Message of Hope Delivered at Meditation Museum’s Diwali Celebration

Thank you to all who attended the Diwali Celebration ‘Where East Meets West,” hosted by the Meditation Museum.  When faiths meet in humility there will always be love and safety.  Please enjoy an article written by George Newcomb from Festival DC.  http://www.festivaldc.com/blog/?p=11002

By George Newcomb

The Brahma Kumaris Meditation Museum located in Silver Spring, MD presented a special celebration Tuesday evening entitled "Diwali … east meets west. Together we light up the world". The event was held at the Cultural Arts Center of Montgomery County at its Silver Spring campus.

Diwali is an annual celebration of light, the biggest and certainly brightest of all Hindu festivals. It is a celebration of light, love, life and union among people. Festivities take place over four days, separated by different traditions. Remaining constant throughout all four days is the celebration of life … its enjoyment and goodness and hope for the future.

Such was the message at Tuesday's event. A panel of distinguished guests, moderated by Dr. Kanu Kogod, spoke from personal experiences to the significance of light in their spiritual beliefs. They also shared their personal perspectives as to how they view the presence of God in each of their lives.

The panel consisted of Raja Yogini BK Sister Mohini who is President of Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual Organization, USA and serves as its regional director for North America. Rabbi David Sheyner, spiritual leader of the Am Kolel Jewish Renewal Community of Greater Washington, DC, was also a panelist as well as Dr. Sulayman  S. Nyang, professor and chairman of the African Studies Department at Howard University, and Rev. Elizabeth Lerner Maclay, a lifelong Unitarian Universalist.

The audience was also treated to wonderful performances by Neeta Ghandi's Dance School and the Abigail Francisco School of Classical Ballet. Saaswath Kumar, a 3rd grader at Bull Run Elementary School, shared poetry and Vijai Nathan provoked a lot of laughter as a renown Indian-American comedian. The DC native gathers her material from her experiences as an Indian girl in America.

The Mistress of Ceremonies of the evening was Ms. Portia Davidson, who is Workforce Policy Adviser to the Commandant, HQ, US Coast Guard in Washington and Project Officer in developing the acclaimed Coast Guard Diversity Strategic Plan and global Diversity Summit.

"Over the years I've come to appreciate the enormous service that the Brahma Kumaris have offered our Nation's Capital and the world," Ms. Davidson told the audience. "This spiritually based movement is rooted in love, kindness, wisdom, and it's safe to say life."

The evening would not have been complete without Sister Jenna, who is Director of the Meditation Museum, sharing her wisdom and compassion as she closed out the ceremony.

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About the Meditation Museum

This small unique museum, located at 8236 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, Maryland, invites visitors to enhance the quality of their thoughts, their lives and the world around them. The museum is specifically designed to bring us back to a knowledge of our true selves and our responsibility to humanity. The art works, the events, and the space are designed to nurture you, the inner being...that part which is often neglected in the world of chaos and constant distractions. This is a treasure of a place, a gift to humanity, where one can visit to experience peace, wisdom, power and love. While in this virtual space we hope you can "remember" who YOU really are. Our hope is that everyone who experiences the museum finds his or her own authentic meaning for life.

The Meditation Museum features interactive displays and tailored training sessions providing tools for personal and spiritual change. It hosts a variety of conversations, workshops, special presenters, dialogues, seminars and of course, sessions on how to silence the mind. Courses include meditation, stress management and practicing internal silence.

You will be able to visualize and understand how our thoughts influence the external world through art ranging from pictures, posters, painting and sculpture to music, theater, dance and poetry. All activities support the original integrity of the human being, highlighting strength of character, power of mind and peace.

We trust that after your visit to the Museum, you will come back again and again and will continue to share the good news with friends and family: that one can enter into a new world of awesome self-discovery at the Meditation Museum.

All events are free of charge at the Meditation Museum however, your generous tax-deductible contributions and, of course, your good wishes do help to keep the variety of programs and the doors opened for all to enter and realize who they truly are.  For more information, please visit www.MeditationMuseum.org