Meditation instruction will be provided, followed by guided contemplation and a talk by the centre’s resident meditation instructor.

The event offers a great opportunity to meditate in a supportive group setting, to learn how to apply the principles of meditation to everyday life, and to meet and mingle with fellow practitioners (bring your friends)! Both newcomers and familiar faces are welcomed and no previous experience is needed.

Admission is free though, as always, donations are appreciated.

The Bangkok Shambhala Centre is located on the second floor of the Yogatique Bangkok building, on Sukhumvit Soi 23 (BTS Asoke Station).

Find out more at http://www.Shambhala.or.th and Facebook.com/ShambhalaBangkok.

In the latest edition of the “Action Comics” series, which has published Superman’s adventures since 1938, the “Man of Steel” intervenes to stop an out-of-work factory worker as he is about to kill some immigrants.

Wearing a blue work shirt and red-white-and-blue bandana, the moustachioed cartoon villain embodies all the cliches of the poor blue-collar American.

Gun in hand, he threatens veiled women and rails at Hispanic workers, accusing them of stealing his job.

“You work cheap, don’t speak English so you can’t talk back or even ask for a penny more. You cost me my job! My livelihood! For that… you pay!” he says, as he opens fire.

Just then Superman steps in, bullets bouncing off his chest, to save the day.

“The only person responsible for the blackness smothering your soul is you,” Superman tells the white supremacist.

The passage echoes the recent violent protests by American rightwing extremists.

In August, a 32-year-old woman was run over and killed by a Nazi sympathizer after a violent “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

In 2015, Dylann Roof, a white supremacist, shot and killed nine black worshipers at a Charleston, South Carolina church.

American comic books have often taken on social issues, finding up-to-the-minute material in contemporary public conflicts and debates.

Marvel Comics, for instance, launched a new version of Spider-Man in 2011, making him half-black, half-Hispanic.

In 2016, DC Comics published a seven issue mini-series called “Superman: American Alien.”

In it, Kal-El (Superman’s real name) struggles to reconcile his extra-terrestrial origins with his new life on Earth.

Superman is in effect an immigrant, who left his doomed home planet Krypton when he was a baby and was taken in and adopted by an American couple in Kansas, in the rural US heartland.

Superman’s creators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, were both Jews of European descent, and Superman’s story parallels the flight of European immigrants in the 1930s seeking peace and prosperity in the United States.

“The Man of Steel,” whose caped costume is inspired by the Stars and Stripes, grows up on a farm and embodies the American dream

But Superman’s patriotism, like that of Marvel Comics’ Captain America, has been interpreted differently at the hands of the various writers who have scripted his adventures.

In the 1986 series “Batman: The Dark Knight Returns,” for example, Frank Miller presents Superman as president Ronald Reagan’s elite fighter, deployed to combat the Soviets or to restore order in the United States, neutralizing Batman.

An international jury will choose 12 submissions for further development at an “Ideas and Concepts” workshop to be held during the Bangkok Design Festival from November 17 to 19.

“Emotional Transitions” will be the theme for the workshop examining the selected projects and their technological feasibility and likely impacts on city living.

After the workshop, three of the 12 submissions will be suggested for implementation to the academy’s local and international partners.

Urban media have the ability to change the city’s visual infrastructure with screens, architecture and lighting schemes, gradually altering its pace and rhythms and the way individuals feel in a given setting.

Transitions at a macro scale affect transitions in our bodies and states of mind, how we perceive ourselves and engage with each other in the city. “Revealing these interactions and their impacts is important in understanding how we can make, manage and inhabit places,” Charles Landry and Chris Murray write in their book “Psychology and the City: The Hidden Dimension”.

So the artwork proposals have to address these “emotional transitions” in everyday life, social life, community life, work life or some other aspect. They might focus on traffic situations or the act of moving from one neighbourhood to another and encountering their diversity – or from one mood to another.

Artists, designers, architects, curators and others seeking to advance their knowledge, skills and network in urban media art are welcome to submit.

Participants will learn about methods of artistic research, concept development and artwork proposals for rendering the city more creative.

Proposals must be submitted by Friday midnight (September 15) to info@urbanmediaart.academy.

Learn more at https://goo.gl/Pab8Eo.

Facebook is also launching a new section of Safety Centre with additional resources about suicide prevention and online wellbeing. People can access tools to resolve conflict online, help a friend who is expressing suicidal thoughts or get resources if they’re going through a difficult time.

“Because of the relationships people have on Facebook, we are in a unique position to help connect those in distress with friends who can show support,” says Antigone Davis, the social network’s head of global safety.

“People’s friends are in the best position to know when they’re struggling – and speed is critical – so they can reach out directly through things like comments on a post. In many cases the combination of technology – recognising patterns in people’s comments on posts – and the compassion of people in our community can help prevent harm.”

People can reach out to Facebook when they see something that makes them concerned about a friend’s wellbeing. Facebook has teams working around the world, 24/7, who review reports and prioritise the most serious ones like suicide.

Facebook provides suggested text to start a conversation with their friend in need as well as information on how to handle the situation. The friend who has expressed suicidal thoughts is given information about local help lines, along with other tips and resources.

Facebook works with partners to collect phrases, hashtags and group names associated with online challenges encouraging self-harm or suicide. The company offers resources to people that search for these terms on Facebook, and also remove content that violates Community Standards, which don’t allow the promotion of self-injury or suicide.

“Facebook has offered tools like these, developed in collaboration with mental health organisations, for more than 10 years,” says Davis. “It’s part of our ongoing effort to help build a safe community on and off Facebook, and we hope we can continue to support those in need.”

Learn more at http://www.Facebook.com/safety

The acclaimed animation work of Japan’s Studio Ghibli has attracted the attention of Indonesians.

That work might not yet be as embedded in Indonesian pop culture as some of Japan’s other exports, such as TV series, girl groups and manga comics. But the studio’s output is globally praised and has even won Oscars.

An exhibition continuing through Sunday (September 17) at the Ritz-Carlton in Jakarta is sure to build on growing local fascination.

Among the displays in the show mounted in collaboration with an outfit called the World of Ghibli Jakarta, Marubeni and Hakuhodo, are the first 8.5 metres of Howl’s installation “Moving Castle”.

You can see a replica of Totoro and the cat-shaped Nekobus from “My Neighbour Totoro”, the Laputa robot and its Flapter from “Castle in the Sky” and the beach and aircraft from “Porco Roso”.

Totoro/The Jakata Post

Theirs is Ponyo’s wall from “Ponyo” and Baby Ohmu from “Nausica of the Valley of the Wind”.

“We want to spread the positive message of Ghibli in the Southeast Asia market, especially now, when demand for world-class exhibitions is growing,” says Ignes Dea, a company representative at the show.

“We want to show the capabilities of Indonesian and Japanese artists and to spread the values and philosophical approach that Studio Ghibli represents.”

Aware of the studio’s underdog status in Indonesia, organisers of the exhibition, which was preceded by limited screenings of the studio’s movies, aim to change that.

“Honestly, we feel that Studio Ghibli exposure in Indonesia is still quite low, and that’s why we need to make a ‘big splash’ with this exhibition, for people to recognise Studio Ghibli and the spirit it represents,” Dea says.

The organisers are confident that the values found in Ghibli films will connect with Indonesians.

“Talking about connections, a lot of Studio Ghibli movies have a philosophical approach, like nature, female heroines and the balance between good and evil, so we think it relates with many people, including the Indonesian market,” Dea says.

“For example, ‘Princess Mononoke’ is a movie about balance and conflict between nature and man, and one of the movie’s signature objects is a sacred forest. And Indonesia is home to many forests and amazing nature.”

The exhibition includes the “Mononoke Forest” installation specifically to help Indonesians understand the value of forests and nature.

Nekobus /The Jakata Post

“We want to spread a positive message about the importance of balance,” Dea says.

Many Indonesian designers were part of the exhibition. They designed the blueprints for the installations with the support and assistance of Studio Ghibli representatives.

The exhibition is an attempt to celebrate one of the world’s most-respected animation studios and one of Japan’s most recognised pop-culture exports.

“These Indonesian artists are young and talented and Studio Ghibli is very impressed with their work,” says Dea.

The blueprints were given to local vendors and production began under the close supervision of the artists and studio representatives.

Some are first-time installations that you will not see anywhere else in the world, such as the Laputa robot, which is bigger and a lot closer in interpretation to the animation, compared with the one at Museum Ghibli in Mitaka, Japan.

The Nekobus cat bus is also bigger than the one in the museum. And photographing the original Nekobus in Japan is not allowed, unlike in Jakarta.

Dea said anyone with a passing interest in Japanese pop culture should visit.

“This is a collaboration between Indonesian and Japanese craftsmanship. This is the biggest exhibition in the history of Studio Ghibli, so we want to bring the imaginative world of Studio Ghibli to life.”

Special guests included Danish ambassador Uffe Wolffhechel, Dario Reicherl, chief of Fritz Hansen Asia and Veekrit Palarit, managing director of Norse Republics. Master craftsman Hans Mannerhagen also flew in for the event and demonstrated the hand-stitching of the iconic Egg chair. The grand opening was attended by many celebrities, architects, interior designers, and fashion designers, among them Polpat Asavaprapha, Vatanika Patamasingh, Janesuda Siritant, Suquan Bulakul, Dan Hetrakul, Duangrit Bunnag, Pasu Liptapanlop, and Vasu Vrajsilp,

Founded in Denmark in 1872, the company has a long history of collaborating with leading international designers to bring their visionary concepts to life – and to the spaces they help transform. Fritz Hansen’s highly distinguished Classic collection comprises a number of the most iconic pieces of furniture from renowned Danish architects and designers, including Arne Jacobsen’s Egg, Swan and Series 7 chairs as well as the daybed line.

The Contemporary collection features new furniture and accessory designs from some of today’s most inspiring, internationally recognised modern designers including Jaime Hayon, Piero Lissoni, Kasper Salto and Cecilie Manz.

Common to the two collections is a sculptural artistic expression that blurs the lines between design and art and unites function and form in unprecedented ways, giving each work significant presence and purpose.

The store is open Monday to Friday from 10am-7pm and on Saturday and Sunday from 1pm. Call (02) 015 4164 or contact@norserepublics.com

The campaign underlines the company’s efforts to bring better quality living to a broader society as it raises public awareness of the threat from “sudden cardiac arrest’, or SCA, which can claim lives regardless of gender and age. The company will also join a campaign to pass on basic life support knowledge to the public to create awareness of the importance to take proper and immediate action to save victims of sudden cardiac arrest.

Statistics show that SCA is the third leading cause of death (after cancer and accidents) and accounts for 54,000 deaths annually in Thailand – that’s 6 deaths per hour on average.

Installation has already started and AP is encouraging society to turn small sections of space into a lifeline for victims of sudden cardiac arrest. AP has also donated AEDs to Ban Bang Khae Social Welfare Development Centre, Sathorn Pier and Thonburi Civil Defence Volunteers Centre to benefit the public during sudden cardiac arrest emergencies.

“Sudden cardiac arrest can happen to people of any gender and age without any advance warning. It is vitally important that SAC victims receive immediate help during this life-and-death situation. AP attaches great importance to creating value in the smallest of spaces to improve and enhance the quality of life. We have allocated 0.1 square metre as a life-saving area in our condominium projects. We receive basic data support from our partner Mitsubishi Estate Group of Japan where AEDs are standard life-saving equipment that can be found in crowded areas such as public spaces and residential areas. Altogether Japan boasts over 600,000 AEDs – the most in the world,” says Vittakarn Chandavimol, Chief Business Group – Condominiums, AP (Thailand) PCL.

“AP currently has almost 40 completely built condominium projects that are under the management of Smart Service and Management. For new condominiums slated for completion in 2017 onwards, we have allocated the space for the life-saving equipment,” he adds.

All the 40 AED-installed condominium projects will be supervised by 300 officers from Smart Service and Management. All have been trained in basic life support by Thai Secom Security and the Thai Resuscitation Council of the Heart Association of Thailand under Royal Patronage. Each condominium complex will have officers on duty 24 hours a day to help residents who might suffer sudden cardiac arrest

“Our study has found that since sudden cardiac arrest often occurs outside the hospital, it will be difficult for the patient to reach the hospital within 4 minutes, the time it takes to promptly save an SAC victim. Therefore, to reduce death from sudden cardiac arrest, the general public should be trained in life-saving techniques to allow them to provide immediate first aid. Ideally, AED equipment should be installed at points readily accessible to all,” says Pol Maj Gen Dr Sopon Krisanarungsan, Chairman of the Resuscitation Foundation and Advisor to the Thai Resuscitation Council.

“I admire AP (Thailand) for playing a part in contributing to the quality of life for people in Thailand with its initiative of installing AED equipment in its projects. It makes people aware of the unseen threat that is close to them. If everyone has basic life support knowledge, and knows where to ask for help, deaths can be dramatically reduced. The specialized agency, namely the National Institute for Emergency Medicine (EMIT) can be reached via the number 1669 and help reduce losses,” adds Pol Maj Gen Dr Sopon.

For more information on the campaign, go to www.SmallestSpaceToSaveLives.com.

The “Central The 1 Credit Card x4” campaign was launched recently by Atis Ruchirawat, managing director of General Card Services.

“Many credit card companies have special promotions that make it more beneficial for consumers to use credit cards rather than cash. In addition to special promotions, there are also discounts and point redemptions that allow users to redeem prizes or get cash back. More importantly, they can pay in installments,” Atis says.

“Central The 1 Credit Card offers up to 10-per-cent discount and up to 4 x The 1 Card points when spending at businesses under the Central Group umbrella. Card members should know about these benefits so that they do not miss out on the privileges they deserve. To make the best use of your credit card, you must have financial discipline and know your limit. Do not spend too much or end up in debt. Credit card is merely a tool that facilitates your spending.”

Young celebrities including Thitawat and Thanchanok Watcharothai, sisters Ploypayap and Pimpayap Srikarnchana, and Changnoi and Vista Kunjara Na Ayudhya were at the launch and talked about their personal experiences.

Business couple Thitawat and Thanchanok travel a lot, both around Thailand and overseas. “We don’t carry a lot of cash with us – it’s more convenient to use a credit card because it’s safe and we can earn points with our spending. We usually exchange our points for mileage towards plane tickets. Using a credit card also helps us keep track of our spending because we can see our statement every month,” they explained.

Sisters Ploypayap and Pimpayap also prefer not to carry about a lot of cash. “Making payments using a credit card is convenient and we can earn points. Some shops also offer special discounts for credit card buys.”

Changnoi and Vista add that they are always out and about on weekends as they have to take daughters Era and Aiyarin to extracurricular classes. “We also eat out a lot.  Sometimes we learn about new restaurants from the credit card’s newsletter. Some restaurants offer special discounts when using the credit card. Sometimes we also buy toys and clothes for the kids, so we spend quite a lot on weekends. Having a credit card really suits our lifestyle.”

To find out more about Central The 1 Credit Card, visit www.centralthe1card.com

The brainchild of renowned Swiss designer Yves Behar, this innovation promises to be the beginning of future TVs. Embracing the concept of “Art when it’s off, TV when it’s on”, it not only looks like a photo frame but when switched off, acts like one too by providing the perfect surround for any picture its user chooses to use. Whether a painting by a world-class artist or a photo from a personal collection, the Frame will reflect the TV owner’s character.

Turning a personal space into a gallery, this innovative and artistic TV has already won the Best of Innovations Award from CES 2017.

“Our surveys show that consumers now spend just 4 hours a day watching TV. This means TV is nothing but a black screen for about 20 hours. Consumers usually look for an appealing TV design in the hope that their set will blend well into their home. If possible, they also hope that their TV will serve as a functional part of their living space even when it is off. In response to consumers who have become more refined in their taste and living, Samsung has combined technology with design to deliver the latest lifestyle TV,” said Wanna Swuddigul, vice president chief marketing officer of Thai Samsung Electronics Co.

To showcase the beauty of this TV, Samsung recently held “The Frame Gallery” at Siam Paragon where guests were invited to browse and admire pictures by world-class artists. Among them were artist Somnuek “Kru Parn” Klangnok, Veekrit Palarit, a well-known interior designer and the owner of furniture brand Hay, and actors Puri and Alicia Hirunprueck.

The journey begins with a 30-minute orange cream body scrub designed to rejuvenate the skin, leaving it feeling soft, supple and refreshed. The fresh zesty scent of orange evokes happy moments and brings pleasant thoughts to mind. It creates a calm feeling and works as a mood lifter while the orange cream scrub works wonders on tired dry skin and leaves an amazing fragrance.

Next up is a 90-minute aroma massage using essential clove and orange oils to ease stress, revive tired muscles and awaken the senses to leave you feeling re-energised.

Clove oil was used extensively in ancient Indian and Chinese civilisations because of its soothing antibacterial qualities. Its use spread to other parts of the word with applications for treating a variety of health disorders including asthma, headaches and stress. Clove and orange oils are rich in vitamins A and C and minerals such as potassium, sodium and calcium.

The treatment is priced at Bt4,200-plus and will be available from October 1 to December 31.

Book your treatment at (02) 687 9000 or email spa@okurabangkok.com.