By Aditya Mahadevan

It is said that the more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in combat. On Sept 28th, inspired by Vivekji from CM Niagara, 30 seekers from 10 cities across Canada and the US went into ‘combat’ with their minds by running the Akron Half Marathon.

As with any race, the hardest part was not the race itself, but the preparation that the runners had to go through day-after-day, for several months. Leading up to the race, the runners maintained their inspiration by sharing uplifting quotes and their training regimen with one another. Training for the race provided the runners the opportunity to improve their fitness and endurance, but more importantly, it helped them make running into a Sadhana to strengthen their minds.

Graciously hosted by local Chinmaya Mission families, the runners woke up at 4:30 am on race day to make their way to the start line, and by 7:30, they had assembled with thousands of other runners from all over the world. Being the first day of Navaratri, the runners began the race by invoking the grace of Devi and enjoying the cool, late-summer-drizzle that she offered. Despite having very little racing experience, all the runners were able to successfully complete the race after several hours of intense running, and this is a testament to what focused training of the body and mind can help one accomplish.

As the runners enjoyed the customary banana and slice of pizza offered at the finish line, they resolved to return with an even larger group of 40 seeker-runners to participate in the 2020 Akron Half-Marathon.