What an AMAZING Retreat! Our annual Anusara® yoga and Meditation Retreat at Dai Bosatsu Zendo was so special. The group bonded so sweetly and deeply. We had several days of intense thunderstorms. The rain was so heavy it actually obscured the view of the lake and mountains. Then it blew out as quickly and elegantly as it had arrived. The mountain and our hearts felt purified afterwards. The air was fresh, the water in the lake was crystal clear and our minds and bodies were refreshed from many hours of meditation, Asana, pranayama and contemplation.
The retreat centered on building skills to distinguish and discriminate between the egoic small Self and the Higher Self.
Through the practices we refine our ability to connect to our purest essence.
The retreat becomes a pressure cooker that helps us move into a harmonious relationship free from the necessity of holding it all together. There is a tearing apart of how we look at ourselves.
I experienced an immediate meltdown as I was coming down the mountain. I was able to see this nutty dance of my small Self desperately holding on to the status quo while my higher self, watching the drama unfold, became completely aware of this dance.
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On retreat we made a Yagna or ceremonial fire and threw in what we wanted to leave on the mountain. My poor ego was desperate to hold on to a pattern of control. Within a couple of hours the storm past. I have truly put this one in the fire. My reactivity to situations where my ego is in danger of disappearing into my higher self was at stake. My need to control a situation or circumstance totally out of my hands gave way to a complete surrender to forces way beyond my control.
With great respect and love I give this one away. It will continue to come up but this retreat has been the place where thunderstorms and a ceremonial fire, my own clear intention (sankulpa) to find a new way that serves the greater good will emerge. So many of the participants shared that it was so for us all.
Many of us on the retreat shared that this feeling of merging with the universe, the boundless spaceless presence within happened over and over again during meditation. It was the retreat of surrender.
It was so precious to be in such great company and to feel such a deep shift in my own perception and inner experience.
Rudrani describes the shared energy of the circle formed in our programs as a lens that focuses our attention and burns away the veils that obscure our innate joy and love. It reveals our truest nature.
The faces after the retreat are filled with joy and bliss. What a blessing to work together with Rudrani on these amazing programs.
The next retreat is coming up Friday, November 24 Sunday, the 26th – Thanksgiving weekend at Kripalu.
Hope to see you there.
Much love and light,
Jackie
