Monday, December 31, 2007

Happy New You in the New Year!


My beloved and divine Souls,

Hari om and Happy New Year!
I pray that your every sacred wish be fulfilled in this Holy New Year.

A New Year is also a time to reflect back and give thanks to all the joys, sorrows, opportunities and challenges God has given us in this retreating year 2007. And to stand humbly at the door of 2008 and say, "Yes, Lord, I am ready and grateful for what you will send me in this New Year. All comes from Thee, and all shall return to Thee. Please make me a worthy vessel for Thy grace."

And indeed, the year 2007 was graced by God and Baba with many wonderful new centers, Kriya programs, and Ark of Love activities with poor children.

Here is a brief summary of this delightful year:

. Several new Kriya Yoga centers were started in Latin America -- Cali and Popayan in Colombia; Cochabamba and Santa Cruz in Bolivia; and Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. Please see the list of Kriya Yoga centers for contact information.

. We are also very pleased to welcome one new Ark of Love center -- in Medellin, Colombia, where we work in partnership with "La Escuela de las Cometas." Please see the list of Ark of Love centers for contact information.

. In India, our three little schools for abandoned children and poor widows have been progressing nicely in Haridwar, Uttarkashi, and Champawat. Our waiting list of poor children, senior citizens and widows is ever-growing, and we are doing the maximum we can to accommodate all. Please see the list of Network of Love schools (new photo and video galleries are on their way!).

. Would you kindly consider making a donation to help sustain these charitable and educational projects? Or even come and volunteer for some time? That would be a divine blessing for our little ones! Please see here for information on how to contribute.

. New Yogic workshop were very successfully introduced in several Latin American countries as well -- Yogic stress Management, Emotional Integration, and Ayurvedic Cooking workshops. People from all walks of life -- executives, housewives, adolescents, teachers, doctors were able to attend these yogic workshops and learn to lead a more balanced and joyful life. Please see here for more information on this type of workshops (a photo gallery will be added soon!).

. We also completed an incredible 2-week pilgrimage from Lake Titicaca in Bolivia to Machhu Pichhu in Peru. See here for more information (a photo gallery will be added soon!).
Next destination: the Santiago de Compostella pilgrimage in July 2008. See here for registration and details (more details will be added soon).

. Finally, we launched our first round of Spiritual Training intensives in both Miami and Lima in 2007. A total of 50 participants graduated from the first level training, "Friends of Humanity". A photo gallery will be added soon!

Not to mention all the peace concerts, theater encounters, storytelling events, silent retreats, and Kriya weddings... what a year it has been! My deepest thanks and heartful prayers to you all who have organized and participated in these programs.

2008 is already full of joyful promises, too...
You can already take a peek at the proposed activities here.

Thank you very much. May God and Gurus continue to bless you, inspire you, and uplift you to the peak of Joyful Living!

With eternal love and tender smiles,
yours,
Swamito.

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

The Monk and the Businessman on Stress Management - Part 6

We continue our The Monk and the Businessman series with a sixth installment on stress management.
This week we make a distinction between the three types of stresses—natural, man-made, and mental, illustrated with several classic wisdom tales and examples from the life of Paramahamsa Hariharananda.
Happy listening!
God bless you all.
Swamito

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

The Monk and the Businessman on Stress Management - Part 5

We continue our The Monk and the Businessman series with a fifth installment on stress management.
This week it's storytelling time! Swamiji and David trade wisdom tales on the theme of greed and desire.
Happy listening!
God bless you all.
Swamito

Sunday, December 16, 2007

Labyrinth Treasure Hunt


One of our Arca do Amor volunteers in SaƵ Paolo has designed this wonderful
little labyrinth for our children to play with as they learn about the spiritual treasures hidden within themselves. Click on the icon to view and download the larger image.
Happy hunting!
Swamito

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

The Monk and the Businessman on Stress Management - Part 4

We continue our The Monk and the Businessman series with a fourth installment on stress management.
This week we correlate yoga's three personality types—type T (tamasic, or dull), type R (rajasic, or passionate), and type S (sattvic, or harmonious)—with people's constitution: kapha (earthy and resilient), pitta (fiery and strong), and vata (airy and vivacious). The solution to eliminate stress as found in the Chhandogya Upanishad.
Happy listening!
God bless you all.
Swamito

Monday, December 10, 2007

Baba videos on YouTube


This year several people have started uploading a number of rare videos of our Baba Hariharananda on www.youtube.com. God bless them!
Just do a search under "Hariharananda". Or click here to see the current crop.
Wish you could save these lovely videos on your hard drive for sharing with friends and reviewing them again and again? It is possible via an external free service called KeepVid.com. Just log on, paste the URL of page of the YouTube video you want to download in the top box, and follow the instructions.
Please note that the file you will download is an Adobe "Flash Video File" (which must end with the extension .flv). In order to play it on your computer, you need to download and install a small free FLV player on your computer first. Here is a list of such FLV players you can download for free.
Blessed viewing!
Swamito

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

The Monk and the Businessman on Stress Management - Part 3

We continue our The Monk and the Businessman series with a third installment on stress management.
This week we talk about the body's physiological response to stress, and the three major sources of stress as identified by the yogic scriptures. Understanding and using the psycho-spiritual model of sattva, rajas, and tamas.
Happy listening!
God bless you all.
Swamito