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A Weekend in Divine Friendship

Name: A Weekend in Divine Friendship
Start: 2024-05-17
End: 2024-05-19
Location: Expanding Light Retreat

May 17 - 19, 2024

Retreat Highlights

Daily Yoga Sessions
Daily Meditation Sessions
Organic Vegetarian Meals
Visit Ananda Village Temples
Ananda Village Tour
Visit the Crystal Hermitage Gardens

About this Retreat

Your Guides

Nayaswami

Details of this retreat

Energize Your Life with Friendship & Inspiration. Experience the unique energy of Ananda, blending spirit and friendship in joyful ways.
Welcome friends, old and new! This special retreat will be interactive with Ananda Village members, giving guests and community residents alike an opportunity to spend time with each other.

Tour the behind-the-scenes life of spiritual community. Meet longtime residents, hear stories of how they came to live here and what it's like to live in a spiritual community. Learn about divine friendship and how to open your heart with dynamic energy and magnetism.

Friendship and joy are the hallmarks of Ananda. Experience it in action during this weekend in honor of spiritual friendship.
When perfect friendship exists either between two hearts or within a group of hearts in a Spiritual Organization, such friendship perfects each individual.
—Paramhansa Yogananda

Enjoy a very rich weekend in community and spiritual satsang.
You’ll Experience:

An enriching class on divine friendship with Ananda Spiritual Directors Nayaswami Jyotish and Nayaswami Devi and a panel of Ananda members
An experiential tour around 'downtown' Ananda Village, meeting long-time members, hearing stories of how they came to live here and what it's like to live in a spiritual community.
Time to meditate in one or more of the sacred shrines around the Village
A special evening concert in honor of Swami Kriyananda
A gift to you of the book "In Divine Friendship, Letters of Counsel and Reflection" by Swami Kriyananda
Sunday Service in the Temple of Light
And of course, a lovely stay at The Expanding Light Retreat

We look forward to spending this special weekend with you!

Schedule

Morning
6:30 – 8:00 am Community Meditation (Join us for all or part of this silent meditation)
6:30 – 8:15 am Sadhana (spiritual practices) which consists of: Energization Exercises (20 – 25 min), Ananda Yoga Postures * (45 – 50 min), Chanting (5 min), Meditation (15 min – 30 min)
8:15 – 9:00 am Breakfast (in silence Monday-Saturday)
9:00 – 9:30 am Host check-in
10:00 – 11:30 am Scheduled program, class, group activity, or free time
Afternoon
Noon – 12:30 pm Meditation (5 min chanting, 25 min meditation)
12:30 – 1:30 pm Lunch
2:00 – 4:00 pm Scheduled program, class, group activity, or free time
4:45 – 6:30 pm Sadhana (spiritual practices)
Evening
6:30 – 7:30 pm Dinner
7:30 – 9:00 pm Scheduled program, class, group activity, or free time

Note: Schedule is approximate and may change

Getting Here

Expanding Light Retreat

Directions

https://www.ananda.org/expanding-light/getting-here/

Accommodation

PRIVATE ENSUITE - King

Equally appropriate for a single person or for a couple, a king private room can provide the peace and solitude you crave. This airy room has a king-sized bed with a private, ensuite bathroom. An inviting outdoor space awaits you outside your front door, surrounded by a serene, forest setting.

PRIVATE ENSUITE - Twin

Equally appropriate for a single person or for a couple, an ensuite private room can provide the peace and solitude you crave. These charming rooms have two twin beds with a private, ensuite bathroom. An inviting outdoor space awaits you outside your front door, surrounded by a serene, forest setting.

PRIVATE STANDARD - Queen

Equally appropriate for a single person or for a couple, enjoy your own peaceful room with a queen bed and a shared bathroom down the hall. Your room is simply and tastefully decorated, with windows opening toward the surrounding forest. A bright and airy communal lounge and kitchenette is available 24 hours a day, perfect for relaxing with a book or sharing a cup of tea with friends.

PRIVATE STANDARD - Twin

Equally appropriate for a single person or for a couple, enjoy your own peaceful room with two twin beds and a shared bathroom down the hall. Each room is simply and tastefully decorated, with windows opening toward the surrounding forest. A bright and airy communal lounge and kitchenette is available 24 hours a day, perfect for relaxing with a book or sharing a cup of tea with friends.

PRIVATE CABIN - Twin

Equally appropriate for a single person or for a couple, your private cabin is tucked into a gentle hillside, bright and airy inside, with expansive windows that connect your room to the surrounding forest. Each cabin has two twin beds, with a communal shower house that is centrally located and shared by other cabin guests, campers, and our karma yogis.

SHARED ENSUITE - Twin

Share this charming room with someone else. Each room has two twin beds with a private, ensuite bathroom. An inviting outdoor space awaits you outside your front door, surrounded by a serene, forest setting.

SHARED STANDARD - Twin

Share this charming room with someone else. Each room has two twin beds and a shared bathroom down the hall, and is simply and tastefully decorated, with windows opening toward the surrounding forest. A bright and airy communal lounge and kitchenette is available 24 hours a day, perfect for relaxing with a book or sharing a cup of tea with friends.

SHARED CABIN - Twin

Share this charming cabin with someone else. The cabins are tucked into a gentle hillside, bright and airy inside, with expansive windows that connect your room to the surrounding forest. Each cabin has two twin beds, with a communal shower house that is centrally located and shared by other cabin guests, campers, and our karma yogis.

CAMPING

Fourteen campsites scatter across a gentle, forested hillside, with level areas for pitching your tent. A centrally located shower house is close by, shared by other campers, cabin guests, and our karma yogis. Please bring your own camping gear and towels. We do live amidst bears and other wildlife, so avoid storing any food or scented toiletries in your tent.