Retreat is ... Spiritual practices: female retreat, retreat of silence, retreat schedule

What does modern man think most often? At work, he makes a list of products that will need to be bought in the store for dinner. There are also discussions with colleagues of the latest novelties of the film distribution. On the way home, as a rule, people read books or scold traffic jams. And what about in the evening? After work, most of us watch TV, listen to the radio, discuss with relatives the conflicts that have arisen at work, etc. How to find the time to think about yourself and about your life? For this, there is a retreat. It is nothing but a process of solitude for the performance of inner work. During his conduct, a person moves away from the external world habitual to him. This allows you to work on yourself.

The origins of the retreat can be found in most of the world's religious teachings. In earlier times, this practice was part of sacred rituals. Today, the retreat enables a person to free his mind from unnecessary stress and restore physical strength.

Definition of concept

At all times there were people who were most interested in their own happiness and development. After all, many centuries ago, despite the absence of metro, Internet, television and numerous office centers, the human mind was still restless. To rise above the everyday bustle and think about something really worth our ancestors was just as hard as us. But humanity has found a way out. It was very simple and accessible. From the bustle for a while you just need to leave. So did, for example, the novices and monks of many existing religions. They hid from the world in a suitable place for this and engaged in themselves.

Today, such pastime is becoming more and more popular. And they call it a retreat. Translation of this word from English means "solitude, refuge, withdrawal from society, retreat".

Under the retreat is meant the deep spiritual practice of meditation, yoga, etc., accompanied by a full immersion. In doing so, certain conditions must be met to carry out this activity. For example, the correct place of the retreat is chosen. It must be solitary and be in close proximity to natural nature. Suitable for retreat and darkened rooms. Further within five to six hours, practitioners perform a variety of meditations and yoga. Retreat from this gives such a powerful effect that a person immediately begins to feel real results in his life.

Varieties of solitude

There are many retreat practitioners. Everything depends on belonging to a particular school. Such activities can be both individual and group. There is also a female retreat. Sometimes the practice of solitude is conducted in complete silence, and at times it involves live active communication.

It is also difficult to answer this question: "What does a retreat mean?" Sometimes this is almost a continuous meditation, only occasionally interrupted by food and sleep. There is also such a retreat, which is held in the atmosphere of the holiday. He, as a rule, is organized in the form of various master classes on mandalotherapy and drawing.

Different and pursued by such a solitary goal. So, some people, conducting a training retreat, are engaged only in the search for harmony with themselves and self-knowledge. Others take this time to master any knowledge or spiritual practices.

The retreats are also distinguished by the scale of the holding. So, for today there are spiritual practices for leaders. Successful administrations of companies quarterly arrange a one-day retreat, and annually - three-day. During spiritual practice, mutual trust is strengthened, the business strategy is clarified, which makes it possible to accelerate progress towards a common goal.

Some companies conduct a retreat for the staff. This practice will also help to strengthen the trust of employees to each other and will enable different units to determine the overall strategy of work, focusing on success.

At present, family retreats are not uncommon. After all, to slow down the pace of life, after a little silence and peace, everyone should. The best place for a family retreat will be a hiking trip or another activity that is conducted outdoors. Such pastime will allow all household members to go beyond the usual way of life for them.

There is also the so-called weekly Shabbat. When you perform this ritual, no one goes to the store, does not work, does not turn on the computer and does not watch TV.

The duration of the exercise also divides the retreat. This event can be held from several hours during the day, and may last for more than one year. In the first case, a person secluded from the world and is engaged in an important issue for him during periods free from work. In the latter, people usually leave home to places remote from civilization. Of course, there are other, intermediate options for retreat.

However, not every person can afford to quit his job and go to distant countries to retire from the world and immerse himself in practice. That is why there are a variety of one-day, as well as multi-day seminars. Their visit and enables the person to remain alone with himself. This is a wonderful time to think about your life, about what has already been done, and about what remains to be done. Such practices allow you to fall out of a bustling world, and when you return to it, feel yourself as another person.

Retrieval tasks

Another great Buddha recommended people to carefully study their lives. For this, we need a retreat. The value of this practice for man lies in his own research. After all, everyone should answer the question of who he really is, and what he means in this life.

The second goal of the retreat is to move away from one's opinion and one's own conditions for a return to the original nature. It is not for nothing that this spiritual practice encourages its supporters not to get attached to anything.

The third task of the retreat is: "Just do it!" Indeed, it has long been determined when to get up, meditate and communicate. A person just has to do it.

The last task pursued by retreat practice is to "wake up" and in the future to help this world. For this, solitude exists.

The developed system of rules

Whatever the training retreat, its holding always implies following a certain system. So, this spiritual practice has a schedule, in which the beginning and the end of the event are indicated. In addition, answering the question "what is a retreat?", It can be said that this is a certain responsibility of all its participants, which is expressed in an elusive combination of inner freedom and strict discipline. Only in this case a person is able to join the cyclical rhythm of life.

Retreat requires the implementation of another rule, which provides for the refusal of coffee, alcohol and meat. The body should not be distracted by digesting heavy food. That is why during the implementation of this spiritual practice, people must adhere to a vegetarian diet.

Retreat and knowledge

The life of modern man is inextricably linked with the Internet. It is this global resource that gave people unlimited access to knowledge. However, the more information we consume, the less its volume affects us. Unrealized knowledge does not work. It is inside of us a dead weight. There is a paradoxical situation. On the one hand, a person seems to know a lot, but can do nothing at the same time.

And here the retreat comes to our aid. What is this for a modern man? It's a program absolutely the opposite of the one we use to get knowledge. Spiritual practice does not affect the intellectual level of understanding. It is an action in its pure form, which uses a limited flow of information or completely excludes it. In other words, the retreat does not present people with any theory. He gives information limited to the scope of the practice.

During the retreat, you will not hear any philosophical reasoning. There will not be any generalizations. That's why for someone who does not know retreat - what it is, we can say that this is a practice that gives us the most important thing - a certain level of personal experience. This is able to launch changes in our lives. In addition, the retreat allows us to clear our mind of the rubbish that emerged as a result of the perception of various concepts and theories.

The essence of the retreat

Ancient spiritual practice allows a person to go beyond the ordinary life. This is the essence of the retreat. Only with a cardinal change of scenery and with detachment from everyday reality we are able to overcome the inertia of the habitual flow of life and escape from patterns of thinking and behavior.

In other words, the meaning of the retreat lies in the departure from everyday life for understanding and understanding oneself. This practice can be realized through focusing on meditation, yoga or other kind of activity. Retreat is a work that allows not only to clear the mind, improve the emotional state, but also to come to a deeper awareness of its destiny on earth.

The practice of silence

The modern world requires a person to constantly communicate - business and friendly, domestic and creative. We are striving for the most effective receipt and submission of information, and for most of us it is simply inconceivable to interrupt this flow.

However, there is a retreat of silence. This is an ancient spiritual practice that has existed since time immemorial. The greatest distribution was in Christianity, Buddhism and the religions of India. Previously, it was a vow of silence, leaving in the forest or in the mountains. This practice was mainly followed by monks. They fasted and prayed alone.

What was the purpose of this retreat? He created silence for the mind through the rejection of speech. Those who could implement this practice in India were called "muni". These were perfect yogis who reached a state of inner silence. It was believed that in conversations, especially unnecessary, a person spends a lot of energy, which it is desirable to use for self-development.

Silence in the Modern World

External refusal of conversations can benefit not only hermits and monks. The more we pronounce words, the more chaotic and unstable our mind becomes. In a whirlpool of thoughts a person can not really hear other people, nor the world around him, but, most importantly, himself. How to fix this situation? You just need to stop talking and start practicing retreat. This will save energy, control your emotions and come to a clear mind and internal control. This practice can help with hypertension, psychoneurological ailments, vegetovascular dystonia and headaches. But how can a modern person be immersed in silence? After all, a trip to distant lands for many of us is an unacceptable luxury? Of course, this is not easy, but it is quite possible to achieve this.

Silence in the big city

It is quite possible to carry out a retreat at home. For this, we must send the household to the dacha, to the cafe, to visit, etc. Only in this case silence will be guaranteed. This is the main condition of retreat.

The day of the spiritual practice of the walls of the house is better not to leave at all. Otherwise, there will necessarily be a need for communication. For example, you need to answer the passerby, how do you go somewhere, or say hello to a neighbor.

The next step is getting rid of telephone, television and radio. These devices can simply be turned off. It is also important not to forget about animals. After all, it's hard to keep from talking when a faithful dog or a gentle cat walks by. And when already physically there is no one to talk to, try not to say your thoughts aloud.

The most difficult thing in holding a retreat of silence is the lack of talk about yourself. A person must get rid of the chatter that does not stop in his head. What will happen next? After all these conditions are met, some detachment will come. All people, events and phenomena will begin to pass through the person without affecting him. There will be the ability to remain silent, but at the same time to really hear and listen to other people, beginning to understand the world and yourself.

Female Practice

The person involved in the retreat, without any doubt, seeks a happy and happy life. This is a long and interesting way to help change your destiny.

Unfortunately, modern society makes strict demands on women. Indeed, the current direction of the world aims to climb the career ladder and earn money. At the same time those women's values that are given by nature itself are superseded. Representatives of the weak half of humanity lose the ability to give warmth and love to their family. Most likely, because of this, some ladies began to lose touch with their female power, gradually moving to the rails of male life. This state of affairs destroys health. The woman remains without male attention and care, becoming lonely and unhappy.

How to fix this situation? This will help women's retreat. He will allow the ladies to be happy, lucky, to depart from the male line of behavior. After spiritual practice:

- a woman acquires self-confidence, harmony and joy of life come to her;

- there is an awareness of one's own attractiveness, beauty and uniqueness.

Preparation for solitude

Before the retreat, it is advisable for each person to understand the intended goals and put them in his diary. If the motivation for practicing spiritual practice will decrease, you can re-read your thoughts, which will give additional strength.

Preparation for retreat will be regular Hatha Yoga classes. You can do it yourself or start attending classes in a special room. During this period it is important to loosen and strengthen the body, especially the hip joints and back. This is a very important step. Such training will allow paying more attention to the technique of meditation, without being distracted by the uncomfortable sensations in the muscles.

When preparing for a retreat, the choice of clothes is also important. It should be free, soft and comfortable. In such clothes, the practitioner should feel comfortable enough, and his blood calmly circulate throughout the body.

It is also recommended to keep a diary. In the notebook or in the notebook should be recorded sensations that arise from the results of practices. It is impossible to remember those subtle experiences and effects that appear during the retreat. They get confused, forget, and then just leave consciousness. Avoid this only when you keep a diary.

Recommendations during the period of retreat

During privacy, you must turn off the phone and limit all external contacts. During this period, gadgets can only be used as a clock or an alarm clock. Only in this case will the practitioner be able to prevent unnecessary new information and concentrate on seclusion.

Observing the schedule of retreats, it is important to organize a moderate diet. This is due to the fact that by the beginning of the next meditation the body must completely cope with food. After breakfast and dinner, walking is recommended.

It is worth remembering that during the retreat, the body should not gain energy from meals, but through spiritual solitude. Lovers eat well should bear in mind that their stuffed belly will significantly reduce the effect of the event.

It is important not to fall asleep during the retreat. Such a state will not allow raising energy up the body, and the opposite effect will be obtained. In addition, one of the main goals of meditation is to maintain concentration on the selected object. This can not be done when you go to sleep.

After the retreat

At the end of practice it is important not to waste the accumulated energy in small things. To do this, you should limit yourself to pleasures and not to stuff your stomach with dense dinners. The energy received during practice should be spent for the good.