Member Area | ServiceSpace

Karma Kitchen In Surat: Passport Edition

May 27, 2019, 2 comments, 21 smiles We had an amazing time yesterday at our monthly Karma Kitchen in Surat, as always. :) Every month we have a different theme, and this time, each guest got a "passport": It also included this description: "Every interaction we have in our lives gives us an opportunity to connect with another person at a deeper level. When you start out with an intention to be generous it spurs you past the confines of your own life and opens you up to all the various ways our journeys intersect with each other. At Karma Kitchen the beauty of that comes alive in different ways - such as the community table. Or the fact that every week strangers come together to volunteer as part of a once-in-a-lifetime crew that assembles and dissolves only to be assembled and dissolved again with a different set of people week after week after week. And the whole thing happens ... Read Full Story

Educators On Listening

Dec 26, 2018, 3 comments, 17 smiles Last few weeks, it's been a joy to learn from our Educators Laddership Circle, with over a dozen of us spread out across Vietnam, Philippines, India, US, and Romania! Below are some quotes from our first week, where many dove deep into the practice of deep listening: "Am I really listening? Or am I listening for what I want to hear?" "There's a feeling of being so calm when you're really listening." "My husband and I tried a listening activity -- for 10 mins, one of us listened without interruption while the other spoke. Then we switched. It was a beautiful way to connect heart to heart." "In our social emotional learning program, it became very obvious that children, no matter how small (even as young as 2), are very capable of telling you what you need." "Listening is not always asking to start a conversation: how are you? But really being mindful as well." "The center ... Read Full Story

Radical Generosity - At The Dentist!

Nov 28, 2018, 16 smiles It's been inspiring to witness and learn from so many remarkable journeys in our Laddership Circle over the years. Here's beautiful story from an application we received for our upcoming (first-ever!) Educators Laddership Circle: To me, radical generosity means to give freely and wholly without expecting anything in return. I have trained as a trained Dentist and recently received a message from a patient whom I had treated last year in Melbourne. The patient had at the time newly arrived in Melbourne and was a single mum, struggling to find work. She had been suffering with pain from a tooth but had not been able to afford the cost of the necessary dental work. When she arrived at my practice and told me her story, I told her that I would do the work for her and take only the cost to cover the materials as I was not the owner ... Read Full Story

Awakin Kids Circles Continue In Surat!

Jul 09, 2018, 1 comments, 22 smiles Email from Manish in Surat: After completion of 6th Awakin Kids circle, children are inspired to meditate and open up more with their sharing. It is a great time with meditation, story reading, art & crafts, learning with video, sharing of kids and parents, game playing, prayers inchorus, and yummy food. For us, their love = time spent incircle. :) Thank you!

World Cup @ Karma Kitchen Surat!

Jun 24, 2018, 4 comments, 28 smiles We just completed our 12th Karma Kitchen in Surat and the theme was Football World Cup.:) The only difference was that everyone who participated were winners!! The decor and the spirit behind it was very inspiring, evoking a one-world consciousness. And we were fully sold out for the day. Every month is a different volunteer crew, and each month's crew was highlighted. Our appetizing menu and much more ... One thing that stood out to me was -- in life, as well as football game, eventually we all run out of time. Let's make the most of our playing time. :)

Laddership: Spring 2018

Mar 14, 2018, 4 comments, 18 smiles Laddership: Spring 2018 "When the well-being of all; effortlessly, becomes the center of all our work, and when we serve selflessly from an absolute persistence to tune more towards internal transformation along with external service then a collective strength emerges. Which then results in an inner and outer transformation simultaneously." The year of 2017 was a year of rich explorations, many new ideas, failure clubs, moonshots and an eagerness to dive into the depths of so many questions, edges, paradoxes and narratives collectively. With a year full of learnings; it has been a wonderful journey of ‘work in progress’ as we continue to unfold our ‘slow stories’. Over the last few years, many Laddership Circles in India and even around the world have explored various themes, stories, and edges around the nuances of inner transformation; that have held a lot of value for change makers and community organizers. Now, as we dive into the ... Read Full Story

Krishnamurti On Impermanence

Feb 21, 2018, 10 comments, 25 smiles [Below are two excerpts on the topic of impermanence that recently inspired me, from J. Krishnamurti] Question: Doesn't the knowledge that life is impermanent bring suffering? Krishnamurti: Right, sir. But it is a fact that life is impermanent, isn't it? Your relations are impermanent, your thoughts are impermanent, your self-fulfilments, your ambitious drive and achievements are impermanent, because there is death. And why should one suffer because of impermanency? The fact is that there is impermanency. It is so. But you don't want to accept that fact, you say, "There must be something permanent". You have a picture of what permanency is, and therefore, when you are faced with impermanency, there is a feeling of despair. You put death, which is the essence of impermanency, in the distance, so there is an interval, a gap between you and that which you call death. Here you are, living every day, carrying on with ... Read Full Story

Awakin Kids Circle Emerges In Surat!

Feb 06, 2018, 2 comments, 20 smiles [One of the regular attendees of Awakin Surat circle heard about Awakin Kids circle and was moved to start something. Below is Manish K's letter from this week's inaugural circle. Feel very grateful. --Parag] Yesterday, we started the new journey of a "no exit strategy" ServiceSpace approach, with a local Awakin circle for children! It just so happened that circumstances cooperated, and organically the circle was initiated. For our first circle, we had scheduled an hour -- first 20 minutes of meditation, then 10 minutes of story-telling, 10 minutes of sharing, then some prayers, and some food. What was happily surprising was that all the children sat silently without making any disturbance. For most of them, it would be the first time sitting. Manya, my younger daughter (6 yrs) made a colourful drawing, and even name tags for everyone. She had also written a story in her own words. No use of readymade media. ... Read Full Story

Measuring Uncounted Value

Mar 02, 2014, 6 smiles Very likely, that lot of you have seen this, but it has a great slide on the things of value that don't get counted on GDP:

About Me