Annual Appeal

Our annual appeal comes with the loving gratitude of Swami Sarvadevananda, Pravrajikas Gitaprana and Shuddhatmaprana, and the board of directors. We rely on your caring support to sustain the Vivekananda Retreat Ridgely – though affiliated spiritually with the Ramakrishha Math and Mission, Ridgely is not funded by it. In giving, you share Ridgely’s mission to spread Swami Vivekananda’s universal message of peace and spiritual fulfillment. We offer you a warm welcome to visit this historic retreat, thrice sanctified by Swami Vivekananda’s visits.

Soon after arriving for his ten-week stay in 1899, Swami Vivekananda astonished Miss MacLeod: “Swamiji is blessed,” she wrote to Mrs. Bull, “He is indeed a Prophet with a new message!” As his friends at Ridgely listened to his message of spiritual freedom and the strength of their innate divinity, they felt lifted into a sublime realm. Swamiji’s powerful message of self-worth, self-mastery, and spiritual strength, which echoes the highest truths of Vedanta, is the message carried forward today in the retreat’s programs and classes.

Swami Vivekananda’s presence enshrined Ridgely’s buildings and the grounds where he strolled daily and meditated under an oak tree. Visitors can still meditate beneath “Swamiji’s Oak,” but they never fail to sit in the Manor House shrine room, a cherished attraction since its inauguration in 1998. Designed in the traditional style of the Manor House, with large bay windows filling it with soft light, the shrine room’s serene beauty feels universal and appeals to all. The large photos of Sri Ramakrishna and Sri Sarada Devi dominate the altar on either side of an American photo of Swamiji in the center, slightly smaller and lower so that he is gazing directly toward seated viewers in a way that is powerfully engaging. Visitors are welcome to sit in the shrine during the day or join the morning and evening meditations.

The retreat is especially busy in season from April through November, but it remains open year-round, weather permitting. More than a thousand visitors and overnight guests were accommodated this year for tours, retreats, special events, classes, and meditations. Starting in the spring, monthly retreats were led by Swamis Sarvapriyananda, Sarvadevananda, Yogatmananda, and Ishtananda, with a shared retreat in November by Swamis Sarvadevananda, Tyagananda, and Atmajnananda titled Guidelines for Spiritual Life. Swami Sarvapriyananda also officiated at Ridgely’s annual July 4th celebration for the Vedanta Society of New York, and Swami Kripamayananda came with devotees from the Vedanta Society of Toronto for lunch and a tour. Pravrajikas Bhavaniprana and Divyanandaprana (visiting from Sri Sarada Math in India) joined Gitaprana and Shuddhatmaprana for a weekend retreat in August on the four yogas. Gitaprana also gave a solo retreat in May, Puja/Worship Practice, and celebrated both Durga Puja and Kali Puja in October. Ridgely’s events, including refreshments and meals, are offered free of charge, but donations are welcome. For large gatherings, we often request the helping hands of our wonderful community volunteers, and we deeply appreciate their dedicated service.

Ridgely’s historic 19th-century buildings need constant upkeep. Successful projects this year included professional painting of the Great Hall in the Manor House (after forty years), an upgrade to the Manor House kitchen, and renovation of both kitchens in the Men’s Retreat House. We also purchased a used truck to help maintain the grounds. None of these projects would have been possible without your support. Before winter sets in, the retreat urgently needs to hire a certified arborist and tree service to evaluate and prune the large trees near buildings and bordering pedestrian paths and a contractor to regrade Ridgely’s main road. We would be so grateful for your help in covering these essential expenses.