Day 5: Settling in

Another glorious day today, but the nights are freezing and the days are hot.. you put seven layers on for morning tea and nose clean, and then you hit the studio, start to warm up in yoga and find yourself peeling them off one by one. Our morning yoga teacher likes to torture us. He says that he is trying to condition our weakling Western bodies, but I find the term 'chinese water torture' just about right. He is about a hundred pounds soaking wet, wears the cutest white pjs, and we have been told to wear white because it is the colour of peace. About 100 percent of us showed up with lululemon black pants and various dark tops.  Hence the visit to the market to buy cheap white stuff. I swear it's a move to help the economy around here. 

Just wait until you see the poses we are supposed to be able to do by the end, and you'll understand why we've been doing leg lifts and crunches until the cows literally come home.  If I can do these next few poses, you better beleive I'm going to be capable of teaching someone something: I've chosen my favorite five: 

The Scorpion

Full Bow Pose

The Locust

The Peacock

And finally, one so intense they dont have an animal or object name:

The standing foot to head pose.



After a wonderful breakfast of fruits and cereal (About 1/10 of the caloric intake I'm used to), we headed to Philosophy. I swear it wouldnt be the whole experience if we didnt have a yogi named Roshan teaching us that the ancients had it right all this time and science is starting to prove it.  After introducing this fairy tale story of enlightenment yesterday, and promising us that we are all capable of finding it, he proceeds this lecture with reality: Why we cannot see who we 'really' are and have exactly what we want:

According to ancient wisdom there are three major barriers to seeing our true selves:

1. MALA.  if the mirror to our soul is dusty, we cannot see through it.

    *We give love or do things for people either conditionally or unconditionally.  Usually when we give, we expect something in return. Our generosity technically has conditions, like you want to get something for your offering .  It can cloud our vision, that need for immediate gratification and instant payback. We are not patient.  If we practice KARMA YOGA, we give unconditionally, we give without expecting anything in return, such as loving without condition. We will get everything we give out threefold...eventually. When we waste our time being miserable about our returns owed to us, it clouds our soul.

2.  VIKSHEP - Instability of the mirror

     *The mind is looking for happiness, it is constantly researching and collecting things but they dont make us happy, so we reject them and look for more things. We are never satisfied, jumping from one thing to another, never focusing on what we have at that moment..looking for the future and not appeciating the present.  If we practice BAKTI YOGA, the yoga of devotion...we are devoted to what is in the here and now, we live in the moment and put 100 percent into the present where we can enjoy what we have worked so hard for. We are stable, and therefore can see more clearly.

3. AVARAN  - Curtain over the mirror

     *The yogi's job is to clear away the curtain that veils wisdom, to show you the way.  You need a teacher who can show you the actual mirror, to show you that there is a conciousness there when you strip away the emotions and thoughts, that there really is something there worth finding...we humans tend to live in our pasts based on what we know..and if we aren't shown something new we will never be able to experience it.  Yogi's come in all types, from your therapist to the greatest sages in of all of India, to the great Buddha. We call that branch JNANA YOGA, the yoga of wisdom. Someone to help you remove the blinds.

Sounds easy, right? Just practice yoga of karma, yoga of devotion, and get yourself someone to show you the way, and you have exactly what you've been looking for in your life. huh.

I forgot my camera today so here is a random shot of the class, to keep you interested:

Not much else today, exept we sat out and got some sun...and yes, I brought my sunblock...I'm going to spend the next few days introducing you to some of the cool people I've met here, you wouldnt believe some of the life stories of these people...from a popular science magazine page designer to the wife of a radio celebrity in Macedonia who has been in the media since her high profile divorce, to the guy who wants to be in the UFC...these are some excellent people.

Another day done. Namaste! xoxo