Featured stories from around the world

We had about 400 runners at this year’s Self-Transcendence Rockland Lake Marathon. After the race, dozens of runners posted their experiences in various places online. Many of the comments gave a sense that the runners were drawn to this particular race for inner reasons, sometimes without quite knowing why. One wrote that while our marathon isn’t the wildest or loudest, we have something serene that’s beyond words—and this atmosphere is really conducive to transcendence.

As well as founding our Marathon Team and being an avid sprinter and long distance runner, Sri Chinmoy was also well known for his feats of weightlifting, which included honouring people for their service to humanity by lifting them overhead using a specially constructed apparatus. Between 1988 and 2007, he honoured over 8,000 people in this manner - people like Muhammad Ali and Nelson Mandela, but also . He once said that everyone who came to be lifted had an inner expectation of having a spiritual experience - and then Sri Chinmoy added that he never disappointed them. We get the feeling that people who come to our races also receive a similar kind of fulfilment.

We should note that dozens of runners commented how grateful they were to our medical team. Nowhere else, they mentioned, could a non-elite runner get such a high-quality post-race massage! Not only did our amazing crew soothe their muscles, but in many cases, runners received performance and nutrition advice!

We actually recognized a number of the runners not just from their participation in past Sri Chinmoy Marathons in Rockland Lake State Park, but because they also had visited the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race held in Queens this summer. There was even one runner who had entered a number of our monthly Rainbow Marathons that we held in the 1980s! As a side note, a number of the outside runners had also seen the recent documentary 3100: Run And Become, which chronicles the 3100 Mile Race and the spiritual significance of ultrarunning around the world. A few people gasped with joy when they saw Shamita Achenbach-König – one of the stars of the movie – on the course running the marathon! A number of folks took pictures of her for their collections and a few got to say hello to her as she passed them.

After 52 days of self-transcendence, this year's Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race drew to a close with seven of the eight runners completing 3100 miles within the allotted time. Between them, the eight intrepid runners covered a total of 27,577 miles or 50,252 laps of the humble 0.5488 mile loop located in the Jamaica neighbourhood of Queens, New York.

For the outsider looking in, these statistics only give a partial insight into this unique race, which is a test of physical, mental and spiritual fortitude. During this summer, the runners had to contend with two mini-heatwaves which sent temperatures soaring to almost 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Cesius). Yet every morning at 6 am, the runners came to the start line to begin their inner and outer quest towards personal self-transcendence. The race has no sponsorship or financial rewards; each runner and helper must give up their own time to take on this unique challenge. Asked why they come to the race, the runners hint at an inner satisfaction which can be gained from pushing themselves to the limits of what they think is possible.

“I think so often in our lives, that we fashion ourselves to be well within our comfort zone.  It is only when you challenge those comfort zones that you find real fulfillment, but some times you can trick yourself into what a real challenge is.  This race is definitely a real challenge.  It brings out a lot of things in me that are challenging but also so extremely rewarding.” - Harita Davies

Inspiration

Each individual runner undertakes his/her personal journey, but the race has also inspired many people around the world, who are captivated by the simplicity yet dauntless nature of this challenge. The race has been featured on many international news outlets, such as the BBC, Wall Street Journal and NZ's News Now - and this media coverage and online coverage has inspired many to follow the race and pick up on the inspiration of those running in New York.

Race director Rupantar Larusso says that this year there have been innumerable visitors to the race who came for a short time to visit out of curiosity. He says that in many cases, the visitors from around the world ended up spending much longer than planned because they felt a very special atmosphere at the race.

Another reason for the heightened interest in this year's race is the recent release of a documentary film based on this race (and other ultra-distance events) called 3100: Run and Become. For example, after a screening in New York City, the film director Sanjay Rawal described how a few young athletes left immediately to go and see the race and runners in action.

Personal bests

During the race, many runners recorded some kind of personal best or new achievement. For the overall winner, Asprihanal Aalto, it was his 15th finish and 9th time overall win Although off his course record, he was happy to finish another race, despite arriving with little training. Despite suffering heatstroke mid-race, 2nd place Nirbhasa Magee, set a new personal best of 48 days+09:04:57 and with it a new Irish record. Speaking about one of the motivations for running, he said of the race:

“You have to sense that the race is your job.  That while you are here, you are inspiring so many people.  That you are doing something beneficial.  You need a sense of dedication to that purpose.” - Nirbhasa Magee

Vasu Duzihy has won the past two races, and this year finished in 3rd place in a time of  49 days+06:13:17. One of this year's most remarkable stories was Ananda-Lahiri Zuscin, who has started the race 15 times, making him one of the most prolific entrants - and yet has not managed to complete the 3100 mile distance in over 10 years. This year he managed to finish the race with some exceptional days of 80+ miles (including one day of 89 miles!). In addition, Smarana Puntigam finished in 5th place, coming back to successfully complete the race after his last two attempts in 2017 and 2018 fell agonisingly short.

Harita Davies was the only woman in the race, and she managed to also set a new personal best and New Zealand record. She summed up the attitude needed to complete such a daunting challenge.

"A huge part of the experience of this race is to just keep going forward.  When challenges arise you face them and try to figure them out.  Do your best and have faith, that everything will work out.” - Harita Davies

First-time entrant Todor Dimitrov faced a real baptism of fire. With six days to go, injuries and sickness had left him 32 miles off the cut-off pace. Yet he kept going to the end and finished with just a couple of hours to spare. Speaking at the end, Todor said:

"The race was a great transformative experience. Thank you all here. It makes me to feel the world is going in a good direction. To proceed with that good direction. So happy to know the runners who helped me to finish. " - Todor Dimitrov

Ushika Muckenhumer faced innumerable challenges in the race with getting injured in the early part of the race. But, his battling spirit kept him going for all 52 days. He finished with 2,777 miles. Ushika illustrates the central concept of the race that it is about personal self-transcendence and doing what we can given the circumstances we are in. Towards the end of the gruelling race, he talked about the transformative potential of the race.

“At this stage of the race you go so far out of your mind, that it is difficult to think through answers.  Life becomes very simple, especially the mind.  It is not the usual way to function.  But instead in a very cheerful and simple frame of mind." - Ushika Muckenhummer

Making history

The 3100 Mile Race was founded by Sri Chinmoy who initiated the very first race in 1997. In the past 23 years, only 44 different people have completed the 3100 Mile race - which the NY Times once described as "The Everest of distance running."

Sri Chinmoy believed that through ultra-distance running, individuals could discover unknown inner and outer capacities and gain a real sense of satisfaction from challenging their own limits. Sri Chinmoy was also a visionary who saw how the race could inspire many people around the world. Speaking at the first awards ceremony on 2 August 1997, he said of the race:

"This 3,100 miles is an unprecedented journey in our world-peace-manifestation-dream. World-peace can come into existence only when we are inundated with patience and perseverance. Infinite patience we need in our inner life and perseverance we need in our outer life.

These 3,100 miles remind us of one divine and supreme reality: we can and we must do everything at our command to transform the world of lethargy and unwillingness to be dynamic. Unwillingness we do not leave behind us. Therefore happiness remains always a far cry. Willingness to give, willingness to achieve, willingness to grow and glow should be the message of our souls. With our souls' blessings we can and will fulfil our earthly life." - Sri Chinmoy (Source)

Further reading

• Photos from: Sri Chinmoy Ultra Photos
• Blogs and videos at Perfection Journey. All runners' quotes are taken from Perfection Journey

On 2 August, Ashprihanal Aalto won the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race for a record ninth time. The modest Finn, has now completed the race a record 15 times. Despite challenging weather conditions through the hot summer, Aalto finished the 3100 miles in a time of 47 days+01:39:34. Since 1999, Ashprihanal has run 30 multi-day events, reaching the podium in all 30, and winning 21 of them. He has a total accumulated 56,138 miles (90,346km) in these 30 events (a distance equivalent to over twice around the earth's circumference!) Aalto is still the course record holder set in 2015 with a time of 40 days and 9 hours. After the race, Aalto spoke about what drove him to keep coming back to take on these challenging races.

“If you want to keep coming back here, you have to have something to motivate you. And if the numbers don’t motivate you, then you have to find something within.” (Westchester News)

After finishing the race, Aalto offered thanks to those who had supported him and the race. He received a message of congratulations from Finnish Consul General. Shortly before he finished Aalto was asked how he dealt with the challenge of running so many miles, Aalto replied he just took each day as it came.

“I’m learning to not even look at the miles. If you’re counting every mile, it can seem impossible,” (Westchester News)

Aalto was asked about the importance of winning the race, he replied that winning is secondary to the experience of taking part in this unique race - the greater importance is the inner challenges and mutual respect for his fellow competitors. Aalto said on the prospect of winning:

"This is like a pilgrimage so we all try and go together. I have not been thinking about that too much. I am just trying to run the race.”

“It has always been clear to me that there is an outer race.  Then there is this inner thing... Now I am trying - and it is not always easy - to feel that the spiritual is more important than the outer part.” (Interview at Perfection Journey)

A day later, Nirbhasa Magee from Nirbhasa finished in second place, with Vasu Duzihy (a previous winner of the event) expected to finish today in 3rd place Harita Davies of New Zealand is on course to finish the 3100 miles and be the first women in the race.

Inspiration

The race has captured the imagination of people around the world. After being featured on the BBC website (and CBBC), the race has seen many first time visitors come to the course to see this unique race in action. The race has also featured in a recently released film - Run and Become. After screenings in New York, many viewers were inspired to come to the course and see the race for themselves.

Sri Chinmoy, the founder of the race, hoped that ultra-distance events like this would be an opportunity for people to learn to transcend their limits and discover the inner power and determination that lay latent in all of us.

“Self-transcendence gives us joy in boundless measure. When we transcend ourselves, we do not compete with others. We do not compete with the rest of the world, but at every moment we compete with ourselves. We compete only with our previous achievements. And each time we surpass our previous achievements, we get joy.”

– Sri Chinmoy

On 16 June 2019, eight intrepid runners took to the start line of the world's longest certified road race - the 23rd edition of the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race. Over the next seven weeks, the runners will aim to complete a daily average of 60 miles or more in order to finish the race within the official time limit of 52 days. The runners have to contend with the hot New York summer, a hard concrete course and the many physical and mental challenges of competing in this epic of self-transcendence.

The race was founded by spiritual teacher and ultra-runner pioneer Sri Chinmoy, who saw distance running as a vehicle to enable runners to bring to the fore their physical, mental and spiritual capacities to complete this unique challenge.

“We have to believe in a higher Power.
Only by believing in a higher Power
Can we go beyond and beyond
Our limited, human capacity.”

– Sri Chinmoy [1]

In this year's race, we have Asprihanal Aalto from Finland, an eight-time winner of the race and current course record holder for men in a time of 40 days+09:06:21. Also returning to the race is three-times winner Vasu Duzhiy from Russia, he is the current champion, having won in 2018. Other returning 3100 Mile runners include Smarana Puntigam (Austria), Nirbhasa Magee (Ireland), Ushika Muckenhummer (Austria) and Ananda-Lahari Zuscin (Slovakia). The only women running this year is Harita Davies - who returns after a gap of two years, to see if she can improve on her first time finishing of 51 days+12:48:14. Todor Dimitrov from Sofia, Bulgaria completes the field and he will be making his first attempt at 3100 Mile Race.

As well as the eight runners, there is a crew of dedicated volunteers who put on the race, including counters, medics, cooks and the organising crew.

Video of day one

The race featured at the BBC

To follow the race

• Daily results at 3100 Mile Race
• 3100 Mile home page - with Web Cam and race director's videos.
• Perfection Journey - Daily race blog by Utpal Marshall
• Photos by Jowan

Our Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in the USA is best known for its multi-day ultradistance events; however in recent years we have been expanding our calendar of short-distance races in Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the Bronx, as well as upstate New York. Our recent 5K, half-marathon and relay races in Flushing Meadow park saw over 400 finishers; people relished the chance to compete in teams, as well as the delicious post-race pancake breakfast!

Our shorter races (by that, we mean below marathon distance) will resume when the weather gets a little cooler in September; in the meantime we do have a fun, informal 2-mile race every Saturday morning at 8.07am in Queens - more info »

Upcoming NY Races:

• 23 August: The Sri Chinmoy Marathon - Rockland State Park
• 22 September: Sri Chinmoy 5K & 10K - Alley Pond Park
• 20 October: A Sri Chinmoy Half-Marathon - Rockland State Park
• 28 November: Sri Chinmoy Thanksgiving Day 5K & 10K

A cellist from Vienna, Shamita Achenbach-König has been running ultramarathons for over 25 years. Her latest project is a series of multi-day runs across Europe – first she ran around Lake Constance where she grew up, then she ran across the length of her native Austria, and then she ran from Vienna to Heidelberg in Germany. Her most recent adventure took place earlier this year, lasted 16 days, and took her from Vienna to Paris; a distance of 1200km.

This year's run had its fair share of obstacles, such as minor injuries and bad weather, but Shamita stayed cheerful right through to the finish, helped by her enthusiastic support crew of Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team members from all over Europe. A meditation student of Sri Chinmoy, Shamita views ultra-distance running as part of her spiritual practice, a way to push aside the mind's doubts and limitations. She is one of the main people featured in the recent documentary 3100: Run and Become, an exploration of the spiritual side of long distance running.

Ted Corbitt was known as the father of long distance racing in the USA. A former Olympic marathoner, he helped to reawaken interest in marathon and ultra distance races through his own training and racing, and also through his advocacy of race standards. He was the first president of the New York Road Runners Club and helped to plan the original NYC Marathon course.

The Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team also benefited from a tremendous amount of assistance and encouragement from Ted as we started organising our own ultra running events. When we put on our first ultra - a 47-mile invitational race in 1978 - it was Ted we turned to for valuable advice. Over the years, Ted would be a frequent paricipant and guest at our races. In particular, Ted astounded all of us by competing in our 2000 and 2001 Six-Day races – his 2000 effort was the first time anyone over 80 years of age had completed that distance, and in 2001 he set a new over 80 mark of 303 miles.

Related

• Recent article in the Sports Daily
• A 1962 article in the New York Times, about Ted's participation in the London to Brighton ultras
• Race summary of 2000 and 2001 races - read about Ted's 6-day races as they happened!

 

On April 7th, the three fastest male runners of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team came together the Rotterdam marathon, which is well known for producing fast times. Samalya Schäfer (Germany), Vajin Armstrong (New Zealand) and Abhinabha Tangerman (The Netherlands) have all broken the elusive barrier of two hours and thirty minutes for the marathon distance. The three runners are good friends and regularly head off together for runs and training camps, but this was the first time they had toed the line together in the same marathon.

Of the three, Abhinabha finished first in 2:31:17, followed by Samalya in 2:31:48. Vajin, who has represented New Zealand and won some of trail running's most prestigious races in the past few years, experienced some hamstring problems this time around and finished in 2:34:21. Also running in Rotterdam were two other members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team who both set personal bests - Sadanand Magee from Ireland in 2:50:34 and Himadri Kavai from Hungary with 3:36:35.

Since the late 1970s, members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team have completed numerous marathons following in the footsteps of founder Sri Chinmoy, who ran 22 marathons and encouraged others to test themselves physically, mentally and spiritually at this iconic distance.

“Self-transcendence gives us joy in boundless measure. When we transcend ourselves, we do not compete with others. We do not compete with the rest of the world, but at every moment we compete with ourselves. We compete only with our previous achievements. And each time we surpass our previous achievements, we get joy.”

– Sri Chinmoy

Aside from the success of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team members, this edition of the Rotterdam marathon also saw a new course record in 2:04:1, set by Marius Kipserem from Kenya, as well as a new Dutch national record in 2:06:17 set by Abdi Nageeye.

Earlier this year, Subarnamala Riedel from the Zurich Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team was interviewed, and she talked about how much joy she gets from organising ultra events for the public. In Switzerland, we have been putting on two big ultra events for over a quarter of a century - the Zurich Lake Swim and the 12- and 24-hour race in Basel. The lake swim, in which competitors swim the entire 26k distance of Lake Zurich from Rapperswil to Zurich city, has become a well known 'warm-up' event for those seeking to cross the English Channel.

Subarnamala has been practising meditation with Sri Chinmoy for almost 30 years, and sees organising these races as 'spiritual life in action'. Organising races like these offer the chance to work harmoniously as part of a large team, and there is tremendous satisfaction to be had in helping the participants achieve their best results. Seeing the determination and enthusiasm of the competitors (some of them in their seventies and eighties!) also gives us tremendous inspiration to go forward with our own goals in life.

On 3rd March 1979, Sri Chinmoy ran his first marathon, in Chico, California, completing the distance in a time of 4:31:34. In the next four years Sri Chinmoy would run 21 more marathons, but perhaps more significantly, he would inspire many runners to follow the philosophy of self-transcendence and take up long-distance running. 40 years after his first marathon, the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team continue to promote marathons and ultra distance races across the globe.

In honour of this significant milestone in the history of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team, groups of runners from around the world held running events, including 70 members who travelled to Chico, California. Marathon. Events were also held in many different places around the world, including in Bristol (UK), Melbourne (Australia), Dublin (Ireland), Augsburg (Germany), Sao Paolo (Brazil), New York (US), and Zlin (Czech Republic). The weather varied from 37 degrees heatwave in Australia to a below freezing snow-storm in New York.

Race Reports from around the globe

Vasudha, our Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team co-ordinator in San Diego, writes: "Some 60 members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team from the US, Canada, Great Britain, and even Mongolia met in Chico, California to celebrate a significant milestone in the history of our team. On March 3, 1979, Sri Chinmoy ran his first marathon in Chico, California. To commemorate the 40th anniversary of this signal event - which in turn helped to launch the worldwide organisation that today sponsors hundreds of footraces, duathlons, triathlons, swimming events, and more - team members ran along the same course in beautiful Bidwell Park. The race that was then a full marathon - the Bidwell Classic - now features a half marathon and a 5K. In addition to participating in both these distances - and nabbing 13 age-group awards - Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team members hosted an aid station and cheered all the race participants who braved the cold, rainy weather. After finishing the half marathon, seven athletes covered an additional 13.1 miles to complete the marathon distance and to honour Sri Chinmoy's inaugural marathon."

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In Australia the weekend co-incided with the arrival of the runners from the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run, who were finishing the Australian leg of a 44-country journey that will carry the Peace Torch all nations in the Southern Hemisphere - the first time that the torch has gone all the way around the world as part of one run. As a result there were over 55 Australian and international runners - who fortunately were well-acclimatised for the heat, which hovered in the high 30s towards the end of the race.   

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In New York, the weather veered to the other extreme - due to the cold and freezing snow on the track, the official race was cancelled. However, some intrepid runners wished to run their own personal marathon. With no official aid station, five runners - four women and one man, completed the distance, with many other runners completing several laps to take part in the spirit of the event, despite the outer challenges. Brazilian members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team marked the event by running a 13 hours race in Ibirapuera Park, São Paulo from 8 am to 9 pm - 6 men and 4 women ran a total of 671km.

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In Dublin, runners also faced freezing temperatures with rain, biting wind and temperatures hovering above freezing. Despite these challenging conditions, six members of the Irish Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team remained undaunted by the weather and successfully completed the marathon distance.

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Sri Chinmoy felt that running marathons was an excellent complement to the 'inner running' - the spiritual life.

Spiritual people often like running because it reminds them of their inner journey. The outer running reminds them that a higher, deeper, more illumining and more fulfilling goal is ahead of them in the inner world, and for that reason running gives them real joy.

Long-distance running gives us a real feeling of accomplishment. We can run 100 metres forty times during the year and not feel the same sense of accomplishment as when we run one marathon. But speed and endurance are both important, especially in the spiritual life. If one has only speed, then one cannot ultimately succeed; we need endurance because the goal is quite far. Again, if one has only stamina and no speed, then it will take forever to reach the goal. Only if someone has both qualities will he be able to make very good progress in his spiritual life and achieve something really great in life.

Sri Chinmoy's Marathon Runs

1. March 3, 1979 - Bidwell Classic - Chico, CA - 4:31:34
2. March 25, 1979 - Heart-Watchers Marathon - Toledo,OH - 3:55:07
3. May 6, 1979 - Newsday-Long Island Marathon - Long Island, NY - 4:16:23
4. May 12, 1979 - Champlain Valley Mar. - Plattsburgh, NY - 4:41:16
5. Oct. 6, 1979 - Phidippides Marathon - Athens, Greece - 5:39:41
6. Oct. 21, 1979 - New York City Marathon - New York, NY - 4:48:53
7. Dec. 2, 1979 - Jersey Shore Marathon - Asbury Park, NJ - 4:33:44
8. May 24, 1980 - Solo Run - Munich, Germany - 4:30:00
9. June 1, 1980 - Sri Chinmoy Marathon - San Mateo, CA - 5:18:31
10. Feb. 1, 1981 - Inspiration Marathon - Hampton, NH - 5:22:11
11. March 7, 1981 - Bidwell Classic - Chico, CA - 4:30:21
12. Oct. 25, 1981 - New York City Marathon - New York, NY - 4:36:22
13. May 2, 1982 - Newsday-Long Island Marathon - L.I., NY - 4:26:56
14. Oct. 24, 1982 - New York City Marathon - New York, NY - 4:44:41
15. Nov. 7, 1982 - Sri Chinmoy Marathon - Zurich, Switz. - 4:36:00
16. Nov. 14, 1982 - Jersey Shore Marathon - Asbury Park, NJ - 4:22:57
17. Dec. 5, 1982 - Sri Chinmoy Marathon - San Juan, PR - 5:12:00
18. Dec. 31, 1982 - Sri Chinmoy Marathon - Okinawa, Japan - 4:33:43
19. Jan. 22, 1983 - Orange Bowl Marathon - Miami, FL - 5:33:33
20. Jan. 30, 1983 - Solo Run - Flushing Meadow, NY - 5:20:03
21. Feb. 6, 1983 - Inspiration Marathon - Hampton, NH - 5:56:59
22. Feb. 20, 1983 - Solo Run - Hempstead, NY - 5:25:20

• Sri Chinmoy's philosophy on running https://www.srichinmoyraces.org/sri-chinmoy-running. Race Reports by Arpan, Grahak, Vasudha and Patanga. Quotes by Sri Chinmoy are taken from his book The outer running and the inner running.

For those of you planning to tackle races of longer than marathon distance next year, the German Sri Chinmoy Marathon team has published a helpful race calendar of the ultra races organised by the Sri Chinmoy Marathon this year. In Europe, the races include the national 24 hour championships of Moldova and the Ukraine, and the calendar also features our two flagship events in the USA: the 6 and 10 day races in April, and the 3100 Mile Race in August - the world's longest certified road race.

Download calendar (pdf):  English  German

(Picture: Our 24, 12 and 6 hour race that takes place in Belgrade, Serbia in September)

After becoming only the 4th woman to complete the Oceans 7 Challenge - swimming seven of the world's iconic open water swims, including the English Channel and the North Channel - Abhejali Bernardová from our Czech Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team has now been nominated for the 2018 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year. Abhejali completed her seventh and final swim this year on February 24, 2018, by conquering the Cook Strait between the North and South Island of New Zealand in quite challenging conditions. Voting is open to the public until January 1 2019, and can be accessed here.

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Her nomination reads: Abhejali Bernardová is a peace ultrarunner (6-day runs + 24-hour runs + 100 km runs) turned swimmer who promotes endurance sports and self-transcendence via media appearances and speeches to the public and at school. The member of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team became the 4th woman to complete the Oceans Seven. After achieving the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming, she crossed the English Channel (14 hours 37 minutes), Strait of Gibraltar (4 hours 35 minutes), Catalina Channel (9 hours 46 minutes), Tsugaru Channel (11 hours 7 minutes), Molokai Channel (21 hours 52 minutes), North Channel (10 hours 23 minutes), and Cook Strait (13 hours 9 minutes) between the ages of 34 and 41 to become the first person from the Czech Republic - a landlocked country - to swim across 7 iconic channels, all successful on her first attempt. She organized a record number of swimmers in a new popular 6-hour pool swim in the Czech Republic shortly after her last channel swim. She teaches about the importance of a calm mind for success in the open water and on dryland. For being a Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team ambassador who achieved the Oceans Seven, for continuing to serve as a peace runner, race director and an organizer of extreme sports that gives others an opportunity to experience their own challenges under safe conditions, and for lending a helping hand and friendly smile with a passion for long distance swimming as a mentor for people of all ages and abilities, Abhejali Bernardová of the Czech Republic is a worthy nominee for the 2018 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year.

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Other nominees include such distinguished marathon swimmers as Pat Gallant-Charette (67), cold-water swimmer Jaimie Monahan and multiple world champion Ana Marcela Cunha for the women's award, or United Nations Environment Patron of the Oceans Lewis Pugh and trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific stage swimmer Ben Lecomte for the men's award.

Question (from interview on Daily News of Open Water Swimming): During your Oceans Seven channel swims, what point did you feel the absolute worse? How did you overcome this situation?

Abhejali: It was during the Molokai Channel crossing. The swim started at around 5 pm, it got dark by 7 pm, and I started to be really seasick. We arrived just 3 days prior to the swim - it was before my swim period, so I was tired and jet lagged on top of being seasick and depleted. After being seasick for quite a few hours, I asked how far we were. I usually don't do it, or much later, but I felt so exhausted physically - we also had to battle some strong current at the beginning of the swim. I was told we are not yet in the middle. I remember thinking that some miracle will have to happen for me to have enough physical strength to continue for another maybe 10 hours - it turned out to be much more. The team on the boat notified our friends around the world and they all ate on my behalf, sent their good wishes and prayers. Once the sun came out after maybe 12 hours of darkness, I was fine and could start eating. When all seemed back to normal I got badly stung by a jellyfish and then there was another strong current that had us moving only 1 mile per hour, but the worst was past. Read full interview »

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Sri Chinmoy believed that running is beneficial to physical health but also can give an inner spiritual fulfilment. Running teaches us determination, focus and reminds us of our aspiration to go beyond our previous limitations. Running is both physically challenging but, at the same time, gives an inner joy and satisfaction. Many runners attest to the fact that running can take us out of an ordinary consciousness and give a glimpse into a state of mind beyond our usual thoughts and emotions. 

“Running is a symbolic sport in the sense that it reminds us of spiritual seekers continuously running towards the goal; it resembles the seekers running inwardly to achieve the ultimate goal in meditation.”

Sri Chinmoy [1] 

Some of the spiritual aspects of running

Self-transcendence

“Self-transcendence gives us joy in boundless measure. When we transcend ourselves, we do not compete with others. We do not compete with the rest of the world, but at every moment we compete with ourselves. We compete only with our previous achievements. And each time we surpass our previous achievements, we get joy.”

Sri Chinmoy [2]

Self-transcendence is concerned with an attempt to beat our previous achievement and stretch our capacity. This self-transcendence can be measured in a race against the clock, but even if we can't beat our times, we can still strive to make a greater commitment and effort in our training and races. If we are detached from the outer result, we will feel joy from these attempts at self-transcendence. Whilst we may not have the capacity to beat others, we always have the opportunity to pursue our own self-transcendence attempts.

Determination

Running brings forward both our outer and inner determination. Running requires effort, focus and the willingness to challenge our body against the distance and elements. To complete a race requires a fixed mindset and determination to keep going.

Getting to know yourself

“When a runner focuses all his attention on a particular race, he is in a position to free his mind, liberate his mind, from uncomely distractions. Here one-pointed concentration is the pathfinder for a deeper meditative consciousness.”

– Sri Chinmoy [3]

Running takes us out of our comfort zone. It teaches us that we are more capable than we perhaps realise. To a non-runner, completing a marathon may seem an impossible task, but if we train, we realise we are capable of much more than we realise. Whilst running, we get in touch with a different part of ourself, and we learn more about our inner reserves.

Dynamism and inner peace

Question: Can running help get rid of frustration and anger?

Sri Chinmoy: Running is an excellent way to rid oneself of frustration and anger. If you are really angry with someone, go and run. After a mile or so you will see that your anger has gone away, either because you are totally exhausted or because the satisfaction that you gain from physical exertion has replaced your anger. [4]

A great benefit of running is that it shakes away our mental cobwebs. The dynamism of running helps us to get away from the petty concerns and worries of our mind. Dynamism is a powerful tool to bring to the fore more inner peace. When we are static, we become like a stagnant pool, when we move, it is like a clear flowing stream. The Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run combines both running long distances with an endeavour to share peace. Sri Chinmoy felt the dynamism of running across countries was an excellent way to share peace in a meaningful way. Running brings many of our good qualities to the fore.

How to bring spirituality into running

Self-transcendence vs competition

Rather than worrying about whether you can beat your competitors, focus instead on your own performance. Can you transcend your previous efforts? - Can you make the best possible effort given your circumstances? If you focus only on your self-transcendence, you will get joy from running - whatever the outer result. You will see fellow competitors - not as rivals, but fellow runners who can inspire your own efforts.

Meditation

If we meditate before running, we will be conscious of our inner stillness and inner reserves which can help us in the outer running. Meditation teaches us to be one-pointed and bring all our awareness of one aspect. When we run, we can see our running as an extension of our meditation. Just bring all your focus on to the running - the rhythm of breathing. Don't get distracted by thoughts, but just try to be the observer of the running. When the body is running, at top speed, feel at the same time an inner focus and inner equanimity.

"Again, the runner's outer speed has a special kind of poise or stillness at its very heart. An airplane travels very fast, yet inside the plane we feel no movement at all. It is all tranquility, all peace; and this inner tranquility we can bring to our outer life. In fact, the outer life, the outer movement, can be successful only when it comes from the inner poise."

- Sri Chinmoy [5]

Conscious Breathing

To make running a more meditative experience, we can concentrate on our breathing. We should feel our breath brings in not just oxygen but a divine energy. If we visualise we are breathing in cosmic energy and exhaling tiredness, we will gain more inner strength.

The inner value of running

"The main reason is that running reminds us of our inner goal. Whether we consciously run toward the goal or not, our very feeling that there is a goal helps us considerably."

- Sri Chinmoy [6]

If we value running as a spiritual exercise, then it can become something much more than just the outer running. When running, we can feel we are making inner progress and striving to reach our inner goal.

 

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Perspectives on the spirituality of running

Running the world’s longest race – Jayasalini

Jayasalini Abramovskikh talks about the experience of running the Sri Chinmoy 3100 Mile Self-Transcendence Race. In 2014, at her first attempt, Jayasalini became the first Russian woman to finish this grueling race which lasts for 52 consecutive days.

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Running as a pilgrimage

Sanjay Rawal, the director of the feature film "3100 Mile: Run and Become" talks about how he sees running as a spiritual pilgrimage.

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Samunnati on meditation and running

Samunnati Lehonkova is an Olympic marathon runner who took up running at an early age after becoming a disciple of Sri Chinmoy. In this short video, Samunnati talks about how she started meditation and running at the same time, and how she attempts to practise self-transcendence through running.

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3100: Run and Become

A film that explores the spiritual significance of running in different cultures across the world. It includes the Gaolo-San bushmen in Botswana, the legendary Japanese gyoman-san running monks, the Navajo runners in the deserts of Arizona, and the runners of the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race in Jamaica, Queens, New York.

Related

• The inner significance of the Olympics
• Article on Self-transcendence

Sources: Quotes are taken from the following books by Sri Chinmoy: [1] from Japan: soul-beauty’s heart-garden, [2] from The oneness of the Eastern heart and the Western mind, part 3, [3] from Run and smile, smile and run, [4] [5] [6] from The outer running and the inner running.

On September 24, 2018, Adriano Passini from the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team became the first person to swim from Laje de Santos - an islet known all over Brazil for its marine life - to the coastline, a distance of 25 miles (40 km). Adriano reached his goal at 7pm, after a journey of almost 12 hours.

Located a couple of hours away from São Paolo, Laje de Santos was the first ever marine park created by the state government, and is a favourite haunt of divers as well as people who visit for the local biodiversity. Adriano, who grew up in the nearby city of San Vicente, got the inspiration to do the crossing some years back on a a plane trip from Curitiba to São Paulo, when he saw Laje de Santos from the airplane. The conditions for the crossing are generally quite difficult, and there is only a narrow window to make the crossing before the waves become too rough - in May 2016, Adriano spent 3 weeks waiting for the waves to calm before ultimately having to abandon the attempt. This time, he had to wait until the last possible day before he would have had to return to his day job as an engineer.

Adriano was inspired to start swimming by his meditation teacher, Sri Chinmoy, who loved sports and saw that it was a field in which the practise of meditation could be put to powerful use. In particular, Sri Chinmoy encouraged his students to practise the philosophy of self-transcendence, to experience the liberating feeling of challenging one's percieved limitations. In 2013, Adriano swam the English Channel in a time of 11 hours and 10 minutes. (Members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team have crossed the channel 47 times to date - the second most by any team). He later wrote a book about his experiences.

During the crossing from to Laje de Santos to the city of Santos, Adriano had an experienced team accompanying him in the boat - Ashirvad Zaiantchick, who had previously assisted him in his Channel swim, and Adriano's father, Aurélio Passini Júnior, as well as two local navigators, Cesar Elvin Laso and Marcio Pires Lopes Jacaré from the local ATM diving club, both of whom had much experience in navigating the treacherous waters. The area near Santos lies on one of the busiest shipping lanes in the Americas, and Adriano passed around 50 large ships during his swim. The crew departed from the city of Santos at 5:30 a.m, arriving at Laje de Santos at 7:10 am to begin the swim. During the swim, the conditions were partially cloudy with no wind. The water temperature was around 22ºC, with waves of about 1 metre high throughout the crossing. Upon completion, Adriano remarked "Today a dream has been realised, the impossible has become possible; after a lot of effort, I'm really happy to arrive in the city of Santos and complete my goal."  

 

In the 2018 Berlin marathon, Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge set a new world record of 2:01:39 - slicing an astounding 1 minute 18 seconds from one of athletics' most prestigious records. Two members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team also ran the race, and shared this unique experience with us.

To put Kipchoge's record in perspective, it is the equivalent to running 400m in 68.8 seconds - 100 times consecutively. Kipchoge's average pace for the record was 4:38.4 per mile, or 14:24.9 per 5K!

The two Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team runners - native Berliner Samalya Schäfer and Sadanand Magee from Ireland - both achieved a sub three-hour marathon, with Sadanand reaching this long-cherished goal for the first time.

Elated with setting a new sub-3 hour personal best (2.58.57), Sadanand related how the race felt extra special because of Kipochoge's record: “It was an incredible day. It was so special to run on the same day as Kipchoge and follow in the footsteps of the elite runners. Sri Chinmoy once commented that runners could help their own marathon by trying to tap into the intensity and speed of the top runners. So, as we ran along the blue line of the marathon course, I tried to focus on the speed and intensity of the best runners who were just ahead.”

“For myself, it has been a difficult build-up in the past few weeks, with a few minor injuries and a busy schedule. After km 32, the race became much tougher and I really had to work very hard to keep it together. When I finally came through the finish, we were over the moon to make it in under sub-three hours. But then, walking onwards, we heard a loudspeaker announce that the world record had been broken by Eliud Kipchoge. Everyone was really happy and celebrating; it made the whole occasion very memorable.”

“Berlin is an incredible marathon. The streets are lined with countless people who are really enthusiastic in offering support to all runners from the fastest to the slowest."

Training for a sub-three hour marathon

Sadanand, who owns the Gandharva Loka music store on Dublin's Georges St, has been running marathons for over a decade, with a previous best of 3:03, but this year he made a renewed effort to finally crack the three-hour barrier. Despite the pressure of moving this year to a bigger music store, he made his running a priority, and stuck to a strict training regime designed by fellow team-mate Abhinabha Tangerman from the Netherlands. During the race, Sadanand was also helped in pacing by Samalya, who a few weeks earlier ran 2.33.47 in winning the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence Marathon in New York. 

Sri Chinmoy was himself a keen runner and took a special interest in the concept of self-transcendence - the goal of man to strive for higher goals and go beyond the previous limits of past generations. In the 1980s and 1990s, Sri Chinmoy predicted that in the near future, someone would realise their capacity to run a sub-two hour marathon.  Speaking after the 1988 New York City Marathon, when Steve Jones ran 2:08:05, Sri Chinmoy said “Somebody has to come from Africa and break the record. Under two hours — I envision it. Somebody will run under two hours.” With Kipchoge getting ever closer, this dream of a sub-two hour marathon could now happen in the near future.