Anuradha Pajjur
The Divya Shakti Retreat was back in person in all its glory in 2022! It was hosted by CMWRC at Chinmayam, Silver Spring MD, during the weekend of October 7-9, 2022.
The Divya Shakti Retreat conducted by Vivekji and Vilasiniji is one of the largest gatherings of Devis aged 21 and up, coming together for engaging discourses, discussions, dialogue, and dynamic activities.
This was the 10th year of Divya Shakti Retreats; the first one was in 2013. This year, we had 56 Devis from all over the United States. The camp’s theme was “Finding Your Faith”.
Vivekji (Sri Vivek Gupta of Chinmaya Mission Niagara Falls Canada) taught the Chatushloki Bhagavatam this year. Vivekji brought alive many incidents of the Bhagavatam, at the same time sharing in-depth insights of Swami Tejomayananda, and giving us what Vivekji called “Summary Teachings” for each sloka, making it practical and easy to remember the teachings. We had the opportunity to engage in dialogue with Vivekji, where several burning questions from Devis were answered by Vivekji, providing clarity and direction.
Vilasiniji (Smt. Vilasini Balakrishnan of CMWRC) shared with us the beautiful history of Devi worship. Vilasiniji brought to us some incredible research on the archeological evidence available on Devi worship. We learned about various Devi stotras and suktas. Vilasiniji also went through the 24 qualities of Devi and emphasized on how just by remembering Devi, all difficulties can be shattered!
Apart from the wonderful teachings we were blessed to receive from Vivekji and Vilasiniji who conceptualized and started these retreats and have been conducting them for 10 years, we were immersed in several other activities that contributed to making the retreat wonderful and fulfilling.
Medhaji (Smt. Medha Bhagwat of CMWRC) imparted the knowledge from Sadhana Chatushtaya, and taught us about the shaTsampatti and how to ensure we practice the teachings in our daily life and the pitfalls to avoid. We learned about the importance of satsang, how to take things slowly and practice with conviction and perseverance. Medhaji inspired us to keep our faith and to practice the four Rs – Receive, Reflect, Retain and Recollect, to make progress on the path to ‘Moksha’.
We started the day on Saturday and Sunday with early morning yogasana, and beautiful guided contemplation with Vivekji. Guided contemplation with Vivekji is a totally peaceful experience, and following that with mauna during breakfast helped us carry the peace within us.
We practiced mindfulness with coloring, with guidance from Neelimaji (Neelima Polam of CMWRC). We spent the afternoon on Saturday coloring the beautiful artwork by Neelimaji that focused on keeping things simple, getting motivated, letting ourselves go, being and feeling limitless.
We had outside time with Vivekji, where we learned the importance of taking it slow and reducing the busy-ness of our lives. In addition, we had a wonderful walk in the Chinmayanandam trail in the Chinmayam facility, which provided us ample opportunity to reflect and also have a relaxing time with other Devis.
Since it was Navaratri time, Saturday night turned festive with Garba! We had a wonderful time dressing up and dancing. It felt apt to be expressing our prayers and gratitude to Devi through music and dance during a Devi retreat.
Last but definitely not the least, we had the wonderful opportunity to spend precious and humorous time and share a meal with Swamiji (Swami Dheerananda of CMWRC).
All in all, it was an enriching experience. The time spent with other Devis and with Vivekji and Vilasiniji was intimate and extremely meaningful. The feedback from the retreat attendees was tremendously positive. All attendees expressed their interest in returning not just next year, but making the Divya Shakti retreat a definite part of their calendars in the coming years.
