Awakin London Retreat: June 17, 10AM-6PM
Location: Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (Southwest London)
"In a gentle way, you can shake the world," Gandhi once said. It’s hard to believe that, when we feel disconnected. Instead, we fight for a bigger hammer – more money, more fame, more power. Just a few weeks ago, in Economist magazine, the head of Gallup summarized the global status quo like this: "Negative emotions -- the aggregate of stress, sadness, anger, worry and physical pain -- reached a record high last year."
In a context of compounding catastrophes, and dystopian narratives in the media, how do we unleash our imagination and become co-creators of a different story? How do we respond to the personal, social and systemic gaps with a heart of compassion? Gandhi's recommendation was counter-intuitive: if an intervention doesn’t work, try a gentler one. If even that fails, go gentler still. Today’s culture tends to equate gentle with soft, but it’s hardly so. To be gentle is to be connected, and with that awareness, we can see more and do more.
When our individual flow aligns with the collective flow, what might emerge in the wholeness of our connection? Like a murmuration of starlings, what innovations might we unlock if we are able to come together with heart of service? If, as Einstein said, problems can't be solved at the level of consciousness that created them -- how do we step into a higher consciousness to effectively respond with compassion? What are the unexpected "black swan" events that we might not be seeing alone, that we can spot collectively? How, ultimately, might we go from building barriers to bridges?
In this gathering, we aim to open our minds and hearts to the transformative power of compassion and kindness -- with inspiring change-makers across various different sectors (education, business, nonprofit, government, community and media). We will engage with personal practices, hear from thoughtful speakers, interact with each other and collectively cite patterns of positive deviance that we are seeing around the globe -- and "heartstorm" how we might amplify the presence of that force in today's world.
- As a Community, how do we move from weak relationships of social networks to deep connection and noble friendships?
- As Educators, how can we educate head, hands and heart to ignite the soul-force in each child?
- As Businesses, how can we expand focus on profits towards multiple forms of wealth?
- And more ...
As a Community, how do we move from weak relationships of social networks to deep connections and noble friendships?
As a Community, how do we move from weak relationships of social networks to deep connections and noble friendships?
As Educators, how can we educate head, hands and heart to ignite the soul-force in each child?
As Educators, how can we educate head, hands and heart to ignite the soul-force in each child?
As Businesses, how can we expand focus on profits towards multiple forms of wealth?
As Businesses, how can we expand focus on profits towards multiple forms of wealth?
As Nonprofits, how can we serve the urgent needs but also nurture deeper and longer 7th-generation "living bridges" for transformation?
As Nonprofits, how can we serve the urgent needs with long-term "living bridges" for transformation?
As Leaders, how do we balance a command-and-control leadership with a gentle “laddership" of an emergent, many-to-many network?
As Leaders, how do we balance a command-and-control leadership with a gentle “laddership" of an emergent, many-to-many network?
As Media + Technologists, how do we shift from sensational and polarizing narratives? Can AI not crowd out our natural intelligence?
As Media + Technologists, how do we shift from sensational and polarizing narratives? Can AI not crowd out our natural intelligence?
Join us, for an energizing day with heart-centered leaders and "ladders" inspired to hold uncommon questions across different sectors. Hosted in a naturesque home of Trishna and Deep Shah in Southwest London, we invite you to co-create a sacred field of emergence!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- Inspiring participants. Lots of great hearts are coming together! Check out this recap by Zilong from a prior gathering.
- Uncommon questions. For quick-fix, binary, either-or answers, we already have Google and ChatGPT. :) Here, we aim to hold questions while leaning into its nuances first.
- Noble Friendships. Our hope is to nurture a rich matrix of friendships among unlikely friends.
- Volunteer Run. It's run entirely by volunteers, so there's no solicitation, pitches, agendas. Just practice of love.
Psstt, here's a bootleg video of Trishna speaking in 2008. :)
Retreat is on June 17th -- starts at 10AM sharp and ends around 6PM. Post that, we'll have an optional fireplace "stories from the heart" circle, over pizza. :)
Through our time together, we will sit in circles to learn from each other’s experiments and challenges; hear and engage with some innovative speakers across sectors; engage in many group practices that nurture our collective inner transformation. Plenty of opportunities to engage the head, hands and of course the heart. Plus a few surprises!
Over the last decade, ServiceSpace retreats have brought together thousands of people from a wide-ranging backgrounds. Perhaps what magnetized them was a simple organizing principle: We are not merely what we do, but who we become by what we do. If you resonate with the notion that inner change and outer change are intrixicably intertwined, and if you are moved to cultivate deep connections with kindred spirits, this retreat will likely speak to you! Beyond that, we'd recommend leaning in your heart's intuition -- more often than not, "heart knows today what the mind will know tomorrow." :)
To co-create our sacred field of emergence, do join us! To facilitate deeper connections, we limit the group size of our gatherings -- and give priority to project initiators and community builders. If you have any questions, please contact us anytime.
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