Pranayama Dhyan Shibir happened in Orissa | Mumbai | Chennai | Ahemedabad | Patna
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar will guide a seminar including yoga, breathing and meditation sessions as well as interactions with the public. This event is open to all without any pre-requisites. It is a unique opportunity to experience deep relaxation with simple and accessible techniques in the presence of one of the greatest representatives of the philosophy and disciplines of yoga.
Stress and daily worries not only affect our health and well-being but also reduce our enthusiasm and “joie de vivre”. Nowadays more and more Europeans suffer from diseases or mental and emotional problems related to stress. In order to reverse this tendency, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is visiting France and Belgium to share his knowledge and techniques for more health and happiness.
His teachings are based on ancient vedic wisdom which he has adapted to the needs of our modern times. These techniques and practices are available to everyone and even if they do not require any prior knowledge, they are very effective. The breath is at the very core of all Art of Living courses as it is the link between body and spirit. However we rarely attend to our breath and use only 30% of our lung capacity.
Recent scientific research has proved that yoga and meditation techniques centered on the breath can significantly :
1. Strengthen immune system
2. Relieve anxiety and depression
3. Improve the brain functions through increased focus and efficiency
4. Increase well-being and inner peace.
The Pranayam Dhyan Shibir was a great success, with many new people coming to know about Art of Living and experiencing His grace. The shibir was inaugurated by the Hon'ble Chief Minister, Shri Nitish Kumar followed by a symphony of music from Bihar in folk, classical and contemporary styles.
Ten prominent personalities were felicitated at the event for their contribution to the state. Speaking on the power of love, H. H Sri Sri Ravishankar said to the thousands present, "The effect of poison lasts so many years, why not the effect of love…? We spend most of our lives sleeping, eating, working and going to work. Life is short, life is too short for love, where is the time for hate?"
The next day He met with decision makers, bureaucrats, politicians, doctors, professionals, media persons and members of the Bihar Chamber of Commerce. He called upon the gathering to launch a campaign in Bihar against female foeticide and dowry. He said that this practice goes against the ethos of India where the woman is worshipped as Durga and Lakshmi. He said that people of all religions should unite to bring social harmony in the state.
He answered questions that were called in at the 'Dainik Jagaran' newspaper office, met with all the volunteers and teachers who had come from 28 districts of the state and spoke at the General Assembly where He addressed Members of the Legislative Assembly and Members of the Legislative Council. There He said, "Politics should not interfere with development. Once elections are over, politicians should facilitate development. Yog and Udhyog should go together, yog will generate enthusiasm and banish hatred and udhyog will eliminate poverty.”
He also addressed more than 2,500 youth from across the state. There He said, "A youth is one whose enthusiasm never dies, whose smile never disappears, who never fears work, who never looks back and who never loses an opportunity to move ahead."
In the midst of all this, He found time to be guest editor for a day at the 'Hindustan', Bihar and Jharkand's largest circulating newspaper. There He urged journalists to report news without any prejudice, and not to merely highlight negative news as it douses the hopes and aspirations of the common man. He also visited the 'Shri Harmandir Takht' Gurudwara (a Sikh temple), which is the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh Ji, the tenth and last of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism. He also visited the Nalanda University (one of the first great universities in recorded history) and said that Nalanda will regain its past glory.
On the first day of the shibir, a young girl from the Bahadurpur slum of Patna came to the microphone and invited Him to come to her home and to the slum. From that evening, the residents of the slum gathered together and had satsangs and prayed for His visit. This went on for three days, until suddenly on the third day, H.H Sri Sri Ravishankar announced that He wanted to visit the slum. He blessed all of them and urged them to surrender their problems to Him.
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Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad played host to hundreds of thousands of people from 15 -19 February 2007, with Maha Shivaratri, Gujarat Silver Jubilee Celebrations, mega Advanced Course and the Pranayam Dhyan Shivir.
Set against a gorgeous backdrop of Lord Shiva floating in a sunset ambience, Rudra Pooja began at 6pm on 16 February. More than 200,000 people from different parts of India and the world were present, including the Governor and Chief Minister of Gujarat.
The Pranayam Dhyan Shivir commenced on the evening of 17 February, with over 15,000 participants from all sectors of society. Thousands encountered a healing touch from the Master, and many came forward to share their experiences in sheer gratitude! A mega Advanced Course also took place, with close to 2,500 participants.
Pujya Shri Morari Bapu (the renowned spiritual leader from Gujarat), H.E. the Governor of Gujarat, Shri Naval Kishore Sharma, the Honourable Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Narendra Modi, and the Honourable Mayor of Ahmedabad City, Shri Amit Shah were among the dignitaries to light the lamp at the Silver Jubilee Celebrations later that evening.
In his address, Pujya Morari Bapu said, “In this world, it is rare to find a person with such capability yet (such) simplicity, and one whose eyes (show) the love and compassion for humanity. H.H Sri Sri Ravishankar is one such being in whom all these qualities are merged.”
“Art of Living paves a way to the full blossoming of life. In this stressful world, people do not have time to think and understand what is living. To be able to smile amidst crisis is a real art of living. I appreciate Him for spreading the Art of Living and the message of universal brotherhood,” pronounced the Hon’ble Governor of Gujarat.
The Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat said, “May He keep coming here again and again to bless the state. Our nation is built not by the kings and empires, (nor by the)governments and politicians, but by the Rishi-Munis, saints and sages."
H.H Sri Sri Ravishankar’s address inspired the crowd: “I am glad that Gujarat is paving the way with its continuing glorious progress, in spite of natural calamities and all odds. Take a sankalp for the whole nation, for the whole world, and see how your work starts accomplishing on its own. Taking rural development, spirituality and cultural values together, may you move ahead. Lead your life with sadhana, seva and sincerity."
The celebrations continued with an awe-inspiring laser show, portraying different postures of Shiva Tandava as formatted by Ravana (a revered name in Hindu mythology).
Adding lustre to the celebrations, a diverse group of 180 folk dancers dressed in colourful traditional attire from different parts of Gujarat, wowed devotees with their spellbinding performances. On 18 February, spectators got a taste of the unique Navaratri festival with performances of the Ras-Garba (Gujarat's cultural dance), comprising of 800 dancers.
The final day saw a beautiful culmination of all the celebrations and courses - the gathering was led through a profound meditation by the Master himself, and Swami Adhyatmanandji as well. The entire festivities in Ahmedabad were truly a display of the Master's grace and limitless love.
Thousands of people including hundreds of saints, politicians, policemen, students, housewives, all flocked to be a part of this historic event conducted in Bhubaneswar, Orissa.
A new era heralded for a modern and bountiful Orissa, when the unprecedented awesome symphony with over 1500 artists 60 violins, 50 sitars, 40 pokhwaj, 40 Mrudangam, 30 Sehnai, 30 flutes, 30 saxophones, 15 guitars, 30 each on bells conch amongst the other instruments. 450 odissi exponents and over 300 vocalists from all over Orissa created the Divine Symphony and performed infornt of thousands of spellbound audience in the venue and millions of viewers across the globe.
Rich traditional and culture showcase which had in it, pure classical odissi dance and music.
His Excellency, Governor of Orissa, Shri Rameshwar Thakur lauded Sri Sri’s role in spreading the message of global peace. He said Sri Sri’s message of love and universal brotherhood has inspired people to shun violence and adopt peaceful life. Puri Gajapati Maharaj Sri Dibya Singh Deb and six saints from different religions showered their blessings on people.
The stalls in the venue that were made as traditional cottages, representing rich orissan art, crafts and heritage were serving recipes of Norh, East, South and West of India in the unique style which they have.
The day started with Sri Sri’s statement to the media persons. I have respect for those indulging in extortion and bloodshed. They are misguided and have taken to violence. Thousands of people attended the Pranayam Dhuan Shivir in presence of the Sri Sri.
Maha Rudra pooja was performed in the Ved Vignan Vidya Peeth, Puri under the aegis of VVMVP, Bangalore is situated on Puri-Konrak Marine Drive, 15 km from Puri. Gajapati Maharaj and the Queen a representatives from Bangalore Ashram, devotees from Orissa and neighbouring states experienced the power and joy of the pooja. Ved Vignan Vidya Peeth caters the need of 50 students for now and has four Vedas to offer to its students. This include four Vedas viz, Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharva.
With hundreds of prisoners in the open Air Prison Ashram, first of its kind in Orissa and in various institutions, viz. Xavier Institute of Management, Regional College of Management, Institute of Engineers, Sri Sri’s presence transformed the atmosphere to create belongingness for a Divine world order.
To realise Sri Sri’s vision on value – education aimed at building responsible future citizens an MoU between the Govt. of Orissa and Sri Sri Ravishankar Vidya Mandir Trust was signed in the Conference Hall of Orissa Secretariat for a multi-disciplinary World class university, a first time initiative of the first.
The MoU was signed by Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Higher Education Shri K. V. Tripathy and Trustee, Sri Sri Ravishankar Vidya Mandir Trust, Sri Yezdi Batliwala in presence of Param Poojya Sri Sri Ravishankarji and Sri Naveen Pattnaik, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Orissa. The proposed multi disciplinary University is to provide disciplines that includes Basic Sciences, Humanities, Engineering, Pharmacy, Business Management, Law, Bio-Sciences, Art, Culture, Vedic Studies, Ayurveda, Medical Sciences, Avitation and Maritime Training and other disciplines and to cater upto 15000 students. “The University will not provide information machines but cheerful personalities with creativity” he said in His address. The institution to be named Sri Sri University, will come up over an area of 200 acres in two to three years. The vision is to produce global leaders who are firmly rooted. Indian culture and ethos to serve holistic needs of the society. The event will be engraved in the annals of orissan history for its magnitude, creativity embedded with spirituality.
The Silver Jubilee celebration of Art of Living was celebrated in Chennai and this was a continuation of the Grand celebration in Bangalore during February 2006.
Sri Sri’s visit to the city started of with a Mahasatsang on the 5th December followed by the 3 day Health and Happiness course from the 6th December, interspersed with His address to a gather in g of Advocates and top Judiciary of the Chennai High court, the Police Officers and the bureaucrats in the Raj Bhavan (The office of the Governor of Tamil Nadu, India). His Holiness also had a private audience with His Excellency Sri Surjeet Singh Barnala, the Honourable Governor of Tamil Nadu.
Chennai witnessed its largest ever gathering during the Mahasatang held at Anna University grounds was brimming with enthusiastic crowd who were entertained to a enthralling performance of Bharatanatyam by over 400 artistes, which is the classical dance of Tamilnadu. The artistes represented the various dance schools and choreographed by some of the leading international Bharatanatyam dancers. Some of the renowned artistes Sudha rani Raghupathy Narasimhachari and others were honoured on the occasion.
The dance was followed by some soul stirring bhajans during which the crowd settled down. Sri Sri then guided the crowd through a meditation which was just a synopsis for the Health and Happiness course that followed the next 3 days.
The Health and Happiness course was the first of its kind for Chennai and was also the first time Sri Sri conducted a course personally in Chennai. The evening ended with carnatic music by Sriram and Anuradha, and Bombay Jaishree performed in front of the gathering on day 2. Many healing experiences were recorded during the Health and Happiness course from December 6 to 8.
“The animal asanas were such fun”, said some participants. But then when it came to village woman’s asanas, our volunteers found many men standing stiff and not participating. “Why aren’t you doing the asanas?”, they were asked. “Oh, but that is not OUR department”, came the response!!!
Sri Sri also addressed the advocates of the Madras High Court at the Advocates Chambers in the court premises. A common refrain from the lawyers was that they were totally stressed out. Sri Sri taught them a few techniques to ease the tension in daily life. He also advised them to meditate for a few minutes every day followed by a very lively question-answer session.
Sri Sri also visited the Sanskrit College and the Kaligambal temple, a very old temple in the old city area.
“The techniques and processes that he is teaching are so simple yet so profound. My colleagues and I really enjoyed it”, a senior journalist from a reputed Tamil magazine commented..
“The animal asanas were such fun”, said some participants. But then when it came to village woman’s asanas, our volunteers found many men standing stiff and not participating. “Why aren’t you doing the asanas?”, they were asked. “Oh, but that is not OUR department”, came the response!!!
Mumbai, November 22, 2006: “Together we can bring about change,” said His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, speaking on the third day of the Pranayam Dhyan Shibir. He welcomed the youth to join hands with Art of Living. “Lot of work needs to be done in the villages and we need lot of youth for that. I invite the youth to give at least one year of their lives for service.”
Attended by a cross section of people, including police officers, bus conductors, auto and taxi drivers and farmers from Vidarbha, the participants shared many healing and transformational experiences.
Said Ramesh Kriplani, a paraplegic, “Ever since I was born I have been riddled with diseases. Since a long time I have been suffering from respiratory problems and frequent bronchitis. Every four months I would be at the doctor’s doorsteps . Since the past 14 months, I have been practicing the Sudarshan Kriya and have not gone to my doctor even once.”
Many said that the course brought about a change in attitude. “I never knew that yoga could be so wonderful and that chanting has such a deep effect on my body,” said Mohammad. Recounting the advice of a Maulana, he asked others to follow suit without any thought to religion. “I want to thank Allah for giving me the opportunity to join the course,” he said.
Another participant, Sunita Rajan said, “Due to breathing problems, I have been unable to sleep for three years. After doing the Pranayam Dhyan Shibir for just three days I slept for seven hours last night for the first time.”
Sri Sri spoke about how to deal with the mind and taught practical techniques like asanas, pranayamas and meditation that help in day to day routine. He also spoke on nutrition and healthy lifestyle.
When asked about the relationship between sadhana (spiritual practices) and seva (service), Sri Sri said, “Seva brings merit which deepens sadhana.”
"When I enrolled my child in the Sri Sri Vidya Mandir school in Dharavi, he couldnot walk or talk. Now he has started talking and and runs around the whole day"
"Ever since I was born I have been riddled with diseases. since a long time I have been suffering from respiratory problems, and frequent bronchitis. Every four months I would be at the doctor's doorsteps. Since the past 14 months, I have been practicising the Sudarshan Kriya and have not gone to my doctor even once".
-- Ramesh Kriplani
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