Friday, November 8, 2013

Health and Happiness Retreat at Hyderabad


This is the fourth program I have done for my extended family: friends who studied with me in the same college. The first was initiative by DSR Raju and organized by Veerabhadra Rao at IE building. The second was during the annual get together and was also triggered by DSR.DSR and Meduri Subba Rao organized the retreat at Auroville in Jan 2013.  I felt sad that DSR is not involved in the 4th event. I missed his as friend and missed him as the creator and catalyst of the string of programs with my extended family.
The event itself was, by far the best organized in the series. Meduri Subbarao was the initiator this time and Veerabhadra Rao and Chakram took over the mantle of organizing the event. They did an excellent job. The venue is simply superb- the beautiful resort of Tramati Baradari near Golconda at Hyderbad. The sprawling gardens and the Mogul architecture reminded me of Topkapi Place in Istanbul.  While the gardens are quite well maintained, the upkeep of the inner spaces and service are typical (apathetic) government style and if improved, this would be a much sought after resort.
The start of the event was more like a get together for me. Meeting Meduri Subbrao and Mrs Subbrao, Veerabhadra Rao, Chakram, BR Raju, ESR Prasad, Phani Babu, TIMS, UN Raju, Ramana Reddy, Mrs & Mr. T. Venkateswara Rao and all others was a very happy occasion by itself.

 The retreat itself went very well as the group stayed focused on the theme of Health and Happiness. I am especially grateful for the listening of the group as it is not easy to relate to a fellow student at college as facilitator of retreat. I am lucky to have this and the event happened in the generosity of their listening and kind attention. Given these, I was delighted and did my best to share what all I could in the available time. I am inspired by the thoughts of what is possible in the lives of my friends and their families if they fold the principles and practices into their life-style.
In terms of topics, I could do full justice to Health and Harmony. I wish I had more time to do justice to the topic of happiness. The availability of a projector has helped in using slides and videos to make the retreat more interesting.
I feel blessed to have the opportunity to share the time and space with my extended family. I feel very satisfied and fulfilled when they practice and share the benefits they derived. That day will be the day for true celebration.
I am also delighted that my friends expressed interest in a program at Nainital/Ramgar. This is exciting!
Last but not the least; we were lucky that the political turmoil did not interfere with our retreat.

2 comments:

  1. It was a soul-filling experience. The w/shop helped me to
    finetune my daily yoga practice and meditation.Thanks a
    million JV. Love,
    Phani

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    Replies
    1. Dear Pahni Babu, Thank you for your comment. I am grateful for your presence and participation and practice.

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