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Revision as of 12:42, 27 March 2006 by 200.248.155.86 (talk) (→See also)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual Organisation, or " Prajapita Brahma Kumaris Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya ". Teaches meditation, a version of Raja Yoga, not to be confused with classical Patanjali's Raja Yoga.
A New Religious Movement with core Millenarianist beliefs concerning the imminent transformation of the current impure Kali Yuga world by means of natural disasters and nuclear holocaust followed by the Sat Yuga or "Golden Age" which will take place in the Indian subcontinent.
Origins
Formed in Sindh, now Pakistan, during 1937 by businessman Lekhraj Kripalani when Kripalani experienced that God, the Supreme Soul, took his bodily organs to express a message to humanity. Followers, called Brahma Kumars or Kumaris believe that Lekhraj Kripalani / Brahma is God's chariot. God being a soul cannot express his message but through a human body. God himself needs to give his message when the world experiences utmost irreligiousness and suffering.
Global Expansion
More than 5,500 meditation centres in 90 countries with over 900,000 students and expanding.
Fundamental Beliefs
Although borrowing much symbolism and terminology from traditional Hinduism, Brahma Kumaris Raja Yoga perceives the world as a family tree, every branch being a religion in search of the experience of God. Followers believe that the Supreme Soul, God and Brahma continues to be Channelled on a regular basis by a senior sister at the headquarters in India and that Brahma's soul will reincarnate as Krishna in his next birth.
Central to its faith are the beliefs that:
- The human being is an imperishable soul living within a physical body
- Reincarnation happens from one human body to another only
- Experience of the physical world happens through an eternally repeating 5,000 year cycle.
- Time is not linear but rather cyclical
- Each repeating cycle is exactly the same as the previous one
- Humanity is currently reaching the end of the current cycle and thus the world will be transformed.
- God incarnates personally onto the Earth and speaks only through their founder Lekhraj Kripalani which was the soul known as "Adam" or the "first human" in his first birth also known as "Brahma".
- All other religious founders such as Christ, Buddha and Mohammed had a part in the cycle by founding a religion.
- The Indian Subcontinent will be the site of the future Golden Age. Hindi is the original language.
Followers are taught that if they make spiritual efforts by getting rid of the 5 vices (lust, anger, greed, attachment and ego) they will become deities in the Golden age.
Practice
The Brahma Kumaris Raja Yoga practice involves;
- Celibacy.
- Vegetarianism excluding onions, garlic and food not cooked on God's remembrance.
- Complete avoidance of alcohol, tobacco and drugs.
- Physical cleanliness in all aspects.
- Regular daily meditation.
- The pursue of purity in all aspects of life.
- World service by means of good wishes and pure feelings to all.
Serious students wake up for 45 minutes meditation before 4 am. They then attend a daily morning class at 6.00 am, work or keep their household during the day and then return to do service, teach or more meditation in the evening. No one is expected to make regular donations or contributions to the Raja Yoga centre. However, serious students feel it is their duty to support it in order to extend the benefits to others. It is suggested to visit the headquarters located in India once a year if possible.
7 Day Course
Central to the Brahma Kumaris practice is the teaching of all their core beliefs in 7 one and a half hour long lessons called "The 7 Day Course". Once these 7 lessons are understood, students are then introduced to unpublished scriptures considered to be the direct teachings of God called "Murlis". The seven lessons are:
- The Soul
- The Supreme Soul
- The Law of Karma
- The Cycle
- The Tree of Religions
- The Founder Brahma Baba
- Brahma Kumaris Lifestyle and Principles
The Soul
We are an eternal soul. A point of light. We have 3 subtle organs: The Mind, the Intellect and the Impressions or Sanskars. The sanskars are transmitted from birth to birth. Sanskars are innate in the soul. They emerge or submerge according to time. Huamans can experience soul consciousness which gives them happiness, or they can experience body consciousness which bring duality to their experience.
The Supreme Soul
God is a point of light. He is the purifier. He cannot take birth, otherwise; God would experience the duality of suffering and happiness, forgetting and remembering, etc. However, God remains eternally unchanged with purity, bliss and happiness. Human beings can purify their intellects by means of "remembrance." We have forgotten who we are, our original nature and consciousness. Because time is cyclical and this current cycle is about to end, God needs to tell us who we are, what is our history, what is the beginning, the middle, and the end of the world. Thus God purifies us through his knowledge. This is God's task. Humans need to emerge virtous sanskars in order to experience the Golden age.
The Law of Karma
It is the law of action and reaction. Every accion has a cause. We experience the effects of those actions either as happiness or suffering. Those effects are experienced one time or another in this or another life. Thoughts are the origin of actions. The origin of thouhgts are our own sanskars.Thus by emerging virtous sankars our thoughts become positive and our actions become elevated. Remembrance of God is the only way to remove the alloy of impurities in the soul. Those impurities are the 5 vices: Ego, Lust, Anger, Attachment and Greed. These vices are the true "devil" portrayed by other religions.
The Cycle
Introduction: “The problem of the origin of the universe is a bit like the old question: Which came first, the chicken, or the egg.” - Stephen Hawkin. Philosophers and Scientists treat this question as a conundrum. The belief is that the “Time arrow” is a “straight line”; from a nebulous beginning to an uncertain future. This question is answered if we consider time as being curved, a circle. Then, around this circular time there is always a chicken before an egg and an egg before a chicken. Time then, becomes cyclical and repetitive. Past, present and future are relative to a point of reference (Einstein). The law of conservation of energy/matter states: “Matter is not created nor destroyed, it only changes”. Time is cyclical. Every cycle lasts 5000 years.
Accordingly there was a time of complete purity (low entropy) known as "Paradise" or the Golden Age. As time went by and population increased changes happened, entropy started to increase thus the Silver Age began. This was an age of happiness but in a lesser degree. More kingdoms were established from the original one in the Golden Age. The end of the silver age, marks the end of soul consciousness. Then in the Copper Age, Soul conscious humans turned into Body conscious ones, thus Humans were victims of the duality of matter. Suffering was experienced for the first time. A search for God began. As entropy increased in this dualistic world, worshipping of matter started, penance and austerities denying the body were considered elevated since there was a deep feeling that suffering was found in body consciousness. Finally, the Iron Age started. Technological progress contrasts with utmost unhappiness, sorrow and desinterest in religious matters. This is our current age. It is at this point, when we experience "hell" (the opposite of Heaven or Golden Age)on Earth. The point of highest entropy is experienced, thus the world goes back to a point of low entropy again. There is a brief period of time when establishment takes place for the upcoming new age. That period of time is known as the Confluence age.
The Tree of Religions
The tree signals the human family of souls. The root of the tree is made up by those souls currently making spiritual efforts according to God's system. Those efforts are based on soul consciousness. According to the laws of Karma, elevated actions are needed in order to experience the Golden age. The first part of the tree is the Golden age which is an age of total purity, happiness and peace as years went by and according to the physical law of entropy, the silver age appeared. Population increased and the original pure system changed, however; human beings called Deities (virtuous) were still soul conscious. Then the tree splitted in different branches due to body consciousness, we forgot our original nature. This is the age when different religions were founded in the east and in the west, the aim was to search for peace, search for happiness and search for God. Body conscious beings started a system of worship of the elements of nature instead of realizing their true original nature, thus suffering appeared. As time went by, the Iron age appeared. Human divinity was completely lost, body consciousness was the rule.It is an age of cheating, killing and lying. Due to current human devilish impressions and vices, technology serves as a mean to destroy our own race. Thus the tree is transformed into a new tree. The seed for this new tree is God himself, thus God transforms humans with devilish traits into Golden age deities by means of his knowledge also known as receivig the "third eye." The tree shows us clearly how unity appeared first and then as time went by division appeared. Few habitants of the golden age became many in the iron age, thus scarcity of resources and competition is the norm of the day.
The Founder Brahma Baba
Lekraj Kripalani, known as Brahma Baba, has a very important role in the world. He is known as Brahma in his 84th birth. The maximum number of births per cycle is 84. Brahma took all of them and was the first pure being in the world. In many religions he is known as "Adam" or "Adi Dev." God needs a body to communicate with us. Since Brahma is the most experienced of all human beings; God takes his body and sanskars to communicate with body conscious, impure beings. Brahma Baba is the number one soul. All souls are numberwise in spiritual efforts. Brahma Baba was a caring man, loved by his community. He gave utmost respect to women in a time and location where women were considered second class citizens. Brahma Baba gave all his wealth in order to build a "Godly Spiritual University". He left the administration of this Univeristy to a trust of young females who were in charge of the institution. Brahma Kumaris is a unique spiritual institution since then - females hold the higher administrative positions. Members of the Brahma Kumaris aim to follow Brahma Baba's example of dedication, faith, egolesness, care and discipline.
Brahma Kumari Lifestyle and Principles
The whole teaching is based on the awareness that we are souls and not bodies. We are souls who have a body. Thus, all principles and practices are consistent with this belief. The main task is to become a self-sovereign, to be able to awaken our inner wisdom by means of Godly knowledge. Love to God is utmost important component in order to make quick spiritual efforts.
Controversy
Some believe that destruction of the old world will not happen. Brahma Kumaris points out that transformation will happen and it is as clear as when night time becomes day time. The New World is known as Paradise by many religions. There are some individuals who are forecasting dates of "destruction" rather than transformation without further explanation. Brahma Kumaris emphasizes that there is not anhilation of the human race. It has been pointed out that God, The Supreme Soul; has never released a date for destruction.
External links
brahmakumaris.com Site based in India
peacevillage.com Peace Village Retreat Center-USA
http://www.xbkchat.com - a meeting place for past members of Brahma Kumaris