A Home for the Message in the Andes

The opening of the Retiro Pan-Latino in Colombia was greeted with startling news. Mureeds from Quito announced that they have acquired a property of 4,000 sq. m. on the slopes of the extinct volcano Ilaló where they plan to build a temple as an offering to the Message of Love, Harmony and Beauty.

The green, roughly heart-shaped site has been named Nur Lomas Alto – a name that can mean either ‘Nur’ High Ridge or “the Highest Light’. From its slopes there is a breath-taking view of the mountains around Quito, and although it is in a completely rural location, it is only twenty minutes from the suburb where most of the Quito mureeds live.

The announcement was deeply moving for the retreat participants, and they immediately began to pledge substantial support. Just as Hazrat Inayat Khan wished to build a Universelle in Suresnes, there has long been a desire in South America to make a home for the Sufi Message, and now the wish is becoming a reality. The Quito group has invited the Pan-Latino retreat 2020 to be at Nur Lomas Alto, but much work must be done beforehand. Access to the site must be improved, and repairs are required to a water line from a spring further up the mountain. Other practical matters include the provision of electricity and a septic field, and, once a design has been developed, levelling of the building site.

If you would like more information on Nur Lomas Alto, or would like to get involved in this project, please contact Inam Rodrigo Anda, inam.anda@sufimovement.org .
More details will be appearing shortly on the International Sufi Movement website.