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JVB Preksha Meditation Center Houston
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V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1 1 N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 7
Diwali: Time to Lighten Up IN THIS ISSUE
Innermost Lights Diwali:Time to Lighten
Up Innermost Lights
Akshay Pragyaji Vinay Pragyaji
JVB Houston celebrated Di- of consciousness, infinite Youth Class at the JVB
wali on 10th Nov at the JVB knowledge, and infinite bliss Houston Center
BOARD OF Center. The program started marking this occasion.
DIRECTORS with ‘Bhaktamar Path’ chant- Samaniji explained that Di- Reduce Obesity
Swatantra Jain Workshop
ing, followed by a presenta- wali symbolizes the festi-
(Chair Person)
tion by the Gyanshala stu- val of lights. However the Tidbits
Alok Jain dents, and capped with essence of the festival lies in • Mantra: The Problem
Hasmukh Doshi
Rita Mehta pravachan by Samani Ak- the awareness of the Solving
Sampat Rampuria shay Pragyaji. The topic of innermost lights. Unless one • Test Your Knowledge
Sidharaj Bhandari the pravachan was “How? lightens up innermost lights, • Voice of the Omniscient
Sunil Mehta • Calendar of Events
and Why? to celebrate Di- it won’t help one to develop
Jugal Kishor Malani • Upcoming Workshops
wali”. positive attitude toward life.
Raman Patel
Samaniji explained the rea- Attitude of gratitude is an Stress Management in
EXECUTIVE sons behind Diwali cele- amazing gift that nature has AAHOA Convention
COMMITTEE brations by the various sects. given to us. Lighting a lamp
In Jain religion, Diwali is during Diwali also symbol- A Meet with Dr. Kalam
Hasmukh Patel
(President) the celebration of liberation, izes the destruction of all Aditya Jain Visits the
and festival of enlighten- negative forces, violence, Gyanshala
Ila Patel
ment. According to Jain his- lust, ego, anger, greed, fear, Contact Us
(Vice President) JVB Houston
tory, Lord Mahaveer attained desire, suffering, etc. 1712 Highway 6 S
Bijay Banthia `liberation, the state of pure Cont...on page 5 Houston TX- 77077
(Treasurer) Phone: 281-596-9642
Pramod Bengani
(Secretary) Mark your calendar for Play: MahaSati Anjana:
Saturday, January 12, 2008 (8 to 10 PM) &
WORKING Sunday, January 13, 2008 (5 to 7 PM) at the Stafford Civic Center
COMMITTEE
Ajay Khater Diwali Celebration at JVB Houston
(Gyanshala)
Dinkar Cheda
(Publicity)
Parimal Shah
(Camp and Work-shop)
Kokila Bhavsar
(Rasayanshala{Food})
Hemant Bhavsar
(Cultural Program) JVB Houston celebrated Diwali on 10th Nov at the JVB Center. Children’s from Gyanshala
depicted what each letter in the words “HAPPY DIWALI” should mean to us.
Youth Class at the JVB Houston Center
Mahaveer Youth Group had an opportunity to visit JVB Houston for lecture and discussion in Oc-
tober. Samanijis gave an excellent discourse on basic foundations and principles of Jainism. Youths
learned the origin of Jain religion and how it defers from other Vedic religions. They learned the
uniqueness of Jainism - Anekantvad, and how one could practice Jainism in day to day lives; such as
avoiding leather products, using less electricity, and minimizing the usage of water. Youths had a
chance to ask and clarify questions and comments they had regarding the origins and principles of
Jainism. Youths wished to visit JVB once every month and learn enormous knowledge of Jainism
from Samanijis.
By: Payal Kapadia
Reduce Obesity Workshop
JVB center conducted a Reduce Obesity Workshop on Oct 27. Dr. Lata Joshi brought awareness by
focusing on current status of obese people and how it badly affects their health and mind. She also
shared remedies. People enjoyed her Q&A session. Samani Akshay Pragyaji explained the causes, ef-
fects, and some home remedies for obesity. She shared how Yoga, Pranayam and Meditation can help
reduce obesity. Fibrous and low caloric but nutritious food such as grapefruit are good. Water also re-
duces obesity. Junk food, sugar, candies, and alcohol are fat amplifiers. Walking and yoga are good
exercises. Even meditation can reduce weight because it brings awareness to controlling food habits
and reduces stress, which is one of the major causes of obesity. Lecture was followed by yoga, taught
by Samani Vinay Pragyaji, to burn the fat and earn the health.
By: JVB News Desk
Tidbits
The Problem Solving Mantra
“om namo savvohi-jinänam hräm hrīm.”
• Chant everyday 1 rosary (108 times) .
• Benefit: Cures eye-problem.
Test your knowledge about Jain religion
The answers of last month’s questions are as follows:
Q1. How does one suffer the Jnävarniya karma?
Answer: One gets obstacles in studies due to Jnävarniya karma. The obstacles may be in the form of poor
financial situation, illness, weak brain, and so on.
Q2. How one can get rid of Jnävarniya karma?
Answer: By helping others in studies, by not disrespecting teachers and knowledge, by not possessing ego
of intelligence etc.
Q3. What causes the bondage of Vedniya karma?
Answer: Giving pain or pleasure to others. To give pain brings pain back to you, and pleasure brings
happiness.
Questions for this month are:
1.What is Mohaniya Karma?
2.Explain the classification of Mohaniya Karma?
3.How does it affect the consciousness?
Voice of the Omniscient
timirharä jai ditthi, janassa divena natthi käyavvam
taha sokkham sayamädä, visayä kim tata kuvvamti.
If one’s vision is capable of expelling the darkness, he would not need the lamp. Like wise the soul itself
being blissful, there is no need of external object for bliss.
(Abstract From Jain Agamas)
Calendar of Events:
♦ Wednesday 07:15 to 08.00 PM.: Meditation
08:15 to 09:15: Swadhyaya (on meaning of Pratikraman
and Uttradhyaya Sutra)
♦ Thursday 09:30 to 11.00 AM.: Yoga and meditation for General Health & Mental Peace.
♦ Saturday 09:00 to 10.30 AM.: Yoga and meditation for General Health & Mental Peace.
♦ Sunday
1. (1st and 3rd) 10:00 to 12:15 AM : Gyanshala for Children. Meditation & Pravachan for parents.
2. (2nd and 4th) 10:30 to 12:00 AM.: Meditation, Pravachan & Bhajan
Notes: Mark your calendars for the following
Play: MahaSati Anjana: Saturday, January 12, 2008 (8 to 10 PM) &
Sunday, January 13, 2008 (5 to 7 PM) at the Stafford Civic Center
March 21st to 23rd, 2008 “Annual Family Camp” at the “Gordon Ranch”
Stress Management in AAHOA Convention
In AAHOA Convention Samaniji from JVB center were invited to deliver the lecture on Stress man-
agement. Samaniji explained about the causes and remedy of stress. She explained that one of the best
ways to get rid of stress is - to live in present by doing mindful activity. There were more than 100 peo-
ple from couple of cities of Texas. Along with theory, people participated in practical exercises.
Samaniji taught them correct breathing, Mahapran Dhwani, alternate breathing, and relaxation
technique. Mr. Hasmukh Patel, president of the JVB Houston Center introduced people with JVB and
its activities. This program was arranged by Mr. Hasu Patel and Mr. Raman Patel who also put an extra
ordinary effort to make it successful.
By: JVB News Desk
A Meet with Dr. Kalam
On October 18, Samani Akshay Pragya & Vinay Pragya met with Dr. Abdul Kalam, ex president of
India, during his visit to Houston. Samani Akshay Pragya presented the message of Acharya
Mahapragyaji to Dr. Kalam. His smile showed how happy he was to have received the message from
Mahapragyaji, especially the word ‘Mahatma Gandhi’ impressed him a lot. He also inquired about the
JVB Houston center and its activities.
By: JVB News Desk
Aditya Jain visits the Gyanshala
Aditya Jain, a student in 6th grade, visited the gyanshala stu-
dents and parents to share his winning speech at the annual Ma-
hatma Gandhi Week city wide speech competition held on Sep-
tember 29th, 2007. His topic was “Be the Change you wish to
see in this world”. A follower of Jainism and Bhagwan Ma-
haveer, Aditya is a vegetarian and believes in non-violence. In
his speech, he emphasized the fact that each one of us can
change the world once we believe in ourselves and practice
what we preach. No matter how young or old you are, even a
6th grader like him can provide positive influence, slowly and
steadily.
The students in Gyanshala then had a Q&A session and inquired Aditya about his motivation to partici-
pate in the contest. Some asked about the time and effort required to prepare for his speech, and others
asked for the explanation of some of his speech’s contents. Aditya enjoyed his visit and offered his sup-
port to the children who will participate in the speech contest next year. After the mangal path,
Samaniji’s gave her blessings and the students presented Aditya with a Namokar Mantra plaque.
By: JVB News Desk
Diwali: Time to Lighten Up Innermost Lights
On this auspicious occasion of Diwali Samani Akshay Prag-
yaji presented two symbolic lamps to everyone - 1) Lamp of
mindful activity and 2) Lamp of inner purity. These lamps are
not physical but spiritual to enlighten our consciousness.
Samaniji explained that physical lamps and its lights are tem-
porary, but the spiritual lamps are everlasting and endless. She
continued that we should avoid multitasking and engross com-
pletely in the activity at hand. While walking - walk only,
while eating - eat only, while studying - study only – this is
the mindful activity. It increases efficiency and amplifies the
results of the work. Inner purity means to wish goodwill for
all, to have feeling of forgiveness and to avoid anti-human & anti social acts. She said - If we light
these two lamps in our life, darkness of negative thinking will vanish and we will have a peaceful,
happy & prosperous life.
Children’s from Gyanshala depicted what each letter in the words “HAPPY DIWALI” should and
should not mean.
By: JVB News Desk
Thoughts
In this world, are there more problems or more solutions?
Problems are fewer and solutions many more. One problem has a hundred solutions. One should un-
derstand this from the perspective of Anekant. The one who searches for solutions finds more of them
and few problems. While the one who does not look for solutions, finds many problems and few solu-
tions.
