Two three-day residential shibirs for BAPS UK & Europe Sanyukta Mandal were held at Warwick Conference Park over two long weekends – from Friday 16 August to Sunday 18 August 2024 and Sunday 25 August to Tuesday 27 August 2024.
Titled ‘Maru Kartavya: The Legacy Continues’, the shibirs brought together over 1,700 delegates to develop their spiritual understanding and appreciation of His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj’s work, wisdom, and virtues. Senior swamis visiting from India, including Somprakashdas Swami, Narayancharandas Swami and Gnanvatsaldas Swami graced both weekends with their presence and inspiring talks.
The first day of each shibir began with heartwarming insights into Mahant Swami Maharaj’s daily life, focusing on his discipline and devotion. The engaging programme continued into the evening with a lively kirtan bhakti performance accompanied by an array of instruments and interspersed with prasangs highlighting Mahant Swami Maharaj’s innate purity.
Mahant Swami Maharaj’s manner of connecting with others through various interactions, each defined by his saintliness, love, and utmost humility, was portrayed through a montage of video clips, interviews, and speeches. Delegates also gained a deeper understanding of Mahant Swami Maharaj’s tireless work in driving satsang activities worldwide.
A special session was organised for mahilas with Akshar-Purushottam Maharaj, where they jubilantly expressed their personal and collective devotion through garba and kirtans.
Somprakashdas Swami and Narayancharandas Swami shared their treasured experiences of Pramukh Swami Maharaj during candid evening sessions. Their narrations highlighted an array of extraordinary qualities of Pramukh Swami Maharaj and the unconditional love that he showered upon everyone, while they also shared their experiences of that same love and compassion from Mahant Swami Maharaj today.
The final day brought together the key messages and themes through a series of videos and presentations that extolled Mahant Swami Maharaj’s true spiritual glory and revealed the significance of one’s spiritual association with him.
The audience was deeply moved and departed with a clearer understanding of their duty as devotees to forge an unwavering spiritual bond with God and Guru.