Highlighted Events

Georgia

Altanta Metro

Florida

Jacksonville

South Florida

Tampa

What Sita’s abduction has to teach us about the feed

Sita is in the forest, in the years of exile, and she has wanted for nothing. Then a deer steps out at the edge of the trees, its coat of gold, jewels worked into the hide, light coming off it in pieces. She had never wanted a golden deer, had never seen one, and the wanting is already total, enough that she sends the husband sworn to protect her into the woods to catch it for her.

The deer was not a deer. It was a demon named Maricha, sent to draw her out into the open. She had been made to want a thing that did not exist, and from the inside there was no seam to it. It felt like her own wish, the way every wish she had ever had felt like hers.

The feed was always a trap

“Every social media company has one part whose only job is to decide what shows up on your screen. People call it the algorithm, a set of rules a person wrote down for a machine to follow. Nothing mysterious in it. The feed was built to keep you there, and for years it ran on plain rules a person could read. The trap was built before AI touched it.”

The AI that had already gone to work on you has no face and no window, unlike the chatbot you type to. It had been sorting your feed for years before that, working out its own rules from millions of examples no one can read back. Keep you watching, the aim never changed. Most of what you watch now is chosen by it, not searched for. It felt like choosing the whole time.

Maya

My tradition has a word for this. Maya. People translate it as illusion, a trick of the eye, something out there to see through. It is closer to an illusion of wanting, a desire that did not start in you, that arrives feeling like your own.

There are three lies folded into the deer, stacked one on the next.

The first is that the wanting is yours. It is not. Sita had not spent a year longing for a golden deer and at last found one. There was no longing until the deer stepped out. The want and the deer arrived in the same instant, from the same source. A temptation, you can see, you feel it pull and you decide. Maya is the pull you never feel as a pull. You cannot say no to a hook you cannot feel.

The second is that the deer is real. It is not. Behind the gold there is a demon, and behind the bright clip there is nothing at all, only the next one.

The third I missed the longest, and it is the worst of them. Even if she caught it, it would not have been enough. The deer was bait, and bait is not meant to be eaten. It draws the animal into the open, and the catch was never on offer. A want that someone puts in you cannot be filled by the thing it points at. She would hold the deer and feel nothing, and the wanting would already have slid to the next gold shape at the treeline. This is why the feed has no bottom, why the enough that would let you set it down is the one thing it is built to keep just short of reach.

In our teaching the pull comes in five forms. Lust, anger, greed, attachment, and the wish to be seen. We miss them in ourselves, where they are quiet, dressed as staying informed.

For years my pull was anger, dressed as being informed, geopolitics, who was funding whom. One headline would open a sitting, and forty-five minutes later I would come up holding a verdict, certain I understood. The feed had a clearer picture of what catches me than I do, so I gave the small version of Maya a name. Algorithmic Maya, the veil made personal, run by a machine that knows the part of my own wanting I am blind to. It used to take a lifetime to learn a person this well. Now it takes a week.

The deer costs

The deer was doing a second job while it ran. Rama went after it because Sita asked him to, and when he did not come back she sent Lakshmana after him too, drawing both men guarding her into the trees after a thing that was never real. While she stood there alone, Ravana came and took her.

The feed works the same way. While you chase the bright nothing, the real thing is carried off behind you. That real thing is your attention. You think it costs nothing, because no money leaves your hand. They are paid in money, hundreds of billions of dollars a year, between the handful of companies that run the feeds. It is the price they were paid for keeping you reaching after a deer that was never real.

It does not let me off either. The feed studied me through my own hands, every clip I slowed down on. It only ever caught me on a hook already in me. The only veil I can lift is my own, and it is the one I cannot see.

The question I have left

An algorithm follows rules a person wrote. AI writes its own. That difference is real, and it is not what matters. The feed was a trap on plain rules. AI made it a far stronger one. Neither the rules nor the AI was ever the danger. The aim was.

The danger is that there is a deer at the edge of my own forest, gold and not real, and I want it, and the wanting feels like mine, and most days I cannot see it for what it is. Point this machine at your clarity and it will leave you alone. Point it at your compulsion and it will build you that deer, all day, getting better at it every day.

About the Author

Shireen Chada has practiced meditation with the Brahma Kumaris for 32 years and directs the organization’s Tampa meditation center. She also sits on the National Coordinating Team for Brahma Kumaris USA. She is the author of eight books, including Awakening from the Matrix, Soul Fitness, and Experiencing God, and co-hosts the Spiritual Sense podcast. At shireenchada.substack.com she is working through the Ramayana chapter by chapter, reading it for what it teaches about the mind, alongside essays on contemplative life in an age of feeds and algorithms. She leads meditation retreats internationally and has logged something close to 22,000 hours in formal practice, though she would say the number matters less than what it wore away. Her writing keeps returning to the same question in different clothes. What is actually yours, and what only feels that way.

About The Tampa BK Meditation Center

The Tampa BK Meditation Center has been teaching Raja Yoga meditation to the Tampa community since 1982, free of charge and open to anyone. It is part of the Brahma Kumaris, a worldwide spiritual organization with meditation centers on nearly every continent. The center holds weekly drop in classes on Sundays and Thursdays, along with retreats and special programs throughout the year. bktampa.org

Address: 12615 Orange Grove Drive, Tampa, FL 33618

A Month of Reflection, Celebration, and Resolve

I’ll admit this issue took me longer to put together than most. Not because the stories were difficult to locate but because they kept pulling me in different directions—celebration, historical reflection, and personal memory—and I had to sit with all of it before I understood how it fit together. Eventually I realized it didn’t need to be reconciled. It just needed space to grow, as community life often feels.

Twenty-Five Years of the BAPS Mandir in Miami

The story kept coming back to me while editing this issue: the Silver Jubilee of the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Miami. To every volunteer, devotee, and spiritual leader who built it—thank you, and congratulations.

Twenty-five years doesn’t sound like much set against the age of the civilization it draws from. But I think about the families who arrived in South Florida decades ago with little more than faith and a willingness to work and what they’ve built since—mandirs, cultural organizations, thriving businesses, and an entire community infrastructure—and it stops me every time.

I should be honest about something here. I’m not someone who’s at BAPS Mandir every Sunday. In this community, some sevaks attend every week, year after year, no matter the weather, and I’m not one of them. But I’ve been to the Mandir enough times over the years—for festivals, for events, and for stories I was covering—to notice something. Every single sevak I’ve encountered, without exception, carries an utmost faith—a shraddha—in Pramukh Swami Maharaj and also in Mahant Swami Maharaj that goes beyond anything I can fully explain from the outside. It’s not performative. I’ve watched a sevak spend an entire day preparing prasad for hundreds of people, and when I asked why, they didn’t talk about the Mandir or the community. They talked about Pramukh Swami Maharaj and Mahant Swami — about wanting to live in a way that would make their guru proud. I’ve heard the same sentiment from a teenager who is taking arti thali to devottes, a grandmother reciting bhajans, and a doctor running a free health screening. Different generations, same undercurrent.

That, I’ve come to think, is the actual engine behind everything else—the schools, the disaster relief, the health fairs, and the mentorship that turns kids into doctors and community leaders. It happens because thousands of individuals have anchored themselves to something they trust completely, and that trust translates into service without anyone having to ask twice. Twenty-five years in, the true story behind the anniversary is not the growth of a building but the profound faith that quietly unites an entire community, one sevak at a time.

A Debt of Gratitude to Brahma Kumaris

BAPS isn’t the only spiritual organization I’ve closely followed over the years, and this feels like the right issue to express my feelings about publicly, because I owe a real debt of gratitude to the Brahma Kumaris community here in Florida.

For those less familiar, Brahma Kumaris is a spiritual organization built around raja yoga meditation, self-reflection, and a return to what its practitioners call “soul consciousness”—the idea that we are, at our core, peaceful spiritual beings temporarily living a physical life. It’s an entirely unique tradition from BAPS in its structure and practice, but I’ve found the same quality of sincerity in the people who carry it forward.

I want to publicly thank Sister Waddy Ben, who leads the Brahma Kumaris Miami Center, for welcoming me so warmly into the Brahma Kumaris family and for trusting me to help organize spiritual events across South Florida.

Her leadership doesn’t come with a lot of noise. She leads quietly, humbly, and with a kind of steady dedication that inspires people far beyond just me. Because of her, the center has become a place where people from entirely different backgrounds show up and discover meditation, peace, and real personal growth. I’m grateful for her friendship, her encouragement, and honestly just the trust she’s put in me over time.

Any events I’ve helped put together were never really about me. They were my way of giving something back to a community that’s shaped my own spiritual journey more than I probably realize. If anything, they’re just a small reflection of how much this organization has meant to me and to so many others trying to find more peace and purpose in their lives.

Here’s what I keep coming back to about our South Florida Hindu and spiritual community: it’s strong because of how many different groups contribute to it, not because of any one organization. Brahma Kumaris, BAPS, Akshya Patra, Ekal Vidyalaya and plenty of others all do things differently, but they’re built on the same foundation—humility, service, compassion, integrity, and self-discipline. Values that honestly feel harder to find these days.

These organizations are quietly doing important work. Stronger families, better citizens, more compassionate leaders — that’s what comes out of their spiritual education, volunteer efforts, youth programs, and community service, often without much recognition.

I feel lucky to have been part of the Brahma Kumaris in South Florida, even in a small way. So thank you, Sister Waddy Ben, and thank you to every volunteer out there—you’re proof that real change begins within.

Looking Ahead

I contemplate what I want to leave behind, professionally and otherwise, and it usually comes back to a few things.

It starts with our kids. Academic success matters, obviously, but so does character — the kind of grounding that outlasts a diploma.

It also means staying invested in the institutions that got us here—mandirs, meditation centers, cultural groups, and professional associations. I worship, meditate, or believe differently. Think of these as sentimental extras. They’re the infrastructure that keeps a community connected to itself while it grows into the wider world.

And it means building real relationships outside our circles — and honestly, outside our traditions, too. I don’t think the strongest communities are the most insulated ones. I think they’re the ones willing to connect with people who don’t worship, meditate, or believe quite the same way they do.

As someone who helps decide which stories are published in these pages, I feel that responsibility with each issue. I try to make room for the quieter stories—service, resilience, everyday people doing meaningful work without expecting anyone to notice.

That’s really what I hope this issue holds together: celebration, memory, and gratitude toward more than one spiritual home. A Mandir turning twenty-five, anchored by a faith I admire more than I can fully grasp. A Brahma Kumaris community that opened a door for me I didn’t expect. And a community still writing its next chapter—with more confidence than fear and more purpose than doubt.

Raj Shah,
Managing Editor,
Deshvidesh Media Group.

A vibrant celebration of tradition, music, and community service took center stage as hundreds gathered at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir to celebrate a historic milestone: the Rajat Jayanti Mahotsav. Marking 25 years of cultural preservation, unity, and growth, the silver jubilee celebration brought together multiple generations for an unforgettable weekend of reflection and joy.

A quarter-century ago, a handful of dedicated families envisioned what has now blossomed into a foundational community anchor. The core theme of this entire celebration was Rajipo—the intense yearning to please the Guru. Every effort made over the weekend, and indeed the very foundation of this mandir over the last 25 years, was built entirely on earning the Rajipo of our Gurus, Pramukh Swami Maharaj and Mahant Swami Maharaj. Every prayer, meeting, and ounce of energy spent was dedicated to earning their divine smiles.

“The BAPS Miami community comes alive for a spectacular Rajat Jayanti Mahotsav celebration, honoring 25 years of sevā, sanskār, and shraddhā.”

A Year in the Making: The Foundation of Bhakti

The BAPS Miami Mandir members cultivated the true essence of the Rajat Jayanti Mahotsav over the course of an entire year before the festivities even began. Behind the scenes, members of the BAPS Miami Mandir quietly and consistently contributed their time, energy, and devotion to ensure the event’s success. Their commitment was evident in every aspect of preparation:

• Chain Upvas: A continuous chain of upvas (fasting) that purifies hearts and minds. Each devotee offered their bhakti by doing an upvas, and the cycle continued for 365 days.
• Kirtan Bhakti: Devotional singing resonating through the mandir on every Ekadashi. Devotees came to the mandir each Ekadashi and sang devotional kirtans, offering their bhakti to God.
• Balika Pradakshinas: Dedicated balikas (young girls) performing pradakshinas (circumambulations) of the murtis every Sunday in the mandir.
• Akhand Dhun: The powerful collective spirit of a 25-hour akhand dhun (continuous chanting).
• Samuh Puja: Families joining together for collective group worship.
• Prabhat and Sandhya Feri: Peaceful moments of morning and evening processions encircling the mandir while singing devotional kirtans.

These acts of devotion and unity laid the foundation for a truly memorable and meaningful Silver Jubilee celebration.

Satsang Diksha Homatmak Yagna

Devotees and well-wishers gathered at the BAPS Mandir in Boynton Beach, FL, on Saturday, May 30, for a deeply memorable occasion as the Satsang Diksha Homatmak Path Yagna was held in the divine presence of Pujya Swamis. Making this event uniquely profound, the sacred yagna was conducted entirely by the youth ranging in ages from 5 to 22, who led the auspicious rituals with flawless devotion, chanting complex Sanskrit shlokas. Twenty-one yagna kunds were beautifully assembled outdoors to accommodate 16 individuals each, over two sessions, to offer more than 550 devotees the opportunity to actively participate in the divine yagna.

An Evening of Musical Devotion

The Mahotsav commenced on Friday, June 19, evening, with a welcoming dinner, setting a warm, communal tone as attendees arrived in festive traditional attire. The atmosphere quickly filled with anticipation and camaraderie as friends and families reunited.

A particularly beautiful highlight of the weekend was welcoming back so many families who grew up or spent years at the Miami Mandir before moving away. Seeing them return “home” filled the venue with immense excitement, making the entire weekend feel like a grand sentimental and nostalgic family reunion.

“The evening then transitioned into a mesmerizing Kirtan Ārādhanā. A collective of young children, youth, and the revered Swamis beautifully performed this entire musical evening. Over 1500 attendees joined in for this sensational evening.” For the past month, homes have played a specially composed Mahotsav kirtan, serving as the soundtrack to everyone’s devotion. Singing along to a non-stop 2-hour medley of devotional kirtans and live music compilations with harmonium, keyboards, tabla, khanjari, manjira, octapad, hand kartals, cabasa, shehnayi, flute, and more brought the community together in deep gratitude and reflection, beautifully setting the spiritual tone for the milestone weekend.

Rituals and Cultural Showcases

Saturday, June 20, began with a hearty breakfast, fueling participants for a day rich in tradition and celebration. The morning’s highlight was the highly anticipated Pātotsav Mahāpujā.

The Pātotsav is a traditional sacred ceremony celebrating the anniversaries of murti consecration (pran pratishtha) in mandirs. The term “Pātotsav” is a combination of “paat” and “utsav,” where “utsav” means festival. “Paat” originates from “patti,” referring to a strip of garment tied on a murti’s head, from which the term “paat” evolved.

The patotsav ceremony, which began at 9:30 am, celebrated the moment 25 years ago when the Mandir’s murtis were infused with divinity by HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj in the inaugural Murti Pratishtha Utsav. An impressive assembly of 19 Swamis from many regions led the elaborate and uplifting rituals, including the sacred abhishek of the murtis, and offered collective prayers for world peace and harmony. The ceremonial patotsav arti was performed together by the swamis and over 1500 devotees. Additionally, as a highlight of the patotsav, a stunning and expansive array of sweet and savory dishes (annakut) was gracefully offered to the murtis while devotional thals were sung by the congregation.

As afternoon approached, guests enjoyed a delicious traditional Gujarati lunch, sharing stories and memories from years past.

 A Women’s Celebration

“On Saturday, June 20, the Rajat Jayanti Mahilā Celebration served as a powerful testament to the mandir’s enduring legacy, resonating with women across nine decades—spanning from ages 5 to 95.” Curated entirely by women, for women, the exclusive program underscored the community’s dedication to female empowerment. U.S. Congresswoman Lois Frankel distinguished the occasion by remaining throughout the entire proceedings. The event also drew distinguished public officials, including State Attorney Alexcia Cox and Assistant Public Defender Schnelle Tonge.

The celebration featured a traditional symphony, panel discussion, and skit exploring the historic role pioneer women played in establishing the early grassroots foundation of this Hindu mandir. The program also included devotional folk dances and a “passing of the torch” ceremony to the next generation.

Beyond fostering lifelong friendships, the mandir has served as a platform for learning languages like Sanskrit and Gujarati and for developing essential life skills including public speaking, devotional singing, culinary arts, Bharatnatyam, and various cultural crafts—talents that the mandir has nurtured and will continue to support for years to come for the youth.

Culmination and Community Spirit

On Saturday, June 20, the evening featured the Silver Jubilee Grand Celebration Program. Over 1100 guests consisted of devotees from all across the nation; members of the congregation in sister cities such as Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, Melbourne, and others; and generations of youth that grew up attending this congregation on Sundays and had moved to other states. A 3-hour attention-grabbing program highlighted key pioneers whose early vision and tireless volunteer work over the last 25 years made the organization what it is today—a profoundly moving moment for many. Reaching 25 years is an attestation to the resilience, love, and dedication of this community. The program, hosted by three middle school-aged children, took the audience through various skits, video presentations, monologues, and speeches led by youth as well as Swamis and included a life-changing testimonial story from this congregation, ending with a vibrant traditional dance as the grand finale. State Senator Lori Berman graced the evening program with her presence.

The weather throughout the weekend was incredibly hot and demanding, yet the community’s enthusiasm never wavered. The sight of devotees enduring the sweltering summer heat served as a vivid reminder of the principles of Samp (togetherness), Suhrudbhav (friendship), and Ekta (unity) that Mahant Swami Maharaj consistently promotes.

Sunday, June 21 afternoon began with an elaborate spread of traditional ethnic refreshments as anticipation built for the Rajat Jayanti Celebration Grand Finale for the local Miami center attendees. Today’s evening program was an encore performance from the Saturday evening program to accommodate another 1500 local guests spanning from St. Lucie County to Miami-Dade County. The program was further honored by the presence of distinguished public officials, including Palm Beach County Vice Mayor Marci Woodward and Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores. This culminating event brought the entire community together for final festivities. The centerpiece of the final program was a spectacular cultural showcase that beautifully brought to life three pillars: Seva (selfless service), Sanskar (cultural values), and Shraddha (unwavering faith).

Nurturing the Next Generation

The presence of revered BAPS Swamis added an irreplaceable layer of spiritual depth to the entire weekend. The Swamis’ heartfelt dedication to nurturing the future generation deeply moved the attendees. Despite grueling schedules and the sweltering heat, they tirelessly connected with each and every balak (children) and kishore (youth), helping and guiding them through their practices. These lifelong, unbreakable relationships and mentorships created during those sessions are something the youth will remember forever while anchoring their faith for years to come.

As the celebrations concluded, guests gathered one last time for a festive mahaprasad dinner featuring an exquisite menu of authentic Gujarati cuisine, sharing laughter and gratitude for the journey undertaken together.

The Next Chapter Begins

As the curtains closed on a magnificent weekend, the prevailing sentiment was one of profound gratitude. Organizers expressed their thanks to the dozens of volunteers, local sponsors, and families whose months of preparation culminated in a flawless execution.

While the Rajat Jayanti Mahotsav was a celebration of a historic milestone, it served equally as a springboard for the future—a symbolic passing of the torch. The spiritual foundation of seva, sanskar, and shraddha, fortified by the Miami Mandal over the past quarter-century, is the beginning of the next 25 years, leaving the community inspired, unified, and ready to embark on the next chapter of their shared journey.
[See image gallery at www.deshvidesh.com]

Dr. Shatabdi Patel 

Dr. Shatabdi Patel works as an interventional pain management physician and neurologist, and she’s also a longtime BAPS volunteer. She lives in Palm Beach County with her husband and their two kids. The family is deeply involved with the Boynton Beach Swaminarayan Mandir, where their children are learning about spirituality and Hindu culture through daily puja, dhyan (meditation), upavas (fasting), and lessons in character-building and scripture study. Currently, both kids are enrolled in the Satsang Diksha Visharad online program—an advanced course where they’re memorizing 315 Sanskrit shlokas, along with their meanings and the scriptures they come from.

Walk into any Indian home around mealtime and you’ll notice something: the kitchen isn’t just where food is prepared. It’s where the real conversations happen. My grandmother used to say half the family history got passed down over a pot of dal, and honestly, she wasn’t wrong. The turmeric, the cumin, the cardamom pods cracking open in hot oil—all of it fills the house with something that feels less like cooking and more like a memory.

Ask anyone who’s moved away from home what they miss most. It is rarely a restaurant. It’s almost always “my mother’s cooking”—whether that means Gujarati dal, Punjabi rajma, South Indian sambar, or just plain khichdi on a lazy evening. There’s something in home-cooked food that a recipe card simply can’t capture. Call it “warmth,” call it “care”—it’s the part of the meal you can taste but never quite explain.

It’s Never Just About the Ingredients.

Every Indian family seems to have its version of the “same” dish. One grandmother swears by a pinch of jaggery to round out the flavor. Another won’t use anything but hand-crushed ginger. Some temper their spices in ghee, others in cold-pressed oil. None of this is inconsistency—it’s just how family recipes actually work. They carry fingerprints.

Give two people the same vegetables, the same spice box, even the same recipe, and they’ll still end up with two different dishes. The difference isn’t in what goes into the pot. It’s in who’s standing over it.

Our elders always insisted that food picks up the mood of whoever’s cooking it. I can’t prove it, but most of us have tasted the difference between a meal made with patience and one made in a hurry.

Start With a Clear Head

Before the stove even goes on, it helps to just pause for a second.

Many Indian households still begin cooking with a quick prayer, a mantra, or just a moment of quiet gratitude. It doesn’t need to be a whole ritual—even one slow breath before you pick up the knife changes something.

Try not to cook while half-checking your phone or replying to emails. Food notices when you’re not paying attention to it (or at least it tastes that way). A simple dinner prepared with genuine attention often surpasses a complex one made hastily.

Give the Ingredients Their Due

Indian cooking has always treated ingredients less like grocery items and more like small gifts.

Take a second to smell the curry leaves before they hit the pan. Before grinding roasted cumin seeds, let them rest beneath your nose. Rub a little turmeric between your fingers. Crack open a cardamom pod just for the smell of it. Listen to mustard seeds pop and skitter across hot oil—there’s a rhythm to it if you’re paying attention.

Every spice in your kitchen made a long trip to get there, usually starting with a farmer’s hands. Once you start noticing that, cooking stops feeling like a chore and starts feeling more like gratitude with a stove attached.

Small Spices, Old Wisdom

Indian spices were never just about flavor.

Turmeric brings color, sure, but also centuries of use as a healer. Cumin adds depth. Coriander smooths things out. Ginger and garlic invigorate the dish. Cinnamon, cloves, and black pepper turn an ordinary dish into something you remember. Ayurveda figured out this principle a long time ago—that spices work on the body as much as the tongue—and Indian cooking has carried that respect forward ever since.

Roast your spices slowly and they’ll thank you for it. Rush them, and you’ll taste the difference. Some things just can’t be sped up.

Cook With Someone in Mind

One of the simplest ways to bring love into a meal is to think about who’s going to eat it.

Picture your kids walking in from school, starving. Think of your spouse coming home after a long day. Remember your parents, who probably still light up at the smell of something familiar. Stir the dal and let your mind wander to a cherished memory—a festival, a family gathering, whatever comes to mind.

That feeling often manifests in the food itself.

And if you live alone, don’t shortchange yourself. We tend to pull out the good china for guests and eat instant noodles when it’s just us. It’s worth rethinking that.

Let Your Hands Do the Work

Some things shouldn’t be automated away.

Rolling out chapatis by hand. Kneading dough until it feels right, not just until a timer says so. Shaping laddus at Diwali with three generations crowded around the same table. Folding samosas together as a family activity instead of a task. Grinding chutney the slow way.

Appliances save time; no argument there. But your hands know things a food processor doesn’t—the exact moment dough stops being sticky and the give of onions cooked just long enough. You can only gain that kind of knowledge by repeatedly doing it yourself, just as your mother and her mother did before her.

Trust Your Senses Over Your Measuring Cups

Indian cooking has never been big on precision.

How many recipes have you followed that just say “a pinch of this” or “cook until it smells right”? Our mothers and grandmothers weren’t measuring—they were listening to the tempering, watching the oil change color, and tasting as they went.

Recipes are useful. But your nose, your eyes, and your tongue will usually tell you more than a measuring spoon ever could. Food has a way of telling you what it needs if you’re willing to listen.

Eating Together Still Matters

Meals in Indian culture have always been social, not solitary.

Sunday lunches. The festival spreads. Even an ordinary Tuesday dinner can be special. Sitting around a table together does something that eating alone in front of a screen just doesn’t—conversations wander, people laugh, and stories get retold for the hundredth time.

Put the phones away when you can. If you’re dining alone, don’t just rush through your meal while standing at the counter. Sit down, serve yourself properly, and take a moment before you start eating. It changes the whole experience.

The One Ingredient You Can’t Buy

We live in a world obsessed with speed — instant meals, instant delivery, instant everything.

Cooking with love pushes back against all of that, gently. You don’t need fancy cookware or rare ingredients to make something that actually nourishes people. A humble bowl of dal and rice, made with attention, can do more for the soul than a ten-course meal made on autopilot.

So next time you’re in the kitchen, slow down for a minute. Notice the vegetables, the grains, and the spices in front of you. Say a quiet thank-you if that feels right. Cook like you mean it. Taste as you go. Share what you make.

You might find out what generations of Indian families already knew—the best thing in any dish was never something you could pick up at the store.

It was love, the whole time.

About the Author

Dr. Mohini Shinde is a distinguished scholar of religion who served as a professor of Religious Studies in India and later taught Hinduism and World Religions at several universities across the United States. Her academic work explores the contrast and interplay between Western individualism and the Hindu philosophy of collective
identity, offering deep insight into how cultural values shape personal identity, family structures, and social responsibility.

As part of her research, Dr. Shinde spent several years living in India, where she undertook immersive study of the Vedas and Upanishads, grounding her scholarship in both textual knowledge and lived tradition. Her work reflects a rare blend of academic rigor and spiritual understanding.

Now retired from formal teaching, Dr. Shinde continues to engage with readers and communities through her writing, offering thoughtful perspectives on Hindu philosophy, identity, and its relevance in the modern world.

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 against President Trump’s executive order, which sought to revoke birthright citizenship for children of non-citizen parents, stating that it is unconstitutional. The decision, handed down June 30, 2026, means the rule that’s stood since the aftermath of the Civil War will stay in place unless a constitutional amendment occurs.

Trump signed the order on his very first day back in office, part of a broader push to crack down on immigration. It argued that kids born in the U.S. shouldn’t automatically get citizenship if their parents were here illegally or only temporarily. The pushback was immediate. Civil rights groups, immigrant advocates, and a slew of states sued almost overnight, insisting the president simply doesn’t have the power to rewrite citizenship rules through an executive order.

Federal courts agreed, at least enough to block the order while the legal fight played out. That set up a lengthy back-and-forth that eventually landed at the Supreme Court’s doorstep.

In the majority opinion, the justices made clear that it’s the Constitution — not the White House — that decides who counts as a citizen. “The Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause, they wrote, simply isn’t something a president can override with a signature. With a few narrow, long-recognized exceptions, anyone born on U.S. soil is a citizen, period.”

This wasn’t just a legal technicality—it was a fight with real stakes for hundreds of thousands of babies born in the U.S. every year. Had the order been allowed to stand, legal experts warned it could’ve thrown citizenship status, access to public services, and basic legal protections into chaos for a huge number of American-born kids.

The case followed a complex trajectory to reach this point. The ACLU and other groups filed suit within hours of Trump signing the order back in January 2025, and more lawsuits piled up across the country in the following weeks. Then, in June 2025, the Supreme Court weighed in on a related but narrower question in Trump v. CASA, Inc. — this one about whether lower courts can issue nationwide injunctions. That ruling pushed advocates to pursue class-action litigation instead, to make sure kids caught up in the dispute wouldn’t lose protection while the bigger constitutional question got sorted out.

The larger issue ultimately reached a resolution in Trump v. Barbara. The plaintiffs’ lawyers contended that the language of the Fourteenth Amendment is among the clearest in constitutional text and that no executive order can undermine it. The administration, for its part, argued it had the authority to reinterpret how far birthright citizenship actually extends.

The Court heard oral arguments on April 1, 2026, and took nearly three months to issue its final ruling. When it came down on June 30, it wasn’t close to the bottom line, even if the reasoning behind it split the justices in more complicated ways.

For now, the ruling settles one of the most closely watched immigration and executive-power fights in recent memory. The broader immigration debate isn’t over by any means—but the Court made one thing pretty clear: if anyone wants to actually change birthright citizenship, they’re going to need a constitutional amendment, not an executive order.

Awakening from the Matrix: Your Hero’s Journey to Breaking Free & Fulfilling Your Destiny

by Shireen Chada

What if everything you’ve ever believed about yourself and the world is only a sliver of the truth?

Awakening from the Matrix is a transformative guide that invites you to break free from the illusion of identity, roles, and routines—and remember who you truly are: a soul, a being of light, destined for greatness.

Blending cinematic storytelling, ancient wisdom, and deep spiritual insight, this book reimagines your life as a hero’s journey. Drawing from The Matrix film, mythology, and the teachings of the Brahma Kumaris, author Shireen Chada reveals how to decode the inner system of spiritual distortion (Maya), navigate karma, and reclaim your original power.

Whether you’re facing burnout, spiritual stagnation, or existential doubt, this book offers a powerful system reboot—one that upgrades your consciousness, dissolves limiting scripts, and helps you live as the spiritual hero you were always meant to be.

Featuring meditations, modern archetypes, and a clear spiritual map, Awakening from the Matrix will help you:

• Unplug from illusion and reclaim your soul identity
• Transform inner enemies into fuel for growth
• Integrate ancient truths into your modern life
• Discover your higher purpose and live it boldly

If you’re ready to answer the call, take the red pill, and rise, this book is your companion through every stage of your awakening.

The Ramayana Within
What an Ancient Epic Reveals About the Human Mind

by Shireen Chada

Every retelling of the Ramayana asks you to watch Rama, Sita, Ravana, Hanuman, and the others from the outside, like a story that happened to other people, a long time ago, somewhere else. This one doesn’t let you do that. It asks you to find yourself in the story. Each chapter opens inside one character at the exact moment they made a choice. Not the moment before, when it was still easy. The moment itself. Kaikeyi convinces herself she is doing the right thing while she does the wrong one. Ravana hears his own conscience twice, in scenes most retellings skip, and silences it both times. Bharata is handed a throne he has every right to keep. He puts it down. Desire. Attachment. Ego. Love. The invisible choices that shape a life long before anyone else sees them.

For thirty-two years, Shireen Chada has taught Rajyoga meditation. The reflections that follow each chapter grow out of what she has watched in that time. People wanting to change and not changing. Wanting to see clearly and
looking away anyway. You don’t need to know the Ramayana to read this book. You need to have known what the right thing was, at least once, and done something else.

For More information, please visit Author’s web site https://releaseyourwings.org/

About Shireen Chada

Shireen Chada, with over 20,000 hours of meditation experience spanning 30 years with the Brahma Kumaris, is a renowned spiritual teacher, retreat facilitator, and content creator. As the creator and presenter of the Release Your Wings YouTube channel and co-host of the Spiritual Sense podcast, Shireen shares her intelligent, refreshingly creative, and unmistakably authentic wisdom with a global audience. She has designed and facilitated transformative meditation retreats and workshops nationwide, developed comprehensive audio courses on spiritual development and created three popular meditation albums alongside a deck of spiritual power cards. Shireen’s five meditation books — God’s Blessing for You, Soul Fitness, Oh My Goodness!, True Hollywood Blockbuster, and Insperience the Divine — further showcase her ability to powerfully uplift the soul through accessible spiritual guidance.

The global creator economy continues to expand rapidly, turning online content creation into a major entertainment and business industry. According to Forbes’ 2026 list of highest-earning digital creators, MrBeast secured the top position with estimated earnings of $300 million, maintaining his dominance in the global influencer space.

A major highlight of the report is Indian-origin creator Dhar Mann, who ranked second with earnings of around $65 million. Known for producing motivational, story-driven short videos, he has built a massive international audience. His content blends emotional storytelling with modern digital formats, helping him become one of the most influential creators worldwide. His position reflects the rising global impact of Indian-origin talent in the digital media industry.

Forbes also noted that the combined earnings of the top 50 creators reached a record $1.02 billion in 2026, marking a significant increase compared to previous years. This growth shows how social media platforms have transformed individuals into global media brands capable of generating massive revenues.

Other creators in the top rankings included Steven Bartlett, Markiplier, Rhett & Link, Charli D’Amelio, and several others who have built strong digital audiences across multiple platforms. Each of them represents different content styles, from entertainment and education to lifestyle and commentary.

The 2026 rankings highlight how digital creators are reshaping global entertainment, with online platforms now rivaling traditional media in influence and earnings. Dhar Mann’s second-place position further emphasizes the growing presence and success of Indian-origin personalities in the global creator economy.

Click Here for NRI News

Indian-origin corporate leader Shankh Mitra has emerged as one of the highest-paid executives in the world, securing the second position globally in CEO compensation rankings, just behind Tesla chief Elon Musk. According to a recent Wall Street Journal report, Mitra’s total pay package for 2025 reached an extraordinary value of approximately $821 million, marking one of the most significant executive earnings in recent years.

Mitra’s journey to global corporate leadership began in India, where he studied engineering at Jadavpur University, specializing in Instrumentation and Electronics. He later moved to the United States to pursue an MBA in Applied Value Investing from Columbia Business School, laying the foundation for his career in finance and investment management.

He started his professional path at PwC, where he gained early experience in consulting before transitioning into investment roles. In 2009, he joined Fidelity Investments as an analyst and later worked with major hedge funds, including Citadel and Millennium Management, focusing on real estate securities and portfolio strategy.

In 2016, Mitra joined Welltower, a major S&P 500-listed real estate investment trust specializing in senior housing and healthcare infrastructure. His leadership abilities quickly advanced him through the organization, as he became Chief Investment Officer in 2018 before being appointed Chief Executive Officer two years later. Under his leadership, the company strengthened its investment strategy and expanded its market position.

A significant portion of Mitra’s compensation is tied to long-term stock performance. Reports indicate that nearly 99% of his pay package is based on equity awards, including a major stock grant valued at around $789 million, which later appreciated significantly. The payout structure is designed to reward sustained company growth and long-term value creation, with additional performance conditions extending into 2031.

The Wall Street Journal report also highlighted a broader surge in executive compensation across major companies, with several CEOs earning over $100 million in 2025. Among them, Mitra stood out as one of the most prominent names, reinforcing the growing influence of Indian-origin leaders in global corporate markets. Another Indian-origin executive, Nikesh Arora, also appeared in the top 10 highest-paid CEOs list, further underscoring this trend.

Click Here for NRI News

California Governor Gavin Newsom has appointed Indian-origin attorney Bhanu Sadasivan to serve as a judge on the Santa Clara County Superior Court, marking a significant addition to the state’s judicial system. The appointment recognizes her extensive legal experience, academic background, and contributions to both law and science.

Sadasivan has been a partner at the prominent law firm McDermott Will & Emery since 2012, where she built a strong reputation in intellectual property litigation. Earlier in her career, she worked as an associate at Covington & Burling from 2008 to 2012 and at Heller Ehrman from 2004 to 2008. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, one of the leading law institutions in the United States.

Before entering the legal profession, Sadasivan pursued advanced studies in biomedical research. She holds a Ph.D. in immunology from Yale University and completed postdoctoral research at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Her early academic work focused on scientific research before transitioning into law, where she combined technical expertise with legal practice.

In private practice, she established herself as a leading figure in intellectual property litigation, earning national recognition for her work. She was named among the Daily Journal’s Top Intellectual Property Lawyers in 2023 and has also been listed in The Best Lawyers in America for excellence in patent and intellectual property law. In addition to her legal career, she has co-authored multiple peer-reviewed scientific publications.

Beyond her professional achievements, Sadasivan has been actively involved in community service. She serves on the board of the Asian Law Alliance and previously led the organization as its president. The nonprofit focuses on providing legal assistance to Asian Pacific Islander communities and low-income residents in Silicon Valley.

She fills the judicial vacancy left by the retirement of Judge Joanne McCracken and has been registered as having no party preference. Her appointment reflects both her professional excellence and long-standing commitment to public service in California.

Click Here for NRI News