awful...did you hear about so and so...in my opinion they should".

In these moments we waste time trying to write the script of others and forget to write our own. We have no right to write another's script and any attempt to do so is futile, frustrating and doomed to failure.

So let be, and taste the freedom from the subtle tensions and anxieties about others by letting them write their own script. Don't miss your life by trying to live someone else's.

Soul Sustenance

The Invisible Support System Of Life (Part 1) 

Our lives on a physical level, at every step, are based on an invisible spiritual support system. Can you imagine life without peace, love and happiness? These are our basic spiritual qualities of the soul. Once upon a time, a king of a little kingdom was asked, how fulfilled is your kingdom? He thought of the different aspects of life and how fulfilled they were, like health, wealth, relationships and roles. He was asked, how healthy is your kingdom? He thought of physical health and the magnitude of illnesses in the people of his kingdom and replied that all was not well. Then, he thought about how financially well-off his kingdom was and replied there was a little poverty existing in the kingdom. He also thought of relationships and roles, and realized that there was sorrow in relationships and some people were not satisfied with their roles and jobs they had. The king realized soon that to make his kingdom, healthy, wealthy and happy in all respects, was a difficult task but did not know where to start. 

Just like the king and his kingdom, health, wealth, relationships and roles in the whole world are all physical aspects but to make each of them positive and free of obstacles, we need to look at the invisible spiritual support system of peace, love and happiness. The more all of us become full of these three qualities by making ourselves full of positivity and strength, the more the different aspects of life will be full of success. We know the mind’s health influences physical health and the mind’s fulfillment attracts physical wealth. Also, the mind’s goodness makes relationships beautiful and the mind’s focus and clarity makes our roles free from problems. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

Sweet words are those that bring only benefit. 

Projection:When I hear something interesting or unusual, I tend to repeat it to others. I repeat it to a lot of people who have no concern with it. I also add up a lot of things and make it an interesting story for others. But, in reality, these words bring no benefit for others. 

Solution: Whatever words I speak, I need to check if they are bringing benefit to anyone. I need to speak only if there is likely to be any benefit. When I have attention on this aspect, others will experience sweetness through my words. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 23.4.2017

Let God

Whether you believe in God or not is not important. Belief can be an obstacle to experience. The main thing is to keep an open mind, and be willing to start the conversation. The experience of so many people is that when they engage in a mental conversation, whether it's with a question or simply sharing what is in their heart, they get a reply. This is God as a personal experience, not just a voice in your head. Not your higher self, but the presence of the Source in your life. God is not a concept, or a belief. You cannot have a conversation with a concept. You cannot have a meaningful relationship with a belief. Worth a try? Dear God.....

Soul Sustenance

Bringing The Consciousness Back In Shape 

If we try and find the root causes of all forms of stress, we would find that both lazy and wrong thinking lie behind various stressful emotions. No one right from our childhood to when we are grown-ups puts this into our heads that we are each responsible for our own thoughts and feelings. Instead we are taught that others are responsible for what we think and feel. No one teaches us how to think. We are taught what to think in terms of knowledge of the world, but not how to shape our own thoughts and feelings. 

In spirituality the self gets the required training to create positive and powerful thoughts, thoughts: 

1. which are connected to true spiritual knowledge of the self, 2. which are beneficial to your own spiritual well-being, 3. that inject positive energy in the form of happiness, love and enthusiasm to those around you, 4. which are absolutely necessary in the context in which you find yourself, 5. which use all your subtle energies in an economical way, 6. which ensure that the result of any response you may create does not result in stress. 

When no one teaches us that any mental or emotional discomfort comes from within our own consciousness, we also do not ever realize that any negative state of being is unnatural and a sign that our consciousness is out of shape. The above thought training helps us to return our consciousness to its true, natural and original shape. 

Message of the day

To constantly think of benefit is to be carefree. 

Projection:When something goes wrong, it is very natural for me to think of the negative aspect. I experience negative feelings and as I continue think about it, I tend to feel more and more heavy in my mind. This does not let me be light either in my daily activities or in my interactions with others. 

Solution: There is surely something positive in everything that happens. I need to make conscious effort to see positivity in everything that happens. This habit helps me be carefree even when something unexpected or unwanted happens. Even if I cannot see the positive aspect at that moment, I need to maintain the faith that whatever has happened is for the best. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 22.4.2017

Silence

There is a part of you that is perfect and pure. It is untouched by the less that perfect characteristics you've acquired by living in a less than perfect world.

It is filled with divine qualities, so is in a constant state of resourcefulness and well-being. Its total absence of conflict and negativity of any sort makes this part of you a Still-Point - a deep, enriching experience of Silence.

Soul Sustenance

Negative Reactions To Negative Actions 

We very commonly react negatively with anger to another person’s anger filled words or actions, which we perceive to be unjustified or unreasonable. But this kind of action on our part, which we feel is our right and is a justified reaction or response, only adds to the negative energy already existing inside a particular situation, increasing the energy and making the situation even more complicated and difficult to resolve. Two negatives never make a positive, they make a higher negative, to which a very high positive has to be added (as compared to before) to bring the situation back to neutral or normal. Also, when you react, you are doing exactly what you believe the other person, the attacker, is doing – injuring someone on an emotional level, which is a form of subtle violence. 

Lastly and very importantly, the other person’s negative and impulsive behavior, directed at you, portrays that at that particular moment he/she is experiencing an emptiness or void of wisdom, joy, peace, love and power, a void which he/she believes you have created and can only be re-filled by you. The anger filled action is a desire directed towards you, for this filling up. Hidden behind his/her anger is the feeling - Because of this person, I have lost my happiness at this particular moment and he/she should give it back to me immediately, which means that the other person is lacking the realization that no other person is ever responsible for your happiness. You are, always. Instead of switching on the awareness of this spiritual fact and emerging the value of forgiveness inside yourself, forgiveness because the other person is lacking this wisdom at that moment of time, you react, which makes you similar to him possessing a similar belief, something which you will definitely not appreciate too much. But, what happens is that the emotional storm inside you at that moment hides your ability to see how you are yourself injuring your spiritual heart. While you are in that emotional state, there is no way you can heal the wounds of the other’s heart i.e. correct the other person. 

Message of the day

The art of listening enables me to become a support for those around me. 

Projection:When I hear something negative about someone, I usually get influenced by it. Inspite of the fact that I may not have had any negative experience myself, I still tend to get influenced negatively. This brings about a change in my attitude and behaviour towards that person. 

Solution: I need to learn the art of listening which enables me to respond in the right way. When someone describes something which involves the negativity of another person, instead of getting influenced by it, I need to understand his feelings and emotions at that time. When I do this I will be able to provide support to him without adding my own negativity to it. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 21.4.2017

Circumstances are like objects. They are not alive; you bring life to them.

The positive is more powerful than the negative. The positive is innate. The negative indicates what is missing inside you. Light exists and its absence is darkness.

Never forget you are a human being who can decide the attitude you take in life. You have an enormous positive inner potential still to be discovered.

These thoughts will help you face any circumstance in life with a different perspective.

Soul Sustenance

Understanding The Process Of Birth And Death 

When the body has become unserviceable due to age or disease, or it suffers a fatal injury, the soul leaves the body. At the moment of death, the soul withdraws its energy from the organs of the body and vacates its seat in the middle of the forehead. Like a bird, it leaves the cage made of skin and bones, and taking its sanskaras, it enters into another, a new body, in the womb of the new mother. From the very birth, the sanskaras of a soul are apparent (visible); whether the new-born baby is happy, unbothered, sad, shy, mischievous, quiet, violent or agitated. 

Death occurs at the precise moment when the account of giving and taking with other souls through a particular body is finished. The new birth is determined by the soul's account of karmas with another set of souls. One may be born into a cultured, wealthy family, another as a beggar, one may be born deaf, dumb, blind or crippled, another with a strong supple body. The type of body and the conditions of birth are determined by the thoughts and actions performed in the previous births. 

Message of the day

The importance of work is by its quality and not by its quantity. 

Projection:When I want to work well I think of putting in a lot of effort in terms of quantity. I try and fit in as much as possible in one day, yet I do not find as much satisfaction as I should by the end of the day. 

Solution: I need to concentrate more on the quality of work I do rather than thinking about how much I do. Each action of mine should be with a value and should never be just ordinary. When I concentrate on this, I can contribute for quality work. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 20.4.2017

React Positively

Our first reaction to a difficult situation is often negative. There is a tendency to be carried away in a storm of negative thoughts. Such thoughts are of no use and lead us further from the solution.

Thinking one positive thought everyday helps me to maintain stability. Constant practice will help me remain stable even in the most difficult circumstances.

Soul Sustenance

Self Empowerment 

Make a list of your strengths and weaknesses. Now make up a series of questions, which will judge how effectively you are using these strengths to improve your personal and professional life, and what negative effects are your weaknesses (shortcomings) having on the same. These are some of the questions that you can ask yourself at the end of each week to monitor your self-progress: 

e.g. Which strengths if acquired would help me improve my worth (value) at the workplace? Is any weakness of mine proving to be an obstacle (barrier) in maintaining a healthy relationship with my family? Am I using my strengths in empowering (strengthening) others? Does any weakness exist inside me, which if removed would improve my level of contentment (satisfaction) and lead to greater peace of mind? 

Note down three main strengths and three important roles that you play in your life. Now check if your strengths properly match the roles. If they do not match, think if there is a new personality characteristic you need to develop. If a particular role is self-selected, if it does not match your strengths, is it a good role for you to be playing? 

Message of the day

The one who has the power of truth is the one who can tolerate.

Projection:When someone disbelieves me I usually tend to argue back and try to prove my point to the others but find that I am not able to convince them. Yet I find that the more I talk the less I am listened to. And I only end up getting frustrated. 

Solution: When someone challenges the truth of my words, I need to check within myself if there is something that I can correct or learn. When I learn to do this, instead of being stubborn with what I have to say or blaming others, I find it easy to tolerate. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 19.4.2017

Staying Peaceful

Desires cause peace to disappear. You think that acquiring things will make you feel secure, but the reality is that the more you have the more fear there usually is of losing it, and the further you are from peace. Desires are the cause of all conflicts. When you want something and cannot get it you become frustrated.

Learning to be free from desires is learning how to stay peaceful.

Soul Sustenance

On A Spiritual Joyride (Part 6) 

When we begin our spiritual journey, we should ensure that we don’t work on ourselves strictly. On the other hand, we should change ourselves with ease and lightness which gives us an experience of joy and does not let us get tired while making the effort to change ourselves. While looking at your weaknesses, do not feel disheartened that why they exist. Bringing about changes in your behavior and thinking is important but not at the cost of losing your happiness while doing that. Happiness is lost when there is sometimes loss of hope and doubts whether we will be able to succeed in changing ourselves or not, exist. In such cases, it is wise to be extremely patient and keep traveling on the path of self-change with determination and happiness, without getting tired. 

Also, a spiritual path is one in which there are different types of negative scenes in the form of difficult situations. These situations try to prevent us from experiencing fulfillment and even try to prevent us from fulfilling our life’s aim of making ourselves perfect. Even in such cases, a spiritual joyride is one we have to experience because we have to accept that spirituality does not mean that there will be no difficult problems on our path. Only the power to cross the problems will increase inside us, which will make it easier for us as compared to before. Also, stress which is a common response to a difficult situation will be changed to contentment and life will no longer seem as difficult as before inspite of all the negative scenes. This in short is a description of how living a spiritual life is the easiest and most enjoyable type of journey one could undertake for shaping up a new you and also inspiring others with that inner change. 

Message of the day

To understand others is to harmonize well with them.

Projection:Usually I expect others to have the same level of qualities or understanding as I have. I am not able to accept or understand the other person's behaviour or words if they are different. I thus form an attitude towards the person and am not able to get along well with him.

Solution: I need to recognize the fact that like the notes of music we are all different. Only when we can harmonize together can we create a beautiful tune. When I remember this I will not expect the other person to change according to me but will learn to understand and blend my personality with his.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 18.4.2017

Co-operate with good wishes and pure feelings

The best way to co-operate is to use the energy of the mind to create good wishes and pure feelings towards others and for the success of a task. When I co-operate with others in this way, I will receive their co-operation when I need it most.

Soul Sustenance

On A Spiritual Joyride (Part 5) 

Life without the love of God is like a tree without leaves. Love fills our life with enthusiasm and a lot of energy and we feel motivated to achieve in every sphere of life on a spiritual and emotional level also, and not only on a physical level. Spirituality is itself an independent segment of life with its own challenges both in the field of self progress and in the field of giving all that you possess to others. Giving is called spiritual service at the Brahma Kumaris. So, everything you do from the morning to night is filled with love and you do it with lot of power and dedication and without getting bored. So, experiencing enjoyment while working in your workplace or while dealing with people in your family, becomes extremely easy. 

Also, the way of loving each one in a pure manner and without any expectations comes in every relationship. There are people in the world who are very good at dealing with people with a lot of love and are well known for this specialty. Such people, when asked about their secret of success, will commonly tell you that they are very good at thinking correctly and manage their thoughts well. Such people can deal with people of different personalities and even manage them positively. This is something that becomes easy to do after taking a spiritual birth or being a student of spirituality. Spirituality fills you with the power to think only what is necessary and as per the requirements of a particular situation and not create any negative and unnecessary thoughts.

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

True progress comes with an experience of one's own fortune. 

Projection:When something goes wrong in my life, I usually tend to have negative feelings. At that time I am not able to perceive the positive aspects of my life but continue to feel sorry for all the negative things feeling that I am not so fortunate. 

Solution: Even in the most difficult times I need to make conscious effort to see the positive aspects in my life. I need to understand that circumstances will come and go but my fortune will remain unbroken. This awareness will keep me happy and make me work harder in the worst conditions. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 17.4.2017

To exercise the mind regularly keeps it healthy

 

Whenever we have negative thoughts, we try to stop them. We know they are not good for us and they drain us of energy, so we try to avoid them or change them. Because we are not always able to succeed in doing so, we begin to accept those kinds of thoughts as part of our lives.

I need to get into the habit of exercising my mind in order to keep it healthy. To exercise the mind means creating and stabilizing whatever consciousness is required at that time. That means if I need peace, I can hold on to that thought for however long I want to. This prepares me to deal with difficult times.

Soul Sustenance

On A Spiritual Joyride (Part 4) 

A spiritual childhood begins with a birth in the lap of God, in which the soul goes through a transformation or change and experiences a new turning point in its life. After that, life starts giving you beautiful rewards. Rewards like an increase in levels of happiness, a mind filled with peace, lots of spiritual strength, purity in thoughts, words and actions and also change in one’s personality. Life starts changing as situations no longer hurt your consciousness and give you sorrow as before. Also, the ability to give different shapes or mindsets to your consciousness when faced with different types of challenges in life and overcoming them is something we learn when we take this new birth. The birth is as a spiritual child of the Supreme Father and Mother, whom we commonly call God. 

Spirituality means a life filled with God’s love and at the same time a pure consciousness which means a spiritual love for others, which becomes a source of happiness and also brings about lightness. Pure love shared with others, also brings freedom from an unstable life in which sometimes you experience joy, but the joy many times brings with it sorrow. Also, life stops being a roller coaster ride in which there is always insecurity about what will happen next. Also, the different relationships with the one Father of the soul or God fills the self with different types of spiritual attainments. At the same time these different experiences with God give you a lot of fulfillment. Also, you like sharing these attainments with others and also bringing others on the spiritual joyride with you. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

Contentment brings greater achievement. 

Projection:It is usually believed that when we are content we finish the desire to achieve and so we find no improvement in our lives. On the contrary , we also find that where there is no contentment the mind is disturbed and we are not able to give our best to whatever we do. 

Solution: Whatever happens I need to retain the happiness within me. This comes only when I am content with whatever is happening in my life. When I create such an internal environment, I will be able to have the enthusiasm to achieve more and more. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 16.4.2017

Create rather than wait

'Create rather than wait' - at least not for too long! Seeing options, choose what to do now rather than wait for the ideal time, person or circumstance to arrive before acting decisively. Though patience is important, it's important not to become passive.

Soul Sustenance

On A Spiritual Joyride (Part 3) 

Spirituality is a beautiful and fulfilling life which everyone in the world needs to adopt and it is not only for people who have an interest in religion or are spiritually inclined already. Spirituality gives the power of relieving yourself of all mental pressures and it also teaches us the way of keeping our thoughts, words and actions in check. Both of these are necessary for being successful. Also, spirituality does not mean leaving material comforts of life and lead a life which is away from the world. On the other hand, it changes our relationship with material comforts and makes us less attached to them. This helps us experience permanent joy. On the other hand an attachment to material comforts can give sorrow also at times. So, never hesitate to sit on the joyride of spirituality, as we call it, because life and the relationships and roles that we play and the way we play them changes after doing that. Ask someone who is spiritual and loves leading a life according to spiritual principles. Such a person will tell you how lightness and contentment along with the power to handle situations and also the ability to change your thinking from negative to positive, are some of the benefits of a spiritual life. 

Also, talking about relationships; there are people, whose relationships were disturbed. A spiritual life gave them the method of living their life with love, immense happiness and power and they overcome the problems in their relationships easily. This is because of their change in ways of thinking and as a result they could resolve the difficult situations in relationships because of ego clashes and differences of opinions. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

The nectar of sweetness spreads happiness and increases success.

Projection:We are usually task oriented and are focused on the task at hand. We don't pay that kind of attention to relationships too. This attitude creates an environment which doesn't allow us to increase the efficiency of our work.

Solution: I need to pay special attention to maintain relationships also, along with the work that I get done. The sweetness within me spreads around positive vibrations to those around and creates a conducive environment which increases efficiency of the task.


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 15.4.2017

Relationships

A sensible person knows it is a waste of time and energy to get angry. Effort will then have to be made to reconstruct that relationship. It is much more useful to breathe deeply, pay attention to your attitude and answer without rushing. In this way, improve and strengthen your relationships with others

Soul Sustenance

On A Spiritual Joyride (Part 2) 

Variety in life is an important way to sustain a spiritual journey which many of us are on. Meditation is a technique which is being practiced by millions of people all over the world. At the Brahma Kumaris, people from many countries practice meditation in their daily lives. At the same time, as per the knowledge shared by God, they take care that meditation does not become just like a daily routine. Everyday meditation is done with different types of positive thoughts. In this way, spirituality is like a fun filled joyride in which different experiences become a daily part of your life. Also everyone at the Brahma Kumaris will not study spiritual knowledge only when they are alone or at home. They will also visit one of the centres of the Brahma Kumaris daily for an hour, wherever they are. And they will listen to spiritual knowledge in a gathering. The intention behind this type of practice, besides better understanding of the knowledge, is an increase in enthusiasm by sitting with people of the same mindset. Also, you gain from their spiritual power, which is called the power of the gathering. 

Spirituality also brings with it the duty of sharing all that you listen and learn, with others, which also increases your enthusiasm. Along with sharing, which we call service at the Brahma Kumaris, there is great importance given to changing oneself positively. This is a way of going ahead in life on an emotional level. This is because changing oneself automatically causes a positive energy of change to flow in my words and actions, which further flows to others causing an increase in enthusiasm in oneself. This is the spiritual joyride on which we sit everyday and wait for the next day with a lot of interest. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

Where there is knowledge energy is saved. 

Projection:I put in a lot of effort to deal with the situations I am faced with. But sometimes I do not find the success that I should. I then put in more energies to bring about the desired change, but without any positive result. 

Solution: In order to deal effectively with the situations, I need to understand the situation accurately. If I don't succeed once, I need to check if I have understood the situation accurately or not. With understanding, my energies don't get wasted away, but get focused accordingly. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 14.4.2017

Cheerfulness

Protecting my sense of optimism is the best way to remain cheerful. I can do this by starting the day with meditation to pour light and love into the scenes I am likely to find ahead of me that day. And then if I keep touching base with God’s mind and His benevolent way of seeing things, the inner happiness I experience will help me pass through any situation without feeling weary.

Soul Sustenance

On A Spiritual Joyride (Part 1) 

A very important aspect of our lives is variety. Variety means doing a lot of different things in life which increase our enthusiasm and joy. It means loving every moment of the day by making it different. Whenever you have spent many days in your life doing one particular thing or working on one particular task, ask yourself am I becoming single task oriented? Or do I, while performing the task, also take care that my work is accompanied by periods of creative activities like reading, meditating, interacting and spreading all that I know, to others and learning more than I know now? 

There was once a king who loved the role he was playing and also gave a lot of love to the people he ruled. There was no one in his kingdom who did not like him or respect him but yet boredom was something he had to face repeatedly. The same routine was something he experienced everyday and he did not know how to overcome that. So, one day, he decided to spend a fixed time everyday talking to people in his kingdom discussing the problems that they were facing. And also, he started fixing small targets in his life, like ensuring that by this particular day, this particular work will get done which can also be termed as goal setting. He realized soon that by filling his life with the flavor of ambition, which in small amounts, is extremely useful for progress, his life was no longer repetitive. In fact, life became something he enjoyed, as long as the ambition was kept in limits and he did not overcome over-ambitious, which could lead to stress. Love for each task you perform and at the same time different tasks during the day is the secret to a happiness filled life. A spiritual perspective to variety in life is filling your mind with new thoughts everyday and maintaining a pure and positive mindset. At the same time, let this positive mindset or consciousness be differently positive everyday, by giving the mind new instructions everyday. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

Generosity brings success. 

Projection:I have a lot of treasures-treasures of virtues, powers, knowledge etc., which I usually don't put into use. When they are out of use for a long time, they get wasted away and are not available to me at the right time. 

Solution: The more generously I use the treasures that I have with me for the benefit of others and myself too, the more these treasures are available for me at the right time. Also, for being generous with my treasures I find myself moving easily towards success with the blessings that I get in return. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 13.4.2017

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

The Soul Realized (Part 3) 

Whenever you get up in the morning, say to yourself that I am a spiritual energy which is completely different from the physical body i.e. it is not made up of the 5 physical elements. The physical body is made up of these elements. The words human being literally mean human + being where human means humus or soil, which is non-living and being means spiritual energy, which is living. This is called soul realization or true self realization. This is also called - soul consciousness. This means that I am a soul and I emerge the consciousness of being that in my day to day routine and also while meditating. This does not mean that I stop performing actions and taking care of my work and other responsibilities. But I perform all those duties and while performing them I realize that I am a soul and that means experiencing the form and qualities of the soul. The form of the soul is not a physical form, because the soul is a non-physical energy or light. Here, light does not mean that it can be seen by the physical eyes. Also, it is a light, which is minuscule in size or of a very small size and cannot be seen even under a physical magnifying glass or microscope, because it is non-physical in nature. 

To make visualization easy, we at the Brahma Kumaris, experience the soul to be a star of subtle light at the centre of the forehead, just above the eyebrows, in meditation. The actual location of the soul is inside the brain, as explained in yesterday’s message. The soul looks at the world outside, through the eyes, listens through the ears and speaks through the mouth, which are the main actions performed by the soul. Also, the other senses of touch, smell and taste are performed by the soul while sitting in its position. Lastly, the qualities of the soul are peace, joy, love, bliss, purity, power and wisdom, which undergo change depending on the actions performed by the soul. If the soul performs positive actions, these qualities increase and if the actions performed are negative, they decrease. 

Message of the day

Faith bring determination. 

Projection:When we are trying for something we find ourselves losing hope and giving up. Although we feel that we are trying till the end, it is usually not so. Sometimes we find ourselves giving up just before we could have succeeded. 

Solution: Determination to succeed comes with faith - faith in myself and the faith that things will work out fine. This faith doesn't let me give up mid-way but gives me determination that makes me put in efforts till I achieve success. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 12.4.2017

Holiday Everyday

How do you feel when you're about to set off on a holiday? Can't control the smiles, can't hold in the anticipation of discovering new landscapes, and the promise of exciting adventures!

How exciting would life be, if you set off on your morning commute, every day, with that same holiday feeling!

Set off with a smile, an anticipation of discovering something new, a promise of an adventure, and make every day feel like a holiday.

Soul Sustenance

The Soul Realized (Part 2) 

The soul is a non-physical energy which runs the physical body in a manner which can be compared to how electrical energy runs a television set. If there is no electricity, inspite of a complex machine which a television set is and with all its parts, big or small, it will not be able to show us images of the world. It will not be able to keep us updated about the world’s events. In the same manner, the physical body with its various parts and different systems cannot function without the existence of the soul inside it. As soon as the soul leaves the body, the heart and other organs stop working, even the brain does not function. The soul is a prime mover of the body. The soul is located inside the brain near the hypothalamus and pituitary gland, which are parts of the brain. It controls the five sense organs – eyes, nose, ears, tongue and hands through the brain and with the help of the nervous and hormonal systems. The brain functions as a bridge between the soul and the different body parts. 

The brain’s activity detected by various sensitive instruments that science has given is caused due to the existence of the soul. If there is no non-physical soul which actually thinks, inside the body, then there will be no activity detected inside the physical brain i.e. the brain will be silent. It’s the mind which actually thinks and not the brain. The mind is non-physical and is a part of the non-physical soul. We can also compare the soul and physical body relationship with a computer. The brain is like a CPU or central processing unit of the computer, whereas the soul is like a programmer of the computer. The brain expresses all thought, word and action programs received from the soul, through the body. The body is like the monitor of the computer which displays the final version of what has been processed by the brain. As we think, the brain, which is a physical organ of the body, picks up these signals from the non-physical soul. The signals or orders which the brain has detected are then converted into various actions performed by the body. Non-physical instructions of the soul are given a physical form by the brain and brought into action. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

True victory is to have internal stability. 

Projection:Whenever the situation is good and I am experiencing success, my internal state of mind is good too. But when something challenging happens, I begin to experience fear or anxiety. More than the situation going wrong, it is in fact my reaction that goes wrong. 

Solution: In order to experience success or to feel victorious, I need to change the way I respond to situations. Even in the most negative situations I need to remind myself that the situation itself is not in my hands but how I choose to respond is surely in my hands. So I naturally make the best choice. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 11.4.2017

Dream On

Why have we forgotten how to dream? With our innocence gone, and the entertainment industry doing all the work for us, we quickly lose our capacity to dream possible futures. Stop. Close your eyes. And dream again. Put the stars in your dreams. And then reach for them. No need to struggle. Simply nurture the dream, sustain the vision, and watch it come true. It must, it's the law.

Soul Sustenance

The Soul Realized (Part 1) 

Have you ever wondered what your past is i.e. do you ever believe that life is eternal or in other words life is not only a one birth reality? We all know about what the soul is and hear about it but do we apply the knowledge that we hear in our personal life? Everything that we do, every action that we perform through the physical body, it is actually the spiritual energy or soul performing the action or speaking the words or even thinking about something. But, because the soul cannot be seen, we think it is me, the physical form, which is doing everything. Even science today has started considering the immortality (beyond life and death) of the self. Also, people have started believing how an invisible and non-physical source of peace, love and joy exists which is me, the soul, and this source consists of the mind which thinks. On the other hand, the brain is just a physical medium through which the soul functions. It is a medium which contains chemical and electrical activity corresponding to the entire thought activity of the mind, inside it. The thought activity is inside the mind and is non-physical and the chemical and electrical activity, which is caused due to the thought activity, is inside the brain and is physical. Do you know that every time you create a thought inside your mind, your brain produces weak but clear electrical signals corresponding to that particular thought? The method of recording and understanding these electrical signals is called EEG (Electroencephalography), which also gives us an idea of the thought activity that exists inside the mind. This is similar to the method of ECG (Electrocardiography) which records the electrical activity of the heart. 

There is also a group of respected people around the world who are offering their services to spiritual organizations. There are many people from different fields of life like engineering, medicine, business, education etc. who have dedicated their lives to the spiritual upliftment of people. They are serving in their respective fields, along with performing spiritual service. All these people from various backgrounds have recognized and experienced that they are energies of consciousness or souls, who are running their physical bodies, which is the most basic principle of spirituality. Also, there are people in the world who have experienced themselves as separate from their physical body and brain in meditation and also through near death and out of body experiences. 

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message of the day

To accept responsibility is to accept challenge. 

Projection:In many situations that life brings our way we have two choices - either we meet it bravely and take up responsibility for our own lives and the choices we make or we just try to escape. Many times we find ourselves taking the second way, which brings no internal satisfaction. 

Solution: Internal satisfaction lies more in accepting challenges than in trying to escape them. I need to remain on the field in the game of life instead of just being a spectator. The more I play the more expertise I gain. This thought enables me to accept the different challenges that life brings. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris

Thought of the day 10.4.2017

Self-Mastery

Within each one of us there is a master of the universe. Not the universe out there but the inner universe of our thoughts and feelings, attitudes and actions. Most people realize too late what awaits within and how valuable it is. For too long we allow ourselves to be distracted and bewitched by all that is happening outside. To be the master of your inner world is to be the master of your own destiny. Are you going to be the master or a slave?

Soul Sustenance

Positive Consciousness While Performing Actions 
1. The seeds, the inspirations, planted in sitting meditation should be carried into action. Powerful thoughts carried straight away into action always yield powerful results. 
2. The remembrance should be that the soul is the child and student of the Supreme Being (Supreme Soul) and should reflect the father and teacher through its actions. 
3. The remembrance of the Supreme Soul as a constant companion sustains an internal relationship with Him whilst performing actions. 
4. Churn (think deeply) over points of spiritual knowledge by relating them to your immediate karmas (actions). 
5. Practice going beyond sound in one second. At different times during the day, stop, pack up all worldly thoughts and spend a few minutes in meditation. This is a really powerful way to strengthen the intellect. After a few minutes, return to the world of sound with the reinforced awareness of being an actor. 
6. Practice seeing all those who come into contact with you as souls, tiny points of conscient (living energy) light situated at the centre of the forehead. In this way we will not be pulled into body consciousness, and will avoid negative interactions with others. 

Message of the day

To be free from negativity is to be truly free. 

Projection:All of us like freedom and we expect that others should give us the chance or opportunity to express ourselves as we like to. But sometimes this type of freedom is misused and I am not able to do the right thing. Such actions based on false freedom are harmful to others and myself too. 

Solution: True freedom is to be totally free from negativity. When I can free myself from the negative influences I will be able to take up responsibility for my actions and everything I do will be right. This will automatically give me the freedom to do what I want to do without misusing it. 


In Spiritual Service,
Brahma Kumaris