We spent the day at a retreat center called La Perfetta, which is in Arzo, near the border with Italy.
Something like forty or fifty devotees from Switzerland and Italy gathered there for Ananda’s traditional 8-hour Christmas meditation. It happens every year at all Ananda communities, but since we knew we would miss the one at Ananda Village, we reached out to see if one was scheduled for here in Ticino.
Of course, the powerhouse leaders of the Ticino meditation group (Triveni, Amrita, and Monica) quickly organized and magnetized this wonderful event.
Today Ramesha and I enjoyed an inspiring Zoom satsang with devotees from Ananda UK.
There were about twenty people in attendance and I was struck — not for the first time — at how we felt fully at home with everyone as soon as we came on the call.
Old friend or complete stranger, it simply doesn’t matter. We’re all members of this growing spiritual family and it’s thrilling to see the circle getting bigger and bigger!
We took a short walk in the neighborhood and enjoyed this beautiful ocean view.
We had a truly lovely time staying in Palos Verdes with dear friends Padma and Arnab, and their delightful daughter, Ronjini.
The new (to us, anyway) center in Torrance is beautiful; our workshop was well-attended; and a great time was had by all!
We were greeted by a tile lion in front of the centerGround floor entryway and stairway up to the centerAn inviting seating area at the top of the stairsA beautiful cornerMain altar at Ananda South BaySide altarPost-workshop satsang in the kitchen
We usually have Rajarshi Day — our all-community workday — in early May, around the May 5th birthday of Rajarshi Janakananda (Yogananda’s most advanced disciple). But because Springtime at Ananda has become so big, and takes so much time and energy from the whole community, Rajarshi Day got shifted to June.
Although we had a beautiful, mild summer day for it, it was still quite a day for me.
My morning was spent outside of the Temple of Light, where I removed wire cages from around young trees (so that another team member could weed whack around the base of each tree); raked up the weeds; spread mulch; then replaced the wire cage.
My raking buddy, Brian, and I worked on approximately ten trees, all of them in the sun. I definitely expended more physical energy than I have in years — maybe decades. Fun, but exhausting.
Then, after meditation and lunch on the Market lawn with our entire spiritual family, I headed home to rest and shower before Ramesha and I got on a Zoom call with Ananda Australia. We were the guest speakers for their Sunday morning satsang.
As usual, all the tiredness went away as soon as we were connecting with the group and talking about Ananda Music.
Enjoying a delightful satsang with the Ananda Ticino meditation group.
Ramesha and I are truly grateful for the blessing of spending time with family and friends here in beautiful Lugano. At the same time, having lived in spiritual community for so many years, after a few weeks we find ourselves missing satsang with fellow devotees.
Last year there just happened to be an Ananda event that we were able to go to. This time we decided to be proactive and arranged to do a music workshop for the Ananda Ticino meditation group that meets regularly in Bellinzona.
What a joy it was!
First of all, we got to talk about music, consciousness, community, spiritual growth, etc. Then we got to simply enjoy singing with everyone. That was followed by time to answer questions and have some interesting discussion. And then we all went out for super delicious pizza.
The absolute best thing, however, was getting to know this new branch of our spiritual family. Even the ones we only met last night feel like longtime, dear friends already.
(P.S. I used the word “bliss” in the title because in Sanskrit the word “Ananda” means “joy” or “bliss!” So, “Swiss bliss” is my way of having fun describing an Ananda meditation group in Switzerland. 🥰)
A definition of satsang that I like is: “the act of gathering with like-minded, uplifting people, especially those on a spiritual path.”
So, today was most definitely a day filled with satsang — from start to finish.
First off was the monthly staff meeting of our Ananda Worldwide outreach ministries. Led by Jyotish and Devi, it’s always deeply inspiring to hear the reports from the various departments.
Next was our weekly music team meeting — always fun, but today was particularly interesting as we explored new directions for our YouTube presence.
There was time in the afternoon to actually get some of my own work done, but the evening was spent at the Ananda Meditation Retreat — sharing about Ananda Music with the current Living Discipleship group.
A satisfying day filled to the brim with one joyous satsang after another.
This morning we had a garden consultation, while sitting with our friends (landscaper and wife) on the patio enjoying coffee and treats.
I learned which plants need to go into the ground, which ones need fertilizing in the spring, how we could make our already beautiful view even better, and — yay! — I finally have the perfect location (and reason) to plant some jasmine.
This afternoon we took part in a lovely satsang at Chandi ashram house for the current crop of karma yogis.
Each person shared how they came onto the spiritual path, then we spent time chanting. It was quite the international group, as the karma yogis originally hail from Germany, Turkey, Russia, China, and India!
I came home in the early evening and — for the fourth day in a row — I practiced. It’s really quite remarkable, but I even downloaded a metronome app and used it as I did honest-to-goodness long tones.
The panel for this morning’s Kriyaban Retreat class was out-of-this-world inspiring!
At lunch we connected with devotees from near and far (the Village, Long Beach, and New York City).
The afternoon was spent in satsang with dear friends, Narayan and Dharmadevi.
So, no surprise that — for me at least — tonight has been about kicking back and catching my breath in order to be ready bright and early for Sunday service prep.
This being of light — our dear friend, Anandi — is now one with the light.
She left her body in the early hours of Sunday morning and though we will miss her, we are celebrating her soul flying free.
Many community members visited her home this afternoon, to spend time honoring the physical form that served her so well and also to offer her husband, Bharat, our loving support.
But as so often happens here at Ananda Village, we ended up being blessed as we gathered around, feeling Anandi’s deep peace and listening to Bharat’s stories about Anandi and their life together.
One last beautiful opportunity to enjoy satsang with our beloved friend.
