The Yuvak-Yuvati Regional Convention for the Asia Pacific Region was held in Creswick, Australia, from 11 to 13 January 2014. A total of 312 yuvaks and 246 yuvatis from Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Darwin, Canberra, Brisbane, Armidale and Adelaide in Australia, Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington in New Zealand, and Singapore attended the Convention held in the presence of Pujya Ishwarcharan Swami and sadhus.
Day 1: 11 January 2014
The entertaining evening session theme was titled ‘The Balancing Act of Life’ in which Amrutnandan Swami discussed the art of balancing family, career, work and satsang life. He mentioned the need to remove clutter from our life by deciding what we want to get out of life and surrounding ourselves with the right friends and mentors who will provide that necessary guidance and motivation.
Then Aksharvatsal Swami spoke about Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s exemplary bhakti towards Thakorji reflecting Bapa’s intense love for Maharaj.
Day 2: 12 January 2014
The theme for the morning session was nirdosh buddhi. First, Aksharvatsal Swami spoke on the need to have complete nirdosh buddhi, trust, faith and loyalty towards the ekantik guru so that we can become ekantik.
Next, in a question and answer session, Pujya Ishwarcharan Swami gave practical guidance on how to maintain nirdosh buddhi towards the ekantik guru.
In the afternoon a panel of experienced yuvaks discussed how to balance personal lives and satsang so as to excel in both. Then, Bhaktivardhan Swami expanded upon the discussion by emphasizing the importance of differentiating between right and wrong and how Pramukh Swami Maharaj helps us to achieve such discretion.
In the evening session, Snehmuni Swami gave a creative presentation using Lego designs to convey the simple, yet sophisticated, nature of ekantik dharma and the need to connect with Bapa to help us imbibe dharma, jnan, vairagya and bhakti.
Then, Pujya Ishwarcharan Swami and Aksharvatsal Swami narrated accounts of ekantik devotees who exemplify how faith and loyalty towards the Satpurush and Sanstha are essential in becoming ekantik.
Day 3: 13 January 2014
On the final morning the sadhus presented a special kirtan aradhana, singing stanzas of various daily bhakti rituals. Their meanings and significance were also narrated, and guidance was given on what devotional thoughts to keep during each ritual to make these routine rituals more enjoyable.
Then, Pujya Ishwarcharan Swami narrated incidents of how Yogiji Maharaj led by example and practiced the nine forms of bhakti wherever he went, and described how such bhakti strengthens our connection with Maharaj and Swami.
Concluding the shibir, Amrutnandan Swami summarized all the topics covered and how they related to the practice of ekantik dharma in daily life.
Before departing, the youth delegates resolved to strengthen their satsang endeavors and attain Swamishri’s blessings.