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Sahaj Sandesh No: 2007.30 – Sunday, August 19, 2007


Dear Sister / Brother: 

Contents of this newsletter:

  1. UN International Youth Day workshops
  2. CREST Bangalore weekly courses
  3. Volunteers for IT related activities

1.  United Nations International Youth Day workshops

“Living Purposefully & Developing Internal & External Leadership Qualities”
A workshop organized by the Mission at 23 centres across India on August 12, 2007

“…. But looking at it with a spiritual vision, it is time for the younger people to take the reins of, not only their own life, but of societal change, societal transformation, and so forth. So this is what Sahaj Marg expects from its youth. In the process, of course, Sahaj Marg will give you all the help that you need, that is a promise.”

This is beloved Master’s vision for the youth and it was with this vision in mind that the Mission organized a Youth Workshop in 23 select centres across India on the theme “Living Purposefully & Developing Internal & External Leadership Qualities” on Sunday, August 12th on the occasion of the United Nations International Youth Day.

The Mission is an Associate NGO with the United Nations Department of Public Information and shares with it a common commitment of the development of all human beings. The Workshop was designed such to provoke the participating youth into thinking about living purposefully and about internal leadership which manifest into a person’s external leadership. Youth between the ages of 15-24 from various schools and colleges as well as abhyasis’ children participated in the Workshop which also attracted public figures, teachers and parents who participated as Observers in the Workshop.

The Workshops were not intended to teach or preach but instead to provoke thought within and encourage introspection. The format followed was that of a Group Discussion where the participants were divided into groups and asked to contemplate and discuss these issues amongst them-selves and after that a group-representative from each of the groups made presentations to the entire audience about the group’s deliberations.

The Group Discussion was preceded by a short Power-Point presentation shown to all the participants. In the presentation it was pointed out that only 10% of an Iceberg is seen on the surface, and that this 10% that we see derives its strength from the 90% which is below the water, similarly our external self, our qualities and character is a reflection of our internal qualities like our value system, beliefs and attitudes. The idea of having a purposeful life was introduced and it was left to the participants to discuss these amongst themselves and derive their own conclusions.

The Workshop has been very well received by all participants and the observers across the country. The participants came up with mind boggling presentations which gives us the hope that the future is bright.

The entire exercise was like a seeding process and it is hoped that this workshop will set the participants to think and reflect upon their lives and think of balancing their internal and external personalities. The promise of Master’s following words give us hope and encouragement.

“Each one of you is a seed in the future. And if that seed is rightly nurtured, rightly allowed to grow, it can become a tree which will give millions of seeds.”

 

2.  CREST - Bangalore:  Announcement of Weekly courses

The Centre for Research, Education, Sadhana & Training (CREST) in Bangalore will be conducting 5-day courses twice a month from the end of August 2007 onwards.  Participants may use the CREST library for personal study and attend facilitated discussions about aspects of Sahaj Marg.

Abhyasis meeting the following criteria may submit their names to their centre-in-charge or zone-in-charge to apply for these courses:

  1. These programs are currently for abhyasis residing in India.
  2. Abhyasis must have completed one year of Sahaj Marg practice and be regular in attending local satsanghs.
  3. The courses will be conducted in English.  Applicants will need a sufficient grasp of English to comprehend the presentations and participate in the training / discussion sessions.
  4. Participants will be expected to live at the CREST facility for the duration of the program.  Dormitory accommodation and ashram food will be provided.
  5. Participants will need to bear all expenses incurred for their travel to CREST and back, and any expenses outside CREST during their stay. There is no charge for participation in the training

Applications will be accepted only through centre-in-charges or zone-in-charges, who may forward these to crest.applications@sahajmarg.org.  All applications should include the following information about the applicant to be complete:

    1. SRCM Abhyasi ID number
    2. Full Name
    3. Contact details (post, phone, email)
    4. Name of the nominee’s local prefect
    5. Sex
    6. Date of birth
    7. Date of joining Sahaj Marg. 

Applications must be received by the 15th of each month for courses held in the subsequent month, to allow time for confirmation and communication to selected participants.

Information about CREST

CREST has been established by the Sahaj Marg Spirituality Foundation with the aim of providing participants with a panoramic spiritual education to inspire an inner appreciation of multiple religions, cultures, philosophies and ideologies, realizing that the essence of these various paths is the same.

Courses are conducted under the ancient gurukula concept, with trainees living under ashram conditions, providing for a comfortable life in a spartan setting, without luxury, but spiritually enriched. These courses are designed to cater to all dimensions of existence: the physical, the mental and intellectual, the moral, and the spiritual.

More information about CREST may be found at: http://www.sahajmarg.org/welcome/crest/index.html

 

3.  Volunteers for IT related activities

Several administrative functions within the Mission require volunteers with software development skills.   Abhyasis having skills in Tomcat / JSP / MySQL / PHP and who are willing to volunteer their time may send their brief profile and contact information to santosh.sreenivasan@srcm.org.  Kindly mention “SRCM IT volunteer” in the subject of the email.