The Inner Wave

News, insights and experiences from the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (UK)
Issue 19 2012 Welcome to Issue 19 of the Inner Wave, which comes at the end of the European Year of Active Ageing and looks at how we can increase the value and enjoyment of our later years and help others to do the same. If you would like to comment on anything in the newsletter, please write to newsletter@uk.bkwsu.org. All issues can be downloaded at www.bkwsu.org/uk/newsletter. Editorial Team

Age, Wisdom And Strength

Gaby Havard, 28, interviewed Dadi Janki, 96 year old Head of the Brahma Kumaris, on her visit to the UK earlier this year, to understand how we can respond positively and successfully to getting older.
I am intrigued by your ability to balance tradition and innovation. This morning I saw you happily checking your e-mails - quite rare for a 96 year old! What has given you the strength to keep moving with the times? I have great value for Time, and so Time co-operates with me. I also take power from God. When Time and God are happy with me, it is easy to remain happy. Then the only job I have is to give happiness to others - and that automatically brings more strength to keep moving forward. People tend to associate old age with a special kind of wisdom - yet not everyone old is wise. What really makes one wise? Many older people use the w of why? rather than wisdom. They say why this and why that? Its my experience that having God as your companion automatically brings success, so theres no reason to ask why? Developing the wisdom to observe the scenes of life with a certain detachment frees us from the tiredness that comes from asking why? What is the secret of growing old gracefully? When people get older, they normally consider themselves to be old. I never have. Whether 75 years ago or today, I have always had the consciousness of being a child - the child of God. This awareness gives the soul strength. Secondly, Ive always made sure that my thoughts, words and actions are of a high quality. Then everything automatically, works out well. Doing something of high quality brings a kind of

strength that accumulates inside you and becomes useful to you when youre older. This is why the term old age doesnt exist for me. If someone is young but doesnt have the strength of youth, whats the point? Grace is not about physical strength, but the power of the mind. Irrespective of my age,, health or situation, happiness lies in being able to use my mind to empower, entertain and uplift myself, first of all, and then Ill be able to do the same for others. Gaby Havard is an academic support worker for students with disabilities and a former live-in carer for the elderly. Based at the Global Retreat Centre, she helps co-ordinate activities at Inner Space Oxford. Planning A Family Christmas
Jagruti Patel
Seeing happiness on everyones faces is the highlight of it all. page 3

Whats Inside...
page 2

Ten Steps To A New Future

Michael Lewin

In My Life
Joan Houghton

Reflect upon and evaluate the past but use it to inform the future.

page 4

A good carer observes and understands and takes time to sit and listen.

Ten Steps To A New Future

Michael Lewin
disappointments. Then try to set them within a context of acceptance and reconciliation. We are never too old to change our views on embedded thoughts. Everything can be given fresh consideration and from this position new directions and beginnings can start. When I was young there seemed to be endless time available to me. But now Im very aware of the passage of time and the restrictions it has placed upon me. I asked a friend if he thought we get a second chance in life. Yes came the reply, then he added: ...and a third and a fourth. Reflecting on this and how we can all help ourselves to achieve what we want in life, I came up with the following realisations. They have helped me a lot and perhaps you will find them useful too: Express gratitude and appreciation for the life we have been given. Never give up. Treat each new day with a freshness of mind and an appreciation for your potential that still lies deep within you, only to be awakened. Dont look back too much. Reflect upon and evaluate the past but use it to inform the future. Look for supportive people who can help you along the way. Enjoy your achievements with others, especially those who have helped you. Share your accumulated wisdom with others, especially the young. In a full life we acquire, through the fire of experience, a knowledge and wisdom that can benefit others. Don't be afraid to offer that up, to pass this on.

Michael Lewin is a Buddhist, who has been a friend of the Brahma Kumaris for many years. He lives in Farnborough, Hants, and is currently helping to produce a book about the ageing process.

Engage yourself with those interests that may have taken a back seat in your life. Perhaps it was meditation, yoga, writing, painting, walking, quality reading - anything Mistakes are part of life. Accept this you felt drawn to but never really gave time to. and learn from them. See all your mistakes as Reflect deeply upon the path you have part of an overall corrective strategy to get taken in life, acknowledging the failings and you back on course.

upon and Reflect past but use evaluate the it to inform the future.

The True Self: A Meditation

Taking just a minute In calm silence I observe That I am energy, A point of immortality, Different from the energies Of time, sound and matter. I begin to realise that I am an actor Within this costume, my body, Playing my part On the stage of Life. Remembering my point-like reality I feel the strength Of peace and love Empower and free me from Everything hurtful. Now I have the strength To master the external world Of relationships and situations

Keeping The Brain Young

In 2009, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) scientists found evidence that the brains of people who have been meditating for a long time differed from non-meditators. Certain regions in the meditators brains were larger, and they had more grey matter than the brains of people who didn't meditate. 1 A follow-up study published in the online edition of the journal NeuroImage in August 2011 found that people who meditate have stronger connections between brain regions and far less age-related brain atrophy. 2 Our results suggest that long-term meditators have white-matter fibers that are either more numerous, more dense or more insulated throughout the brain. said Dr. Eileen Luders, Visiting Assistant Professor at the UCLA Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, herself a meditator. Meditation... might not only cause changes in brain anatomy by inducing growth, but also by preventing reduction. That is, if practiced regularly and over years, meditation may slow down aging-related brain atrophy...3
1 newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/how-to-build-a-bigger-brain-91273.aspx 2 www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811911006008 3 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110714091940.htm

www.just-a-minute.org

The A-Z Of Spiritual Living

O is for Open

An estimated 40,000 people gather to celebrate Diwali on Trafalgar Square, the annual celebration of the Festival of Lights, in London on 28 October 2012. The Brahma Kumaris (UK) are active members of the organising committee and the Diwali-in-London Committee, which consists of representatives of the Hindu, Sikh and Jain faiths, working with the Mayor of Londons office.

David Hone

Planning A Family Christmas

Jagruti Patel

To understand is to be open to learning From 365 Days Of Wisdom - Daily Messages To Inspire You Through The Year by Dadi Janki, available from www.bkpublications.com

During December at Global Co-operation House in London we celebrate Christmas with hundreds of friends and students of the Brahma Kumaris. They range from six to 90 years old. A lot of planning and work goes into making sure theres something for everyone, but its worth it. Its a time for giving and sharing not just gifts or food but also appreciation for each other, something we can forget to do at other times. Here are some tips on how you can plan a fun and special family Christmas: Give time to think about how to decorate everything and serve the food - to

give that Christmas feeling and make it feel special. Consider what people of all ages are going to do from the moment they arrive. Some may love to just watch the fun, while others may keenly participate in games and activities. Try the 'Virtue Game', which works well: you say someones name and a virtue that starts with the same letter and continue around the circle like that. Its a nice way of remembering and valuing each one. You may like to have a little fitness workout during your day, to get the energy going and ensure a lot of laughter Bear in mind those who are helping, who

play a big part in making things go well, so its not just work for them. Ive learned that whatever you do in life, do it with your heart. Otherwise, heavy feelings will leave me feeling drained. I wont enjoy it and that feeling will be projected on others. So, whether youre planning a Christmas for two or 200, do it with your heart. Then it will be successful. For me seeing happiness on everyones faces is the highlight of it all. Jagruti Patel works in banking. She looks after maintenance and security at Global Co-operation House in London, as well as teaching Positive Thinking and helping with cultural activities.

Recipe: Focaccia Bread

500 g (1 lb) bread flour 1 tsp salt 6 tbs oil 30 g (1 oz) instant dried yeast 360 ml (12 fl oz) lukewarm water, to mix 60 g (2 oz) oregano/rosemary, for topping Oil, for topping Salt, for topping Sift the flour and salt into a fairly large bowl. Add the oil and yeast and mix well. Add enough water to form a soft dough. Cover and leave in a warm place to rise. When it has risen, knead the dough again for a couple of minutes and roll it out to 2.5 cm (1 in) thick. Grease a flat baking tray and place the rolled dough on it. Press fingertips lightly into the dough. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with oregano/rosemary. Bake in a hot oven at 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6 for 20 minutes or until top is golden. Variations: olives and sun dried tomatoes can be mixed into the flour. From: Food & Soul, available from www.bkpublications.com

Snapshots from our associate organisations around the world r e n

Guatemala: The beautiful Main Hall of Guatemala Citys Brahma Kumaris Centre, which celebrated 25 years of spiritual service in August 2012. Iceland: Dadi Janki with the Mayor of Reykjavik and steering committee members of the Spirit of Humanity Forum, at the opening reception, at Hofti House in September 2012.

USA: Inner Space Meditation Center and Gallery in Cambridge, near Boston, just a few blocks away from Harvard University, which opened in September 2012. www.innerspaceharvardsq.org

In My Life
Joan Houghton
see, and gives me the understanding of the essence of life and of why things happen as they do. This allows the families Ive dealt with to benefit from the inner calmness this gives me, and to experience kindness and a caring attitude as a result. I would say to the care staff: No wonderful words of wisdom are needed. You are needed. Just your quiet, caring presence that will help the person on their future journey and give support to those who have to let them go. Joan Houghton lives in Cambridge and has been practising Raja Yoga for 11 years. She is a member of the Inner Space Cambridge team and also volunteers at a market garden for mentally impaired people.

Stay Connected
Join our e-mailing list Sign up for The Inner Wave, Thought for the Day messages or events in your area at www.bkwsu.org/uk/mailing_lists Watch our events and other interviews on our YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/BrahmaKumarisUK

Until a year ago I worked as a registered nurse in a nursing home, managing a floor of 27 elderly residents who required care. I have great respect for older people because of what they have given to society throughout their lives, and they carry so much experience. You have to be able to listen to what they are saying - the words, yes, but they also say a lot with body language. A good carer observes and understands and takes time to sit and listen. Raja Yoga helps me realise there is something more to all of us than these eyes can
Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (UK)

A good carer and understands andobservestime takes to sit and listen.

I asked a resident once: Does it make any difference who takes care of you? She replied: Joan, it makes no difference who they are or what they look like, as long as they are kind. The bottom line is that genuine caring makes a good carer. Through the relationship I now have with God, I feel that we are one big family and Im taking care of my brothers and sisters.

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The Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (UK) teaches Raja Yoga as a way of experiencing peace of mind and a positive approach to life. National Co-ordinating Office: Global Co-operation House, 65-69 Pound Lane, London, NW10 2HH Registered Charity in England & Wales (269971) and Scotland (SC040512)

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Forgiveness