FAQ
1. Who are you guys and why do you exist?
We are a registered UK charity functioning internationally with support of our volunteers, trying to achieve world peace using Patanjali Meditation.
Our core values include opposing segregation of the human community with an aim to promote unity – the kind of unity that is long lasting, real, and appeals to both head and heart. We borrow a lot of our information from the ancient texts called Vedas and the modern science. We call this 'scientific spirituality'.
2. Where are you based?
All around the world because of how varied the geographical locations of our volunteers can get. But our main headquarters are in London, United Kingdom. Unfortunately we do not function from the headquarters (in terms of centralization) so the office itself might not seem as exciting as our thriving volunteer led pockets.
3. So, how do you work?
We work both physically and virtually. The good news is you don’t have to be in a specific corner of the globe to work with us, and can join us or visit us irrespective of where you are.
4. Who are your researchers?
We have borrowed our ideas from an esteemed and experienced scientist from combustion background – Harish Chandra – a scholar and a regular at some of our main events, who has also penned our publication for us. For more information on him, visit our publications page.
Our research is ongoing and as more avenues open for exploration, we are now in process of gathering a research team to support our exisiting one.
5. How can I get involved?
Good question. A starting point is let us know. Here are a few ways you can help:
a. As a Trainer: We are trying to put several programs together and there is a new training programme underway that you can also be a part of virtually and get help online. Once you’ve been trained, you get to organize similar events, or gather friends and spread the word. Our videos/podcasts are a good way to learn what we are doing.
b. As an Organizer: If you don’t fancy training, then that is cool too. Just tell us if you want to attend an event and if you’ve got friends who’d be interested and we’ll pop down and say hi to you. Meaning you can organize events for our trained volunteers to come down to and even have a good chat.
c. As a Researcher: If you want to be a part of the research team, tell us about your area of experience and interest and what you want to do and we’ll get talking.
d. As a Benefactor/Donor/Patron: Don’t forget that there is also a way for you to help by donating to us – we function solely with support of donations and to fund better research, and conduct our programmes, we need funds where your help will be immense.
e. By Promoting our Literature: If you just want to read our books and get a different point of view, and recommend them to your friends, you can always do that!
6. Are you funded/supported by a separate religious body?
No. We function solely by the funds we receive from our donors and support we get from our volunteers.
We are also (in an honest way of saying it), against the concept of relgion. We’re not against everything religions preach – in fact there is quite a lot of good like message of peace, love and truth and brotherhood that most religions promote. But we believe that humans don’t need religion to conform to these prerequisites to humanity. What we do need, however, is scientific spirituality.
The universal black and white and grey are all intrinscially known to us humans, we just need to be reminded of them and put them into practice. With an appreciation of our material world, we want to further our knowledge by the appreciation of ourselves. That’s where spirituality plays a big part.
7. How can I pop down and meet one of you?
That would be great.
Follow our Events page closely and see if there’s something happening in your area and come along. Letting us know in advance will help so we know we have something to look forward to.
And if nothing seems to be happening in your area in the near future, you can make it happen. Just drop us a line, and tell us if you fancy organizing an event and we’ll try our best to make it. If you can afford it (because your support will help), then may need to look into supporting a volunteer so they can get themselves there to make it.
8. What do your workshops deal with?
A variety of things, depending on our target audience and our area of work. Our current focus is stress management, a reduction in drugs and alcohol consumption in the world, battling terrorism, building family bonds in homes, making the globe go pollution free, finding out who we really are, to name a few.
We use different ways to achieve our goals – talks, book fairs, workshops that cover Meditation and Yoga practices, tree planting day outs, waste management programmes, or just picnics in park with kids and story telling.
Our latest is a metal band that’s coming together – a bunch of music fanatic teetotallers.
We want to explore novel ways of approaching people – if you have an idea, write to us!
9. Do I have to be a vegetarian or a teetotal to be a volunteer?
No. There isn’t a prerequisite for your participation. But embibing the values CIS is trying to promote will be of help, and will also help you in your field of work – as this is what you will be talking about to the rest of the world.
10. How can I subscribe to the monthly e-magazine of CIS?
Visit the SpiritMag section where you will be able to subscribe to our monthly magazine. Its subscription is free.
11. If I have a comment or question to make then how can I communicate?
You can write to us by visiting the page Contact Us. We will respond to you within a reasonable time. If your question is found relevant to others then we will answer it through SpirtMag as well.
12. What would I need to organize a workshop at my location?
A workshop would typically require 15-30 interested participants and a hall/room. An LCD projector will be desirable.
13. How much will it cost to organize a workshop?
Travel and local arrangements will be the main costs. Furthermore, there will be a nominal fee to offset the operational expenses of CIS. If you can plan much in advance and be flexible in timing then it may be possible to club your workshop with other forthcoming events of CIS in the nearby locations. This can substantially reduce the travel expenses. You should write to us much in advance and be watchful of the CIS Calendar, especially the forthcoming events.
14. Can we charge fees from the participants to cover the cost of the workshop?
This is a good idea to distribute the cost of the workshop among the participants. The organizer may give some reduction in fee to students, senior citizens, etc.
15. Can I organize a workshop/talk/lecture in a language other than the English language?
While CIS conducts the workshop/talk/lecture in English, the organizer may arrange for an interpreter for the non-English knowing participants. In such a case, adequate allowance should be given for the time requirement.
16. Can I suggest a topic for workshop/talk different from what appears on your website?
If the suggested topic/theme is within the broad area of “inner sciences” then CIS will work closely with you in customizing a talk/workshop at your location.
17. What should be the lead time to organize a workshop/talk?
It is desirable that you contact us much in advance, say, six months. Planning it about a year in advance may help us reduce the travel costs.
18. Can we request CIS to display its publications along with its workshop/talk?
If advance information is received then CIS will attempt to ship some of its publications to an address given by the organizer. Then those can be displayed at the venue of the workshop/talk.
We are a registered UK charity functioning internationally with support of our volunteers, trying to achieve world peace using Patanjali Meditation.
Our core values include opposing segregation of the human community with an aim to promote unity – the kind of unity that is long lasting, real, and appeals to both head and heart. We borrow a lot of our information from the ancient texts called Vedas and the modern science. We call this 'scientific spirituality'.
2. Where are you based?
All around the world because of how varied the geographical locations of our volunteers can get. But our main headquarters are in London, United Kingdom. Unfortunately we do not function from the headquarters (in terms of centralization) so the office itself might not seem as exciting as our thriving volunteer led pockets.
3. So, how do you work?
We work both physically and virtually. The good news is you don’t have to be in a specific corner of the globe to work with us, and can join us or visit us irrespective of where you are.
4. Who are your researchers?
We have borrowed our ideas from an esteemed and experienced scientist from combustion background – Harish Chandra – a scholar and a regular at some of our main events, who has also penned our publication for us. For more information on him, visit our publications page.
Our research is ongoing and as more avenues open for exploration, we are now in process of gathering a research team to support our exisiting one.
5. How can I get involved?
Good question. A starting point is let us know. Here are a few ways you can help:
a. As a Trainer: We are trying to put several programs together and there is a new training programme underway that you can also be a part of virtually and get help online. Once you’ve been trained, you get to organize similar events, or gather friends and spread the word. Our videos/podcasts are a good way to learn what we are doing.
b. As an Organizer: If you don’t fancy training, then that is cool too. Just tell us if you want to attend an event and if you’ve got friends who’d be interested and we’ll pop down and say hi to you. Meaning you can organize events for our trained volunteers to come down to and even have a good chat.
c. As a Researcher: If you want to be a part of the research team, tell us about your area of experience and interest and what you want to do and we’ll get talking.
d. As a Benefactor/Donor/Patron: Don’t forget that there is also a way for you to help by donating to us – we function solely with support of donations and to fund better research, and conduct our programmes, we need funds where your help will be immense.
e. By Promoting our Literature: If you just want to read our books and get a different point of view, and recommend them to your friends, you can always do that!
6. Are you funded/supported by a separate religious body?
No. We function solely by the funds we receive from our donors and support we get from our volunteers.
We are also (in an honest way of saying it), against the concept of relgion. We’re not against everything religions preach – in fact there is quite a lot of good like message of peace, love and truth and brotherhood that most religions promote. But we believe that humans don’t need religion to conform to these prerequisites to humanity. What we do need, however, is scientific spirituality.
The universal black and white and grey are all intrinscially known to us humans, we just need to be reminded of them and put them into practice. With an appreciation of our material world, we want to further our knowledge by the appreciation of ourselves. That’s where spirituality plays a big part.
7. How can I pop down and meet one of you?
That would be great.
Follow our Events page closely and see if there’s something happening in your area and come along. Letting us know in advance will help so we know we have something to look forward to.
And if nothing seems to be happening in your area in the near future, you can make it happen. Just drop us a line, and tell us if you fancy organizing an event and we’ll try our best to make it. If you can afford it (because your support will help), then may need to look into supporting a volunteer so they can get themselves there to make it.
8. What do your workshops deal with?
A variety of things, depending on our target audience and our area of work. Our current focus is stress management, a reduction in drugs and alcohol consumption in the world, battling terrorism, building family bonds in homes, making the globe go pollution free, finding out who we really are, to name a few.
We use different ways to achieve our goals – talks, book fairs, workshops that cover Meditation and Yoga practices, tree planting day outs, waste management programmes, or just picnics in park with kids and story telling.
Our latest is a metal band that’s coming together – a bunch of music fanatic teetotallers.
We want to explore novel ways of approaching people – if you have an idea, write to us!
9. Do I have to be a vegetarian or a teetotal to be a volunteer?
No. There isn’t a prerequisite for your participation. But embibing the values CIS is trying to promote will be of help, and will also help you in your field of work – as this is what you will be talking about to the rest of the world.
10. How can I subscribe to the monthly e-magazine of CIS?
Visit the SpiritMag section where you will be able to subscribe to our monthly magazine. Its subscription is free.
11. If I have a comment or question to make then how can I communicate?
You can write to us by visiting the page Contact Us. We will respond to you within a reasonable time. If your question is found relevant to others then we will answer it through SpirtMag as well.
12. What would I need to organize a workshop at my location?
A workshop would typically require 15-30 interested participants and a hall/room. An LCD projector will be desirable.
13. How much will it cost to organize a workshop?
Travel and local arrangements will be the main costs. Furthermore, there will be a nominal fee to offset the operational expenses of CIS. If you can plan much in advance and be flexible in timing then it may be possible to club your workshop with other forthcoming events of CIS in the nearby locations. This can substantially reduce the travel expenses. You should write to us much in advance and be watchful of the CIS Calendar, especially the forthcoming events.
14. Can we charge fees from the participants to cover the cost of the workshop?
This is a good idea to distribute the cost of the workshop among the participants. The organizer may give some reduction in fee to students, senior citizens, etc.
15. Can I organize a workshop/talk/lecture in a language other than the English language?
While CIS conducts the workshop/talk/lecture in English, the organizer may arrange for an interpreter for the non-English knowing participants. In such a case, adequate allowance should be given for the time requirement.
16. Can I suggest a topic for workshop/talk different from what appears on your website?
If the suggested topic/theme is within the broad area of “inner sciences” then CIS will work closely with you in customizing a talk/workshop at your location.
17. What should be the lead time to organize a workshop/talk?
It is desirable that you contact us much in advance, say, six months. Planning it about a year in advance may help us reduce the travel costs.
18. Can we request CIS to display its publications along with its workshop/talk?
If advance information is received then CIS will attempt to ship some of its publications to an address given by the organizer. Then those can be displayed at the venue of the workshop/talk.
