My favorite experiences of the Art Living Retreat Center include the scenery, which is breathtaking in every direction, the deep silence, and also the people. The people who run the facility here are really dedicated to service. They really want to provide a wonderful environment for everyone who comes to visit or join retreats.
What does the retreat center mean to you?
I am thankful for Art of Living Foundation, everything that goes on here… the courses, the celebrations, the opportunity to go deep in meditation… and it’s just a nice family feeling. It’s a community of people who want to grow and learn and serve. And when you’re here, even for a few days, you feel that community feeling–you feel a part of it, and it’s wonderfully uplifting.
And when you depart from here, you leave with a smile on your face and peace in your heart…. And you immediately start planning for when you want to come back again!
Magical Mountain Vistas
What is the scenery like? I’d like you to invite you to join me for breakfast in the dining hall, out on the patio. It’s autumn. You’re gazing out over a 180 degree view of mountains after mountains after mountains in a completely still environment. You can see for fifty to a hundred miles. You don’t see many signs of civilization, just the blue sky and maybe a few clouds passing through above the glowing fall foliage.
It’s just incredibly uplifting to look at. You’re up high, above a protected forest, and the mountains are just beautiful. Interestingly enough, you might think the mountain scenery would inspire your mind to go outward. But when I look at the mountains, I want to close my eyes and go deep inside.
The Possibility of Transformation
I’ve witnessed new people who come here to volunteer and be part of the community, they take some courses and start to discover themselves at a deeper level. They learn to meditate; they learn to do some breathing. They learn about yoga and it’s like watching flowers bloom in the spring and they just come out of their shells in a wonderful way.
And when I’ve taught Art of Living Foundation here, I’ve seen my own students experience something similar. They come, a lot of them tired from work or travel, and they rest. They go deep inside and then they just feel really renewed. And when I get a chance to meditate here, it just takes me to deeper places within. I’ve meditated all over North America, but have not experienced another contemplative environment like this…
The silence is so apparent. It’s just there. So you don’t have to work very hard to close your eyes and go deeper in meditation. The environment just supports it in many ways. It’s very restful, but at the same time, a very enlivening, creative and loving place.
Anything is Possible in this Environment
I had someone on a course recently who had been meditating for somewhere between 40 and 50 years and had really been through a lot in his life. He had one experience on a course where he said he felt lit up like a Christmas tree. it was as if he was seeing the whole world, meditation, and even himself in a brand new way. The possibilities for his whole life started to look different. So it’s a great place to come for newcomers and also a wonderful place for people that have been meditating or on a spiritual path for a while. Anything is possible in this environment!
A Place of Renewal
The retreat center Art of Living Reviews is very many things to very many people. It’s a source for spiritual knowledge and experience, a place where everyone can come and have that experience. It’s also a place of rest and respite for very many people who come and they just want to be renewed.
It supports a community of people who have shared values, and who want to come together to do spiritual practices or just to explore and grow. It’s a place where like-minded people can come, meet new friends, and share ideas and experience. And the community sort of flows out from that confluence.
I know many people who have met others here, and they reconnect again in different places in the country or when they go home. So the community just keeps expanding all over the country and really all over the world.
Coming Home
When I come here, I feel like I’ve come home.
I feel rested. I feel renewed. I feel transformed, but I also feel open to a whole new field of possibilities. Every time I come here, I see my life and my future in a different way. It’s like the lens of a camera that’s fully opened in wider focus when you come here. And you see more and more clearly, not only the world outside, but the possibilities for your own life as well.
