Over the years, the following has grown, but members have nowhere to hold larger meetings. RSSB's seed was planted in Vancouver in the 60s, when a handful of members started meeting in the West Vancouver Community Centre, later moving to Vancouver's Mt. The answers are found internally," he said. "That's what appeals to a lot of professionals. These similarities are more interesting to the group's Christian, Islamic, Buddhist, Sikh, Hindu and Jewish followers than their differences, Pope said. Instead, RSSB focuses on the elements all religions have in common – for example, the belief in leading a moral life. Pope, who grew up in the Church of Scotland and retains a slight accent, insists RSSB isn't a religion at all, but a philosophy, since it doesn't require members forced to follow rules or give up their faiths. Started in northern India in 1891 by Soami Shiv Dayal and Jaimal Singh Ji Maharaj, it has two million followers worldwide, about 700 of them in the Lower Mainland.įollowers believe they can connect with God through meditation, a vegetarian diet and avoiding drugs and alcohol. "We want it to look kind of farmy."Ĭompared to grand-daddies like Hinduism, RSSB is a toddler on the religious scene. "We've been very conscious of esthetics," Pope added. "It's a nice green, quiet space," Bhanbra said. A grave road curls around the library, winding past the cafeteria and the centerpiece – a 900-square-metre concrete box that seats 2,000.īhanbra said the group wanted the centre to blend in with its surroundings, offering a peaceful spot for members to meditate and listen to lectures. Low farm buildings squat at the centre's entrance off 176 Street. No portraits of Buddha or Vishnu or Christ adorn the walls. Instead of marble facades and Baroque frescoes, the centre is spare and sturdy, clean lines without arch or ornament. "Compared to that, we're doing pretty well," he chuckles.īut the two buildings could not be more different. As consolation, he reminds himself that Austria's Salzburg Cathedral took more than 200 years to build. Sometimes the pace tries his patience, especially when he compares it to the sizzling growth on the rest of the Peninsula. This is a slow-track project," Pope said. "The rest of the world is doing fast-track projects.
"Everyone here is doing the best they can do," the Surrey resident said.īut unlike Bhanbra, many in the 80-plus volunteer pool have full-time jobs and no construction experience, a challenge for building manager John Pope.Ī professional engineer during the week, Pope spends his weekends training doctors and lawyers to dig trenches, lay pipes and nail studs. It's been a long haul for Bhanbra, now on leave from his construction job to volunteer fulltime, but the work is fulfilling.
While they work, they imagine the hundreds, maybe thousands, who will gather at this 50-acre chunk of farmland, to teach, to learn and to meditate. Volunteers like Bhanbra have spent seven years building a massive study centre at 29 Avenue and 176 Street for members of the Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB), a mystic Indian philosophy that combines Sikhism, Hinduism and Christianity. When the tea is gone they will go back to work on an outdoor walkway, the trill of robins in their ears. Wearing an orange fluorescent vest and hardhat, he chats and chuckles with six other men, a short break from a long day of toil. In a long, low cafeteria, Sukhdev Bhanbra sips milky chai from a tin mug. (The Peace Arch News, Canada, May 16, 2007) – Many volunteers keep the faith on huge project. Room for 2,000 philosophers - RSSB Newspaper Articles