Anthony Strano
Director of Brahma Kumaris, Greece
Author, “Seeking Silence: Exploring and Practicing the Spirituality of Silence”
Contributor, The Huffington Post
We are living in a time of transition: on one hand an ascending energy that is fueled by a positive, creative consciousness and on the other a descending energy that is evidenced by a collapse in systems, both human and natural. This is the natural law of entropy, the second law of thermodynamics which describes the dispersal of energy within a system. Maybe an inevitable collapse is a benign gesture of Time. A signal to begin our apprenticeship to the original blueprint of the human spirit: to peace, to generosity, to respect, to equality and to inclusive happiness.
There is an inevitable decline in the quality of life as seen in the plethora of crises in the world; socially, environmentally, politically, and physically. There is also a corresponding decline in the soul as more and more people are seeking to fill themselves with happiness, love and/or peace through various methods or religious practices.
One of the core teachings of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University is the reality of cyclic change. Time is understood to move in eternal cycles that repeat themselves. It is natural for souls and for matter to go through these cycles. As the law of entropy would suggest, there has been devolution of consciousness that has come to a climax. This climax triggers a great transformation when the cycle of human culture moves from a disintegrated, damaged, dysfunctional system to a harmonious, balanced one. From an Iron Age to a Golden one: a cycle of human culture beginning with an age of complete truth and peace called the Golden age, going through a Silver age, a Copper age, and finally ending with an Iron age, an age of complete corruption. The latter is where we find ourselves at the moment.
The idea of cyclic time is not new. The ancient Greeks and Romans spoke of a repeating cycle of the ages. The Roman Ovid (43 BC – 17/18AD), in his poem “Metamorphoses”, wrote of the four ages of human civilization. “This was the Golden Age that, without coercion, without laws, spontaneously nurtured the good and the true. There was no fear or punishment: there were no threatening words to be read, fixed in bronze, no crowd of suppliants fearing the judge’s face: they lived safely without protection ….No pine felled in the mountain had yet reached the flowing waters to travel to other lands: human beings only knew their own shores. There were no steep ditches surrounding towns, no straight war trumpets, no coiled horns, no swords and helmets. Without the use of armies people passed their lives in gentle peace and security. The earth herself also, without the scars of ploughs, untouched by hoes, produced everything freely from herself……..”
It is interesting to note that the peace, balance and respectfulness with which the human race lived at that time, not even cutting down a tree, impacted nature, who, it is said, gave freely and abundantly.
The earlier Greek writer Hesiod in his “Works and Days” also described the four ages with an additional age of heroes. For both Ovid and Hesiod, the highest point of human consciousness and behavior was the Golden age and the lowest was the Iron Age.
The Greek Hesiod, who was actually a farmer, wrote of the 5 ages. Unlike Ovid, he included the age of heroes which he put after the silver age. The heroic age was not linked to a particular metal as were the other 4 ages. It was an age of outstanding courage and nobleness.
Hesiod’s description of the Iron Age is similar to Ovid’s:
“…..would that I were not among the men of the fifth generation, but either had died before or been born afterwards. For now truly is a race of iron and men who never rest from labor and sorrow by day, and from perishing by night……
Men will dishonor their parents as they grow old and will carp at them, chiding them with bitter words, hard-hearted, not knowing the fear of the gods…….
There will be no favor for the man who keeps his oath or for the just or for the good but rather men will praise the evildoer and his violent dealing. Strength will be right and reverence will cease to be…..envy, foul-mouthed delighting in evil, with scowling face…..
Aidos (goddess of reverence, humility) and Dike (spirit of moral order and fairness) with their sweet forms wrapped in white robes, will go from the wide-pathed earth and forsake mankind to join the company of the deathless gods. Bitter sorrow will be left for mortal men and there will be no help against evil…..”
These descriptions of a Golden age inspired the idea of a utopia found in many European writers and social commentators, like the 19th century English socialist William Morris. The existence of a perfect time on earth seems to be deep in the psyche of humans. We find this belief of a Paradise in the Indian Vedic, Judaic, Christian and Islamic teachings. It is also found in the religious ideas of indigenous people and various tribes of native Americans such as the Hopi, who also believe in the four ages; each denoted by a color that represented humankind.
The ancient Egyptians believed in a Paradise. After death, an individual’s spirit needed to pass seven tests to enter Paradise and then be examined by the god Osiris and held accountable for personal behavior on earth. If all went well, the individual passed into the “Fields of the Reeds” (Aaru) which reflected the earth as there were skies, rivers, fields; but all were perfect and pure.
In ancient China the great mother goddess Xi Wang Mu, Queen Mother of the West lived on Mt Kunlun. In Japan she was known as Seibo. Her domain was a perfect paradise, complete with everything. In her garden grew trees laden with the peaches of immortality. Every 1,000 or it is sometimes said 3,000 years, Xi Wang Mu served the peaches to the gods to renew their immortality. Sometimes the goddess made worthy humans immortal by serving these same peaches.
Let’s return to Ovid and his description of Paradise, the Golden Age, which is similar to Hesiod‘s. Golden Age equates to Paradise and the Iron Age equates to hell. Both are on the earth at different times. Hell is a people-created reality. A consciousness of selfish agendas and miscommunication which inevitably creates dysfunction on many different levels including emotional, mental, verbal, economic, social, political, religious, environmental. Hell is a state of entropy created by a self-aggrandizing consciousness. It is the inevitable consequence of this type of mindset.
The fact that Hesiod said that he wished to be born after the dreadful iron race indicates the return to something far better. This idea of a return to a utopia, a pure time is reflected in a number of cultures.
In ancient Greece and Rome, as also the Vedic philosophy of India, the idea of the ages and its repetition was known: a returning heaven on earth, a golden age of prosperity after a time of chaos and brutality.
The Christian theologian St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) in his book “The City of God” debunks completely the Greek cyclical view of history and emphatically tries to prove that that history is definitely linear. With the birth of Christ and guided by God’s providence, history will end with the second coming of Christ, according to St. Augustine.
Linear beliefs about history were mainstream for centuries as Judeo-Christian ideas expanded. However the cyclic idea of history started to reemerge with the Italian Renaissance, which rediscovered ancient Greek and Roman thought.
In recent modern times the German philosopher Nietzsche (1844-1900) stated his belief of “Eternal Recurrence”, being influenced by the Greek view of history and by the Vedic philosophy of Hinduism. Both the Vedic and Greek views spoke of the 4 ages with the same idea of gradual and devastating degeneration and return. The Vedic system of the cycle of yugas (ages) has always been a creed in Hinduism unlike in the western world, where the idea disappeared. The Vedic system believes that each yuga lasts for millions of years.
In Raja Yoga it is stated that the cycle itself lasts 5,000 years, remarkably short when compared to both the traditional ideas and even to ideas of evolution. However rather than focus on duration on the length of the cycle we focus our attention on the primary aspect of knowledge: personal transformation now. Today will create tomorrow and tomorrow will be positive if consciousness is transformed. Time is always there and the most important way to value and use it properly is to understand what is appropriate to do a particular time. Success is very much linked to timing, as the farmer who knows the appropriate time to plant which seed so that a crop is guaranteed. The call of the time at this moment is that higher awareness through spiritual education can renew and rejuvenate humanity.
Nietzsche firmly stated that history repeats identically and his main concern was that if the moment returns then it is infinitely precious because what you do right now will come back eternally.
The repeating cycle of life energy is constantly in movement in the form of birth, growth, decay and death. Nature, human life and cultures follow this pattern .When systems move energy is used. Movement means not only energy use but waste energy accumulates as energy is not destroyed but converted into other less effective types of energy. In a closed system this phenomena is called entropy. A recharge is needed and on that basis renewal can take place. This recharge is only possible when a source of pure, unpolluted energy which exists outside the closed system enters that system to give its energy.
The second law of thermodynamics means in essence that closed systems tend to progress in the direction of increasing entropy. Where entropy is the level of ineffectiveness of the energy within that system increases. Entropy refers to the quality of the energy not its quantity which remains the same. The system goes from order to disorder, harmony to chaos, it cannot return to its ordered state without an external intervention. Effects of living in the world of time are not reversible in a closed system.
For example the 4 seasons of nature, going from spring through summer, autumn to winter. To return to the state of Spring, nature takes the energy from outside of itself, the Sun.
The Sun gives that extra energy.
Also in the cycle of nature the seed holds both the lowest entropy and the highest potential.
In Raja Yoga teachings the cycle of the 5 ages is that each age from Golden to Iron is a reflection of collective consciousness which devolves as it reaches the Iron Age. The fifth age of heroes is recognized as now, the Confluence Age. This bridging Age from the Iron to the Golden Age requires the pure energy of an incorporeal being, who exists outside the earth’s system.
In Raja Yoga God is understood to be an infinitesimal point of subtle energy. This being is never a physical being so never subject to the fundamental principle of matter: i.e. change. God has the qualities and consciousness that contain and express love, compassion, peace and truth. God is not omnipresent in the system of creation otherwise God’s energy also would be subject to change and polluted.
God is in a constant state of pure being: complete, liberated, self-sustaining and at peace. Though God is not in the system He enters it at a specific time: the end of the Iron Age. God acts as the facilitator of renewal, returning the creation back to its original state of harmony. This task is accomplished every cycle: He takes the creation purifies it and lets it go and again at the specified time takes it, purifies it and lets it go. This action of taking and letting go, of coming and going is the perpetual cyclical rhythm of eternity.
God facilitates the task of renewal with the cooperation of human beings, who themselves transform through receiving His energy. This divine, selfless energy has been given various names which include “grace”, “Sakaash”, ”Shakti“. This unconditional energy purifies the inner system of the human being activating the awareness of the eternal spiritual identity: the soul. Though the recovery of this personal inner truth it is then possible for the outer system of the golden culture to be created. Golden age as defined by Raja yoga means that character and consciousness is naturally noble, pure, peaceful, self-sustaining. It is the epoch of the genuine life.
All of this is happens every cycle eternally: nothing new. Nothing new because it is eternal; but the newness comes from remembering it once again as if it were for the first time. From cycle to cycle we forget and one of God’s tasks is to facilitate remembrance. In one Hebrew verse Ecclesiastes 1:9 it says:
“What has been will be again….What has been done will be done again…There is nothing new under the sun”.
Crises are not new. However they always require viable solutions which come from new perceptions. We often think that the solutions to crises are systemic. Plans, programs and policies for recovery are usually based on systemic methods.
However newness, progress, and innovation have nearly always been individual or by very small groups of individuals and from there they grew to become systems. Individuals not only with pioneering minds of creative insight but also pioneering hearts were motivated by compassion and care for the welfare of others and of the planet.
The nursing profession for example, is a world-wide system and of utmost necessity in global health service. However it was started by a young English woman, Florence Nightingale (1820-1910), a social reformer and founder of modern nursing. Her school for nursing in London in 1860 was the first of its kind in the world. Although women of her day were expected to be wives and mothers, although her family and segments of society vehemently opposed her choices, she purposefully decided to follow her calling and give herself to serving. International Nurses day is now celebrated on her birthday.
The physician and philosopher Galen (AD129-216) created the pivotal foundations of medicine at his time and for future centuries. He is regarded as the most accomplished medical researcher of antiquity. He stated that to diagnose one must observe and reason when the normal practice of his day was to use divination and attribute diseases as punishment from the gods. A friend of his warned him that he would be put to death for speaking so openly about his new ideas about healing. No one likes their systems neither challenged nor changed. Nonetheless he persisted.
Human systems are started by individuals who need to keep their courage of conviction and inspiration to keep going. With time and the safety of accepted tradition such innovations or methods come to seen as the norm. However, systems always need change and renovation because they become limited, redundant, and no longer in tune to prevalent needs. Individuals appear with vision, inventiveness and courage to make a difference. Something deep inside themselves calls them to explore, to experiment, to create, to make a difference.
In education also we find such names as Maria Montessori, Friedrich Frobel (created the concept of kindergarten), Geoffrey Canada, John Dewey and many others who put respect for the student as pivotal in learning. Such insightful individuals often discover the obvious.
Formula thinking blinds us to the relevant and the necessary in a situation. Formula thinking creates dysfunction because it is simply not appropriate to the needs of the times. At a time of crisis such thinking urgently must to be replaced by more contemplative thinking; that is, deeply reflecting on the appropriateness of particular goals, attitudes, values and methods, no matter how traditional, novel or cherished.
Contemplation deepens perception. For this, inner quietness is of utmost necessity. A heavily processing and analytical mind is relentless for facts. Facts are not everything. We also need a space of silence to acquire meaningful insights from those facts. Contemplative thinking renews and then empowers personal actions, making them socially relevant.
The human spirit when linked to a higher ideal and/or being can discern the miracle of unlimited possibility within the inevitable collapse, no matter how massive or overwhelming it may appear to be.
In the spiritual practice of the Brahma Kumaris, the emphasis, according to the necessity of the present time, is to become aware and consciously activate the original consciousness of our inner system: the soul. This activation positively transforms consciousness via thoughts, attitudes, values and behavior which create an alternative upward surge of pure energy. The absoluteness of the disintegrating process can be counterbalanced by manifesting the forgotten blueprints of the human spirit. To remember who we are as spiritual being and behave accordingly is a daily attentiveness that effects positive change. Personal sustainability is the pivot of any effective change and maintenance of a system.
We are now at a point in time in the Iron Age where all systems are collapsing and the way forward is to reassess and access our spiritual identity as souls and consequently as human beings that can co-create a harmonious community. The selfishness and subsequent violence of arrogance, greed, anger, and possessiveness can be replaced by spiritual awareness and respectful behavior.
Thinking spiritually and acting socially creates sustainable systems for human interaction. This happens over time. Transformation does not happen at one stroke.
At various times in the organization’s history, and for various reasons, some members have mentioned specific dates when they believed a destructive-transformative moment would occur. It is not a matter of a date since the demolition of dysfunctional patterns and systems has been happening for some time and will accelerate as the new positive forces emerge.
5000 YEARS IS THE CYCLE PERIOD. THEN WHICH IS THE LAST DAY?. SANGAMA YUG IS ONLY 100 YEARS MEANS WHEN THIS SANGAMA YUG STARTED AND WHEN IT WILL END ?
It seems to me that there is a great deal of difference between ‘destruction’ meaning annihilation and ‘destruction’ meaning the end of the systems and cultures by which humankind currently lives. There will be no annihilation of our world, it will keep on turning just as it always has. If one considers ‘destruction’ to be one cataclysmic explosion that ‘destroys’ everything all at the same moment in time, then of course I can see how someone might worry about a date for that! All cosmic laws of nature have processes in place for renewal. Spring begins under the snow and takes months to emerge…sometime around March…I don’t need to know the date. If someone told me the exact date that spring is to arrive next year, I’d smile. The foundations of the world systems as we understand them are being destroyed now, at exactly the same time that the new systems and cultures are being firmly put in place. The ice will melt, the flowers will emerge…little by little, one by one.
Destruction or Construction?
For nearly 20 years I have been a student of the Brahma Kumaris. In all that time, I’ve never been seriously troubled by the notion of “destruction” as taught by the BKs. Perhaps it is because I was not acquainted with the BKs until after 1976, a date that has been mentioned as foretelling “destruction.” For me, that point is moot: 1976 has come and gone, and we are still here.
Nevertheless, the topic holds great interest. Over the years, the teachings contained in the Murlis have highlighted not only “destruction”, but also “construction” (or “establishment”) as parts of the eternal world cycle. In the scheme of BK study, the notion of cyclic time is essential to understanding the ideas of both “destruction” and “construction”. Cyclic time is captured in the Hindi expression “Hum so, so hum”, roughly translated “As I was, I will become.” This is a personal call to “constructing” my original and best self as opposed to doing things that take me further away from my true self, destroy my sense of peace, and bring increasing disharmony in all my relationships.
From the perspective of cyclic time, both “destruction” and “construction” can happen simultaneously. In fact, we can quite literally choose which form of energy we will use at any given moment. As BKs, we take seriously the task of constructing a better world and believe that “when we change, the world changes.” We check ourselves frequently to interrupt habits of becoming irritated or angry, jealous, bad moods, and so forth. We invest ourselves in positive habits of regular meditation, studying the Murli, service to humanity, and the application of spiritual principles in all that we do.
For me, the conversation about “destruction” is really a conversation about the cycle and how it works. Like the Chinese Yin-Yang symbol which refers to the complementary nature of seeming opposites, the Cycle as taught by the Brahma Kumaris is the foundation for understanding how the forces of “construction” and “destruction” operate. In our understanding of the cycle, we also note that “destruction” does not mean world annihilation, but rather a return to a time of harmony among people and with nature.
These simple truths were set to music by Joni Mitchell, a famous Canadian singer/songwriter:
And the seasons they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We’re captive on the carousel of time
We can’t return, we can only look behind
From where we came
And go round and round and round
In the circle game
–Joni Mitchell, The Circle Game
Thank you for this very good article about cyclic time and the period of degradation and renewal (or destruction and creation in a more fundamental sense). I thought it was important to clarify the point Anthony mentioned in his article that there has been no fixed date given for the destructive/ transformative moment. It’s true that no precise date has been given. However there have been prophecies that have not come to pass: years for destruction have been mentioned throughout the organization’s history. Key to understanding this is knowing that in the early days of the BK community there was a strong sense of spiritual urgency. That feeling is still there among many, although it has tempered somewhat with the passage of time. Nevertheless, when the first generation of members coupled that feeling of spiritual urgency with the world events of WWII they presumed – understandably – that the end of the world was taking place.
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Then when it didn’t happen, the Partition between Indian and Pakistan made 1950 look like a good option for the world change prophecy to come to fruition. Then in the Indian scriptures it says the Confluence Age is 100 years. As Brahma Baba was (they thought) born in 1876 (that’s another story) the year 1976 made sense. That too failed to pass. There have been multiple reasons, and multiple dates. Although no fixed date was ever given by Shiv Baba who is the supreme being the BKs consider the God of all, people do love to predict, plan and prepare. Brahma Baba did the same and offered dates to keep the student body moving forward in their aim of becoming egoless, liberated and complete. We can only presume to know his reasoning as he is not here to response. In the BKs, time has always been “short” and we should recognize, and be clear about, what can be considered a failure of prophecy. This doesn’t mean a failure of the whole teachings. But the BKs have indeed had prophecies, and they have – to date – failed to pass as yet. However, I don’t believe this at all changes the spiritual heart of the Brahma Kumaris message – each sentient being is an eternal soul, and all have an eternal and unbreakable bond with the Supreme Parent, the Compassionate One. The world will be renewed when we are renewed. The world will be healed when we are healed. The world will become free when we become free.
You say that in original teachings of BK no date is mentioned for the ‘destructive-transformative moment.’ This seems to be not truthful. The moment may not have been told, how could it be, but THE YEAR WAS TOLD as original BK posters and papers tell us. They say definitely DESTRUCTION IN 1950 and then again from 1966 for 10 years on, DESTRUCTION IN 1976 was prophesied by God Himself in murli and other dates have been prophesied by BK but no destruction yet.
In order to really respond to this comment, we have to disaggregate this comment into two parts:
1.“ . . . destruction was prophesied by God Himself in the Murli . . .”
The dilemma with the subject of destruction is to gauge what is meant by “destruction”? In many ways the world has been weakening steadily for a long time; so how does one know when destruction happens? Is it something that happens all at once? . . . in a moment? . . . or over a period of years? We don’t have any evidence of an actual date (month and year) in the Murlis as Anthony Strano stated in his piece, yet most would acknowledge the process of destruction has begun. However, references to destruction in the murlis, when taken in context, are always about the urgency of self-transformation. Please see the author’s response below where he shares additional thoughts about this topic.
2. “ . . .the year was told (of the destructive-transformative moment) as original BK posters and papers tell us . . .”
Yes, others in the community inferred a year for the destructive-transformative moment from the prevailing mindset at that time and drew posters and papers. Here is a clip of Sister Jayanti who admits that she totally believed it. Yes, it was part of the mindset in the early community but it was never prophesied in the Murli itself. Refer to Sister Jayanti’s piece for more details on how the year of 1976 came to be printed on posters.
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Before Mama left the body, it must have been in 1962 or 1963, the BKs had been able to purchase land in Rajourie Gardens in Delhi. When we purchased that land, we did not have any further funds to be able to build anything on it. (Today quite a large house has been built on this land and it is a BK Raja Yoga Centre).
The property was in Mama’s name. When India had one of its wars in the early ’60s, the land, being vacant, was requisitioned by the government, as were other places where troops could be accommodated; like schools, hospitals etc. In 1965, Before the land could be returned, Mama left the body.
There was no will that had been made for Mama. I can imagine while Mama was going through her period of illness nobody thought about getting Mama to sign any papers, or do another will, or anything of that nature. So when the government returned other property to their owners and the BKs applied to the government to get back the property of Rajourie Garden, the government turned around and said that as the owner had died and there was no will, this land now belonged to the government by default. And no matter how much effort was made, lawyers were not able to get the land back.
In 1966 Brahma Baba made a statement saying to tell the government that “if they give us back our land then we will establish Ram Rajya, the kingdom of heaven, in 10 years.” The government did not give us back that land, until way after, in the late 70s at some point. In 1966 neither was the land given back, nor was Ram Raj established.
Someone close to Baba, I do not even know who, took up that statement and interpreted it as destruction happening in 1976, 10 years from the date that Baba had spoken, and this date was then printed below the image of Lakshmi and Narayan on a poster, which said:– “Corruption, irreligiousness, unrighteousness, vices, insolvency and suffering will come to an end in Bharat within 9 years and Golden-aged Deity-world Sovereignty of Shri Lakshmi and Shri Narayana will come to be re-established soon after the forth-coming huge world destruction in 1976.”
I met Mama in childhood and when I was a teenager. When I then started studying with the BKs in 1968 I also thought that destruction would happen in 1976. And when the centre started in London in 1971, I still carried that thought with me. In 1976 I remember speaking to a very new student at the centre in London, and she later became one of the main teachers in the USA. I said to her, “you know it is time to make up your mind about what it is you want to do because we have only got a year.” So that was what my own deep feeling and commitment was. I was not aware of the story connected to the land until much later. However, no Murli has ever given a date, but now that we have been revising the Murlis over the past years, it struck me that the Murlis of 1975 were a preparation, not for us to think that destruction was coming but to focus more on our inner transformation. Baba actually posed that as a question – what if you are challenged? Baba was strengthening our faith and the work we had to do for inner transformation.
Just recently we had the revision of the Murli of 18 January 1977, in which the year 1976 had come and gone and I was still very much with Baba and for me it became clear that neither was I ready (I had not done the work that I needed to do on myself) but also nor had Baba’s message yet reached the world. We had reached very, very few countries by the end of 1976 and so throughout the whole of 1976, it was not so much in my awareness that destruction was going to happen, but rather I was seeing what more I needed to do and what more service needed to happen.
In this Murli of 18 January 1977, Baba asks the question: “Is it that you were remaining pure because of destruction? … Those whose real aim is purity have no connection with the date of destruction.” It was like a reminder of how Baba had talked to us about the whole story and it was all very fresh. Another thing that Baba commented on very strongly in this Murli of 18 January 1977, was “ When others ask you why destruction has not yet taken place, just tell them: Because of you, destruction has not taken place. Together with the Father, all of us are world benefactors. In bringing benefit to the world, we still have to bring benefit to souls like ourselves. Therefore, we still have a chance. … With intoxication tell them that there is benefit merged in these words.” … “Because of destruction, do not allow yourself to come into upheaval. Your upheaval would create upheaval for those who are not following the path of knowledge. You should remain unshakeable. Speak with that sparkle of intoxication and without fear. … Have faith in the intellect and do not become one who has an intellect full of doubts even in the form of thoughts. … Maintain this faith and intoxication.”
So when we deeply understand this, and our faith in Baba and Drama is absolutely firm, then others will understand destruction in the wider context of events and they will not challenge just a date. But also when things are in the right alignment then the transition will happen automatically. This is my understanding of that particular situation.
The posters that have been uncovered in the British Museum and the Oxford University Library indicate that something imminent was to happen, but I was not aware that the date of “1950” had been mentioned. However, in that I think that it talks about the forthcoming world war, which is going to be the final of all world wars. And of course, the Second World War came and went. The partition of India and Pakistan happened and I think that this has been an interpretation of this particular episode. I think the posters are dated ’42, ’43, so that would have been in the middle of the war that was happening at that time. I do not have any further information about this. I do not ever remember hearing of the date of 1950. But rather, 1950 is interesting because after the India/Pakistan partition war, all the Hindus fled including my family; my parents, my grandparents, and the extended family of uncles and so on. They all moved to India and they left Pakistan as refugees with nothing. Baba and the Om Mandali carried on staying in Karachi and many of the families who had had their wives and daughters surrender were trying to persuade them to move and it did not happen. Baba told them that they would be protected by yoga power. The local government continued to help and support them, sending vegetables and so on and things just carried on quietly. When it was time, Shiv Baba’s instructions came to Brahma Baba that it was time to move. The move to India actually happened in May 1950 and that period of a few years of staying in Pakistan is an incredible testimony to the power of faith of that small group and the power of purity and the power of yoga that protected them because all around them were rivers of blood but they managed to stay very safe and finally moved to India with the support of the government and help of the local authorities.
I appreciate your point and perhaps the destruction issue in my answer could have been clearer . . . however saying that still I would emphasize the inner transformation because I feel this is at the heart of Raja Yoga teachings, at least for me. As a teacher that is always the emphasis I give for people because the primary need is to understand and empower their inner system by activating the positive blueprints of their being. I have always done that . . . concentrated on this primary aspect of knowledge. I live in Greece, where ancient sources such as Plato spoke of cyclic changes spanning eternity. And when in Australia at University did a short thesis on St Augustine who refuted the cyclic idea of history to his linear concept. I had read often the Roman poet Ovid. All these include a destruction/transformative time when something better afterwards is established. So the article I wrote for the aboutbrahmakumaris.org website was aiming more at showing an overall historical and cultural perspective about destruction/transformation.
A date was given so that Brahma Kumaris would pull up their socks and make a lor of effort. God himself gave a date for that reason. It wasn’t a bad thing if it made them make more effort, was it.
He also plays with us making us raise our hands during the live murli so that we make promises to him. It’s a little trick of God so that when we later don’t want to do what we’ve promised to do we will remember that we raised our hands in front of God. He’s full of tricks. But such sweet tricks that are only for our own benefit.