Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race

This race is full of surprises and unordinary events. After an atrociously hot day when all the runners were really cooked (Atmavir had a heat stroke), Rupantar took a decision to stop a race for one day. Nothing is going on on the course today except for heat and humidity, as it was yesterday. Everybody is enjoying a day-off before the final straight. Theoretically the race hasn’t stopped and today is day 42. Rupantar said that it would be prolonged by 2 days. It means that everybody will have to stop on day 54.

Day 41, 4.30pm It’s been a unique day. An hour ago, when the temperature was the highest, it was + 41C and 95% humidity. We’ve died and resurrected more than once today. The ones who are eager to get a new incarnation are very welcome to the 3,1000 mile race. I had run just 10 laps, when my legs got wobbly and refused to continue. At 5.40 am it was already +30C and hard to breathe because of humidity. So we knew that the day was going to be tough. Practically everybody is running slowly. Ananda-Lahari, Pradeep, Ashprihanal and myself are walking and only Surasa seem to be unaffected by weather. She has done more laps than Igor. She’s been running at her regular pace. A true iron maiden! Ashprihanal hasn’t recovered yet. He was sick at night. In the morning he didn’t run even a lap and was just walking. Ananda-Lahari and Pradeep just caught up with me and we sang a song about 3,100 mile runners by Sri Chinmoy. After singing I felt an inner smile and it felt much better. The heat also started to subside. Hopefully the evening will be more bearable. Tomorrow will be another day.

Author: Utpal 20 July The main quality I felt this morning was gratitude.” Just before dawn, and with just a few precious minutes to spare, Atmavir slipped alone into the quiet hallowed garden which is the Aspiration Ground. It is the local place close by that was once the main gathering place, in which the students of Sri Chinmoy used to meet on a regular basis with their late spiritual teacher. It is a sacred place still, in which his presence continues to be intimately felt and experienced by all those who continue to value his teachings.

Author Utpal 18 July It is only in a photograph that you can really stop and adequately capture the speeding world around us. Time never stops, nor life, nor the race nor really anything that is part and parcel of creation. Just as one footstep continually follows another, thoughts tumble one past another. All experiences, so powerful and real for an instant are then continually being replaced by hopefully higher ones. But int that instant the photo was taken you can at least attempt to reveal and comprehend a precious moment of a life in constant movement. Read more

Day 40, 3:24pm The temperature is +34C and almost 100% humidity. The right conditions for self-transcendence. We had an unordinary event – a change of the race leader. Now it is Sarvagata who is leading the race. Yesterday Ashprihanal wasn’t feeling well, ran slowly, made long breaks. It turned out that he had dehydration and a heat stroke. He stayed on the course until 7.30pm, did 71 laps and then he was taken for an IV. As he was taken there in the evening, he came home at 2.30 am. Around 10 am Rupantar declared that Ashprihanal would have a day-off. He had 2800 then and very soon Sarvagata got 2800 miles too and ran further. Others are half-walking, half-running. In comparison with yesterday, I am doing fine. Yesterday I mostly walked, did only 42 miles and was very happy with the result. Kaushal said that energy losses were due to liver problems. We are working on it now. Today I am happy that, no matter how slowly, I have been still running in such hot and humid weather. The days ahead are going to be even hotter but I hope to hold up. For the first time today I put on a Solumbra sun-protection suit.