Blessed
Self,
This
is my account of the activities and experience during the " Just You
" workshop.
When
I was first told that a youth program was going to be conducted I didn't give
it a second thought. Too many programs take place in my house and the center
related activities are very frequent. When I came to Uthandi I did not expect
anything from the camp, I just came knowing that however the program was I was
going to have fun.
Once
we entered the ashram I was struck by the ancient look that it radiated. The
piles of leaves collected in mounds at the bases of the trees, the unkempt but
natural looking paths and the secluded feel that is resonated in most ashrams
was felt here too.
Soon
the mats were rolled out and we got into an asana session. Once again I was struck
by fact that even a few asanas done with awareness has the same effect
physically as doing asanas for a longer period of time at a fast pace . The
pranayama session showed all of us that our breathing capacity was extremely
low and that we had a long way to go. The gong struck and we ended the session
with the shanti path and went for breakfast to the dining area. After eating we
were allotted different seva activities. I was given the job of pulling down
all the spider's homes and giving them mukti from their mortal frames😉 .
Then we took a chair each and set up a classroom space under a clearing
of mango trees.
There
a lovely discussion ensued on the purpose of this human life. We painted a
picture of life where the puzzle pieces were all present but unrealized. How
life is a giant puzzle and how many people have spent their entire lifetime in
a futile manner , trying to figure out the whole picture in terms of time,
space, and matter . We were prompted and finally arrived at the fact that to see
our whole picture we had to start from ourselves. We are the key piece and the
only ones who can unfold our life. But if we are the key then our maintenance
and enhancement is important . Hence the five layers that is , the annamaya
kosha , pranamaya kosha , manomaya kosha , vigyanamaya kosha , and anandamaya
kosha have to be activated and maintained at their peak levels. For achieving
this, regular practice of asanas , pranayama and yoganidra is required. We
understood that within each of us are three shaktis , the iccha , gyana , and
kriya shaktis which will help us attain our ultimate goals in life. All of us
were inspired to learn more about these subjects and activate our full
potential.
After
this intense theory session we broke for lunch followed by a break and a long
yoga nidra . We woke up refreshed and ready to face another intense discussion ,
but to our surprise we were given an hour off to play. The game session was
amazing and everyone participated enthusiastically. Many of us found the play time
to be a wonderful reprieve . Later in the day we went to the ardhanareeshwar
temple , and on the occasion of pradosham we got the opportunity to chant the
Mahamrityunjaya Mantra a 108 times and sing many kirtans . I was lucky to get
the chance to sing along with my friend, Induja a song dedicated to the deity.
The day ended after dinner and a discussion on the 5 pranas in our body. We
also did a practice called trataka which improved our ability to concentrate
and heightened our sense of awareness. A book was given to each of us and we
were asked to make our SWAN, each letter corresponding to our strength,
weakness, aspiration, and need.
The
next day a similar routine was followed and the day quickly came to an end.
None of us wanted to leave so quickly. We had been given a lot of food for
thought , to work on ourselves, introspect, and understand the depths of our
nature. It was an inspiring program and I look forward to attending more such
camps in the near future. I would also like to help to spread the message among
more people. We have been informed and now it's our choice to pass on the
message so that more people can realise that there is a life beyond the kind
that we are leading right now. We can arise and awake to a more profound reason
to live a life as a human being. I thank the entire team for providing such a
wonderful opportunity to all of us and pray that this work continues to take
place through the years. Thank you!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteVery true. It was a life changing experience
ReplyDeleteVery true. It was a life changing experience
ReplyDeleteGreat account Anandhi.
ReplyDeleteGreat account Anandhi.
ReplyDelete