By Aishanee Acharyya
This was my second young adult retreat, and I had a really good time. From climbing trees and doing cartwheels in the park to doing karma yoga sweeping the chapel, it was a lot of fun. The topic of compassion felt really relevant and important. I will be trying my best to implement some of the main things I took away from the past few readings and lectures. Of course, there were the lessons relating to compassion, but I also learned other good habits during my stay. I wanted to gain discipline regarding sleep and prayer in my life, and this weekend I did manage to do that with strict bedtimes and 5:45 a.m. wake-ups. I also built my stamina for focused meditation, which is a habit I want to continue practicing at home.
As for compassion, I feel that I got a good grasp of not only what it means but also how I can change my understanding of the world to be a more compassionate person. Compassion comes from a sense of unity and oneness amongst all beings. The biggest obstacle to compassion and acquiring knowledge is having an ego. Even thinking that “I am trying to help or save the world” shows ego, because it implies that we feel we are mightier than God and are criticizing God’s creation of the world.
