The hundreds of species of birds each sing their own song. Sometimes they just sing. Sometimes, it seems they try to sing harmonically. There is a choir of lions roaring across the lake at the Lion Safari Jungle and the cows in the nearby village of Neyyar Dam moo for attention. Ironically I feel a deep sense of peace.
The Sivanada Yoga Ashram accommodates about 400 people all here for intensive Yoga practise and meditation. There are two satsang sessions daily and several hours of chanting.
We sleep in dormitories, men and women separately. It is a very beautiful ashram atop of the Sahyadri Hills in Neyyar Dam. The lake is a beautiful reservoir where we swim.
Staying in an ashram is very cheap! 450 rupees a day (that’s $11.00!) gets us room and board, 4 hours of yoga, 3 hours of learning about Yoga, and anything else that communal living has to offer.
We arrived here by motorcycle. We rented it in Varkala because we realized that our time in Southern India is running out and, although we wanted an ashram experience we didn’t have the time to deal with trains and buses and such. Renting a motorcycle was the most economical way to get there in consideration of time and money.
Of course, two days in an ashram is not near enough. Ashram life is very strict and I would suggest that, for me, I need more time to figure out how to break the rules respectfully.
It’s been wonderful practising Yoga with so many people. There is incredible energy that is generated when hundreds of people come together for meditation. Although this particular ashram didn’t excite me with it’s Hindu emphasis. I’m not much into worshipping deities and swamis. But I have found ways of making it work for me and my beliefs and the way that I see myself in the world.
So sometimes I refrain from some of the practises. For instance, I did not prostrate myself before Ganesh so that “he would remove all obstacles that might interfere with my reaching complete success towards my intent for the day.” I also did not bow down to the Sadhu so he or she could bless me and place a bindy on my forehead.
I watched for a while as others did, however, and allowed myself to open up. And then…here is what I did do:
I closed my eyes gently and sat still while everyone was lined up in the procession.
I thought about my experience in this life.
I immediately recognized what a beautiful world we live in. I thought about the intense energy the sun provides through it’s heat. I thought about the power of trees, the beauty they provide, the sense of protection and strength they offer, and the gift of the fruits they provide. I thought about the thousands of varieties of flowers that add colour and fragrance to our environment. I thought of the many waterways that are so deep, and take us from one place to another, and of the mystery of the moon that connects us all.
I did thank God for my amazing children…all of them…Those to whom I gave birth (the very nature of birth gives us the most special of connections), my stepchildren (what a miracle it is to have the kind of relationship we have developed) and to my grandchildren with whom I share a unique and different relationship and let me love in ways I’ve never loved before. They all bring me so much joy and love and excitement and they are my greatest teachers.
I did make sure to make eye contact with Paul from across the room, share a loving smile and a grateful sort of glance. My life is so enriched because of the kind of relationship we share and all the amazing things we do together. I am regularly in awe of the simple fact they we have found each other in this lifetime. We have grown so strongly together, and as individuals.
I did think with love about my many wonderful girl friends in Toronto and in New York and all over the world with whom I am able to share unique and important contact. And about my friends in general who enrich my life with spirituality and deep meaningful conversations and fun and love.
I did send out loving thoughts to my mom and dad and two brothers who make up my first primal family and gave me the start I needed.
I grounded myself in the positive energy deep in my own soul to remind myself that I am good and that I try my best to love with integrity and compassion in a world that is sometimes difficult and challenging. I reminded myself to trust in that goodness and to believe that I do, in fact, have that love in my core.
And I didn’t even stop there. I remembered Sajee’s teachings, and I thanked the food that I eat, the books that I read, the music that I hear, and the richness that my life provides for me.
And then, as the last people in the group offered their prayers to Ganesh, I joined everyone else, in the final Om chanting. There is enormous energy generated when we chant together. When all was finished we sang for peace…..“Shanti, Shanti, Shanti”. The first ‘shanti’, a gentle chant, and is for my own inner peace. The second, slightly more dynamic, is for peace within our extended community. The third ‘Shanti’ is loud and melodic, and is for peace for all living things in the entire universe!
Namaste
No comments:
Post a Comment