By Jagruti Ajvalia

50 Hours. 34 Seekers. 5 different time zones.

Vivekji does it again!

In these challenging times due to COVID-19, there are limited or no external supports available. What do these 34 seekers do? They went internal! Yes — these 34 seekers from different time zones who were either first timers at the silence retreat or had come several times before, with various levels of Vedantic studies and family situations, participated in this 50 hours of continuous silence.

Prior to start of the silence retreat, seekers were apprehensive. Some planned out the weekend. Some completely relied on faith that all will work out. During the silence retreat, there was no turning back.

Details of the program was simply exquisite. Rinse and Repeat. Contemplation->Reflection->Nutrition. Contemplation hours were guided by Vivekji himself. Reflection hours were to be out in the nature. Eating slowly in the Nutrition hour and not just any food. Fruits in the morning. Vegetables in the afternoon. Something light in the evening. Each Rinse and Repeat cycle built upon another.

Focus was on withdrawing — no other dependency to be leveraged. No pens or papers. No japa incantations — not even in contemplation hour. No incense. No diya. No music. No phones. No eye contacts. No digital alarm clocks. Just “Me, Myself and I”. (Only Zoom to connect w/ Vivekji and Q&A form for 2nd day.)

Seekers concluded the retreat with tears of joy. Some did not want to end the experience. Some had obtained answers to questions they were seeking for many years. Some received clarity on the path forward. They all said that they would do it again and were ever grateful for this opportunity to participate.