Aum Sri Sai Ram
Embodiments of Divine Love and Light,
Sai Ram!
On behalf of the North Central Regional officers, Conference Coordinators, and Conveners, we invite all of you for the 23rd North Central Region (Region 5) Sai Conference and Retreat, with great enthusiasm and love.
The Theme for this year’s Retreat is "Living by Example - Path to Spiritual Transformation ". Sai Baba (Swami) says: ‘God is omnipresent. He is the ever present. This moment is God. There is only God. Truth is the same in the past, in the present, and it will remain the same in the future.’ ‘The central part of Swami's teaching in regard to living in the world is to see in other people that essential quality which is God and to love that quality and not to be bothered by all the actions, qualities, misbehavior, and characteristics of the person.’ ‘True spirituality consists in the unity of thought, word and deed in all their purity and sacredness.’ It is important for each of us to 'live by example' as Swami always has done to show us the path to spiritual transformation.
Living by HIS Message leads us through the Path to Liberation. Sai Baba’s whole life has been a message to all of us to live by, and by doing so will lead to our Transformation as a whole and to merge one's life with the one source: HIM.
This year’s Retreat, together with the Study Circles preceding the Retreat, provides us with a great opportunity to practice Swami's teachings of ‘Your Lives are my Message’ and living His message helps us realize the path to realizing the innate divinity in all of us through Spiritual Transformation of the Self.
We have wonderful guest speakers coming this year to our Retreat to share Swami’s message, Swami’s love for each of us, His works, His omnipresence and His message on the joy of seeing and experiencing God through living HIS message in their Daily lives. In addition to our speakers, meeting with each other and having conversations (satsang) on Swami’s teachings to ideally conduct ourselves and lead our lives along with sharing of experiences, this Retreat will once again serve as a spiritual treat for each of us.
Dr. Voleti Choudhary is the Director of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences (SSSIHMS), Prashantigram at Puttaparthi. Prior to joining SSSIHMS in 2005, Dr. Voleti practiced Cardiothoracic Surgery in the United States for more than 25 years. He served as an Instructor in Surgery and Assistant Professor of Surgery at Stony Brook University, New York and at University of California, Los Angeles. In addition, he was Chairman of the Department of Surgery and Cardiothoracic Surgery at Pomona Valley Hospital and Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Los Angeles, respectively. Prior to his current position, he was Chairman of the Cardiac Sciences at SSSIHMS, Prashantigram and Whitefield.
Balasubramnayam (Balu) Karanam was born in a small village near Puttaparthi in the family of Swami devotees. He joined the Puttaparthi village primary school for 4th grade, studied in Smt. Eswaramma High school, graduated and post graduated from Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, Prashanthinilayam (1978-1992). He served as the President of Sri Sathya Sai Center at Greater Baltimore, MD and also as Regional Devotional Co-ordinator for the Mid-Atlantic Region. Balu is an Assistant Professor in Cancer Research . He firmly believes that it is "SAI" and the education in SAI institute transformed him from a rustic villager to a research scientist.
Sanjay Ghandikota is the grandson of late Br. Sri Ghandikota Subrahmanya Sastry garu (renowned Vedic scholar and revealer of the Sai Gayathri, a founding member of the Prashānti Vidhvan Mahā Sabha, referred to as a Rishi by Swami) and son of late Smt. Lakshmidevi & late Sri Ghandikota V. SubbaRao (retired senior United Nations official, a former Trustee of the Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust, vedic scholar, and revealer of the Sai Surya and Sai Hiranyagarbha Gayathris). Sanjay was born and brought up in New York and had the privilege of studying in Swami's college, the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning in Prasanthi Nilayamwhere he completed his B.Sc and MBA training. He received a Gold Medal for MBA from Swami's Divine Hands in 1990. His MBA class had the good fortune of Swami directly teaching several courses to them. At Swami's direction, Sanjay and his wife Sumana came back to the U.S. in 1991 and currently live in New Jersey with their son, Akshay, who was named by Swami. Sanjay works in the financial industry in New York
We are making every effort to make the Retreat truly inspiring and enjoyable to all. This Retreat will once again be a wonderful opportunity to meet with hundreds of other Sai devotees/followers from across the Region along with others who might be coming to the retreat for the first time or to get to know more about Sai Baba or the organization. It will be a very memorable experience for one and all, because of the variety in programs to address the theme, while allowing enough time for leisurely interaction with the rest of the Sai family.
Please register early and help the organizing team to serve you better. If you need any help/assistance with the registration fee or with transportation, please feel free to let us know when you register.
Retreat Registration website: www.sathyasaicenters.org
Retreat Registration Team's Email Address: retreat@sathyasaicenters.org
The Retreat is for one and all, adults and children where everyone comes together to share and enjoy Swami’s universal message of love in action. We look forward to seeing you at the Retreat!
In the loving service of Sai,
Dr. Hari Conjeevaram
President, North Central Region (Region 5)
hari-conjeevaram@sathyasaicenters.org