BK Jayasimha

How does your faith help you in times of struggle, change, and new beginnings?

The faith in the self, in God, and in community, brings the internal strength, which helps to overcome obstacles. The sustenance in challenging times comes from daily disciplined life and meditation. 
How does your faith describe the relationship between all living things, the Earth, and the Divine?

The human being is a nucleus point in relation with the earth, creation, and all beings, and is the most influential for all happenings. As a spiritual practitioner, it is the basic teaching of my path to respect the existence of every species on the Earth and also the five elements. I try to live in such a way that it is not disturbing the natural process of evolution.

What does your faith tradition teach about material consumption and simplicity?

The simplicity begins with thinking – our community focuses more on internal simplicity and contentment by positive thinking, which ultimately reflects in external simplicity and minimal usage of materialistic things.
 In what ways does your community provide you with a guide to life?

In our community, it’s taught that sangatan is shakti, which means that working together brings strength. By sharing and caring with each other, the new culture and way of interacting emerge.

How does your community approach examining and changing our lifestyles?

In fact, the above aspect is a daily practice in our community. Additionally, regular retreats focused on self-transformation through intense meditation serve to strengthen the self to live in accordance with this principle. 
Which sacred texts most inspire you to act for change?

I’m inspired by the ancient wisdom of vedic science, presented in the easiest way to understand and practice in daily life. It is a holistic approach to change the self by practicing four subjects, such as: gyan (knowledge), yoga (meditation), dharna (inculcation) and seva (service to humanity).

What have you done to improve the sustainability of your diet, transportation, and/or energy use?

As an engineer, I have been involved in developing and teaching about renewable energy devices for the last 25 years. As a community, we intake simple and sattvic food cooked by dedicated Raja Yogis using solar energy. We’ve also established several solar energy systems at the headquarters of our community in Mt. Abu, India, which can serve as a successful demonstration for others.

How would you describe the experience of making these lifestyle changes?

As we always work selflessly, without any monetary or other kind of expectations, the path is fairly easy and enjoyable. The reward is in the form of blessings from beneficiaries.