Dozens of people from the Seattle area traveled to Ananda Village in California last week for Spiritual Renewal Week, an annual event at Ananda Village.

This year’s event was attended by about 500 people from all over the world. There were inspirational talks every morning, classes in the afternoons, and special events in the evenings. Folks from Ananda Seattle also met with residents of Ananda Village who are building a permaculture food forest. We got lots of ideas for our residential community here in Lynnwood!

This was a blessed week. It helped us all remember why we’re here – on this planet and at Ananda. You can share in the blessings, yourself!  Videos of  all the morning talks from Spiritual Renewal Week, as well as photos and blogs, are available free at www.ananda.org.

You can also see more photos of local Ananda members at SRW on our Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/AnandaSeattle. Scroll down to the photo albums near the bottom of the page, left-hand side.

And you can read on for more blog posts from those who attended.

Enjoy!

Swami Kriyananda (center) with folks from Ananda of Seattle & Bothell at the Indian Banquet

D'Arcy (2nd from right, back row) singing in the choir at SRW. Swami Kriyananda is seated in the foreground.

I feel right at home at Ananda Village. At the orientation for Spiritual Renewal Week, Devi Novak (co-spiritual director with her husband, Jyotish) told about a little girl who described how she felt at home in one person’s home, but a guest in others. That’s what I felt: at home! Then Devi explained that the devotees who live there do not own Ananda Village but that they are caretakers and that we should all feel “at home” there. That was a great start to the week!

I loved learning of one man who had been coming to Spiritual Renewal Week at Ananda Village for 28 straight years, while another man had just heard about the Expanding Light Retreat center at Ananda and just came on a whim for the first time.

I enjoyed spending time with with my fellow disciples from Ananda Seattle. We would have breakfast in silence after a long morning group meditation—something that doesn’t happen for me in Seattle! It has put me back on the right track of getting up early enough to have a longer meditation to look forward to the group meditations during the week.

I love to sing in the choir but don’t always have the time at home in Seattle. David Eby, musical director at Ananda Village, is most amazing in being able to guide the choir into attunement with the highest. Singing for Swami Kriyananda is such a joy and blessing.

I finally personally met and was blessed by Swamiji. It was the night of the wonderful play, The Peace Treaty (written by Swami Kriyananda). I went right up to him and he welcomed me with open arms and sweet acceptance of the fact that I was just so awestruck that I did not have much to say. What joy to be in his presence so often last week. He spoke of the yugas [cycles of consciousness down through the ages] and deep topics such as the existence and influence of the satanic force and he gave advice on how to keep our energy up. His singing was amazing and touched me deeply. I was trying to imagine what it must have been like to have him “be the show” in the early years of Ananda, when he did all the talks and music! He was just so strong, vibrant and radiant. He even posed for photos with devotees from all the Ananda communities on the night of the Indian banquet. What memories we have with him.

My favorite talk was Jyotish Novak’s and his story of his first kriya initiation. It touched and brought tears to so many that Saturday morning. He described how he had brought flowers to the ceremony as part of his offering and had taken a lot of time selecting them because the occasion was to be one of the most moving and important commitments of his life. But someone else, having forgotten to bring his own flowers, took Jyotish’s and placed them on the altar as his own offering! Jyotish felt very sad that he wasn’t able to offer those flowers himself. But days later, Swamiji called him and asked him if those yellow flowers had been his offering, and commented with some amazement that they were still alive and still so beautiful. Jyotish was filled with deep feeling and could hardly relate the story.

Daiva’s story [Daiva Glazzard, from Ananda in Portland] was fun and allowed me to relate to my own thoughts of wanting to be like others in Ananda. Daiva explained that when he first came to Ananda Village he wanted to be just like this person, and then another person, and another……. until gradually he realized that what he sought was something we could all be. That is why we spend time with people within Ananda to keep our vibrations high and to aspire to be like our elder gurubhais that have been meditating for so many years and are devoted to God.

Swami Kriyananda emphasized the importance of the company we keep and the influence others and other places can have on us when we are in a receiving mode (for example, at a restaurant while eating) in public. For Paramhansa Yogananda often said that, “Environment is stronger than will.”

I always love hearing Dave Warner speak on kriya. I am guessing that the reason he is the director of kriya yoga at Ananda is because he is so good at relaying the message of kriya what Master and Lahiri Mahasaya wants us to know and do with kriya.

One last thing that I would like to say is that I was surrounded by such caring souls and felt so loved and nurtured when I had my ankle swollen for days, due to some spider bites. I am not used to having people looking after me like that! It was a lesson in receiving and how community comes together to help when needed. If I hadn’t been convinced of living in a community by then, I would be now! I made so many new friends and strengthened some old ones. I look forward to fostering all of these new relationships with these bright souls!