Dear family,

What a splendid gathering in Charlottesville, VA.  Alhamdulliah!  The space was wonderful, the weather was just cool enough, and the food was plentiful.  And, of course, once again our staff did a remarkable job.

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We were a bit rushed for time, as there was so much ground to cover, that I missed the final “home work” assignment – so here it is:

As you go to sleep at night, say the Sufi Invocation first –
then visualize a large white diamond upon the top of your head.
Breath it into your ‘crown,’ and make sure that you ask Quan Yin to assist you.

Inshallah!  There should be some great dreams forth coming.

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So many folks to thank and acknowledge…we couldn’t have done it without you.

Special thanks to Murad who set up our contractual relationship with Ligmincha, and to Jude who carried all the weight of registration and the collecting of our fees  – and did it all long distance.

Many thanks to all of our ‘crew’ who did such a glorious job of manifesting Her Blessings:

Hadi David Hunter for making ‘camp manager’ a seamless, and inspiring manifestation of mastery.

Joe Jackson, for holding the morning post, and starting the day right.

Val Beasley, for leading the formal prayers of Hazrat Inayat Khan.

Farrunissa, for the ‘retreat’ wazifa for the day, and leading the Goddess cycle of dances. AND: for bringing through the most powerful walk of Mother Kali I’ve yet experienced.

Asha for her formal tea, and for her wonderful “tea salon” where sohbet and friends blended into a rare brew.

Ananda for her sung zikr, and for holding me upright.

Murad for his Sufi Qigong, his evening zikr, and for his assistance and memory (mine is becoming doubtful).  He brought his acupuncture needles too.

Sharifa for her inspiring afternoon offerings on the spiritual realms of nature.  One comment which I recall was “Exquisite!”

Latifa for her dances, her drumming, and for her constant smile and willingness to adapt and flow.

And, of course, to Subhan for all the pictures he took.  Inshallah!  We’ll have some good ones to share on our website soon.

As usual, the walks were my favorite part of the gathering.  And, our sister, Rev Terre Magdalen came up with a glorious walk of Mary Magdalen, plus the walk of Mother Kali through Farrunnissa, and a number of walks of the Divine Feminine.

We also chanted the Kali mantra, performed the Absent Healing Ritual, and did a lot of practice.  Mashallah!

And, some more good news:  We raised $1,000.00 to go towards the repair of the Lama dome.  Yeah Crew!

Our next gathering will be on Lama Mountain: June 17th (Monday dinner) to June 23rd (Sunday lunch).

More details will follow, although Jude will once again be our beloved registrar.

And, finally 2 more:

1.  The statue of Nurunissa Inayat Khan will be going up in London this November 8, 2012.  Alhamdulliah! We hope to have pictures to send out soonish.

2.  And, as the world falls more and more into violent response to manipulated events, it is our duty and responsibility to hold the calm and clear thought of non-reaction, and to send all the Peace and Love we are capable of sending out.  Remember Murshid’s practice of the Maha Mudra (Three Jhanas). This is a great time to do it for the world. Please join us!

Sending all my love and blessings, and my prayers that God will bestow upon you all that you need to manifest your highest potentiality in this life.

Yours in service to the real,
hakim sauluddin
September 15, 2012

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P.S. Here’s a fantastic poem written by one of the ‘campers’ —

“Dancing with Quan Yin”  by Bob Russell 9/9/12

She comes in dancing,
A shining young woman,
Naked as newborn,
the embodiment of modesty.

One of her countless arms
Is outstretched to the Heart
Of each of Her children.
Even those without legs
Feel compelled to dance with her.

Her breasts feed us all,
The left flowing with Compassion,
The right with Pure Love,
Flowing like golden milk
Engulfing the universe.

The dance becomes ecstatic:
With a scream of pleasure
Whole new worlds emerge
From Her ever-young Yoni.

Then, without warning,
A ruby the size of a mountain
Falls from the heavens,
Crushing my open Heart.
Nothing is left of me,
Still I dance,
And all the more fully,
To Her perfect pulse.

Crush my head
With a diamond mountain,
And my gut with an emerald mountain.
Destroy me utterly,
Oh most ancient of crones.
Teach me to dance with you,
Like you, through
All Eternity.