In search of peace
Joyce Kam
The Standard, 2007.11.6
A minute is all it takes. Stephanie Chan Yick-heung always takes a break from her hectic life to absorb her surroundings and connect with her own inner self. It's a Raja Yoga move the 28-year-old schoolteacher has been practicing ever since she picked it up as an undergraduate five years ago.
Raja Yoga is concerned principally with the cultivation of the mind using meditation to understand one's inner self and channel the mind in the right direction.
"It means royal union, that is to be the king of your mind," said Sister Jayanti of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University.
BKWSU, which originated in India, has over 4,000 centers in more than 104 countries offering free educational programs. It is a nongovernment organization affiliated to the United Nations with Jayanti as their representative.
"Meditation has become fashionable today," says Jayanti, noting that she has met a lot of young people with a growing interest in the subject. "I think they have seen the generation before them focus too much on materialism but can't get satisfaction. So, they want a different quality of life."
Chan said she had found inner peace and happiness through meditation. "I feel relaxed and light after I meditate."
She said she had become humble since she now realized that virtues like love, generosity, patience and acceptance were far more important than external material. "We are all instruments of the world. So, there's no need to be egocentric and manipulative.
Raja Yoga is concerned principally with the cultivation of the mind using meditation to understand one's inner self and channel the mind in the right direction.
"It means royal union, that is to be the king of your mind," said Sister Jayanti of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University.
BKWSU, which originated in India, has over 4,000 centers in more than 104 countries offering free educational programs. It is a nongovernment organization affiliated to the United Nations with Jayanti as their representative.
"Meditation has become fashionable today," says Jayanti, noting that she has met a lot of young people with a growing interest in the subject. "I think they have seen the generation before them focus too much on materialism but can't get satisfaction. So, they want a different quality of life."
Chan said she had found inner peace and happiness through meditation. "I feel relaxed and light after I meditate."
She said she had become humble since she now realized that virtues like love, generosity, patience and acceptance were far more important than external material. "We are all instruments of the world. So, there's no need to be egocentric and manipulative.
Just fulfill
your responsibility."Jayanti said people could reconnect to their real self upon meditation.
Many people these days, she believes, are spiritually empty - an emptiness that leads to fragile relationships. Relationships are about give and take, she explains. "When people are bankrupt inside, they stop giving but keep asking for more. Spending time in silence fills up the void, and thus improves relationships."
Retired professor Simon Chau Siu- cheong has been volunteering for the organization for over 20 years. He said: "I am really fond of their practice. It's simple yet powerful."
What impressed him most was that people of all religions were welcome to join. Jayanti explains this, saying: "Spirituality is the same for all human beings, religion is different. Whether you are an atheist or not, it doesn't matter."
Meditation, she says, is essential for reducing stress. "Understand that you are the creator of your own thoughts and emotions, and then you can create peace and be positive. Hongkongers are very busy people. Yet I believe there's an inner thirst for spirituality," she said.
Many people these days, she believes, are spiritually empty - an emptiness that leads to fragile relationships. Relationships are about give and take, she explains. "When people are bankrupt inside, they stop giving but keep asking for more. Spending time in silence fills up the void, and thus improves relationships."
Retired professor Simon Chau Siu- cheong has been volunteering for the organization for over 20 years. He said: "I am really fond of their practice. It's simple yet powerful."
What impressed him most was that people of all religions were welcome to join. Jayanti explains this, saying: "Spirituality is the same for all human beings, religion is different. Whether you are an atheist or not, it doesn't matter."
Meditation, she says, is essential for reducing stress. "Understand that you are the creator of your own thoughts and emotions, and then you can create peace and be positive. Hongkongers are very busy people. Yet I believe there's an inner thirst for spirituality," she said.