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An Oasis of Love in the Middle of a “Hot” Summer
Published: 25 September 2023 | Written by Sofia Foteina
AHYMSIN Family Yoga Summer Camp, hosted at the Scouts’ Camp, Marathon, Nea Makri, Greece from 3-10 August 2023
A meeting of 21 countries
One story made of 98 stories of peoples’ lives.
All ages, from 11 months old to 79 years old.
How could all match peacefully? How could there be no provocative disagreement? (You know what I mean: “my idea is better than yours, the others are wrong, I am right”.) Or, if there was any, how could it be a disagreement as an aspect added, by which all of us would feel loved and accepted and happy to live in it.
Well, this is exactly what happened, without trying, without thinking.
There was a blessing that covered the whole Scout Camp, like the loving shawl of the Guru. As if we were swimming in that blessing. As if we were breathing that blessing. As if we had become that blessing, to the point that we did not understand this change. It took us more than a month to put into words what we experienced and take a distance from it in order to be able now to describe it in an understandable way and express gratitude.
The Scout Camp is a place where children meet with their scouts and discuss and put in practice humanistic values, one important prerequisite for a peaceful atmosphere to start with.
The presence of Swami Ritavan Bharati ji brought many to participate and enjoy his humble and loving presence, his calm and helping way, his simplicity and joyful solutions to all events.
The organizers’ team, Timi Varga, Csilla Horvath, Tamara Soru, Uta Bisseswar, Maria Miguel, Athina Papadopoulou, Sofia Foteina, meeting every month, to bring into the material world a dream we had since 2019. We all surpassed ourselves, giving the best of what we were. And certainly, we were lucky and happy that Pandit Priyadarshan (Pierre Lefebvre) and Mina Bhatt came to our meetings with their wonderful ideas whenever their program around the world allowed.
The daily program contained: morning and evening classes of yoga in groups for adults and children, karma yoga (I have never seen a happier group of children offering their services to clean the garden from the pine needles), arts and crafts for children (of all ages): painting their family, clay creations, making lotuses, playing non-competitive games, sweet making, the finger painted tree, socker games, by Tamas, swimming time with sea and seaside games, tree planting by Tamara and Jef, mandala with flowers and collected items from the camp. The day ended with family evening meetings with chanting, singing, non-competitive games (the most impressive game was when playing the non-competitive musical chairs, that we all ended up in Swamiji’s lap). Our bookstore was available with books of the Himalayan Tradition. On the Sight Seeing Outing Day, we visited the ruins of Thorikon, the most ancient Greek Theater, then went for swimming to the Punta Zeza seaside. The possibility of finding the under-water ruins of an ancient city made some of us search but instead had a big surprise: a meeting with a big sea turtle. We finally ended to the Cape Sounion Temple of Poseidon, where we meditated during the sunset.
Teachers from our Tradition who were present in this Family Summer Camp and ready to humbly cover teachings or whatever service was needed: Sonia Van Nispen, John Sellinger, Shaillendra Bisseswar, Laura Linzi, Anna Mezosi, Louise Molenkamp, Lea Sellinger, Maria De Vigilli.
Last we left the unlabeled teachers, the children who were part of this celebration of life, who are our great teachers and for whom this whole family retreat was dedicated to. May we leave for them a world that will be a little more human than what we received.