Best viewed with
Internet Explorer (IE) 4
and higher.
Site optimized for IE 5.0.

Prajapita Brahmakumaris Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya founded seven decades ago is now a global institution with its dedicated followers working for spiritual empowerment of people at large. Its Regional Director for South East Asia, Brahma Kumari Meeraji, stationed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was on a brief visit to Mysore, where she joined the Vidyalaya in 1968, during which she delivered lectures on Stress Management, Harmony in Human Relationships, Developing Self-Esteem, Time Management and Secrets of Success in a five- day series ending on Feb. 11, 2005. We interviewed her at Jnanaprakash Bhavan, the Meditation Centre of the institution in Yadavagiri, Mysore. Excerpts.

Chanting mantras is seen by some as mere entertainment. Is that argument valid?
It need not be a matter for argument that chanting of mantras brings solace to people. At least, at the time of chanting mantras they are at peace with themselves and the world around them. May be they are not able to continue like that all the time. As I have observed, those who chant mantras have a better quality of life. The seekers among them will look for deeper meaning of the mantras and the message in them. That which relieves the mind of all its stresses is Mantra. Taking time for meditation or silent prayer is beneficial in helping a person to attain stability of mind. Is it not good for the person?

Happiness has become a child of pleasure in society. What is the way to reverse it?
Pleasure is connected with sense organs. When a person uses his sense organs that person experiences joy. In other words, that person enjoys, as a result of pleasure. When the source and cause of pleasure are removed, pleasure is gone. That is the consequence of depending on materialistic pleasure. But happiness is an internal matter, having nothing to do with external factors. It is what you are and not what you have or see. To be happy, one has to look at oneself positively. It can last as long as one sticks to that practice. It is an illusion that pleasure leads to happiness. Seeking pleasure will only make people subservient to materialistic way of life. For example, seeking pleasure by viewing television has become so compelling that we are denying ourselves the happiness that is internal and not dependent on that device.

Religion is for uniting people. But religions have driven them apart. Do we still need them?
We have to correctly understand the meaning of religion itself. It lays down dharma or righteousness. Dharma does not segregate people. Being a means of inculcating the values of life by which all must live, it unites people. It is common nowadays that it is abused to derive profit out of it. Prajapita Brahmakumaris Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya, being a spiritual institution, practices and promotes the dharma of living in peace and harmony among all beings. The institution is free of any religion, as it does not advocate any ism. God did not create the different religions followed by people at large, as we know them. Human beings create them all. Moreover, ism - derived religions only divided the people, often resulting in wars and bloodshed. That is why people are sick of religion. In that backdrop, our institution's efforts have been towards achieving universal brotherhood for peace and harmony in this world.

Lofty human conduct has become a mirage. Is there some way of realizing it by other than pleading, praying, preaching and persuading?
You can't preach to cause lofty human conduct. It has to come through seeking. Or, one has to be an example. Because of the gap between talking and practicing, preaching has resulted. When we become a role model, then it becomes easy for others to follow. The pattern today is: Do what I say, not what I do. People nowadays are running away from religion also, because the preacher does not practice. We need to develop the strength of character in order to make others imbibe values of life.

Culture of people in society has jumped on to the stage and remaining there. How to get it off the stage?
Culture or Samskruthi, which is what one does, has to be brought down to earth in action. In other words, until one realizes oneself, one cannot change one's actions. Culture may be explained to a person. To bring it into our homes and on to the streets, it is necessary to realize its importance. To live a life of truth, peace, non - violence and good thoughts towards others, one has to realize one's intrinsic qualities. Shruthi and Krithi are closely connected. Nowadays, we are witnessing vismriti or lack of balance between the two. We need to work towards that balance.

Voice of the virtuous, without strength of great number of people following that voice, has gone into wilderness. It is also feeble. How to make it act?
Life has become a rat - race. If one sheep falls into a pit, a hundred others follow it. People at large have neither the thinking faculty nor time for that. They do things only for personal gain. We can observe a great deal of manipulating in our society. Truth will always triumph. We must not give up. We need to have patience and make efforts with commitment and perseverance to create a society in which people live by the values of life. There will be a spiritual revolution and an awakening among the people that they have wasted a lifetime by listening to and following bad examples.

Drawing copiously from our scriptures, we are telling each other what is good and what is bad. Are we not hypocrites?
There is a lot of hypocrisy. People have turned pundits, just saying without doing what they say. If we practice even one percent of what we quote from our scriptures, we have made the day in our life. Unfortunately, episodes in our ancient literature have only been narrated as stories for entertainment and not for inculcating virtues in children. People indulging in conversion are even twisting the stories and misinterpreting them. The ocean of wisdom in our scriptures is being diluted. We must try to benefit from that.

Print and electronic media as well as the popular cinema, knowingly or unknowingly, are fanning the flames of societal divide on many flanks. What must be done to set right the system?
There is an urgent need to educate the media-persons about their duties and responsibilities in building a strong society in which people can live in peace and harmony. Information presentation aimed at creating thrill must change to publishing news in a positive way. That the newspaper will not sell if it publishes plain news is a myth. Nowadays, instead of writing that a dog bit a man, the newspapers like to write that a man bit a dog. Media having a strong influence on the minds of the youth must be subjected to some sort of censorship. But, no body is taking up that task, although most people are saying that something must be done to stem the declining trend in values of life.

The secret of success today in our society is to fight for and earn the label that one is backward. Is that not an affront to both the society and the individual?
It is regressive, not progressive at all. It is definitely not desirable to be in a race for getting the label that one is backward, for whatever reason or attraction. The really underprivileged people must be helped to improve their lot. It is the responsibility of others in society to take that responsibility. That is not happening. Only exploitation.

We belonged to a home in the distant past. Now, we live in apartments without space for grandfather and grandmother. Is that not a retrograde trend in our society?
Home is where the heart is. House and home are a world apart. One can possess a house or more often, an apartment. But one has to put in honest efforts to transform that into a home. Present trend in cities is that both parents go to work leaving their children in day care centres. Where is the place for heart? This is an influence of the West, which has disrupted our traditions of family life. The children are denied the love due to them not only from their parents but also grand parents. It does not augur well for the future of our society.

People at large are told that the villages are the backbone of the country. That backbone has broken down. React to that.
Country's urban population must be grateful to our villagers for their vital support through raising crops and providing food. Not only 80 percent of our country's people live in villages but also they are the backbone of the country. Our prosperity depends very much on recognizing that fact and respecting the village folk.

Teachers in the past laid the path to righteous life. Today's teachers are mere wage - earners. Where are we heading?
Teacher's work has ceased to be selfless service to fellow human beings that it had been in the past. Today's teachers have taken to the job only for earning a livelihood. That is commonly conceded. The younger generation has to take the brunt of the outcome of the teacher's attitude. Teachers are to become aware that today's children are the future leaders and they owe it to their students to mould them by teaching as a service. Or else, it is an utter failure on their part. Gurukulas of the past provided a good model of a system in which children grew into good citizens.

Courtesy: Star of Mysore