Lotus Pose? Maybe in my next life...

Today went to a nearby city, Trimbak. It took an hour of briskly walking on small paths, through huge fields, to get there (didn't see any cobras along the way). There were several tiny houses along the path, and the people were very surprised to see a foreigner walking in such a rural area. I went to a beautiful temple and walked around the grounds for a while - it was made from bright white stone, with beautiful artwork and architecture! This week was also the festival of colors, and there is still powder all over the streets. We didn't throw colors at the ashram, but we did have a bonfire and singing :)

Here are some of the other things that are exciting to me, though they're small and fairly inconsequential: Watching the stars at night (I see them both when I start yoga practice in the morning and when I eat dinner). Drinking cold guava juice when it's a billion degrees outside. Seeing toads, mice, lizards, bats, and owls around the ashram (the mosquitoes are truly evil).Washing up (from a bucket) and putting delicious-smelling coconut oil on my feet after walking around the dusty ashram barefoot all day. Best of all, the fact that I finally stayed awake during one of our meditation-type sessions yesterday (we wake up at 5am, workout, eat, and then they make us lay down in a dim room with our eyes closed, listening to a soft voice... what do you expect?!).


So, I'm halfway through my yoga course, and I wish it was longer because I'm not sure how I'll be ready to teach a full lesson in two weeks! We teach mini-lessons everyday, and so far I have led several prayers and mantras and "Om" chanting (all in Sankrit) and I have taught several poses to my peers. Doing yoga is easy... teaching yoga is surprisingly hard. Every day we have two yoga asana (pose) classes, and we do chanting, breathing techniques, and attend several lectures. It is all interesting, but I have a hard time focusing during chanting and breathing. I love all the asanas, except for Lotus Pose... it's the bane of my existence (see picture below). Luckily, it's not required that I master it here, otherwise I'd be doomed!

Oh, so I injured my wrist and can't put any weight on it... luckily it doesn't hurt at all when I'm not using it, and I have a brace, so it will be ok! At first I was devastated, but we are never supposed to push our bodies too much when we do the asanas, so my teacher is fine with me not practicing the few poses that would make my wrist worse. In fact, she said to use this experience as a learning opportunity, so I'm doing my best!

I have enjoyed learning about yogic philosophy during my time here. Yoga is not a religion - rather, yoga is a philosophy and a way of life that works in harmony with any religion. Practicing the poses (which is the only thing most of us really know about) is a small part of yogic life. The basic aim of yoga is to create balance between our mind, spirit, and body, and they do this through healthful eating, peaceful living, and trying to become connected with God or The Universe through prayer, mantras, meditation, etc. It's an admirable lifestyle, and I am glad to be in this environment! Sending love from India!