Meditation

“Nirvanic Toolbox: Kaleidoscopes, Singing Bowls, Meditation and More” will be presented by the 2010 Glendale Community College Distinguished Faculty Award winner Chris Juzwiak at 12:20 p.m. April 21 in Kreider Hall. Juzwiak is an English instructor at the college. He began teaching at GCC in 2001. His lecture will be a recounting of his personal and unique journey in nirvanic consciousness. In addition to discussing a pragmatic and physiological approach to meditation, he will have on display 35 kaleidoscopes from America’s top kaleidoscope artists and a large assortment of Tibetan singing bowls.

The WholistiCenter in the Montrose Village, which offers a systemized array of services and products to promote preventive healthcare, awareness and longevity, launches its grand opening celebration with an evening of education, music and a sponsored art show. The grand opening festivities begin with an evening celebration on Saturday, May 12. Visitors are encouraged to stop by between 4 and 8 p.m. for refreshments, music, education, chair massage, and tours of the facility. The first 50 guests will also receive a specialty gift bag. Founded on holistic education, meditation, yoga, massage, herbs and community, the WholistiCenter offers an appealing introduction to natural living for the novice.

Positive Directions program uses yoga and meditation to rehabilitate drug abusers in lieu of jail. Hector Soto has battled drug abuse for the last 18 years of his life -- failing at every program he tried. But after 18 weeks of yoga and meditation at Verdugo Mental Health Center's Positive Directions, which he is doing in lieu of jail time, Soto believes his drug abuse is behind him. "I've tried every possible program -- in-patient and out-patient programs and nothing's really helped," said Soto.

The mother of the eight babies born recently has been under fire for her decision to have additional children on top of the six she already has. This, combined with her current unstable financial situation, has raised serious ethical questions. What do you believe are the moral and ethical implications of her actions? And from your faith’s point of view, what covenant, if any, could she have violated? After listening to television news reports and interviews with Ms. Nadya Suleman, mother of the octuplets, I decided to take this information into prayer and meditation.

At around 2 p.m. Saturday, a line of people could be seen walking slowly and silently down Kenneth Road, some wearing conical straw hats and others with the word "Peace" written on a sheet of paper taped to their clothing. Though it may have seemed to be an unusually quiet peace rally, the scene was in fact a demonstration of being at peace, put on by Glendale's Yoga at the Village in association with the Los Angeles chapter of Peace is Every Step — a group that holds these "walking meditation" events throughout the Los Angeles area.

The beauty of nature is the common theme for the painters showing their works this month at Descanso Gardens Boddy House Gallery. Half Dome in Yosemite was the inspiration of Eagle Rock artist Dory Grade's painting "Half Dome Yosemite, Perhaps the Shoulder of God," a highlight of her show "Art and Soul." "It's such a spiritual thing to me, to see it rising out of the mist, and it's more than a familiar icon, it's truly a symbol for meditation," said Grade, who is celebrating her 32nd year showing at the La Cañada Flintridge gallery.

Four chants of “om” and a song of “Glory, Glory Hallelujah” closed the Self Realization Fellowship’s first service at its new Glendale temple Sunday. The sacred Hindu intonation and Christian song were a part of the group’s inclusive practice, which is based on the idea that God exists within all beings, said the Rev. Brother Satyananda, the leader of the congregation. The fellowship, founded in 1920 by Indian theologian Paramahansa Yogananda, draws from a combination of religious teachings, focusing on meditative components of yoga while referring primarily to Christian and Hindu scriptures to highlight its message, Satyananda said.

Performance and workshop planned GLENDALE -- The Brand Library Associates will present the second part of its free dance series with a performance by Mandala Danceworks at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Brand Library Galleries, 1601 W. Mountain St. Mandala Danceworks will present "Garden of Pomegranates," choreographed by Karin Lynge Jensen. It is a modern-dance work, deriving its name form Israel Regardie's interpretations of the Qabalah's ancient, mystical writings.

'Stilling the Waters' is service topic GLENDALE -- "Stilling the Waters" is the topic of the Rev. Marilyn Jensen-Johnson's talk during the 10 a.m. Sunday service at the Religious Science Church of Glendale. The congregation meets at the YWCA, 735 E. Lexington Ave., Glendale. Meditation begins at 9:30 a.m. "This Thing Called You," a class accredited by Science of Mind, begins Monday, and is open to beginners and advanced students, with no prerequisites.

There’s a new smiling face at the pulpit of La Crescenta’s Unity Church of the Valley. The Rev. Jeri Linn arrived last month from Tucson, Ariz., to take over for the Rev. Tom Witherspoon, who retired after about 7 years of service with the church. “This is an exciting time,” Linn said. “The former minister and his wife did a lot to update and make the facility beautiful. Now, we’re all ready to grow a larger congregation. I meditated and prayed before I came here, and now I’m hoping for growth.

When you are an under-employed actor teaching traffic safety to 5-year-olds and your octogenarian boss makes a pass at you, it's not surprising to feel as if life is on a rather downward spiral. Irish-born stage and screen actor Johnny O'Callaghan found himself in that dismal place nearly seven years ago. Most widely known as “Niam” on the Syfy channel series “Stargate Atlantis,” O'Callaghan had lost his part-time teaching job, his personal life was a mess, and he was sweating out a lull between acting jobs.

“Nirvanic Toolbox: Kaleidoscopes, Singing Bowls, Meditation and More” will be presented by the 2010 Glendale Community College Distinguished Faculty Award winner Chris Juzwiak at 12:20 p.m. April 21 in Kreider Hall. Juzwiak is an English instructor at the college. He began teaching at GCC in 2001. His lecture will be a recounting of his personal and unique journey in nirvanic consciousness. In addition to discussing a pragmatic and physiological approach to meditation, he will have on display 35 kaleidoscopes from America’s top kaleidoscope artists and a large assortment of Tibetan singing bowls.

A group of Jewish entrepreneurs observed a National Day of Unplugging, lasting from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath. Reboot, a nonprofit organization aimed at reinventing the traditions and rituals of Judaism for today?s secular Jews, hosted the event. The event was based on 10 principles of the Sabbath Manifesto, an ongoing project designed to hopefully lessen the hold technology has on people. ?Avoid Technology? is one of the principles. How important do you believe it is for people to unplug and reboot from time to time?

The mother of the eight babies born recently has been under fire for her decision to have additional children on top of the six she already has. This, combined with her current unstable financial situation, has raised serious ethical questions. What do you believe are the moral and ethical implications of her actions? And from your faith’s point of view, what covenant, if any, could she have violated? After listening to television news reports and interviews with Ms. Nadya Suleman, mother of the octuplets, I decided to take this information into prayer and meditation.

Four chants of “om” and a song of “Glory, Glory Hallelujah” closed the Self Realization Fellowship’s first service at its new Glendale temple Sunday. The sacred Hindu intonation and Christian song were a part of the group’s inclusive practice, which is based on the idea that God exists within all beings, said the Rev. Brother Satyananda, the leader of the congregation. The fellowship, founded in 1920 by Indian theologian Paramahansa Yogananda, draws from a combination of religious teachings, focusing on meditative components of yoga while referring primarily to Christian and Hindu scriptures to highlight its message, Satyananda said.

Children of the World perform Crescenta Valley Community Church, located at 4001 La Crescenta Ave. in La Crescenta, hosted the World Help Children of the World International Children’s choir during a special service on Oct. 5. The choir, made up of kids from the African nation of Uganda, performed contemporary Christian hits during the service. Some of the kids come from the poorest regions of Africa, others have been orphaned by AIDS. The purpose of the concert was to bring to light the AIDS crisis in Africa.

There’s a new smiling face at the pulpit of La Crescenta’s Unity Church of the Valley. The Rev. Jeri Linn arrived last month from Tucson, Ariz., to take over for the Rev. Tom Witherspoon, who retired after about 7 years of service with the church. “This is an exciting time,” Linn said. “The former minister and his wife did a lot to update and make the facility beautiful. Now, we’re all ready to grow a larger congregation. I meditated and prayed before I came here, and now I’m hoping for growth.

Alice Shinmoto knows the benefits of exercise. Every week, she does tai chi, and she's not alone when it comes to the ancient Chinese martial art. The Glendale resident teaches tai chi to seniors at the Glendale Adult Recreation Center twice a week. Her class meets outdoors underneath the shade of the trees. Shinmoto, 63, encourages seniors to do tai chi so they can maintain their health and meet new people at the same time, she said. She starts her class with a warm-up and spends about one hour emphasizing breathing techniques and low-impact movements, both of which are at the core of tai chi, she added.

The WholistiCenter in the Montrose Village, which offers a systemized array of services and products to promote preventive healthcare, awareness and longevity, launches its grand opening celebration with an evening of education, music and a sponsored art show. The grand opening festivities begin with an evening celebration on Saturday, May 12. Visitors are encouraged to stop by between 4 and 8 p.m. for refreshments, music, education, chair massage, and tours of the facility. The first 50 guests will also receive a specialty gift bag. Founded on holistic education, meditation, yoga, massage, herbs and community, the WholistiCenter offers an appealing introduction to natural living for the novice.