Six week Religon camp

Arsha Vidya Gurukulam

Along with my wife Geetha, I am attending a six week residential course at the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam, located in the Pocono Mountains. (Arshavidya.org) Even though this six week format has been offered for at least a decade and my wife has attended a few of the camps in the past, only this year I have the confidence that even if I am not physically present at work, everything will be OK. My partners instill a sense of confidence in me that everything will be fine at work. The good thing is I am very much in touch with my office thro phone and internet. (This is my ego talking) The course started on October 12th, 2011 and ends on November 20th, 2011.

The course is intense. The day starts at 5.45 a.m. with Abhishekam to Lord Dakshinamurthi. At 7.00 a.m. we have guided meditation with Swami Tattvavidananda Saraswati (TV) for half an hour. From 8.15 to 9.15 it is Yoga with a certified instructor. (Well, I miss the Yoga classes as I have to do my own Pooja in my room) Then at 10.00 am it is Samskritam (the proper way to say it) (Sanskrit) classes. I feel like a school kid again, back in Mahbub College Higher Secondary School, Secunderabad. At 11.20 a.m. it is Brahadaranyaka Upanishad with Swami TV. At 12.45pm it is lunch time, my favorite part of the camp. Kalpathi Ramachandran (KR) is the chef in charge of the kitchen. I hold him personally responsible if I put on any weight in this camp. At 3.45 pm., it is chanting time with Suddhatma, the General Manager of the Gurukulam. At 5.15 it is chapter eight of the Bhagavad-Gita,with Swami TV. After evening Arati at 6.30p.m. and Satsang at 8.00 p.m. with Swami TV, it is time to call it a day.

I go on to the gym for an hour’s work out on the stair master and I burn about 450- to 550 calories. I am trying my best to skip dinner but the food is too tempting. Too much love put in by KR in the food.

The other day I was sitting with KR and he was telling me all about his life. I was not only moved by his story but was amazed at his resilience. I don’t know how much he has listened to the talks by the various Swamiji’s but I noticed how he put all that is taught here in practice in his life. In fact, that is “Practical Vedanta”.
A few years ago, when I wanted to do some Pariharams and poojas in Kerala, I went to Palaghat and stayed at his home. The love and affection shown by his wife Revathi, his six children and Chitthappa is something I will always cherish. I was telling KR about my new passion for writing blogs. He said that he will sit with me and go through his life story and I should share it with all of you. He is now 49 years old. I will be doing that in the coming weeks and I have his explicit permission to share his story. Please wait. Be patient. I promise you it will be interesting.