Yarra Valley Living Centre

25/11/2025

Our beautiful little Golden Whistler. He sings and dances around our meditation room ... trying to distract us!

25/11/2025

Echos of Dawn was held under the beautiful oak tree canopy here on Saturday ... with the background of birdsong it was truly magical!!!

25/11/2025

A family of 4 Boobok owls were here this week... hopefully they take up residence!

12/08/2025

The commercial quota for Kangaroos in Victoria for Q2 – 2025 was 29,050. The actual take for the period was 13,886, that is just 48 per cent of the quota for the period.

31/07/2025

Thanks to everyone’s good wishes there was a unanimous vote for the Brahma Kumaris to continue as the custodians of the Yarra Valley Living Centre.

30/07/2025

An important message from Ian and Ruth Gawler about the future of the Yarra Valley Living Centre…

Tomorrow will be a big day in the life of my old Foundation. There will be a vote amongst registered members to finalise its windup and distribute the residual funds - aka The Yarra Valley Living Centre - to a like minded charity with similar legal status and aims. Ruth and I strongly recommend members vote YES for the Brahma Kumaris; and importantly (in the way the voting has been set) vote NO to the other groups. The BKs have been looking after the Centre these past 4 years exceptionally well while the shameful legal proceedings have unfolded and are only now about to be finalised. Of all the groups to consider, all the others wish to sell the Centre and use the cash. Only the BKs are committed to paying the legal fees of around $500,000 so they can continue to use the property - very much in the spirit of what we were doing for the previous 4 decades. The BKs plan to use the Centre to continue its healing tradition; providing healing for body, mind and spirit. They are a somewhat more overt spiritual group than we were, but like us, they have been very active in the Inter-faith movement and welcome people from all backgrounds and cultures. Ruth and I know them well and again, we recommend them highly for the Centre.
So for those of you who are members, please do attend in person or online and again, please do vote YES for the BKS and register a NO for the others. For those of you who are not current members but who have had good experiences at the Centre, good wishes or prayers for the best outcome that will help the most people will be welcome :)

28/07/2025

Hope to see you at Brahma Kumaris Five Dock in Sydney on 7th August.

22/07/2025

If you are a member of the Gawler Foundation please do for the Brahma Kumaris vote at the meeting.

22/07/2025

The Brahma Kumaris have been operating at the Yarra Valley Living Centre for over four years.
On 31st July, a final vote by the members, which has been ordered by the court, will determine whether we can continue to serve as volunteers at this location.
We have continued the Gawler Retreats, including Meditation Teacher Training and Meditation Retreats facilitated by Ian and Ruth Gawler. Additionally, we have conducted retreats for individuals living with cancer and Parkinson's, led by Liz Stilwell, Sandy Clinton, and Dr. Sanjay Raghav, as well as Lifestyle Medicine retreats in collaboration with Doctors for Nutrition.
As the future of this sacred space is uncertain, we will commence dedicated meditation sessions at our centre and across our Australian and international locations.
These sessions will take place daily from 4:00-4:45 am until 31st July. You are welcome to join us at any time that duits you, with the pure intention that the Brahma Kumaris continue to serve here for the benefit of all sentient beings, as we are also mindful of the wildlife we share this space with.