The ultimate reset! Our 7-Night/8-Day deep cleanse rejuvenates the body, mind, and soul.
“Be like a lotus,” says the global spiritual master Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, “Though the lotus is in the muddy pond, not a pinch of mud sticks to the lotus leaf or the flower. The lotus leaf is in the water, but if you put a drop of water on the leaf it stands like a gem, it doesn’t stick to the leaf. So be here in the world like the lotus. But do not get stuck on anything.”
For whatever reasons, many of us have come to equate spirituality with escape- escaping from the noise, commotion, stress, confusion, rigor or mundane demands of daily life. We are either consumed by this life we have built or on the other hand we are looking to run from it. We tend to think, somehow doing some practices away from civilization is going to bring us freedom from this heaviness of daily living. We hear people say they want to leave everything behind and disappear into the Himalayas. Sometimes it’s said in jest, sometimes with an aching seriousness. But this instinct, however natural it may feel, is often a sign that we’re trying to escape life, not awaken to it.
Putting this myth in its right context, Gurudev recently tweeted,
“Don’t think spirituality and material responsibilities are separate. Spirituality is not running away. It actually gives you more time, energy and sharpness of intellect to handle your responsibilities.” This right here is the essence of spirituality that is part of this thriving human life, part of the good and the bad, the tough and the soothing, the simple and the complex, the virtuous and evil. As Rainer Maria Rilke writes,
“Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final.”
Coming back to the metaphor of lotus, there is a lot that can be unraveled here. The lotus doesn’t complain about the muck it grows in. It doesn’t wait for perfect conditions to bloom. It rises above the mud, untouched, unstained, and utterly beautiful. But more than anything else, it shows us the possibility in nature and that life can be lived this way.
Awakening is about clarity. It is the slow and steady process of seeing things as they are, within and around us. It is not always comfortable. Sometimes, it means confronting our own restlessness, our disappointments, our shortcomings and anger. But this integrity is what allows real growth to happen.
Escaping, on the other hand, is about avoidance. It’s the mental and emotional flinching that happens when we can’t handle the heat of daily life. Whether it’s endlessly scrolling on our phones, binge-watching shows, drinking, staying constantly busy, or even obsessing over spiritual practices to the point of disconnection- these are all forms of subtle escape.
“Real freedom,” Gurudev says, “is not in running away. It is standing still in the middle of the storm, with a smile.”
There’s no denying the fact that life can get intense. It can feel like the walls of the world are quickly closing in on our little bodies and we don’t know how to push back. The speed of the world, the uncertainty of relationships, the noise of opinions, the weight of responsibilities can overwhelm the best of us. And this is no fault of ours. We have been taught math, grammar and sciences but we were never taught how to handle life’s curve balls, how to make life itself an art. The mind starts spinning stories: “If only I could go somewhere quiet,” “If only I didn’t have to deal with this,” “If only people were different.”
But the truth is, as Gurudev says, “even if you go to the forests, this mind goes with you.” Even if you physically remove yourself from the situation, your patterns follow. Unless the emotional challenges are addressed from within, outer changes will bring temporary relief at best.
Gurudev gives a simple example. “If your house is on fire, you don’t run to the neighbor’s house and feel safe. You must put out the fire in your own home.” Similarly, if stress, anxiety, or dissatisfaction are burning within, we must learn to address them within ourselves. Here spirituality offers powerful tools in the form of meditation, breathwork, asanas, chanting, singing, spending time in silence. These practices become your spiritual armor in the world that is trying to get to you. That one annoying coworker or that difficult life partner or constant challenge of trying to balance ambition and family life- spirituality offers you the means to be your 100% in all your roles.
Breathing techniques and daily meditation helps you relieve the system of the stress and emotional toxins that you gather through your days. They cleanse your body, mind and soul so that life and its responsibilities do not overwhelm you enough to want to run away.
Want to learn more? The Breathwork & Meditation Retreat guides you in proven breathing techniques and deep meditation practices that calm the mind, restore energy, and promote emotional balance.
Awakening does not come in one dramatic moment. You do not jump up in your chair and go running into the streets screaming- “Nirvana Nirvana.” Like the Zen saying goes, “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” It shows up quietly in moments of deep rest, in spontaneous acts of compassion, in the space between thoughts where peace becomes tangible. You cannot get it by wanting it or by self effort. It comes by grace. You can simply prepare your body and mind to receive it when it finally arrives.
It can look like a mind that doesn’t overreact to every provocation or a heart that can forgive more easily or a smile that isn’t dependent on external conditions, or as unconditional love and belongingness with everyone. There is no guidebook to what awakening looks like. But one becomes very natural and starts living in the joy of pure bliss of knowing their real nature which is they are one with the Higher Self. Ancient scriptures equate this bliss to the pleasure from sex had a thousand times.
Gurudev says, “Spirituality is the blossoming of a human being. Just like a bud blossoms into a flower, you also blossom into joy, confidence, compassion and peace.”
This blossoming doesn’t happen by avoiding the mud. It happens by staying rooted, by embracing the life you’re already in, and choosing to grow within it.
Real spiritual growth is deeply grounding. It doesn’t make you float away from life but it makes you more available to it. You become more centered, more clear, more capable of handling challenges with grace. People around you start to feel at ease in your presence.
You start becoming like the sky-vast, open, undisturbed by the passing clouds. Thoughts may come, emotions may rise, circumstances may shift, but your inner space remains steady.
This kind of steadiness comes through sadhana or regular practice. Whether it is meditation, breathing techniques, seva, or simply becoming more aware of your reactions, these practices gently train the nervous system to respond instead of react. Over time, you build a muscle of inner resilience.
Here’s where things get tricky. Sometimes, escaping masquerades as spirituality. Someone might say, “I just want peace,” but what they really want is to not feel discomfort. Someone else may get lost in rituals, mantras, or books, not to grow, but to avoid facing their own mind.
Gurudev often laughs gently at this common confusion. “People think they’ll be peaceful by cutting off from the world. But peace doesn’t come by running away. Peace comes from connecting to the Self, to others, to nature.”
The real test of spiritual growth is very much in participating in the world. How do you deal with people who irritate you? Can you keep your center when things don’t go your way? Can you act without craving recognition? Can you serve without expectation?
Being spiritual means being sincere and not necessarily serious. In fact, the truly spiritual people have a quality of lightness in their presence. It means showing up to life fully, taking responsibility, giving your best, and letting go.
It’s easy to be calm on a mountaintop. Try being calm in traffic. Try being compassionate in an argument. That’s where the real practice begins, that’s where the spiritual wisdom you immerse yourself in, applies itself to.