The basic views on which ideas of the enlightened retreat are based

About the universe:  We live in a purposeful and designed universe, which is controlled and organized by a cosmic power in such a profound manner that no human intellect would ever be able to conceive it. Everything in the universe, starting from the tinniest to the largest structures are entangled together as an inseparable whole. Every existence has a meaning in bringing forth the cosmic symphony where every note sustains and enhances the existence of the other so that what emerges in the small carries the beauty and order of the whole.

About consciousness and evolution of mind: In this meaningful universe the life evolves and transcends from a primitive stage to a higher level when mind may be capable of revealing greater dimensions of existence. It emphasizes that there exist higher and lower paths. Along the lower path man may regress towards the animal instincts, while by following the higher path mind may reveal the greater mystery of the creation of the cosmos through our existence. The higher path is the path of the cosmic mind - an unfoldment towards greater and greater awareness of truth about the oneness of all existing in the universe. Every human being possesses the capacity to develop the mind by projecting different spheres of consciousness.  How one projects the consciousness,  which may involve the consciousness of the primitive life to the consciousness of the cosmic mind, which sees the unity of all existent beings, creates the experience of reality of one`s life. By projecting the higher consciousness one evolves from primitive life to “higher-man”.

About meaning of life: The meaning of life is to seek transcendental path i.e. to evolve from a lower state of the mind to a higher path and help to create conditions of freedom for oneself and others in harmony with the symphonic melody of the universe. Life receives its meaning in realizing the relations one bears with all life and nature, which follows the movement of time in a timeless universe. Meaning of life is to return again and again to its source (home in the cosmic being i.e. God) and reappear again and again as symphony of life to reveal the beauty and order of the cosmic mind. This meaning takes it expression of love and compassion for all beings.  

About values: The way the cosmos is organized and designed gives us the perspective about what is right and wrong, and what should be the universal moral basis of actions when we interact with the fellow human beings and nature. The questions of right and wrong represent forces of the will which bring order or chaos, suffering or joy, freedom or bondage. The forces, which liberate and free life from bondages and servitude of nature, or systems representing the primitive power of the mind, can be called the right paths. Actions, which recognize the noble relations that exist among all in an entangled universe, and abide by the principle of harmony existing in the cosmos, and draw life to the transcendental path, can be considered as the right way of living.

About God and religion: Do not share beliefs of any particular religion, or practice of any ritual from any culture. The evolution of religion and spirituality is expressions of social institutions, which attempt to provide answers to the fundamental questions of existence. It is a way for the people, facing myriads of challenges of survival, to seek psychological security. The religious faiths, which create conflicts and wars with other faiths, and divide human beings according to religion and culture, are considered undesirable in an enlightened world. While accepting the premises of science, which have formed the foundation of modern culture, and recognizing the success of science in explaining things, which were once attributed to divine agents, the openness of to the dimensions of existence which may not have any scientific explanation is encouraged.  In spite of the overwhelming progress made by science in closing the gaps in understanding psychological phenomena once perceived as the realm of spirituality, the mental phenomena related to God as something outside the realm of science is accepted as truth. God exists above knowledge and cannot be confirmed and explained with intellectual arguments. God is inseparable from the universe and all beings existing in it. However, God is not bound to the law-bound nature and the will, which emerges in the world using law-bound matter as vehicle of its manifestation. God cannot be understood and known unless God reveals its mystery to man.

About science and religion: One is encouraged to confront the deepest questions of existence without prejudice to science or spirituality. It is based on the conviction that human existence cannot be reduced only to phenomena, which can be tested, proved and disproved by using scientific methods. It includes much more than these. Our existence extends to extra dimensions where mind may have a different reality outside the realm of matter. Although mind may emerge in association with matter it is not synonymous with matter. The matter describes our physical state on which the will and mind take their abode. Mind appears from a source of consciousness which impregnates all beings. The state of evolution of the body decides the way the mind emerges in the world by using body as its vehicle. In dissolution of the body the consciousness, which took worldly form as will, does not disappear. It remains as existence which cannot be explained by law-bound states of things. With increasing knowledge of science, and the liberation of human beings from material needs, and growing security of life against survival, larger groups of human beings would receive opportunities for deeper exploration of this self. This will bring the realms of science and spirituality closer together.

About spirituality: It is basically a confrontation with the “self”, which seems to exist as a part of a higher-self, to whom all others belong. It is a journey in search of the knowledge of the “self” and a process through which one may become acquainted with many unknown territories of consciousness and mind. By this process one can realize the paucity of human knowledge and limitations of the world, which one may have built, based on logical arguments and relations comprehended through the use of scientific language and reason. The spirituality is a way to experience oneness with the cosmos and the cosmic consciousness, which penetrates all existence. It is a way for the mind to seek freedom from the constraints of the material laws, and thus experience freedom from bondage of the world received through perceptions. Spirituality implies contradictions because it inspires to secure freedom while asking the will-bound man to make sacrifice for others and thus accept bondage, in turn, for the sake of humanity. This is a way to experience love, which inspires man to make sacrifices in order to secure freedom of the fellow human beings.

Spiritual experiences lead to the realization of oneness of all and give an insight into how the cosmic being may manifest in human life. This manifestation takes form depending on the state of the evolution of the mind in which the ego may have taken its abode. Spirituality is a path of evolution of the mind. It is a way to free oneself from the darkness which tradition, culture, belief or interests for economic and political power may promote and enhance. The foundation of universal moral and ethics may lie in the knowledge of the cosmos and the presence of the cosmic being in human life. This is also a way to march towards a social-political evolution, which may support the evolution of mind towards higher consciousness. Spirituality is a path of ascendance of life from instinct-bound state of consciousness to a consciousness which can liberate mind to experience the infinite and the incomprehensible cosmic nature of the higher-self.