Journey to Rameshwaram

On the third Friday off I joined the group trip in making a journey to Rameshwaram, one of the holiest places in India. The nearly 6-hour bus ride left the ashram at 5am and somehow we were all still in good spirits by the time we reached the southern coast.

Before we relaxed in the sand we had a spiritual mission to complete ... leaving all of our belongings behind in the bus, we headed straight to the sea at Agnitheertham to symbolically cleanse ourselves in the bay of Bengal. We descended the stairs into the water fully clothed and submerged ourselves 3 times as a puja to honor our ancestors.

image: www.team-bhp.com

Then we walked a few blocks across the town to Sri Ramanathasvamy Temple for more ritual cleansing. This temple was a maze of vaulted hallways connecting ancient stone wells, or tirthas, each dedicated to different deities or divine virtues. 

As we walked through the temple stopping at each well for a different blessing, the well-keepers would pull up a bucket and dump it on your head! The energy in the water was amazing, and you could actually feel and taste the slight differences between them. We left feeling rejuvenated and revived physically, mentally and spiritually.

After a quick meal we continued on our journey south to Dhanushkodi (in Tamil:  தனுஷ்கோடி meaning 'end of bow') just 18 miles west of Sri Lanka. But the next leg of the trip would require more advanced transportation.. We left our bus behind and rented 2 sand-and-sea vehicles to take us to the deserted beach town at the end of Pamban Island. 

The off-road buses jetted over the small dunes and we all held on for the intense ride. Pretty soon we reached a point where the sand ended and the buses plunged right into the sea with no hesitation. We were all shocked by the time we were going around boats and watching the sea level rise on the side of the bus! But the drivers seemed to know what they were doing, at least they were fearless about it and kept up their apparent race to the furthest beach we could access! It was quite amazing really, and after driving on for about 45 minutes we realized that we were literally going to be the only people at the beach. But by the time we got to the beach we only had about an hour to relax before our long ride back to the ashram!!

~ The journey is always the destination ~

Exploring Madurai City & Meenakshi Amman Temple

The first week we had a day off on Friday and I made the journey into town with a few other women. We enjoyed taking the local bus where we were able to see lots of interesting people, and by lots I mean at times the bus was so full there were people standing on the steps and even outside hanging onto the door! The man collecting bus fare kept telling us to go back more, but there was clearly nowhere to go!

The city was full of energy, motorbikes & rickshaws going in every direction honking incessantly! But I was convinced there must be some order to their chaos, I just wasn't initiated into the rules of their roads. We indulged in coffee and dosa for breakfast then went shopping for souvenirs, sweets and some basic necessities.

It was on our second trip to town the following week that we had time to visit the famous Meenakshi Amman Temple, dedicated to Parvati (Meenakshi) and her consort Shiva (Sundareswarar). Originally built in the 7th century, the temple was almost completely destroyed by Islam conquerors in 1310, and then rebuilt in the late 14th century. I was shocked to realized the size of the compound, housing 14 pillars (the tallest being 140 feet!) and 33,000 sculptures!!! We were able to hire a tour guide to take us through the Thousand Pillars Hall, which also serves as a museum.

aerial photo from Wikipedia

1 of the 14 pillars, Indian architecture is extremely ornamental, covering every possible surface with brightly colored relief sculptures which tell the stories of the residing deities

Inside the complex there are vendors selling fruit & snacks, souvenirs, photos, books, incense & flowers for offerings. We showed our respects to Ganesha and enjoyed the tour through the various temples, shrines and I particularly enjoyed the Mediation Hall ~ a quiet corner of the temple where visitors could come and enjoy the ancient energy.

Vedantic Philosophy & Practice of the Yogic Lifestyle

"Health is wealth.. Peace of mind is happiness.. Yoga shows the way"

The Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Organization was founded by Swami Vishnudevananda, disciple of Swami Sivananda, with a mission to spread world peace by celebrating unity in diversity and using the practice of yoga to first develop inner peace. The teachings are based in Vedanta, a collection of foundational texts from the Vedic period, 1500 - 600 BCE, including the Upanishads, Brahma Sutras & Bhagavad Gita. The goal of the philosophy is to create a union between the individual and the Supreme ~ the highest goal of yoga is to achieve Universal Consciousness and to see the Divine in ones self and in all others.

5 Points of Yoga

1. Proper Exercise (Asana) ~ maintaining a strong body, promoting circulation & flexibility

2. Proper Breathing (Pranayama) ~ conscious breath to reduce stress & disease, rejuvenate cells & control the mind

3. Proper Relaxation (Savasana) ~ maintain calm and avoid fatigue or injury

4. Proper Diet ~ eating simple, healthy vegetarian foods that are easy to digest and have a positive effect on the mind and body as well as the environment and other living beings

5. Positive Thinking & Meditation ~ creating a path for peace and joy in the body and mind

4 Paths of Yoga

Karma Yoga ~ Selfless service with the attitude that "Work is Worship" having no attachment to the fruits of your labor.

Bhakti Yoga ~ Joyful devotion to God, transmuting your emotions into unconditional love of the Divine. The easiest and most direct path to true realization & liberation.

Raja Yoga ~ The science of physical and mental control through Ashtanga (8 limbs of Raja Yoga) thus harnessing spiritual energy.

Jnana Yoga ~ The yoga of knowledge or wisdom whereby liberation is achieved through self inquiry and study.

Benefits of the 12 Basic Asanas

1.  Sirshasana - headstand 

The "king" of all asanas, or steady poses, the supported headstand is an inversion that promotes circulation, strengthens the abdomen, shoulders & biceps. 

2.  Sarvangasana - shoulderstand 

This meditative inversion supports the heart and stimulates the thyroid, parathyroid and entire lymphatic system.

3.  Halasana - plough 

A deep variation of a forward bend, this pose elongates and strengthens the entire back of the body.

4.  Matsyasana - fish 

A counter pose to halasana, this pose opens the front body, expands the chest & lungs and strengthens the upper arms & shoulders. 

5.  Paschimotanasana - sitting forward bend 

Elongating the spine and giving an intense stretch to the back of the legs, in this pose the yogi practices detachment and uses the breath to go deeper into the asana. 

6.  Bhujangasana - cobra

The first pose in a series of back bends, cobra strengthens the lower back while avoiding over-extension. 

7.  Salabhasana - full locust 

This back bend opens the throat chakra and strengthens the arms & back while challenging the yogi to maintain relaxed determination & focus. 

8.  Dhanurasana - bow 

The final back bend in the sequence works all of the back muscles simultaneously while opening the shoulders & chest and giving a gentle massage the internal organs. 

9.  Ardhamatsyendrasana - half spinal twist 

This lateral twist aligns the spine, increasing flexibility & mobility the pose also nourishes the spinal nerves & the sympathetic nervous system and increases the digestive fire.

11. Padahastasana - standing forward bend

This standing pose utilizes gravity in unison with the breath to elongate the spine, stretch the legs and provide increased blood flow to the brain. 

12. Trikonasana - triangle

This standing lateral stretch increases the flexibility of the legs, hips, shoulders & spine while expanding the side body. 

Savansana - final relaxation

The most important asana of every class, in savasana the yogi is able to integrate all the benefits of the postures and absorb the energy that was created to find physical, mental & spiritual relaxation.

Sivananda Meenaksi Ashram

I spent the first night in Chennai then booked a bus to Madurai, which was unsurprisingly delayed by a few hours and we arrived in the city with nightfall. Rickshaw drivers were eagerly waiting outside the bus so I followed the first one to his vehicle and he loaded in my 50lbs of luggage and I climbed in the back with my over-sized & ripping backpack. He assured me he knew where the ashram was, as he used to work there. I knew it was over 20 km out of the city so it would be a bit of a ride... as we drove on and on, darkness quickly entrenched the road and we could only see a few meters ahead where the single light from his motorcycle dimly lit our path. We finally stopped at a dark, nondescript gate and the driver motioned me to get out.. feeling totally sure this was wrong I asked him if he could find someone for me, he shouted out something in Tamil and pretty soon an old man appeared and explained we were at the old ashram and would have to continue driving a bit further. We drove on and finally arrived at the correct location! After such an eventful journey, I was so happy when I finally arrived at the reception office!!

My Teachers' Training Course (TTC) had 58 students, with about half of them being Indian. We were initiated with a beautiful puja fire ceremony where we set the intentions for the month and invoked Ganesha to remove all obstacles from our path. We each made an offering of flowers & ghee (purified butter) to the fire as the priest performed the ancient ceremony.

No time was wasted and our schedule made sure that we had our full attention devoted to the studies at hand. We were only allowed internet access for 1 hour per day, and in addition to the daily schedule we were also expected to write summaries of the lectures as well as a page of personal reflection on our experience which were handed in to Swami Satchidananda daily. My swamiji was a very intelligent and interesting Indian who would use a lot of stories from his own life, American scientific discovery, as well as from the Hindu tradition to illustrate his lectures. He made it clear that he was there to serve us in any and every way possible and he gave us written feedback on all of our papers and offered to meet with us anytime that we needed help, support, guidance, or more explanation about the lectures. He also offered an optional week long meditation course which I found to be extremely helpful as we explored the depth of the practice, techniques and shared our experiences within the small group.

Daily Schedule:
5:30 am Wake Up Bell
6:00 am Satsang (silent meditation, kirtan/chanting, short lesson)
7:30 am Tea Time
8:00 am Asana Teaching
10:00 am Brunch
11:00 am Karma Yoga (selfless service)
1:00 pm Vedanta Lecture
3:00 pm Asana Coaching
3:30 pm Tea Time
4:00 pm Asana Practice
6:00 pm Dinner
8:00 pm Satsang

Every Thursday night we had a concert, we were given Friday's off, and Saturday nights were "Talent Show" night! This gave us a chance to get to know each other and enjoy ourselves a bit between studying and running from class to class!

Here is a video of an amazing family that came to perform at the ashram ~ amazing the way the energy builds through the song!

Leaving the Land of Smiles...Welcome to India!!

Setting out on any new adventure is a lesson in letting go and opening yourself up to the divine nature of change and transformation. saying goodbye to the amazing friends i made in thailand was difficult and made me all the more aware of how lucky I am. I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the beautiful people and places i have grown to love who helped me make Suratthani my home for 18 months. thank you to everyone who has inspired me with your courage, compassion and confidence - until our paths meet again!! chok dee na ka 

En Route to Madurai, India via Chennai International Airport I felt a rush of emotions as I was closing a chapter of my life that had been soo powerful and left me with a feeling that I was a completely different person than the girl who packed her bags with all the wrong clothes and none of the supplies that would have been helpful for teaching :)

Now I was ready to start the next chapter, heading to southern India for a 1-month intensive yoga teachers' training course at the Sivananda Meenakshi Ashram in Madurai. When I landed at the airport I was expecting a taxi from my hotel (the main reason I booked this place for the one night was because they offered airport pickup and I was arriving after dark). I waited in the specified location for someone to show up with my name on a sign.. but an hour later no one arrived. After a hard bargain I finally got a driver to agree to take me the 2 miles to my hotel (address listed was "#13 Behind Airport") but after I got in the car with 2 men it dawned on me that the car I was in really wasn't even a taxi....After a hectic ride thru the rain that included lots of shouting and honking I got out at my hotel and was greeted by a huge cow in my face eating trash from the alley! Ahhhh welcome to India :)

Not my photo but basically what i saw when i stepped out at my hotel!! image from: pocketfulofmosey.wordpress.com