Morning Ayurvedic Mud Bath at the Yoga Retreat

 

A PIC IS WORTH 1,000 WORDS: PART I

A "City Bus" in Kathmandu. (Significantly smaller than an American SUV).

 

Roadside bathroom on the 8 hr bus ride to Pokhara

 

 

As a woman, the goal of effectively "aiming" was never a feat  I'd aspired  to.  However, it's one I can say I've effectively mastered while in Nepal.  (the bucket if for flushing). I know, TMI.

 

I am not a Foodie who normally takes pics.however this plate of tosadas & chicken parmegian are proof that there is more than Dahl bhat (rice & lentils) in Nepal

 

How do you sell Pashminas/Cashmere here?....

 

Yes, they roam free here too (just like in India, I understand)

 

 

The "Yogi Belly Roll"

Sadhana Yoga Retreat in Sedi Bagar, Day 3:
"The Yogi Belly Roll' which is  to exhale totally & pull your stomach in tightly, then roll from left to right. (Don't quite have this move down as of yet)

Yoga Retreat, Day 1:

The picture is of "fewa lake" in pokhara,  which I overlook.

Today I had my 1^st serious flashback to the movie, “Eat, pray, Love.”     I remembered the scene when Julia Robe3rts wakes up  on her first day in the indian ashram to her alarm clock at 4:30AM for meditation, looks at the clock with disgust, rolls over, & basically pulls the cover over her head

This morning the bell rang at 5:30 for meditation. (see above) J

We did exercises to stretch before beginning the pose we’d keep for an hr,  which I thought was good.  I’ve always considered myself better than the average person when it comes to understanding accents, however, in light of the fact that I am seriously not a morning person, it took every ounce of my be3ing to decipher the direction from the instructor (who made Deepak chopra’s accent seem like nothing)

The 1^st chant was “so-haam” which means something like “I am the supreme consciousness of god”, kind of cool.  Then we broke into “om”ing.  Being a beginning meditator, I fully anticipated my mind wandering & had no intention of beating myself up over internal chatter.  And So it was….. “i really like her yoga pants.  i wonder where she got them.” , “the girl behind me sounds like a sick cat wailing when she om’s.”,  “am i doing this right?”, “ my foot just fell asleep.”  “he’s kind of cute.”

1^ST YOGA CLASS: ASHANGA, THE OWNER & YOGA TEACHER, IS A SHINING EXAMPLE OF SOMEONE PURSUEING THEIR PURPOSE IN LIFE.  YOU CAN FEEL IT IN EVERY WORD HE SPEAKS.  HE EXPLAINED THE DETAILS OF WHY WE WERE DOING EACH POSE & BREATH.  BEING IN THE MEDICAL PROFESSION, I  THOROUGHLY APPRECIATE THE BREAKDOWN OF HOW WHAT I’M DOING AFFECTS THE BODY, AS WELL AS THE MIND/BODY CONNECTION .  HE SAID THE YOGA EXPLANATION IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE MEDICAL INTERPRETATION.  I LOVE BRIDGING THAT GAP.

 THE MUD BATH WAS AWESOME!!  WE GOT IN BATHING SUITS & SMEARED RED MUD ALL OVER OURSELVES, THEN BAKED LIKE A CLAY POT IN THE SUN UNTIL DRY, & RUBBED(SCRUBBE3D) IT OFF.  the whole thing took about 45 min.  In ayurvedic medicine, it is a detoxifying process (& astringent as well I think). 

Every Monday, ashanga’s wife  does a silent meditation for 24 hours & has for years.  She said it is good to go inside & be in touch with our inner life & inner world.  We are normally so externally focused.

 

I can honestly say, today has been one of the best days of my trip (& it’s only 3pm). I feel like my trip has just begun in a specific respect. in light of the fact that a major reason I’m here is introspection, I feel like in this retreat will make good on that promise I’ve made to myself

 

annie.

 

Rejuvination Time...

 

Hello from beauiful Pokhara! (actually Sedi Bagar)

The picture above is where I am over the course of the next 10 days , nestled in the mountainside (right now with a cool breeze coming in the window & listening to crickets)

It should be interesting. Even though as part of my previous alternative medicine practices, I've done both a five day fast on my own more than once & colonics through my nutritionist, have never combined them,  much less with yoga.

This is my itinerary ....

AM
05:30	Wakeup
05:45	Pre-Meditation practice
06:00	Meditation
07:00	Tea Break
07:15	Neti Kriya (Nasal Cleansing)
07:30	Morning Yoga
08:45	Mountain Hiking
09:45	Breakfast
10:30	Mud or Steam bath
PM
12:00	Pre-Meditation practice
12:15	Meditation (in class or on your own)
1:00	Lunch
3:00	Talk
3:30	Karma Yoga
4:00	Tea Break
4:30	Chanting
5:30	Evening Yoga
7:00	Dinner
8:00	Retiring

7th and 8th day will be fasting and general practice of yoga.
9th day will be total flushing day; Gastro-intestinal cleansing (Shanksprakshalana) and total rest afterward.
10th day will be practice of yoga and breathing exercises to ensure that everything is back to normal.
Morning of 11th day at 8:30 AM is farewell breakfast and departure

Just returned from the "orientation" which was soooo well organized, even got a bound 30 page book on the course. So far I am very impressed. We learned a peace prayer in Sanskrit & had one of the most amazing meals in my 30 days here.

The neti pot nasal cleansing is something I've tried before, & couldn't quite do(since I'm afraid of water, all that water rushing up my nostrils, felt like I was drowning while standing over the bathroom sink...lol) So, another great opportunity to stretch my comfort zone!

Namaste from Nepal...

Annie

When in Rome....Itinerary Detour...

Happy Thursday from Kathmandu...

Since I've been sick for a week now with some respiratory ailment, I believe due to a combo of inhaling Kathmandu soot for a month & almost no protein in my diet, I'm taking a detour. 

When you're in one of the areas in the world which founded yoga,  it just plain makes sense to get better by going to a cleansing yoga retreat.

After a month at the hostel, I'm taking a mini weekend  & treating myself to a nicer hotel in Pokhara, which is 7 hours by bus from Kathmandu, on a lake, for 3 days (& to go in search for some serious meat to eat),

http://www.barahi.com/

(4 star hotel at $60/night)

Then, Oct 15-25, going to the retreat.

http://www.sadhana-asanga-yoga.com/yoga-holiday.html

(Lonely Planet names this place #25 of over 141,000 things to do in the world, not a bad review)

Should be shiny & new to come back to Kathmandu for my last 2 weeks before entering Kopan.

Be well....
Annie

The Nuts & Bolts of theTrip

The Purpose of the Trip:  `

 

From Boardroom to Buddhism, The Nuts & Bolts of it:

From Boardroom:
I had a job where I was in charge of 2 businesses & 33 employees.  I pushed myself to the brink of what is humanly possible, working 12 hr days for up to 30 days straight. I was there on Christmas Eve & Day.  I barely had time to do laundry, pay bills & get groceries.  I thought about it from the time my eyes opened in the morning to the second I fell asleep at night.  I had completely lost any sense of balance in my life.  I felt like I had so much riding on the success of this job, having moved across the country for it & would put every ounce of effort I had to make it work. 

 When I decided to quit & had left, it was like a runaway train coming to a screeching halt.  My body & mind had been constantly functioning at at such an intense speed for 9 months, & now I got up & didn’t have a full time job to go to.  I was in “career detox.,” literally coming down from the grueling pace of life I’d created.

“Career Detox”: The 5 month Transition:

 

·         Luckily, I had kept my foot in the door with my previous job.  I quickly picked up hours at multiple sites, met & worked with so many wonderful people, & had time to contemplate & plan the trip I’m on.

 

·          I took long, meditatiave walks along the ocean where I cleared my mind.

 

·         A handful of times, I attended meditation & lectures at a Buddhist temple.

 To Buddhism

·         Compassion: After the 9 month job, not only did inner peace & tranquility sound good, but compassion as well.  I’m in the health care field & I think it takes someone with a certain amount of innate compassion to enter such a career.  I’m talking about inner compassion for oneself as well.

·         Happiness: I’m looking forward to learning what the Buddhists consider happiness & seeing the good in situations without the denial of your circumstances. 

…And Beyond:

·         Every work place has a boatload of different personalities to deal with, some more challenging than others. There are bosses, peers, employees, & in my case, patients.

·         And today, just about every job comes with an amount of stress.  You may not be able to take the stress out of the job, but you can change the way it affects you & the way you react to it.

·         I would like to think I can not only utilize the tools I plan to learn in studying Buddhism for my own benefit, but intend for it to spill over into my professional life, & to take Buddha to work with me daily in my management style. 

·         Part of the “Code of Ethics” of my company is to “Take care of the employee.”  I hope to return  & incorporate  a whole new aspect of that concept through more patience, empathy, & compassion.