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Sahaja Yoga Workshop in Burwood, Sydney
Four-week Sahaja Yoga meditation courses start in March 2011 at over 80 locations around Australia.
The courses are designed to teach you simple techniques for developing the mental silence of true meditation. They are comprised of one 90-minute class per week for 4 weeks.
At the completion of the 4-week course, one-day practical workshops will be held to help you further establish your meditation learnings.
• Suitable for complete beginners and regulars
• One 90-minute class per week for 4 weeks
• Join in at anytime, even if you miss a class
• No physical exercises, postures or special clothing required
• Chairs provided
• Daytime or evening classes available
• Ongoing weekly classes at most venues
• All courses and classes are free
Further details: Go to www.sahajayoga.com.au/events
Sahaja Yoga on the Cairns Esplanade
In a delightful setting for meditation, Sahaja Yoga in Cairns holds one of their programs at the Esplanade, located near the centre of the city where hundreds of people pass by. This particular program is held at 7.30am every Saturday morning. If the weather is unsuitable to sit on the ground a covered area is provided.
This is a very tranquil site to meditate, with beautiful green lawns and nice large shady trees to sit under in the cool breeze, with the Coral Sea and rainforest-covered hills as a backdrop. The local Council promotes the sessions and is very supportive.
The program attracts attendees who visit from all corners of the world. We have people from China, Japan, Korea and other South East Asian countries, Holland, Germany, France, England, Ireland, Canada, America, and South American countries.
If you are visiting Cairns, Sahaja Yoga programs are held on Monday nights and Tuesday mornings, in addition to the Esplanade program on Saturday mornings. Programs are also held in Herberton, west of Cairns on the Atherton Tablelands. Telephone 07 4032 1860 for details.
Avtar
Ellouin Festival, Altai Region
Ellouin is a traditional festival of Altai people’s folk games conducted in picturesque places of the Altai mountains near the settlement of Ongudai. Ellouin is the most important cultural event in Altai Republic and is yearly visited by more than 10,000 people.
Folk arts and crafts were widely presented at this festival. In the valley, surrounded by the mountains, there gathered about 20,000 people. The concert ground was the setting for Altai music. In yurts there were organised performances based in folklore. There were also many unusual crafts. In such a multiform seething stream we set our tents with Sahaja Yoga stalls, comfortably enjoying what was happening in the shade of the trees.
There gathered about 60 Sahaja yogis which created the atmosphere of a little Sahaja camp.
Mehendi painting at Ellouin Festival
There was work for everybody. Several mehendi painters sitting under a shelter were working for several hours on end painting people’s hands, not even raising their heads, and giving Self-realisation to everyone as there always was a queue . Other Sahaja yogis told people about Sahaja Yoga. Our brother Vladimir was actively giving Self-realisation using his own approach. First he arranged a rope between the trees and then started going on it to and back with brilliant skill, thus constantly attracting people. Many of the latter tried to do the same thing but, as we all know, to keep equilibrium one should gain inner balance. That is why the queue of people willing to get balance did not end, either.
Sahaja Yoga Bhajan group, Ellouin Festival
All this was taking place to the accompaniment of bhajans. Two music groups settled down in two tents. Both the groups were constantly creating a dense circle of viewers around them. Kawwalis were of special interest, gathering audiences of 50-70 people. Some people were leaving, having got their Self-realisation, but immediately others came up.
Altai people are simple and sincere and they take Self-realisation very easily as they worship Mother-Earth, River and Mountains. That is why Sahaja Yoga is also close to them. We saw an old woman (about 90 years old) getting her Self-realisation and then she sat and listened to bhajans for a very long time.
We also got an opportunity to perform one bhajan, “Guruoke Guru”, and an Indian dance on the main stage before a large audience.
In such a way, in a very interesting and intensive manner, two days passed. And of course, we had an opportunity, though not for a long time, to enjoy Altai nature, as after the Festival we returned to our Sahaja camp which we set on the bank of a rapid river in a secluded wonderful place. There were huge boundless fragrant meadows painted with multicoloured grasses. In the distance there were herds of cows and horses and around us there were mountains. What else does a Sahaja yogi need after an intensive day? To sit at a swift river in meditation, to lie on soft and tender grass looking into the high Altai sky, to sit in the company of the closest and dearest people – his brothers and sisters – at a fire drinking hot tea prepared from meadow herbs.
The trip turned out to be very fruitful as about 1500 people got their Self-realisation during the two days.
With love from the Novosibirsk Sahaja family
(Photographs: news.sahajayoga-russia.ru)
For more news about Sahaja Yoga programs in Russia, please follow this link.
Music of Joy concert, Ho Chi Minh City
I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City one week after the very successful tour by the Sahaja Yoga Music of Joy music group from Australia (Click here for a video clip of the Music of Joy). This visit was part of the Realise Asia Tour that was conducted throughout the Asian region, visiting Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma) and China, as well as Vietnam, in July 2010.
About 1000 people had registered beforehand for the Ho Chi Minh program, scheduled for 3 July. As the hall was not large enough to accommodate such a large number, a second concert was organised for the following day. Five hundred people attended the first concert, and a further two hundred came back the next day for the second concert.
A joyful experience for the audience
After Music of Joy performed, a Self-realisation session was provided. The joy on the faces of the people attending was wonderful to behold. This joy soon expressed itself in spontaneous dancing.
Since then, follow-up programs have been held for those wishing to find out more about Sahaja Yoga and its benefits, and learn how to meditate. It was one of these follow-up programs that I was privileged to attend.
Ben Tanh Markets, Ho Chi Minh City
The session I attended was run by Katie from Malaysia, who spoke to the group in English. Her words were translated into Vietnamese by Tuyet and Giang. The subject for the day was Kundalini, the primordial energy within all of us, residing in the sacrum bone. Kundalini can be awakened by the presence of someone who already has his or her Kundalini awakened. If a person has the desire for it to happen, the Kundalini will awaken, rise through the spinal cord and come out of the top of the head, at the fontanelle bone area. When this happens, the person becomes connected with the All-pervading Power. This process is called Self-realisation.
Shri Mataji
After the session on Kundalini, which was preceded by a guided meditation, we watched a short video of a talk by Shri Mataji, the founder of Sahaja Yoga. After that, we had another beautiful, deep meditation. At the end, there were lots of questions from the participants, with people wanting to find out more about Kundalini, Self-realisation and Sahaja Yoga.
Ho Chi Minh City at night
It was a wonderful experience and a great honour for me to take part in this follow-up program. The Vietnamese are very sweet and loving people, and it was a great pleasure for me to share this experience with my Vietnamese brothers and sisters.
Opera House, Ho Chi Minh City
I was also fortunate enough to be in Ho Chi Minh City at the time of Guru Puja. Guru Puja is celebrated around the world, and is a time when we pay homage to our gurus. In Sahaja yoga, our Guru is Shri Mataji. Happily, through Sahaja Yoga we also attain the ability to become our own gurus. During the Puja, we watched a video talk by Shri Mataji where She discussed the qualities of a guru, how we can tell who is a real guru, and the qualities we need to develop within ourselves so that we can become our own gurus. These qualities include patience, wisdom and discretion.
Vietnam is a very beautiful country, and I really enjoyed my visit there. Ho Chi Minh City has many wonderful parks, gardens and street plantings, gracious old buildings, built by the French, and modern skyscrapers. It is a vibrant, beautiful city.
Vung Tau, Vietnam
I also visited Vung Tau, a lovely beachside resort city, about one and a half hours away from Ho Chi Minh City by fast, modern ferry. An International Food Festival, which attracted huge crowds, was held while I was there.
While I greatly enjoyed my visit to Vietnam and look forward to visiting again in the future, the high point of my trip was the opportunity to meet and spend time with the Vietnamese Sahaja yogis.
Editor