Ramakrishna-Sarada Vedanta Society of Phoenix is pleased to organize this 3-day retreat that will be conducted by Swami Sarvapriyanandaji.
Swami Sarvapriyanandaji has been the Minister and spiritual leader of the Vedanta Society of New York since January 2017. He joined the Ramakrishna Math in 1994 and received sannyasa in 2004. He served as an acharya (teacher) of the monastic probationers’ training center at Belur Math, India. He also served in various capacities in different educational institutes of the Ramakrishna Mission in India and as the Assistant Minister of the Vedanta Society of Southern California.
During 2019-2020 he was a Nagral Fellow at the Harvard Divinity School.
Swami Sarvapriyanandaji is a well-known speaker on Vedanta and his talks are extremely popular globally via the internet. He has been a speaker on various prestigious forums such as TEDx, SAND, Google Talk etc. He has also been invited to speak at several universities across the world, including Harvard University. The swami has engaged in dialogue with many eminent thinkers such as Deepak Chopra, Rupert Spira, Rick Archer, David Chalmers and Sam Harris.
ABOUT THE RETREAT TOPIC/TEXT
Advaita Makaranda, one of the most beautiful texts on Vedanta sastra, is a work of Sri Lakshmidhara Kavi. Makaranda means "the honey found in flowers". This short treatise of just 28 verses/mantras are like flowers and those chanting them wisely are able to understand, experience and enjoy their true meaning - that is, to reach and gather the nectar.
The Advaita Makaranda is an overlooked diamond in the treasure-chest of Advaita Vedanta scriptures. Small but pure and finely cut, the text establishes through reason and logic the identity of individual self with the universal self. Swami Tejomayanandaji of the Chinmaya Mission brought this jewel to the notice of the English-reading public over thirty years ago through a translation and commentary on the work, which is still in print and much recommended. In this Fall Retreat, we will study this small but beautiful Prakara?a-Grantha of Advaita Vedanta along with translation and commentary by Swami Atmarupananda, currently Spiritual Director of the Centre Védantique Ramakrishna in Gretz, France.
Sri Laksmidhara Kavi lived in the late seventeenth century and was born in Jagannath Puri Ksetra in Orissa. He was a poet in the court of King Baj Bahadur of Kurumachal Pradesh. Besides Advaita Makaranda, he authored two other texts: Amrta Tarangini which is his short notes on Srimad Bhagavata and Bhagavannama Kaumudi, in which he has revealed the greatness and sanctity of Lord's name and how nama can lead us to liberation.
RETREAT DAILY PROGRAM
THURSDAY September 14th Evening
4:00 to 6:30 PM: Registration
6:30 to 7:30 PM: Dinner
7:30 to 8:30 PM: Welcome and Introduction to the Retreat
FRIDAY September 15th - MORNING
6:30 to 7:00 AM: Guided Meditation
7:00 to 8:00 AM: Yoga
8:00 to 9:00 AM: Breakfast
10:00 to 11:00 AM: Advaita Makaranda – 1
11:15 to 12:30 PM: Advaita Makaranda – 2
FRIDAY September 15th - AFTERNOON
12:30 to 1:30 PM: Lunch
3:00 to 4:30 PM: Chat-Chaat-Chai
5:00 to 6:00 PM: Advaita Makaranda – 3
6:30 to 7:30 PM: Dinner
7:30 to 8:30 PM: Satsangh with Swamiji
SATURDAY September 16th - MORNING
6:30 to 7:00 AM: Guided Meditation
7:00 to 8:00 AM: Yoga
8:00 to 9:00 AM: Breakfast
10:00 to 11:00 AM: Advaita Makaranda – 4
11:15 to 12:30 PM: Advaita Makaranda – 5
SATURDAY September 16th - AFTERNOON
12:30 to 1:30 PM: Lunch
3:00 to 4:30 PM: Chat-Chaat-Chai
5:00 to 6:00 PM: Advaita Makaranda – 6
6:30 to 7:30 PM: Dinner
7:30 to 8:30 PM: Satsangh with Swamiji
SUNDAY September 17th - MORNING
6:30 to 7:00 AM: Guided Meditation
7:00 to 8:00 AM: Yoga
8:00 to 9:00 AM: Breakfast
10:00 to 11:00 AM: Advaita Makaranda - 7
11:00 to 12:00 Noon: Q&A with Swami Sarvapriyananda
12:00 to 12:30 PM: Valediction
12:30 to 2:00 PM: Lunch
Retreat concludes after lunch on Sunday September 17th 2023.
RETREAT VENUE
This 3-day retreat will be held in the Franciscan Renewal Center – about 13 miles north-east of the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The Center is located at 5802 East Lincoln Drive, Scottsdale, AZ 85253.
Call the Center at (480) 948-7460 if you need directions.
PARTICIPATION LIMIT
Retreat attendance is limited to the first 90 registered participants – 80 Resident and 10 Commuter participants.
Participation in this weekend retreat is by pre-paid registration only for both Resident and Commuter participants.
REGISTRATION FOR 2023 FALL VEDANTA RETREAT
Registration for our 2023 Fall Vedanta Retreat will open Thursday, June 15th at 5 AM MST and will be open until 6 PM on August 31st. Registration window could close earlier if participation limit is reached before August 31st. Please note that the Registration Fee should be paid in full at the time of registration.
Registrations are accepted in the order in which they are received. If you are registering for you and a friend or friends we need your email address AND names of those registered to hold those spaces. The names of all registrants may please be sent to
[email protected]. As well, if you have any questions, please write to this same email address.
Your seat at the retreat will be confirmed once your registration fee is paid and acknowledged by Vedanta Center of Phoenix in an acknowledgement email to you.
REGISTRATION OPTIONS AND FEE
Participants can register either as a Resident or Commuter participant.
REGISTRATION FEE (RESIDENT & COMMUTER PARTICIPANTS) –
$500 per person
ROOM & BOARD FOR RESIDENT PARTICIPANTS - $300 PER PERSON
FOR COMMUTER PARTICIPANTS - $180 PER PERSON BOARD
RESIDENT PARTICIPANTS
The Franciscan Renewal Center has excellent lodging and dining arrangements for Resident Participants.
Vedanta Center of Phoenix has blocked off all the available 44 rooms (36 double and 8 single) for participants who wish to stay overnight. Resident participants will be staying in well-appointed rooms on a double occupancy basis and as such the lodging facilities can accommodate up to 80 Resident Participants. Room assignment will be done by the Vedanta Center of Phoenix on a first-registered first-served basis. Please do not call the Franciscan Renewal Center for room reservation for this retreat.
A Resident Participant who wishes to share a room with a preferred roommate is advised to register for both participants and specify on the registration form the name of that roommate. Alternatively, if a Resident Participant knows a fellow participant who has or will register as a Resident Participant, and wishes to share a room with that participant but wishes to register individually, then please state the name of the fellow participant prior to check out – there will be an opportunity to do so at registration check out.
COMMUTER PARTICIPANTS
Local participants commuting daily from their place of residence and some out-of-town participants who may wish to stay with a friend or at another hotel/motel close by may register as Commuter Participants. Please note that the Commuter Participants are responsible for their own transportation arrangements.
Please note that the Fra