Diwali, Festival of Lights, Los Angeles (11/13)

This post covers five Diwali celebrations in the Los Angeles area, one on Thursday (Oct. 20), one on Saturday, Oct. 22, two on Sunday, Oct. 23, one on Monday, Oct. 24, and the largest on Sunday, Nov. 13, 2022. The first and last are FREE, but the other three request a voluntary donation.

Diwali: Celebrating Oneness Nov. 13, 2022

FREE: Diwali, India's "Festival of Lights" is a celebration of ONENESS or nonduality (advaita), with speakers from various faiths, cultural performances, experiential meditation, and a free vegetarian lunch. More

When and where

• Sunday, Nov. 13, 2022, 10:00 AM–1:00 PM
• Sanatan Dharma ("Eternal Truth") Temple
• 15311 Pioneer Blvd., Norwalk, CA 90650

• Celebrate Diwali, New Moon Meditation, Puja, Healing Fire Ceremony + Eclipse, Monday, Oct 24, 2022, 6:00 PM | Meetup

Art of Living, LA: Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022

Krishna the cowherd loves the flute

All are cordially invited to attend “Diwali: Festival of Lights’’ -- an evening of celebrating joy, music, culture, and peace at the historic Art of Living Dome in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday, October 23rd. 

Diwali is an age-old festival of lights traditionally originating in India. It celebrates peace, prosperity, and victory of light over darkness, and harmony for all.

During this event held for the Los Angeles community, coming together to connect, celebrate, and welcome the light of peace and prosperity into our lives, joy will reign above all else.

Diwali? Originating from the Sanskrit word Deepavali, it literally means rows (avali) of lights (deepa). This Festival of Lights symbolizes the vanquishing of ignorance (darkness) by the knowledge (light).

There are four aspects of Diwali:

1. Lighting of lamps. The lights on Diwali are symbolic of spreading knowledge.
2. Firecrackers: When an explosion happens on the outside, the explosion inside is diffused. This is the significance of firecrackers.
3. Distribution of sweets. Sweets dispel bitterness and are symbolic of a renewed friendship.
4. Feeling the abundance. It is a day to feel grateful for all that we have.

The celebration will begin with a short breathing and meditation session to relax the mind and feel the peace and joy within. When true wisdom dawns it gives rise to celebration, and in celebration we may lose focus or awareness.

So let us celebrate this Diwali with knowledge and feel the abundance. For those who have will be given more! This event will have all the aspects of celebration, which includes:

• Laxmi Puja (devotional ceremony to Lakshmi),
• followed by lighting lamps (diyas/tealight candles provided): There is an opportunity to make a personal sankalpa (deep wish) and offering. Sankalpa is a deep intention, since every manifestation has an intention behind it. We have many desires or intentions, however not all intentions come to fruition or manifestation. The process of taking a sankalpa is an ancient Vedic technique that uses mantras to invite the energy of the universe to help strengthen and manifest our intentions.
• Lighting lamps and dance performances
• Meditation
• Dinner (vegetarian Indian cuisine).

All are welcome, and anyone who comes for the event can witness the puja (sacred ceremony). Come celebrate the light of happiness, joy, and SELF. FREE-$51: Tickets (Eventbrite)

Things to do in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles Festivals, LA Community Festivals, #dance #food #music #musical #india #diwali #lightshow #weekend_activities #diwali2022 #lights_festival

• $0–$51 Tickets
• The Art of Living Rating 5 (3 reviews)
• Diwali, Art of Living Foundation, DTLA, Oct. 23, 7:00 PM

Diwali Festival with Kenwa, Tickets, Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 at 6:30 PM | Eventbrite

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ART OF LIVING FOUNDATION

Organizer of Diwali Fest 2022: Festival of Lights operating in 152 countries, The Art of Living Foundation (AOLF) is a non-profit, educational, and humanitarian organization founded in 1981 by the world-renown philanthropist and spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (srisriravishankar.org). All of AOLF’s programs are guided by Sri Sri’s philosophy: “Unless we have a stress-free mind and a violence-free society, we cannot achieve world peace.” The AOLF community is diverse and attracts people from all walks of life backgrounds and religious orientations. AOLF offers numerous highly effective educational and self-development programs and tools that facilitate the elimination of stress and foster deep and profound inner peace, happiness, and well-being for all individuals. These programs, which include breathing techniques, meditation, yoga, and practical wisdom for daily living, have helped millions around the world to completely transform their lives. In addition to these courses offered globally, AOLF, working in collaboration with The International Association for Human Values (IAHV), has successfully implemented numerous humanitarian projects and service initiatives including conflict resolution programs, disaster relief, sustainable rural development, empowerment of women, prisoner rehabilitation, education for all, and environmental sustainability. It has been said of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar that not since Mahatma Gandhi has one person united so many people of different races, religions, traditions, economic and social status, and nationalities, creating a One World spiritual family across the globe. Sri Sri’s message is simple: “Love and wisdom can prevail over hatred and violence.” Happily, this message is not just a slogan but through AOLF has been and continues to be translated into action and results.

• Pasadena: Diwali Festival of Lights, at the Awareness Center with Kenwa, Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 at 6:30 PM

Self-Realization Fellowship "India Night," Saturday, Oct. 22

The Glendale SRF is a jewel of architecture.

(Glendale Temple) SRF is presenting Diwali, the Hindu "Festival of Lights," which signifies the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, knowledge over ignorance. Delicious Indian dinner, followed by "Chai and Chatter," a kirtan (singing), and a shortened version of Glimpses of a Life Divine, a documentary on the life of Paramhansa Yogananda. Doors open at 5:00 pm, dinner served at 5:30 pm. Tickets are $20. To reserve, please call (909) 621-5023. Lots of help needed for this event. Volunteer.

Diwali at Ananda Ashram, Glendale (10/20)

Swami Vivekananda in the US

FREE: Thursday night is the celebration of India's "Festival of Lights" called Diwali. Group meditation, showing connection to all the world's great religions, is the focus of this heartwarming holiday celebration.

“My idea is NOT to bring here a Hindu creed or a Christian creed or a Buddhist creed, but to take the best out of ALL and embody the universal aspect of all. That is my dream.”

-Ananda Ashram Spiritual Center Founder Swami Paramananda

Female gurus are blessings to the world.

"We dedicate a symbol which represents the ideal of unity and oneness of all world Teacher…to place before the people of this country [USA] the wisdom and truth from all lands, classics, and scriptures, in fact, from the whole world, showing their underlying unity and harmony" (1938).

• RSVP: Festival of Lights, Thursday, Oct. 20, 7:00 PM

FREE 3-Day mini-course for women (10/11)

Jen Bradford (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly; Golden Gabi/Gabija Trybyte (FREE 3-Day Conscious Relationship Course for Women Only)

Come join this FREE 3-Day mini-course for women wanting to find deeply meaningful relationships.

This course is for singles and women who are currently in unfulfilling relationships, looking to get out responsibly.

Why?

The reason we are unable to attract a suitable partner into our life is due to unconscious blockages we have towards relationships, which are primarily the result of traumatic and painful experiences we have experienced in the past.

Solution

Let's learn how to recognize our own patterns and blockages and overcome our fears so that we will be open to new and meaningful relationships.

✨ Three consecutive 1-hour live sessions starting on Tuesday, October 11 at 8:00 pm GMT

Schedule

• 1. Welcome and Hellos (10 mins.)
• 2. Topic Deep Dive (45 mins.)
• 3. Q&A and Discussion (15 mins.)
• 4. Wrapping Up (5 mins.)

What we'll cover

✅ Day 1 (Tuesday, Oct. 11th @ 8:00 pm) The real reason career women do not attract their ideal partner or end up in relationships that are draining and incompatible.

✅ Day 2 (Wednesday, Oct. 12th @ 8:00 pm) Healing from old relationship narratives to create space, for new healthy ones. Saying Yes to the relationship we want to create.

✅ Day 3 (Thursday, Oct. 13th @ 8:00 pm) Developing emotional intelligence and self-awareness for successful, long-lasting relationships.

• Register for the event: goldengabi.com/registration

🔷Interactive Online Workshop: This is an interactive online workshop and a great way to chat and connect with like-minded women. Participants are encouraged to share stories and connect with each other. To join, click attended and then be able to simply click the link on the righthand side.

🔷Facilitator: Golden Gabi Holistic Health & Embodied Leadership Guide, Trauma Informed Healing Facilitator, Motivational Speaker Trained in Mind-Body Therapies, NLP and Holistic Nutrition, BSc (Hons) Neuroscience, Psychology Gabija Trybyte ("Golden Gabi") has been transforming people's lives ever since she realized that working in a laboratory, surrounded by lab coats and test tubes for a doctoral degree in neuroscience wasn’t quite her soul's purpose.

• FREE 3-Day Conscious Relationship Course (Women Only), Tues, Oct. 11, 2022, 8:00 PM (London) | Meetup
• Dharma Buddhist Meditation (Disclosure Project), L.A.

While we were meditating last night

Jen Bradford, Dhr. Seven, Ananda (Dharma B Meditation), Monrovia Group, Wisdom Quarterly

What did "Karen" imagine she was looking at us doing -- tripping on acid in the Sixties?

What has the world come to? We were meditating in the park, a group of 18 of us, as day turned into evening.

It's what we (Dharma Buddhist Meditation led by non-secular Ranger Tod in Monrovia) do every Monday in an exclusive neighborhood park nestled in the foothill suburbs of the great megalopolis that is Los Angeles.

Eaton Falls in Eaton Canyon, Pasadena, LA

The heat wave has settled, and a pleasant breeze blows into the bowl that is this secret park, as we sit in Concrete Zen Zero (Enso) gazing at the mountains of the Angeles National Forest above LA, near a secret waterfall (like the one at Eaton Canyon) that runs even in the height of the summer from the local watershed.

We stood, stretched, and walked mindfully, winding through the park then settled in for a guided meditation led by UCLA's MARC (Mindful Awareness Research Center)-trained Ranger Tod. Next week Ranger Eugene will be the special guest to explain the status of our former waterfall meditation stie that was hit by the climate chaos wildfires Southern California enjoys every year.

UCLA's MARC trains mindful meditators (mindfulness becoming "mindful awareness").

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What-r-u doin? I'll call the police!

We sat in a circle of folding chairs and blankets, lulled and transfixed by meditation leader Tod, who spoke by analogy of a great mountain. Then it happened. A local Karen wandering through the park in the dark turned and could not ignore what she was seeing. "Is everything all right here?!" she blurted, disturbing our sacred peace.

No one moved. No one stirred. So she yelled again. A few heads turned to find the source of the disturbance. And there she was in all her jagged haircut, huskiness, and contorted face glory, staring in confusion.

• What exactly is the "Karen" meme? (BBC News)

Americans who meditate? What the heck!

Do Americans do group meditation post-1960s?

Someone in the circle (Steve?) assured her we were. She didn't believe it but sucked it in and went on her way, no dog to walk, no reason to be out, except maybe to cure her busy-body-ness.

I would have said, "No, can you help us be better?" by inviting her to take a place in the suddenly sacred circle. But I was so serene I was in no mood to laugh or cause others to giggle in relief. We bore her concern. What could she have thought was going on? That the Kool-Aid was setting in and Tod was about to join the Rev. Jim Jones in infamy?

Walking Meditation (fordhouse.org)

We resumed. But the during the sharing phase -- which can go on as long as participants like, each contributing a gem of wisdom mined in our arduous efforts to arrive, leave the day behind, and let go of worry -- Karen came up. Rachel remembered.

Why had Karen thought we were in need of her jarring interruption? Was she looking for trouble, challenging her peers to explain themselves? Peace reigned. But she did deepen the conversation by bringing contrast to how calm and serene we were when she spoke. In any case, Simmer down, Karen.

The park is hidden in a residential neighborhood on Grand Ave. in Monrovia in the foothills

• FREE (no donations) every Monday, 6:30 PM
• Dharma Buddhist Meditation (PasaDharma)
• Dharma Buddhist Meditation (Disclosure Project)
• Dharma Buddhist Meditation (Nature Center)
• Group Reviews: Monrovia Canyon Mindful Meditation Group (Monrovia, CA) | Meetup

"Mr. Indfifferent" (cartoon)

Aryasb Feiz/CGMeetup, Nov. 16, 2018; Ellie Askew, Crystal Q. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

CGI Animated Short Film: "Mr. Indifferent" by Aryasb Feiz

Featured on cgmeetup.com "Mr Indifferent" is the latest short film for Emirates NBD Bank. Film by Aryasb Feiz. Production company Hanzo FZE. Agency: Leo Burnett, Dubai. As we celebrate World Kindness Day (Nov. 13), let’s take time to reflect on how we can make a difference. Let’s reach out to those who need help and volunteer for causes that change us for the better, just as they change the world.
 
Connect today and get started: emiratesnbd.com/giving. For more inspiring content: bit.ly/Sub2CGMeetup. Watch More CGI and VFX Animated Short Films: youtube.com/playlist?list... Website: cgmeetup.net. WANT TO GET FEATURED? All CGI artists, studios, or schools who would like their work featured or published on CGMeetup, please apply. Looking for short films, commercial spots, breakdowns, showreels, and so on. Submit here → cgmeetup.net/forums or cgmeetup.com. Contact: info@cgmeetup.net. Note: All videos are uploaded after written copyright permission from respected artists, studios, or schools or part of the Creative Commons license. creativecommons.org/licenses/...

Topless actress protests Bill Cosby at re-trial

Editors, Wisdom Quarterly; Chris Stevenson (independent.co.uk); FEMEN.org

FEMEN topless protester, actress Nicolle Rochelle, is detained as Bill Cosby arrives for his sexual assault retrial at the Montgomery County Courthouse (Corey Perrine/AP).

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"America's rapist" (Daily News)

Topless protester at Bill Cosby retrial identified as actor Nicolle Rochelle who appeared on The Cosby Show.

 

If convicted of sexual assault charges Cosby faces up to 10 years in prison. He denies the allegations. 

A topless protester with “Women's Lives Matters” written on her body has charged at Bill Cosby as he walked into a Philadelphia courthouse for the start of his retrial over accusations of sexual assault.

The woman jumped over a barricade and launched towards Cosby but was intercepted by sheriff's deputies, who handcuffed her (careful not to touch her exposed boobs) and led her away.

The woman was later identified as actor Nicolle Rochelle, who appeared on several episodes of The Cosby Show, the program for which Cosby is best known.

• Judge allows five more women to testify against Cosby
• PHOTOS: Bill Cosby rushed by topless FEMEN protester and actress Nicolle Rochelle at disgraced funnyman's retrial.

Femen demonstrators do it topless.

Ms. Rochelle was charged with disorderly conduct for running in front of Cosby towards a bank of television cameras as he approached the courthouse.

Also written on her body were the names of some of Cosby's alleged victims.

The new trial comes almost a year after a jury reached deadlock on charges that Cosby drugged and assaulted Andrea Constand, 44, at his home outside Philadelphia in 2004.

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Actor Bill Cosby, 80, walks into court.

Judge Steven O'Neill declared a mistrial in that case. If convicted of the most serious charge of aggravated indecent assault, Cosby, 80, could face up to 10 years in prison.

Ms. Constand is one of dozens women who have accused him of sexual assaults [drugging, raping, molesting], some dating back decades.

Mr. Cosby ("Dr. Huxtable") has denied all allegations made against him and claims all sexual encounters were "consensual." More

• No charges for alleged Hollywood rapist James Toback; time's up on statute of limitations for five cases reviewed
• DA still undecided about charging Harvey Weinstein
• Emma Gonzalez comes out on The New Yorker Radio Hour
• Trump's office raided by FBI along with his attorney Cohen

• 12 things to delete from your Facebook
  Guide: What to do if you see Islamophobia350 year old trick to get anyone to change his/her mind5 things to know for Testicular Cancer Awareness Month14 differences between British and American life

FREE Mindfulness Meditation Retreat (2018)

Will Barnes (Thabarwa Meditaiton Center); Dhr. Seven, Ananda M., Jen B., Wisdom Quarterly

Lake Elsinore view from the mountain that houses the Thabarwa Meditation Center (W)

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Past activities at Thabarwa Center

LAKE ELSINORE, California - Interested in a natural schedule of yoga stretches, group meditation sitting, and sharing? This will be the main focus.
 

What?

Start 2018 off with relaxation and growth. Meditators are invited to a fully accommodated respite and retreat at the beautiful ThaBarWa Buddhist Meditation Center USA. Bring yoga mat, toiletries, and warm clothes.

This is a two night/one day retreat. It will accommodate participants with free food, lodging, even transportation to the site. That's right. For those unable to commute, the retreat offers to drive you up.

When?

The retreat begins on Friday (Jan. 5, 2018) at 7:00 pm and ends at 1:00 pm on Sunday (Jan. 7, 2018). A light vegan/vegetarian breakfast will have been prepared for Saturday).

Where?

• Thabarwa Meditation Center USA
• 30751 Ortega Highway (photos)
• Lake Elsinore, CA 92530
• Contact: Will Barnes (meetup.com)

What good is the Dharma without practice?

This serene location has a temple, yoga room, dorms (male and female), outdoor space, a walking trail with the Cleveland National Forest a short drive away. It is situated up the mountain above Lake Elsinore with wonderful views of the water.

How?

A short questionnaire will be sent to everyone who RSVP's HERE (meetup.com for Thabarwa Nature Mindfulness and Detachment Group) and a liability waiver for the hosting site will need to be signed on arrival.

 

Meditators are housed and fed two light prepared vegan/vegetarian meals on Saturday along with light self-serve foods. This allows everyone to relax, learn, and share giving everyone the opportunity to be natural.

The kitchen is available to participants. So please bring juice and your favorite foods or anything you would like to drink, prepare, and possibly share. It's up to everyone attending! More

• ThaBarWa hopes to make this a monthly opportunity in conjunction with WQ's DHARMA MEDITATION INITIATIVE.

"Meltup" - Global Currency Crisis, Inflation

InflationUS — The emperor has no clothes -- the beginning of a U.S. (and global) currency crisis and hyperinflation. Become a member of NIA free at inflation.us

• Europe debt crisis stirs recession fear: We just started it.
• Oil spill-cam video becomes new Web craze: If it spills it thrills, wiping out the environment one barrel at a time.
• Immediate US aid for Mexican drug "WAR": If not from Mexico, where would we Americans get our illegal drugs?

Web Buzz: UFO, Colby Curtin, Zicam

Colby Curtin, UFOs in Australia, pharmceutical Zicam's side effects

Some weeks of Internet Buzz are thrilling, others inspiring. However, the past week was filled with surprising news: UFO abductions are rampant in Australia; a child dying of cancer asked for (and received) a private screening of Pixar's "Up"; and the nasal spray you've been may have taken away your sense of smell.

• AUSTRALIA - A rash of alleged UFO abductions are striking Down Under.
• Something stinks in the Pharmaceutical Industry

Particularly when a chemical companies claim to make homeopathic products. So when will companies learn to stop trying to cure the common cold? Perhaps now after the FDA charged Matrixx, the makers of Zicam, with selling a product that robbed people of their sense of smell. Matrixx called the claim "unwarranted." But the news caused a shockwave as searches roared on "zicam side effects," "zicam recall," and "loss of smell zicam." An article from CNN Money explains that because Zicam was classified as a homeopathic remedy, it was able to be marketed without "government oversight." Perhaps that loophole will soon be closed?

• A child's last wish

10-year-old Colby Curtin died of cancer this week, but before she passed away, her final wish was fulfilled. The child had desperately wanted to see the new Pixar movie, "Up." Unfortunately, she was too ill to go to the theater. According to various articles within the Buzz, Pixar was told of Colby's illness. The company sent a representative to deliver a DVD for Colby to watch in her room. Though she could no longer see, her mother narrated the action. Colby died several hours after the movie ended, and searches on "up movie make a wish" and "colby curtin up" both soared.

Also buzzing this week...

• Al Roker took it to the Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag on "The Today Show."

• The highly anticipated, if awkwardly named, iPhone 3G S hit store shelves.

• Slideshow