New Havan Kund at The Meditation Center

24 December, 2009 @ 12:05 pm

On Tuesday, October 20, 2009, Pandit Hari Shankar Dabral made a brief but informative visit to The Meditation Center of Minneapolis. His main mission: to inform the local community about the traditional, ritual customs and etiquette of the sacred fire ceremony. Earlier in the season, September 13, 2009, The Meditation Center consecrated its new Havan Kund (Sacred Fire Pit). Emilio Bettaglio spearheaded the project with the help of several volunteers who assisted in the construction over the summer months.  Dozens of people came together to participate in the consecration ceremony led by Emilio Bettaglio and Swami Ritavan Bharati. Overall, it was a great success! There was much talk about doing several more ceremonies in the future.

Introducing the Meditation Research Institute

23 December, 2009 @ 6:05 am

Shree Maa (Shri Ma)

1 December, 2009 @ 6:30 am

Shree Maa (alt: Shri Ma) is a Hindu saint born near Kamakhya, Assam, India who was called into oceanic silence at a very young age. On Monday morning, it was a very great pleasure and surprise when she appeared with devotees and Swami Satyananda Saraswati, an American swami with whom she established Devi Mandir, an ashram in the Bay Area of California.

Meeting with the SVB

4 November, 2009 @ 12:32 am

The Swami was here to lecture and launch his book Wanam - India and Africa: A Spiritual Dialogue. Interested people had formed a Committee and the Behavioural Sciences Department at UWI saw the value of his presence and work so they arranged a symposium and a book launch. Those sensible to the philosophy of intercultural commonalities gathered at the Hall to listen and be inspired.

Swamiji inTrinidad

28 October, 2009 @ 3:24 pm

Swami Veda’s first three public lectures in Trinidad took place at very different venues but his powerful message was the same. The common thread of course was “meditation.”  At all three lectures, the practicum set the tone. At the Chinmaya Mission, there was a very large crowd. As  Swamiji entered, we all saw that the audience was fully participating as Savitri led gentle stretches and postures with breath-awareness. At the University of the West Indies, Swamiji’s topic of “Unifying Streams in Religion” was very well received. As he went through a series of examples of how similar the important themes are, there were nods of assent and smiles from the audience

Insight Travel

24 October, 2009 @ 11:27 am

When you experience a beautiful spot as the abode of the sacred spirit, and by the process of experiencing it the sacred enters your soul, it is called insight-seeing. –Swami Veda Bharati

New AHYMSIN Centre Opens in Mauritius

24 October, 2009 @ 11:22 am

I live on a small island called Mauritius, situated in the Indian Ocean off the East coast of Madagascar and East Africa. The population of Mauritius is a melting pot of all the races and religions of the world.

HYT -TTP Report

24 October, 2009 @ 11:13 am

The recently completed Himalayan Yoga Tradition Teacher Training Program (HYT-TTP) conducted at University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota was a wonderful success. It was a special two weeks of blissful events, showered with the blessings of Swami Veda. Thank you, Swamiji for your presence.

Children and Yoga Around the World

24 October, 2009 @ 11:06 am

This summer, for five days, three hours a day, ten excited young yogis and yoginis from across the Twin Cities attended the first TMC yoga camp in the Center’s stately brick building in Northeast Minneapolis, Minnesota (www.themeditationcenter.org). Camp staffers Lela Pierce, Kate Kinnich, Mary Bowman-Cline, Shushmi Aggarwal, and a passel of dedicated and talented volunteers led the kids in making art, playing warrior tag, practicing asanas, and learning the nuances of the neti pot, mantra and meditation. The children also had the chance to lead one another in hatha classes.

Dr. Sharma Meets SVB and King Cobra

24 October, 2009 @ 10:54 am

The only time I had the opportunity to meet Swami Rama was in 1996 at his Rishikesh ashram, Sadhana Mandir. He was not well but was kind to invite me and my friend, Dr. David Frawley (who was also accompanying me), for a brief “darshan.”  After a few moments, he fixed his hypnotic gaze on me and said, “You should meet Swami Veda.” The meeting was over with these words. He asked someone to bring us both to Swami Veda.