Dear All
After a gap of two years, I made it a point to attend Maha Shiva Rathri Celebrations of Isha last sunday.
Perhaps every one at chennai could have spotted the wall hoardings and information about this; Isha is organizing this celebrations year after year in a grand manner
(reportedly the largest gathering of public for the celebrations - in the entire country).
With their typical professionalism and dedicated band of volunteer group - and above all, the presence of Sadhguru (who ensures that he is @ India to participate / lead this event irrespective of his busy schedule these days) has made the celebrations attain a very huge proportion with every passing year.
It used to be a Coimbatore-centric celebration when it got started during early 90's (in fact within the premises of the Center itself) ;
It has now grown to an extend that even the local centers across the country (perhaps even at US - I am not sure) have started joining the celebrations from their area itself with huge screens for live broadcasts on the celebration (to facilitate those hard core meditators / devotees who are not able to reach Coimbatore due to some or other reasons).
When this techie thing started off 5 - 6 years back, it was an uphill task for Isha but these days with many popular channels making live coverage of the event, it is much easier to just blow up the TV channels as they are broadcasting.
(Well, just to add their meticulous-ness, they ensure to cut off from the TV channels during "commercial breaks" and make use of the limited time for their announcements and some other related telecasts only to join back when the TV channel gets back to the venue).
Ever since I have done the basic program in 96, I had ensured to stay awake on this day at some local temple here in chennai which got a little more comfort after Isha's live telecast. (Well, I had been once to Isha itself (in 2009) when I was fortunate to be positioned @ job in coimbatore)
This year - It was an extra ordinary deep experience for me during the group meditations - perhaps the current body fitness has helped a bit in ensuring my energy level. Thank God....for having the sanity to reach there this year at least.....!!
I was admiring every little minor improvement that was made in the way the celebration takes place. One cannot help but admire the purity and dedication with which every single segment of Isha does their part to make event grander and grander....
I was particularly melting to see Sadhguru walking up in the specially constructed ramp (prepared exactly towards the center right from the Dias till the end of the make shift hall - with public organized to sit in both sides of the ramp) to reach out the large volume of public as if he wants to give them his presence and gratitude for having come all the way.......
(the background chorus song played during this time "visweswaraaya....." is one of my favourites - which he started off with his majestic voice before he started his ramp walk).
What made me even more sobbing during this particular point of time is the enormous care He was taking to ensure people don't go overboard to catch his attention. He was humbly folding his hands and graciously walking......meeting people's eyes as much as he can (in both sides, I mean)......gently warning people who were trying to reach out towards him.....and above all showing the body language of how much of a simple and humble being - HE IS.......!!
It was a huge demonstration of leadership with a fullest possible understanding of what AND how much it means to take the ownership of gathering general public.
At Isha, there is always an undercurrent notoriety of few of the Isha meditators behaving in weird manner out of their own compulsions; it is perfectly fine in an inhouse program where most of the regular guys like me are used to all the museum acts - but it is quite a fact that this aspect scares away the first timers to isha - who really get puzzled about the whole thing.
In an event of such a grand scale, this type of confusions and resistances of new comers is also a reality to be factored...but then ....... this superman - with his heightened grace and deeper understanding allows even those aspects with his full awareness. The way he walked thru' the public in the ramp - at least it appears to me - could have helped to minimize the confusions of the novices and people who were shell shocked at few things that they were not really used to......!!
Thank you Isha....and I am just being grateful to be the part of the day after 16 years of doing the basic class. I wish I don't miss one more such celebration till I exist in this vast AGANDAM
In my long innings with Isha, I had patches of some unforgettable volunteering but to balance it, I had taken complete absenteeism for long periods from Isha for no good reason. The mere fact that I am still clinging to Isha doing the practices learnt there is some thing I feel grateful and gives me some purpose about life and this mundane living........!!
Well, title to be justified now......
Why do I call such a grand event and a great spiritual night a mundane matter ?
How do I take this liberty.......? hmm......??
I am just trying to verbalize the feelings that I had on monday early morning as I was walking back to home from the Celebration grounds.....!!
Doing this celebration meticulously year after year for close to two decades, I will not be surprised if this has become a routine matter for Sadhguru (perhaps "mundane" is not the right adjective to be used...).
At the level at which he operates these days with lot of special programs and finding his feet in many important global meetings, perhaps the participation in this program could perhaps much of a self imposition (with due regards to the importance he attaches to the significance of this event)
He does this only because....because....it matters too much for little ordinary, hapless souls of this grand old country which is pretending to get modern in wrong ways ape-ing the western culture.
To make another mundane and ordinary night - for you and me - into an unforgettable spiritual one - matters a lot......Isn't it ??
Love // Suren
After a gap of two years, I made it a point to attend Maha Shiva Rathri Celebrations of Isha last sunday.
Perhaps every one at chennai could have spotted the wall hoardings and information about this; Isha is organizing this celebrations year after year in a grand manner
(reportedly the largest gathering of public for the celebrations - in the entire country).
With their typical professionalism and dedicated band of volunteer group - and above all, the presence of Sadhguru (who ensures that he is @ India to participate / lead this event irrespective of his busy schedule these days) has made the celebrations attain a very huge proportion with every passing year.
It used to be a Coimbatore-centric celebration when it got started during early 90's (in fact within the premises of the Center itself) ;
It has now grown to an extend that even the local centers across the country (perhaps even at US - I am not sure) have started joining the celebrations from their area itself with huge screens for live broadcasts on the celebration (to facilitate those hard core meditators / devotees who are not able to reach Coimbatore due to some or other reasons).
When this techie thing started off 5 - 6 years back, it was an uphill task for Isha but these days with many popular channels making live coverage of the event, it is much easier to just blow up the TV channels as they are broadcasting.
(Well, just to add their meticulous-ness, they ensure to cut off from the TV channels during "commercial breaks" and make use of the limited time for their announcements and some other related telecasts only to join back when the TV channel gets back to the venue).
Ever since I have done the basic program in 96, I had ensured to stay awake on this day at some local temple here in chennai which got a little more comfort after Isha's live telecast. (Well, I had been once to Isha itself (in 2009) when I was fortunate to be positioned @ job in coimbatore)
This year - It was an extra ordinary deep experience for me during the group meditations - perhaps the current body fitness has helped a bit in ensuring my energy level. Thank God....for having the sanity to reach there this year at least.....!!
I was admiring every little minor improvement that was made in the way the celebration takes place. One cannot help but admire the purity and dedication with which every single segment of Isha does their part to make event grander and grander....
I was particularly melting to see Sadhguru walking up in the specially constructed ramp (prepared exactly towards the center right from the Dias till the end of the make shift hall - with public organized to sit in both sides of the ramp) to reach out the large volume of public as if he wants to give them his presence and gratitude for having come all the way.......
(the background chorus song played during this time "visweswaraaya....." is one of my favourites - which he started off with his majestic voice before he started his ramp walk).
What made me even more sobbing during this particular point of time is the enormous care He was taking to ensure people don't go overboard to catch his attention. He was humbly folding his hands and graciously walking......meeting people's eyes as much as he can (in both sides, I mean)......gently warning people who were trying to reach out towards him.....and above all showing the body language of how much of a simple and humble being - HE IS.......!!
It was a huge demonstration of leadership with a fullest possible understanding of what AND how much it means to take the ownership of gathering general public.
At Isha, there is always an undercurrent notoriety of few of the Isha meditators behaving in weird manner out of their own compulsions; it is perfectly fine in an inhouse program where most of the regular guys like me are used to all the museum acts - but it is quite a fact that this aspect scares away the first timers to isha - who really get puzzled about the whole thing.
In an event of such a grand scale, this type of confusions and resistances of new comers is also a reality to be factored...but then ....... this superman - with his heightened grace and deeper understanding allows even those aspects with his full awareness. The way he walked thru' the public in the ramp - at least it appears to me - could have helped to minimize the confusions of the novices and people who were shell shocked at few things that they were not really used to......!!
Thank you Isha....and I am just being grateful to be the part of the day after 16 years of doing the basic class. I wish I don't miss one more such celebration till I exist in this vast AGANDAM
In my long innings with Isha, I had patches of some unforgettable volunteering but to balance it, I had taken complete absenteeism for long periods from Isha for no good reason. The mere fact that I am still clinging to Isha doing the practices learnt there is some thing I feel grateful and gives me some purpose about life and this mundane living........!!
Well, title to be justified now......
Why do I call such a grand event and a great spiritual night a mundane matter ?
How do I take this liberty.......? hmm......??
I am just trying to verbalize the feelings that I had on monday early morning as I was walking back to home from the Celebration grounds.....!!
Doing this celebration meticulously year after year for close to two decades, I will not be surprised if this has become a routine matter for Sadhguru (perhaps "mundane" is not the right adjective to be used...).
At the level at which he operates these days with lot of special programs and finding his feet in many important global meetings, perhaps the participation in this program could perhaps much of a self imposition (with due regards to the importance he attaches to the significance of this event)
He does this only because....because....it matters too much for little ordinary, hapless souls of this grand old country which is pretending to get modern in wrong ways ape-ing the western culture.
To make another mundane and ordinary night - for you and me - into an unforgettable spiritual one - matters a lot......Isn't it ??
Love // Suren
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