An ‘Inner Transformation’ retreat based on – Collective Deeper Body Sadhana. – Growing from personal to impersonal – Being a receptacle for Divine Manifestation
DATE: 3 day residential retreat program happened on 5th June to 8th June 2025 Thursday 1:00 pm to Sunday 11:00 am IST Venue: Arulville, near Chennai – Pondicherry, TN
FACILITATOR: ARUL DEV Author | Leader | Practitioner
WHO WAS IT FOR: Any individual interested in – Sadhana | Healing | Transformation | Evolution – The Self, Impersonal growth of Power & Harmony, Synchronicity in self & collectives.
The retreat is ideal for anyone who believes in deeper body work and aspires to be a conscious instrument for Divine’s Creative Manifestation
In many ways this retreat emerged as a new turning point in deeper body work. It also turned out to be a Integral Yoga retreat where the transformation of mind, thoughts, memories, emotion, sensation, sexuality and body was all touched and explored. The book ‘The Supreme’ – Conversations with the Mother recollected by Mono Sarkar was the reference book for this retreat. Subtle practices on deeper body got illumined by connecting to select quotes from this book. The yoga sessions in the morning by Shweta Rajurkar was inspiring. A young participant Bhagyashree inspired us by waking up early and doing her own daily practices from 4 am to 5 am on her own. Many more insights and experiences emerged as a turning point in this retreat, it is best to be silent on them for now and allow it to fully flower into our future retreats. The next retreat has been fixed for October 2nd to 5th 2025 at the same venue – Arulville, the Hermitage.
Sharing the participants photo:
Few casual photos from the retreat are shared below:
“Is there a center that corresponds to the subtle physical?…
Well, for the subtle physical it goes from the navel down to the last center,1 that whole region.
And what are the influences that come from the subtle physical?
Generally they are of a far higher quality than material influences. I have noticed (I don’t know whether it’s a personal or a general thing) that the subtle physical I see is always of a somewhat higher quality than the physical proper. I mean somewhat more harmonious: things are smoother. All that comes from the vital is more often than not aggressive, quarrelsome and so on—and difficult. But this realm is generally calm—calm, orderly, where things are more harmonious—GENERALLY (I can’t say whether it’s the case with everybody, but in my own case it’s like that).
As I told you, Sri Aurobindo lives there permanently, as though in a house of his own: you can see him, you can stay with him, he is busy. It is very much like the physical, but a physical that would be less grating, you understand, where things are more harmonious and satisfying, less excited. There is less of that feeling of haste and uncertainty. In that house where Sri Aurobindo lives, life unfolds very, very harmoniously: people come and go, there are meals even…. But all that obeys more general laws, and a sense of security and certainty not to be found in physical life. And the symbolism is more exact (I don’t know how to express it…), the symbolic transcription of things is less distorted, more exact……….
I think that as the Supramental descends, the subtle physical will have a greater and greater action on earth, because it is the world where the new creation will be formed before it “descends,” before it becomes absolutely visible and concrete.”
The muladhara, at the base of the spine.
Mother’s Agenda, Volume 4, January 18, 1963
Inner Practice
*Aspire with our inner flame that we would like to meet our Master be it The Mother, Sri Aurobindo or Vallalar or anyone else in current time in the subtle dimension of their subtle body.
*For this we can be anchored in our body and keep our awareness fully within The Divine Master. The less we are aware of our personal experience the better is the process. We are steady in our awareness which is touching their body, but we drop all sense of ourself including our desires. We see The Divine Master with our inner eye, feel them with our inner heart and remain THERE, OUT THERE wherever we feel Them until we feel Their subtle body or substance.
*You can focus on any one part of The Master or Mother’s divine body or Their whole body.
*Soon you will see or feel or have the fragrance or get the vibrational presence of Their subtle body.
*Soon you will feel Their Substance and Presence within our body here and there.
*The more we are present with Their Substance within us IT expands to unite with THEM.
I. 58. bâgo nâ jâ re nâ jâ “Do not go to the garden of flowers! O Friend! go not there; In your body is the garden of flowers. Take your seat on the thousand petals of the lotus, and there gaze on the Infinite Beauty.”
Written by Kabir and translated by Rabindranath Tagore
Page 317, ‘Songs of Kabir’ Chapter, The Complete Works of Rabindranath Tagore
Page 59 – 60, One Hundred Poems of Kabir, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore, Assisted by Evelyn Underhill
We deeply bow down to this quote and allow our practice to flow from here. Keep your attention on the top of your head till you feel sensations on top, the touch of air on your head, and a pressure felt from above acting on our head which could be soft or with force. Keep your awareness and breath stationed here and ‘sight see’ into the vastness and height of consciousness living above head. Wait till ranges of beautiful colours, images and Divine Presences open up. Wait for the sound of silence and peace to open up. Wait for all other infinite qualities present, whatever you find here on earth their sources live above and descends into us, into nature and into the world. May this practice be a companion for us each day. Slowly the thousand petals lotus will be in bloom for us in our own way by Grace.
We normally live inside our head, emotions, feelings or sensations. It would indeed be a yogic life in the practical world if we can learn to keep our awareness on top of our head turned to above and think, talk, write and act from there. We will be then open to a new consciousness and a new life.
Now stationed above connect to a thousand different tiny points / cells across our body. In the beginning this would appear difficult. Gently persist in your sadhana and keep your attention within all parts of your body simultaneously. This is a beautiful posture now. We are seated on top of our head open to above and we are also present within our body. Slowly relax all the points / cells and let them be receptive to soak in and receive and hold the Beautiful Qualities that keep opening up above our head and flowing into us.
We can also be stationed above and connect to all our chakras, one by one and then simultaneously, allowing them to flower in the Light and Beauty of the Consciousness above.
Foot Note:
Rabindranath Tagore, The Mother and Sri Aurobindo knew each other. Rabindranath Tagore met Sri Aurobindo in 1928. An interested reader can read about their meeting in:
“The vehicle and the forward movement are the sadhana, beyond the shadow of a doubt. I understood that the speed of sadhana was greater than the speed of the forces of destruction. And it ended in certain victory, there is not a shadow of doubt. This feeling of POWER once I was firmly grounded there [in the ‘square’], enough power to help others.” – Mother’s Agenda
For many of us who celebrate the peace, calmness and silence which is one aspect of sadhana or spirituality, here is a tiny quote to reflect deep into the speed and swiftness aspect. This quote comes from a larger experience of The Mother quoted in Mother’s Agenda. Those interested could read it fully in the July 12, 1960 section. Below we share a tiny portion of Her experience. Tune in to Her speed of sadhana and reflect in your own inner practices how you can bring this speed to counter the illness that is trying to come in, a ill thought that is trying to form, that frustration that is trying to build up or that giving up attitude that is going to come in the way of Divine’s Victory over you. Reflect deeply and practice speed of sadhana from your side. From the Divine’s side reflect how you can let go of all your bias that ‘this is how transformation will occur’. How can you be free from formations of mind, vital and even past experiences of your body? How can you allow the Divine to Grace you with love and swiftness when She has decided upon you?
Sharing a portion of The Mother’s experience below. Those interested can read the fuller description from Mother’s Agenda.
“What was pleasing, and really quite interesting, was this tremendous speed, like an arrow, and I always arrived in time, just in time, just in time. Once I had crossed over to the other side (I clearly felt that nothing would be left, for it was such a powerful deluge), the danger was finished, there was no longer ANY possibility at all of being touched – this was the main feeling. Everything was stopped. Nothing could touch.
I turned around and saw all this water rushing down, and I thought, ‘Now let’s see if we can do something here.’ There was someone behind who interested me, someone or something – it was still something; it was very likable and had something of the blue color that was here on the other side. Not really individuals, but more like beings representative of something that was following me quite closely. When I was there, it also was there, but it could not keep up, it kept losing ground – as my speed increased, its decreased. It could not keep up. But it interested me in a special way. ‘Oh, he’s so close (he or it); he might just make it,’ I thought. And at that moment, I saw that all this destructive will with its instrument of water, symbolically water, had rushed past and was spreading out everywhere. But there was still a chance of saving all those who were along this path. And that’s immediately what I thought of, it was my first wish: ‘Let’s see if they can still get across, if I can manage to get them across.’ I remembered some especially dangerous spots (while speeding past, I had remarked, ‘Oh, here we might still be able to do this, there that could still be done’ – my consciousness moved at the same speed, and I noted everything along the way), and once I was firmly there on the other side, I started sending back messages.” – Mother’s Agenda
