Volunteering at Ridgely
Ridgely has a small but dedicated group of karma yogis who work with our staff, helping with events as well as helping with the huge amount of maintenance this beautiful property requires. Volunteering is a wonderful way to meet and make some spiritually oriented friends. Our wonderful karma yogis help us when we have organized retreats, cleaning, setting up, cooking etc. They also help us with our biggest tasks-maintaining the 3 houses and property. More than anything we need people who are willing to assist us with these outside tasks.
Often our visitors see us working on the property and cannot imagine themselves painting or weeding, let alone cutting back bushes on the shrine trail. It’s not so hard! The Ridgely staff and close friends will always take the difficult jobs themselves. All it requires is the right clothing, bug spray, and a willingness to try something new.
(Please be advised-we already have enough people helping us with online tasks and such. We also do not generally need cooks unless we are preparing for a retreat or puja.)
We try to schedule group karma yoga on Saturday mornings. The weather gods like to play and often Saturdays are the days they choose to rain on us. If you wish to be a part of any Saturday work crew, please let us know and we will add you to the Karma Yoga mailing list. Then you will know if we have to cancel for any reason.
From Gitaprana
Ridgely is, first and foremost, a retreat center. It is a place where seekers can leave behind ordinary daily life and deepen their inner connection with the Divine. It is very quiet and peaceful here. We keep activities to a minimum so each person can arrange their own way of being on retreat. Some people who stay here prefer to remain totally silent while others like to make new spiritual friends by getting to know the staff and other local devotees. If you know us, you know we are pretty relaxed about the kind of discussions that take place. We’re not against what might be considered chatting because this is how people get to know one another. We are equally happy to spend a group meal talking about recipes or more traditionally spiritual subjects……
BUT……….
To maintain this atmosphere of peace, we do have one rule: no discussion about the politics of any country. I have asked our caretakers and friends to nicely stop any such discussion. I have been politely challenged many times about this policy. People say, “Gitaprana, this is our life right now! We want to be able to discuss these issues with other like-minded people! This is also part of spiritual life!”
I agree 100%. Understanding and acting upon moral/dharmic issues is indeed part of our spiritual life. We are not yogis in the Himalayas; we do have a responsibility to act in this world. It is very possible to discuss the moral issues facing us without bringing up specifics. Our Sunday Gita class is a good forum for this.( We are planning on streaming that class very soon. Details to be announced when we finally begin!)
I am also thinking about scheduling a zoom session for people who wish to discuss our svadharma/our responsibility in a world that is currently teetering on the brink. If you would be interested in attending such a zoom session, please let me know. If I get enough people who want to sign up, I will then try to find the best time and date.
Jai Ma,
Gitaprana
