The Atlanta Regional Retreat took place from April 15 – 18, 2022, at Ananda Girisuta Master Unit, close to Asheville, North Carolina. This retreat was the first major in-person retreat since the beginning of the Pandemic in 2020. The retreat was a hybrid program, with most Margiis attending in-person and about ten Margiis attending the classes and spiritual programs online. The Margiis were happy to meet again after two years of mostly online-only programs. There was a great deal of emphasis on staying safe, and all the participants had to take a Covid19 antigen test before arriving or upon arrival to the retreat. Fortunately, nobody got sick so far, and the retreat went smoothly.
The retreat was organized by the Margiis in Marshall and Asheville and had about 25 participants, some staying at the domes and some commuting from their homes. We had Akhanda Kiirtana on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, four classes by Dada Diiptimanananda, Dada Rainjitananda, and Ac. Rudranii. We had a RAWA program on Saturday night and Katha Kiirtana on Sunday. The retreat attendees were mostly our senior Margiis and their children and a few new and younger Margiis.
The weather was good on Sunday, and we went out in the noon for collective service, helping at the Ananda Viithiká WWD-F Master Unit and weeding the kitchen garden at Ananda Girisuta. We were also planning to plant potatoes, and brother Dinakar ji prepared the field, but Monday morning was heavy rain, so that program was canceled.
