Moved By Love in December

Posted by Siddharth Sthalekar on Dec 16, 2013

42 friends from diverse backgrounds gathered at the ESI Campus in December 2013 to hold a space for a special kind of generosity. One that was rooted in unconditional openness and offering in the spirit of a 'Gift' towards one another.

It was no surprise then, that the collective could hold the diverse journeys of all the participants - from a 14 year old girl from the slums of Pune, to an ascetic from the Himalayas. 

The intention was set right from the opening circle - with moments that have transformed our lives. Kiran shared how true generosity was expressed through the giving and receiving that was effortless and dissolved all separation. Parth believed true miracles lay in offering our attention and listening to other's stories. Shubha expresed her amazement at how three seemingly unrelated strangers stepped in to make her participation at the retreat possible :)

As always, the transformation was visible through the small micro-moments of love - one participant shared how he found an inner strength to work questions that he's held for the last two years. Another was moved to have her feet touched for the first time in her life. The true impact of this gathering is tough to measure, but I'm sure we've all begun to trust in the capacity of ties rooted in 'Maitri'.

More stories and ripples coming soon, but in the meantime, here are some pictures from the gathering:


 

Posted by Siddharth Sthalekar on Dec 16, 2013 | permalink


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Previous Comments
  • Ashima wrote ...

    Thanks for sharing Siddhartha!! so happy to see so many familiar and (not yet) familiar faces! :)

    love always,
    ashima

  • Sonal Shah wrote ...

    “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.”
    ― Aristotle

    I discovered my heart during the retreat - Sonal

  • Drishti wrote ...

    Awesome :)
    Thanks for sharing :)

  • Agastya Kapoor wrote ...

    This re-treat was a perfect recipe for my head, heart and soul. There was so much love under one roof that I have never seen in my entire life. What this has done to me? It has compelled me to re-think and re-design the entire 34 years of my life. Not that, I was living in the dark or this had shown me the way but rather this has done something very big, it has given me the eyes to see.

    I have really been moved by love and almost found the purpose of my life i.e. Shunyata and I'd been looking for it here and there, when it was just inside me always . Thank you so much to make me realize my endless possibilities :)

  • Yogesh Pandey wrote ...

    A journey within

  • Shaalini wrote ...

    Lovely smiles there, thank you Sid and Meet for capturing this for us :)

  • sandeep Brahmbhatt wrote ...

    Being a 12th man in the cricket match, serving water to the batsman and actually going to the pitch to bat, both are total different scenarios. I understood by being part of this amazing soulful roller-coaster ride called retreat. Sharing an instant poem sprang as a reflection on the third day i left the moved by love family from Retreat.

    it moved my heart, it moved my soul,
    Retreat made me meet friends i never met before.

    Rain of love showered on me, flowers of kindness blossomed all around,
    Felt home away from home, Heart was delighted by this merry go round.

    soul was being Purified doing three steps and a bow,
    end up realizing why we all are one and how.

    it moved my heart, it moved my soul,
    Retreat made me meet friends i never met before.

    Deep gratitude. Peace. Joy. Happiness. Stories. :)