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The main goal of the Retreat is two-fold: One is to cultivate the awareness of unity of all minds and life in nature, and develop a foundation of a universal culture which may bring higher evolution to the society, and the other is to stimulate talented children and youth to explore newer areas of creativity.

The Retreat share no religious belief or faith, or bases its activities on any particular philosophical and scientific speculation, which may hinder the exploration of the creative abilities of the mind. It remains open to ideas, thoughts and experiences which may bring forth higher evolution of the mind. It takes distance from scientific dogmatism, or religious fundamentalism and seeks to build platform where scientific knowledge on one side and spiritual experiences on the other side may find opportunities to build dialogues and understandings. It is a place where one would learn how one may find one`s ways to explore the higher nature of the mind hidden in oneself, as well as receive guidance in becoming an actor in building a society based on knowledge, understanding and openness to the vast mystery of the cosmos which remains unknown. The activities are guided by universal vision and values and the following views:

 The human mind evolves with the evolution of the brain.

 The process of evolution can be stimulated by new knowledge, and methods of activating higher processes of the mind – mainly through creative acts and experiences of non-perceptive nature.

 This evolutionary process functions better in an environment where mind may receive stimulus from the surrounding which can trigger the creative process and inspire one to engage in activities related to the higher sphere of consciousness.

 This environment may include, besides the elements of nature, archetypes of symbols and myths pertaining to the universal consciousness, arts, music, poetry, philosophy etc. together with  opening an open arena where one may exchange ideas and experiences related to the enlightened mind.

 Precondition for such openness lies in the feeling of compassion for all existing beings as well as in an awareness about the unity of all life embodied in the cosmic arena.

 This openness reverberates as cosmic vibrations flowing through everything which one may experience as an emanation from the “Cosmic Mind” which encompasses all existing beings.

 The evolution of the higher mind would lead to the creation of a social-order which, in turn, would create conditions of progress needed for the evolution of the higher-mind in all.

 Such social-order sees all human beings as equal and seeks to provide opportunities of freedom and growth to all so that all human beings may  strive to reach a higher life on Earth.

 In this way the center aspires to act as a catalyst for the development of an enlightened society.

 BUILDING  AN “ENLIGHTENED RETREAT”

To build foundation of such an advanced society one requires a certain stage of progress in the society where

 Security of the basic needs including education and health care will exist.

 People may enjoy high exposure to basic knowledge of science and heightened awareness about the forces molding the society.

 There will exist free access to uncorrupted information about other cultures, religions, beliefs, ideologies etc.

 There will exist openness to ideas which may conflict with the ones which are the foundation of the existing social order.

 The society will support  spirituality that transcends ignorance, superstitions and rituals and will inspire human beings to attain a greater understanding of the mystery of existence and wonder of the cosmos.

 Will recognize the importance of the evolution of man towards higher consciousness by using brain`s innate power to rise to higher heights of the mind.

 The society will stimulate the development of the power of creativity and imagination with which one may create new conditions of reality emerging from the inner realm and thus will direct human beings to realize their potentials of evolving towards a higher being.

 Society takes distance from fixed ideas as the ultimate truth, and instead sees life as an unending journey towards new shores of experiences by making use of newer domains of knowledge.

 Society will acknowledge that there exists a meaning and a purpose of existence that should be explored by all by engaging in activities which seek to improve the well-being of others and thus will bring harmony and peace to all life.

 Society will realize the power of compassion and love as the greatest attribute of human nature and will help people to find meaning in fulfilling this higher nature of the self.

 People should be willing to choose the way which brings mankind a step further in the direction of higher evolution than pursuing paths which may drag them to instinctual gratification and in captivity in the dark realms of the ignorant minds.

 People, instead of straying along blind paths, should realize the value of the enlightened teachers who should guide the society to fulfill the vision of an enlightened world.

So, one of the main pillars in building such an enlightened society is the development of educational resources which may inject the necessary knowledge and awareness, and help to form the ground for openness and respect for all life from already in an early stage of education and social upbringing. The other pillar will lie in building civic organs comprising of people, who would teach and inform the population about the above ideas of the knowledge based informed society, and act as guides to help the seekers of such a society to find the required methods and means.

Therefore activities of the retreat will focus on four main direrctions: 1) The path of knowledge, 2) Path of creativity, 3) Path of contemplation, and 4) Path of compassion and love.

“CULTURAL RETREAT” FOR TALENTED CHILDREN AND YOUTH

The “Cultural Retreat” aims at inspiring talented children and youth to develop their creative potentials in different areas while studying, working and interacting with nature. The Retreat, among others, is meant to create a framework of universal understanding of different cultures of the world, and help children and youth in developing appreciation for symbolisms, which can be accommodated with the knowledge of science, as well as encourage them in finding interrelationships among different areas of creativity including music, mathematics, physical and biological science and harmony and beauty in nature. It wishes to build a bridge between the realm of science and the different arenas of arts. The main focus of the Culture Garden is to delve on the intimate connections which exists between life and the cosmos and the realm of the mind which springs from the cosmic consciousness which suffuses all existence. The activities are divided into two main parts: 1) Part one deals with knowledge of mind, body, physical and biological sciences and cosmos which are directly related to the natural environment. They are closely designed to fit into  the curiosities of the children to understand roles of life in relation to the world existing around them; 2) Part two includes mostly creative activities involving photography, arts (including traditional and digital arts), music, songs etc. , which are woven around the idea of harmony of life in the cosmos in relations to the physical and the biological spheres.

Part 1) MIND, BODY, SCIENCE AND COSMOS

Goals

•  To learn about man`s place in nature and relationship with the whole.
•  To deepen understanding about brain, mind and consciousness.
• To derive inspiration from greater knowledge of nature, and awareness of the sphere of existence not accessible to scientific knowledge, in pursuit of creative activities as artists, musicians, poets, dancers etc.
• To learn to use the universal language of the symbols and myths in the creative process and communication beyond cultural boundaries.

Through the activities of exploration of plants, flowers, and stones, for example, while opening deeper insight into the harmony existing in the macroscopic and microscopic world, the retreat desires to open the vision of the beauty and harmony in nature. The children will learn about the music (and mathematics behind it) which also plays central roles in the biological and physical world.

Part 2) ART, MUSIC AND SONGS

Goals

 To develop understanding of the music as explorations in rhythms, melodies and harmonies which can be non-acoustical and  help to appreciate the basis of music which can be found in the cosmos and the living world.

 To inspire experiments to integrate the visual art world with the world of musical sounds. To introduce ideas about how one may create visual representation of music and compose music in the visual way.

 Create art works related to music in the cosmos and the living world.

 Develop a synthetic view of sculptures, paintings and music. Learn to create 3D animated sculptures as a precursor to composing music.

 Create music based on vocal songs, and learn to make music by digital means which can involve a wide spectrum of sounds simulating eastern and western musical instruments and sounds of nature, among others.

ÅNUN LUND REJ MEMORIAL FOUNDATION

The activities of the Culture Retreat is a continuation of the similar idea which lay behind the establishment of the Ånun Lund Rej Memorial Foundation, which was established in 1992 by Ragne Birte Lund and Anup Rej in the memory of their son Ånun, who was bereaved of life only at the age of ten. The aim of the foundation is to inspire and stimulate talented children in different areas of creativity and inculcate values and visions which may promote universal understanding and awareness of the higher possibilities to evolve as a human being.

For Enlightened Retreat follow the link:

http://Enlightenedretreat.EnlightenedWorld.net

For Cultural Retreat follow the link:

http://CulturalRetreat.EnlightenedWorld.net

For Ånun Lund Rej Memorial Foundation follow the link:

http://Anunminnefond.no

Retreats for cosmic awareness of unity of all and cultural activities

“Enlightened Retreat” for creative people of all ages and “Cultural Retreat” for talented children and youth.