Enjoy What You Do And You Will Get Happiness Every Moment !

How often do you find yourself saying, "I'll be happy when..?" Do you keep one eye on the task and the other eye on the clock? Forward-looking steals our happiness.

When we don't enjoy what we do, we spend more time correcting or dealing with a lack of success.

Instead, put your heart into what you do, make the most mundane tasks fun and enjoy happiness at every moment.

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Being Impressed By Others – Is It Beneficial?

To keep our self esteem intact, we need to make sure that we do not have an impressionable intellect. Being impressed by people, in itself, is not bad, but we can fall into the tendency of staying trapped in the superfluous (excessive and unnecessary) and in appearances. What impresses us influences us and even moulds our awareness at that moment. We lose the ability to create our thoughts and feelings and these are influenced by the impression that we have allowed the other person to leave on us. Sometimes the impression is such that we completely give ourselves to it. We give up our power to the other, and we allow them to dominate our emotional world. The results of allowing oneself to be impressed are varied and on different levels. 

For example, when we are impressed by the other's position; it is fine to respect the authority and the position of the other, but when we allow their position to impress us, our ability to relate to the person in a smooth way is blocked. This can make it difficult for us to be the authority in our own life. 

Another example is when we are impressed by the achievements of the other and put them on a pedestal. We compare ourselves with him or her and have weak thoughts of ourselves, such as that we are not as good or effective as them, or we might feel jealousy or guilt. All of this acts as an obstacle on the path towards our own achievement. 

It is good to recognize and appreciate the achievements and skills of others, but when we allow them to impress us, in some way, we submit ourselves to their influence and we weaken our self-esteem and our respect towards ourselves. Without realizing, we use the other to fill a gap that we feel in ourselves. This will not always work. It will not strengthen us; rather it will create a dependency and dependencies weaken us. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Stabilize Your Mind With Positivity !

Set your mind on the seat of stability and you will never become upset. 

In all that you do throughout the day, check if you are able to stabilise your mind wherever and in whatever thought you want at the right moment. If you are not able to you will find yourself getting upset. Each morning create a positive thought for yourself. For example, tell yourself "I am the one who is in control of my mind and I can set it the way I want to." Now practice focusing on this one thought. Stabilise in this thought for sometime. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Think Positive & Get Rid of Obstacles !!

Become a destroyer of obstacles and not an obstacle. 

Check what kind of feelings you are having when you are faced with an obstacle. Do you have the courage to overcome it or do you yourself become an obstacle stopping others' and your own progress with your negative thoughts. Make this practice firm whatever the situation you are in, "I am victorious and success is my birthright" when you remember that obstacles come to teach you for the future and make you progress, you will be free from negative thoughts. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Balance Your Contacts By Getting Out the Best !

You will be truly successful when you are loving and detached with the ones you come into contact with. 

With all the people that you come into contact with throughout the day, check if you are able to have a balance between being loving and detached. Detachment doesn't mean to stay away from people, but to be with them and yet be detached. Make the practice of seeing only specialities, your own and that of others. This will enable you to maintain your self-respect and you will be able to find yourself both loving and detached. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Nourish from Past Memories to be Positive !

The power of pack up means I recognize the damage caused by such waste, and put an end to it. As I renew the awareness of myself as a soul, in relationship with the Supreme Soul, the needle of my attention is lifted above the groove, letting me come fully into the present. 

I also learn to be selective in what I choose to remember or forget from the past. This is not dishonest; in fact, it is being honest to my task. Human beings in any case have highly selective memories. We not only see and understand differently, according to our individual interests and agendas, but our attitudes and perception also determine the memories we choose to store. 

Meditation enables me to exercise this option quite deliberately, picking up those scenes from the past that nourish me and help me move forward, and rejecting memories that pollute my mind and slow me down. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Peace Brings Wonders to Life !!

Peace has a number of synonyms, which all have slightly different shades of meaning: 

Serenity 

The feeling of contentment and being completely full with no need for further additions to the self; a feeing of satisfaction, of wholeness of the self. 

Calmness 

There are no disturbances or waves in the mind, like a pool of water that is clear and still with not even a ripple to disturb it. 

Tranquility 

Tranquility is the state of harmony in nature and in ourselves that keeps everything in balance naturally. 

Quietness 

In this state, there are no sounds of uncontrolled thoughts jumping around like a monkey in the mind; our thoughts become essenceful, returning to the point, with no expansion; it is an economy of thinking that creates quietness. 

Stillness 

There is no movement of thoughts. I remain absorbed in one thought and, in the stillness of silence, I am at rest, with a feeling of complete detachment from everything. 

Peace has the meaning of harmony, balance, order and freedom: when we are free from waste and negativity, then we exist fully serene, fully at peace with everything. 

Peace is my original energy and treasure and with the practice of meditation I step inside and experience it. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Life is like a Pendulum - Experience Both Extremes & Still Centre !

Life is like a Pendulum 

In our quest to seek balance, like a pendulum, 
we sometimes swing from one side to the other. 

Sometimes we swing wildly and maybe that's because 
we must explore both extremes and all points in between. 
If we don't, there's the possibility that we may get drawn to what's not been examined.

The still centre, which we crave, 
is the result of visiting all possibilities.

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Start Meditation, Charge Your life !!!

Meditation helps me to acquire that discipline of finishing negative and wasteful thoughts i.e. inculcate the power to pack up. 

As the habit of self-observation develops, it doesn't take long to understand how negative thoughts and feelings literally negate my central aim, of re-emerging my true nature. Negativity drains the battery of the soul faster than anything else does. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Find the Better Way of Doing Things To Move Towards Progress !!

True progress brings progress in others as much as for the self. 

It is usually believed that self-progress and progress of others are totally separate. It is believed that where there is thought for the progress of the self, there is selfishness and there is no benefit for those around. In fact, selfishness in an extreme form can also have a negative influence on those around. In whatever we do we have to check and see if there is any benefit for others along with whatever benefit we are getting. If there isn't we can check to see if there is a better way of doing what we are doing which could have a positive influence on at least one person. Then we will find ourselves benefitting doubly. We will get the blessings from others along with the personal benefit we get.

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Control Frustration & Notice Own Complements !!

To overcome your frustration with people whose nature is the opposite of yours, acknowledge how they complement you.

If your talent is to see the big picture, who pays attention to the small details? Dynamism is balanced by gentleness, frankness by subtlety.

Today, notice how others' strengths complement yours. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Be True, Merciful & Faithful To Achieve Progress !

An angel's face is still because there are no lies inside. Truth makes it a straight, simple face whose beauty lies not in its form but in the feeling it gives you. 

A person with the quality of mercy works on such a subtle level that the support given never demeans or implies weakness in the other person. 

Faith in one's progress brings contentment.

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.

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.

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Spread Love Through Everything That You Do !

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 vibes affect both the food and the people who eat the food. 

So, cook with care; 
watch out for what's you're thinking; and don't forget that in the best of recipes, 
love is the secret ingredient. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Use Time Effectively To Get Rid of Negative Thoughts !!

Save time. If you know the value of time you can create extra time by not wasting it. By not throwing it away in trivial, wasteful thoughts that distract and divert us. By not squandering it in careless words that cause sorrow and eventually return to cause regret and demand recompense. Save time now. For if not now, then never. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

The Power of Faith Can Do Wonders !!

The power of faith unites everyone, irrespective of individual religious or social beliefs. It unites everyone in our personal commitment to peace, love and non-violence. And as it raises our level of consciousness, we change for the better. As we change as individuals, there can be only one outcome. The total consciousness of the world must change for the better too. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Being Lighter By Packing Up !

Packing up means being lighter in my relationships. 

The power to pack up enables me to fill each exchange I have with others with freshness and newness, instead of allowing influences from past encounters with them to affect my present attitude and behaviour. When I carry emotional or intellectual baggage from the past into my present dealings with an individual, I don't give that person the opportunity to express himself freely: my attitude colours him with the paint of my previous experience. It is important to process the past, and learn from experience, but then finish it, so it does not block my view of how things are today. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Do Your Best All Day Long !!

Where we are with the truth, there is constant cheerfulness. When everything we do is based on truth, we will have no regrets. If there is any trace of falsehood we will begin to feel guilty. Inner cheer is automatically destroyed by a conscience that bites. In all that we do throughout the day let there be the aim in our mind that we do it the best. When we do everything to the best of our ability we will not regret later. We will then naturally be free from guilt and we will be constantly cheerful. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Positive Thinking And Actions Can Bring Down Your Stress !

Stress Management 

Most of us have learned to believe some stress is both natural and necessary. One of the most powerful illusions, which keep us locked in a stressful lifestyle, is the idea that our stress is caused by circumstances, events and other people. As long as you think this way you will always be in self-created pain. Some people have been in pain for so long they cannot imagine being pain free, and real relaxation is a dim and distant memory. So they justify their pain as a natural part of living and then feel that others are a cause of this pain. This is dangerous. To listen to the messenger of pain means seeing and acknowledging our stress as our own creation. It is the result of how we respond to the uncontrollables in life i.e. circumstances, events and other people. No one else creates our responses. 

If you can see and accept that you create your own stress according to how you are responding, you will then see that there is something you need to unlearn as well as learn. The old response needs to be unlearned, and a new positive response needs to be learned. The regular practice of meditation enables you to do that and become free from stress. If we want to change a habit, then where do we start? In other words, where do we change the system or how do we get out of the cycle? First of all, we can try changing our negative actions: for example, stop a negative habit like smoking. In many cases, although we change our behaviour, but because we have not understood deeply why we wanted to do it, is quite possible that one day we will go back to this old habit.

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Be a Fragrant Aroma in Life - Think Positive !!

Although your thoughts, attitudes, intentions and feelings are not visible, they do have an effect. They permeate the atmosphere and influence the mood in a room, like the aroma from an incense stick, curling through the air ... 

Negative thoughts and intentions or a less than generous attitude release a heavy pungent odour. 

Kind thoughts, beneficial intentions, or an understanding attitude create a fragrant aroma, uplifting the atmosphere. 

What atmosphere are you creating?

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Know Yourself To Be Positive !

It is our habit to react in a negative, emotional way when someone says or thinks negatively about us. The feeling of being insulted and upset is a choice, which is in our hands, it is not a certainty. It doesn’t matter what anyone says or thinks about you, as long as you think well of yourself, then you will not lose your inner stability, your cool, your inner peace, your power and your ability to respond positively. It’s easy isn’t it? No! Why? The key is not making the opinion of yourself dependent on the opinion of others. If you do so, it is dangerous. Don’t worry about what anyone thinks about you. A hundred people in your life are all thinking different things about you – you can never know exactly what anyone of them is thinking, because you can never be in someone else’s mind. And even if you did know, are they not allowed to have their opinion? You know who you are, you know your own inner qualities and specialties…don’t you?

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Reflection (thinking deeply) is a necessary step in digesting knowledge.

Reflection is an exercise of the mind and intellect that goes into the depths of understanding an idea, or realization, or point of knowledge with the aim of practicing it in daily life.

Values in my life are a sign that knowledge has been digested; without this, knowledge simply remains a beautiful aspect, appreciated, interesting information in my intellect but without the ability to give me strength because it is still external; it has not been internalized.

All quality action (quality action is that action which is truly appropriate to person, circumstance and the need of the moment), all newness of perception (understanding), all new insights, or vision, require a space for silent reflection as a preliminary step. 

Normally, we are lost in the business of action, its routine and ritual that make our life so mechanical and hence dull and boring, or demanding and hectic.

A mind and intellect that do not give time and attention to reflective silence (meditation) become lazy, though externally there is lots of activity for hours and hours. No new heights are reached because there is no depth of awareness in what we are doing, no reflection on purpose. As a result, we get trapped by routine. 

To break free from this force, to relieve the mind of the weight of stress and waste and routine, I need to step inside and reflect (think) on who I am and where I am going and reassess my value system.

Reflection and taking time to understand spiritual knowledge bring us to the essence of everything. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Consciousness of Soul Opens Up Own Qualities !!

What Is Consciousness? 

The soul is conscient energy, aware of its own existence. Consciousness can be described as the feeling "I am" or "I exist". If you examine any thought-decision-action process, you will find that behind it, there is always the feeling: "I am something or the other". Consciousness is thus the springboard for thought, decisions and actions. In other words, the soul reacts to external circumstances according to how it regards itself at that particular moment.

E.g. a doctor is able to perform an operation when there is the consciousness of being a doctor. That very consciousness unlocks or gives the soul access to all the information and experience related to being a doctor. The soul when it has the consciousness of being a soul is able to have instant access to its own original qualities. As we have discussed, there are two different basic levels of consciousness; "I am a body" or .I am a soul," the former, illusory (false) and the latter, real. When the feeling is "I am a body," the thought process is trapped in the limitations, problems and vision of the physical identity. Its reaction to others is on the same level.

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Bring Change To Get Rid of Those Bad Habits !

Some habits do not upset us, but others can cause irritation, frustration and desperation. We want to rid ourselves of them: but how? 

When we look at the creation and fulfillment of thoughts, it looks like a closed system: the thoughts lead to actions, the actions create a series of impressions (sanskars), and these impressions are responsible for similar thoughts, which lead us to similar actions, this is a vicious cycle. 

We can try changing our negative actions: for example, stop a negative habit like smoking. In many cases, although we change our behaviour, but because we have not understood deeply why we wanted to do it, is quite possible that one day we will go back to this old habit. 

We can try changing this system in our subconscious. By analyzing what is recorded in our subconscious, through different therapies, the results are not altogether satisfactory. There is always some traumatic event, or painful experience behind a fear which causes us to cling on to a negative habit. And although we can see and recognize our fears and anxieties, if we do not replace them with something better, with a more beneficial and healthier alternative, very often we will feel tempted to cling on to these old systems, even though they do not work and they make us unhappy. To eliminate certain things we have recorded in our subconscious, meditation and silence are the most effect non-violent methods.

Another method is to try and change our beliefs with positive affirmations (thoughts) that strengthen our willpower, and thus introduce a new habit to replace the old one. It is vital not to repeat this affirmation mechanically, but to introduce it into the system of beliefs we hold, and act as if we already were what we express in this affirmation. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Manage Stress by reaching Inner Silence !!

If you can see and accept that you create your own stress according to how you are responding, you will then see that there is something you need to unlearn as well as learn. 

The old response needs to be unlearned, and a new response needs to be learned. 

There is part of you that is perfect and pure. It is untouched by the less than perfect characteristics you've acquired by living in a less than perfect world. It is filled with divine qualities, so is 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. Make time to practise reaching this inner place of Silence. It will bring you untold benefit. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Positive Feelings for Others... Helps Built Self Too !!

If our attention is focused on people's defects and weaknesses, we transmit energy to these aspects and strengthen these weaknesses in the other person and in ourselves. If, on the other hand, our attention is directed at the positive aspects of others, we reinforce these qualities and virtues and help this person express them, which is also beneficial to us. 

Our personality is made up of a series of values, beliefs and habits. If we wish to transfer our energy to new and positive aspects of ourselves, we must choose the personality traits that we want to emerge from us, focusing our time and energy on them and, in this way, this virtue, value or quality will manifest itself in our life. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Put Love In Everything You Do & See The Change !

You always have a choice but you forget that you have it. Do you remember the energy and enthusiasm you had on the first day of your first job? You consciously chose to do the work you had gladly accepted to do. But then you gradually fell asleep to the choice you made, and the day became "I have to" go to work, instead of "I want to" go to work. You forgot to see all the opportunities which come with work - opportunities like learning, nourishing and being nourished by others, developing new relationships, expanding your personal capacity. Instead you decided it was just something that you had to do to 'get the money'. This is why most people are sleep-walking through their lives, and they don't know it. 

The solution, choose your work every day, put the energy of love into your relationships -every day, even if you don't particularly like your job or the people around you. And you'll be amazed at how your life transforms. When you choose to put love into what you do, the universe will move heaven and hell to let you do what you love. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Clear the Mind of Negativity & Fill it with Positivity !

Make a list of the things that worry you most and decide if they are in your circle of influence or worry. Think about what you can really do to have an influence on each of them in an effective way. By determining which of these two circles is the centre around which most of your time and energy revolves, you can discover a great deal about your level of positivity. 

Positive people focus on the things they can do something about. If necessary, they change their attitude. They are aware that perhaps they cannot change the circumstances but they can improve their inner attitude. This is what positive focusing is all about: being creative, thinking differently, being open to listening, being more understanding, more communicative and showing more solidarity. 

Reactive people focus on the problems of the circle and on the circumstances about which they have no control. They react to the defects found in other people. From this worrying, accusations, destructive criticism, feelings of blame, a reactive language and feelings of weakness and frustration can arise. They want others or the circumstances to change first and when that happens, then they will change. Whenever they think that the problem is on the outside, this thought is the problem. 

The negative energy produced as a result of this approach, combined with the lack of attention to the areas in which they could do something to improve the situation, means that the area of influence decreases in size. They give power to what is external so that it dominates them. In other words they think that change must come from "outside towards the inside"; they think that something that is outside must change before they themselves change. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Respond Positive & Be Powerful !

Like a dragon, be powerful and formidable. 

Be a watchful guardian of your inner treasures that contain your self-worth. 

Your wings carry you above any insults hurled your way. 

Any negativity is dispersed by the beating of your wings. 

And the fire you breathe burns any critical words before they emerge from your mouth. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Stay Focused & Have A Clear Picture !

"She should not have done that!" "He should do this!" 

When we're busy judging others we become completely oblivious to what we should be doing! 

Instead, stay focused on what you have to do, then you will remain undisturbed by what others 'should' or 'should not' be doing. 

Visualization is to mentally picture yourself successfully accomplishing a task, before starting it. 

It is much more than wishful thinking. Having a clear picture of your outcome provides direction, generates confidence and eases frustration. As you think, so you become. 

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.

Be Contented & Get More Positive !

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 critised 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 critise and always generate good wishes for others. Then I will feel satisfied no matter what life throws at me.

~ Brahma Kumaris, Mt Abu.