twenty-three -- CHYKtastic

On Sunday, I returned from about a week in the Chicago area. No, it wasn't some trip with my friends, full of shopping and art museums, but rather a Chinmaya Yuvakendra (CHYK) retreat at Chinmaya Mission, Badri Campus. It's for 18-30 year olds. Six days of meditation, yoga, and spiritual discourses with Bramachari Prabodhji Chaintanya of San Jose and Acharya Vivekji of Niagara Falls. I realize that the titles sound super confusing when you look at them and evoke a very powerful image, but their power lies in their understanding of the Vedas (the main Hindu religious texts) and their ability to take that knowledge and break it down to us.

Prabodhji, Swami Sharananandaji, Vivekji

I don't remember if I've written this in a blog post or in my journal, but the balance and centeredness I saw in Bali reignited my desire to explore spirituality, to explore Hinduism. Returning home, I went to the graduation at our temple, and really enjoyed listening to Vivekji speak (thereafter, I attended his next few discourses). See, Vivekji is a pretty young guy and knows how to make things relateable 100%. It was he who mentioned the CHYK camp, and the rest, I guess, is history. Prabodhji, our other guru, was equally amazing. He has a formidable voice, adorable quirks, and a very easy smile. I learned so much from our twice-a-day classes and out-of-class discussions with them. Swami Sharananandaji, Badri's resident acharya, however, was the best example of selflessness, humor, and devotion.

Moreover, the knowledge given to me came not just from the acharyas (teachers), but also from my peers. About 40 to 50 recent high school graduates, college students, and grad students. Everyone for the most part wanted to be there and wanted to share that knowledge. It was awesome, learning both in and out of lectures and having a good time. We shared music, danced, chilled...everything.

It was a good reminder of what I've learned and of the things I need to continue remembering.

1. Happiness/Spirit/God/Essence IS everything.
2. Knowledge removes ignorance.
3. The qualities of a spiritual student.

Those were a few main points, out of the many we learned... Our discussion group even did a proof on joy as human nature. Maybe I'll post that up here sometime... Anyway, I thought I'd give an update, you know? Now I'm trying to keep up my mediation, the little yoga I know, walking, and reading books... Yeah. :) Even looking into the Dharmasevak two-week course in Cali, which is more intenstive Vedanta study.