BK Retreat at Peace Village, New York with Sister Santosh

Each year, on the fourth Thursday of November, the United States celebrates Thanksgiving. The BK family are still giving thanks to Drama that Sr Santosh accepted our invitation as the special guest for Peace Village Thanksgiving Weekend Retreat.  Nov 23-27, 2017. Her faith, knowledge, bhavna, relationships with Baba and the family are inspiring. Hearing her experiences before and during her BK life drew us all very close. We felt like an angelic family all enjoying our fortune of being selected by Drama to ‘run this race’ back to perfection.

Newer instruments and senior teachers alike took so much benefit from her stories, inspirations and tips for self-progress. She started the program sharing about her history as a BK, her early efforts as she came into Baba’s family, and the progress of service in Russia. Sr Santosh then moved into specific tips for self- progress, relating everything back to the strength of our individual relationships with Baba. She inspired all with the examples from her own effort making life.

The program then turned towards service of others, and the accurate method for sustaining others. Once again, this all related back to our own self efforts to create a strong relationship with Baba. She focused on the subtleties of spiritual sustenance, reminded us about the need for a consistently powerful Amrit Vela to create a beautiful atmosphere in the center and attract souls to Baba’s home. It’s the power of our connection to Baba that helps bring others into connection as well. She reminded us that we are companions of God and as students are created through us, Baba’s children become our responsibility as well. Through teaching and sustenance Baba is giving us the sanskars of responsibility and loyalty. She focused on the Murli as the greatest form of sustenance from God directly, and that the best service we can do for others is connect them to murli.
Santosh bhen followed by sharing methods to sustain the center. She reminded us that everything in the center emerges from Baba’s room, and everything energetically emerges from Amrit Vela. The little details matter in making all feel welcome in Baba’s home. Baba’s centers should be like Shivalaya, and when we invite souls in they are being invited to experience a taste of heaven.
The retreat content was intertwined with Q & A sessions, experiential yoga bhattis, special Amrit Vela experiences, dancing, games and Tai Chi sessions. Because of this balance, participants were able to take a lot in a short time, with such a feeling of lightness. At the end of the retreat souls shared their beautiful insights from the retreat and enjoyed a beautiful live sharing from Sr. Mohini via skype. All souls left full and content!