I am in Tuscany with my friend Patrizia Gavoni to retreat and collaborate on the AlohaSi project coming soon to the US……
Please check out the article on the Italian Yoga Journal and our video ( in Italian, of course!)
Floating on a houseboat along the Kerala backwaters was one of the most relaxing experiences yet as I sat watching the village life unfold : women and man fish right in front of their homes, coconut fish curry smells waft in the air, and between quiet moments of timelessness speakers from Hindu temples,mosques and Christian churches blare chant like prayers in the air.
In the morning everyone steps in the water and washes and scrubs themselves first,then the women soap and beat the clothes on big flat rocks. Water for cooking comes from the same place and after eating everything gets washed right there, in the fresh waters of the ‘backwaters’.
You spent the first half of your life becoming somebody. Now spend time working on becoming nobody – which is really somebody. For when you become nobody, there is no tension, no pretense, no one trying to be anyone or anything. The natural state of the mind shindes through unobstructed – and the natural state of the mind is pure love. (Ram Dass)
Aldermarsh Retreat Center on Whidbey Island provides a soothing, spectacular venue for a weekend of yoga, relaxation, and rejuvenation. Asana, pranayama, and meditation practices will be accessible to all. Those new to yoga will be gently guided toward the opening that the practice of yoga can offer, and more experienced students will find challenge and support for their on-going practice.
Aging brings with it the joys of experience, the challenges of changing bodies, and an opening to the possibility of a healthy, spiritually supported life. As the constraints of “the householder years” begin to fall away, we can learn to see this time of life as exciting, uplifting and filled with laughter and love. Open to the possibility that you are entering now the BEST part of your life, and feed your mind and body as you join us in this retreat experience.
The retreat will begin at 5:00 pm Friday evening and end after lunch Sunday.
Bringing their many collective years of movement, music, and embodiment explorations together, collaborators Lara McIntosh, Chiara Guerrieri, and Marla Simms invite you to their Spring Tuning retreat at the Kalani Oceanside Retreat Center on the Big Island of Hawaii. Five days in paradise seeding a new season, with joyful dance, customized yoga and body mechanics, meditation, and non-violent communication.
We will:
About the Facilitators
LARA MCINTOSH is a performer, teacher, choreographer, and perennial student, Lara is also an active member of Seattle’s dance, public art, and cultural communities. Under the name Wassa Dance, Lara blends a mix of Afro-infused and American dance styles which are greatly inspired by lifelong studies and and travels to Brazil and Mail, West Africa. She explores rhythm, spirit, craft, and community to unlock the movement potential in each person. “Wassa Sangare” is the Bambara name Lara received during her first visit to Mali. “Wassa” means “one who acts for joy and fulfillment.” Her curiosity about movement, creativity, and cultures, combined with a feep lovefor music are livelong muses.
MARLA SIMMS started her love affair with the human body and its magic from the inside out. She experienced the boldness and explosive energy of a gymnast in her youth. She then turned to the focus of exploration of other’s bodies through the study and practice of massage. She has been a massage practitioner and massage educator for 20 years. As an educator, she pursues a better understanding of the soft tissues of the human body and how they react (however subtly) to the stresses and challenges of life and living. For Marla, the body continues to be a venue of art, joy, and discovery.
CHIARA GUERRIERI began studying Yoga to rehabilitate and strengthen her core after a car accident; she continues to practice and teach yoga as a way to heal the separation between body and mind. Chiara teaches us how to breathe, how to connect the breath with the body, how to track physical sensations from moment to moment, and how to find internal wisdom as body, breath, and mind work together to inspire our practice. Chiara’s classes are accessible to anyone with a basic background in yoga. She has a strong interest in injury evaluation and treatment, and welcomes students recovering from injury or other physical pain. She has studied Hypnosis and Neuro Linguistic Programming; she uses her language skills to weave trances that wake us from our routines, allowing us to explore new pathways. Chiara is a licensed massage therapist, practicing since 1983. She teaches yoga anatomy for Yoga teacher training courses, and the principles of non-violent communication.
About Kalani Oceanside Retreat Center
Kalani Oceanside Retreat Center is located in the district of Puna, which is on the southeast coast, surrounded by the mountains, jungle, sea and volcano — the natural elements give rise to the countless legends and myths within the Hawaiian Islands. Across the road from Kalani, dramatic lava cliffs which offer breath taking views of the sunrise, turtles, dolphins, whale watching and a short walk to the nearest black sand beach.
For pricing and registration information click here:
I have found a great new location near Florence and would like to know when YOU would like to be there…..I am thinking May-September 2013.
The ancient art of Ayurveda
Two weeks of relaxing India: can you imagine that?
We will start with a week on the beach at a beautiful Ayurvedic facility……..
The facility is right by the beach…..
Every day simple yoga, treatments,walks on the beach…..
The next week we will go on long boat rides just sitting on pillows, watching life unfold……
Then……a trip to an Ashram near by……
The hugging Mother…..
I will be there in January for three weeks.: if you have an interest in this possibility to enjoy India at its most relaxing pace let me know…
Few forms of escapism are as wholesome as yoga. As its millions of acolytes attest, regular yoga practice not only alleviates stress and improves strength and flexibility (recent reports even credit it for enhanced sexual health), it’s also an activity that can be done just about anywhere. Just taking a smartphone-free hour to practice sun salutations can feel like a mini-vacation.
But even for the yogically inclined, more than an hourlong getaway is sometimes necessary. It’s certainly alluring, especially when there are so many options for rolling up your sticky mat and dashing off to an exotic locale.
These days, there are yoga retreats that cater to every ability level and goal. Some, like the Ayurvedic Rejuvenation Retreat at Shreyas Resort in Bangalore, emphasize the traditional, holistic benefits of yoga (participants receive health and dietary consultations, plus personalized ayurvedic spa treatments, along with their classes). Others, like Yada Yada Yoga’s Bespoke Yoga Retreat at the St. Regis Bahia Beach, offers guests the opportunity to combine yoga with other activities like paddleboarding, kayaking and hiking, while others offer it as a double bill with music, photography and cultural study.
Whether the goal is serenity or invigoration, ancient traditions or innovative approaches, here are five places to make your escape.
Boutique yoga agency Yada Yada Yoga has teamed up with the St. Regis Bahia Beach to create this retreat, which offers daily instruction by a Yada Yada yogi set against the expansive natural backdrop of the five-star resort, which is the first and only gold-certified Audubon Signature Sanctuary in Puerto Rico. Classes are taught in the Forrest yoga style, which works to overcome physical and emotional blocks; in between, guests can discover the 483-acre property and its wildlife through hiking, biking and guided bird watching. Not in the bird mood? Lounge beachside, take a plunge in the resort’s seafront pool or linger in the spa’s garden after indulging in a treatment. From $1,575; June 15–18; 954-624-1784.
According to the Mayan calendar, this year’s winter solstice will mark the dawn of a new spiritual era for mankind; yoga resort Maya Tulum is celebrating with a weeklong retreat, incorporating yoga, meditation and Mayan culture. Guests will practice yoga twice a day, visit nearby Mayan ruins and take part in ceremonial drumming and a shaman-led Aztec energy dance. Those looking for a little less adventure can opt to explore the resort’s beaches (which lie along the world’s second-longest coral reef) or indulge in a Mayan-influenced spa treatment.From $2,360; October 27–November 3; mayatulum.com.
This retreat, set in Australia’s most famous spiritually minded community, aims to treat the whole self: daily classes in yoga, Pilates, meditation and pranayama are augmented by massage, Yoga Nidra (deep relaxation) and organic vegan ayurvedic cuisine. The centerpiece of the program is Core Energetics Body Psychotherapy, designed to put students in touch with the mind-body-spirit connection; those who need a day off, though, may find a stroll along one of Byron Bay’s lovely surfing beaches, or the wooded nature trails at Cape Byron Headland Preserve, just as healing. From $1,595; March 30–April 4; yogahealthretreats.com.
Top-flight musical acts, the biggest names in yoga and several thousand fans of both converge at this annual three-day festival in North Lake Tahoe (others take place in Colorado, Vermont and Canada). The roster of celebrity yogis teaching at this year’s festival includes Shiva Rea, John Friend and Schuyler Grant (Wanderlust’s cofounder); the musical acts include Ziggy Marley and Beats Antique. Many festival attendees choose to camp during their stay, but with penthouse suites in the Resort at Squaw Creek available right up the road, why rough it? Tickets from $475; July 26–29; wanderlustfestival.com; squawcreek.com.
Yoga is literally transporting at this retreat, which takes place aboard a ten-cabin traditional Turkish sailing yacht as it cruises the Mediterranean. After practicing yoga in the open air on the yacht’s sundeck, guests can dive overboard for snorkeling and kayaking, and visit ancient ruins, Greek isles and a traditional Turkish hammam. Yoga Cruise arranges trips throughout the year, but in October, the company will celebrate the maiden voyage of a new, additional luxury yacht. From $1,175; October 7–14; yogacruise.net.
(by Susi Hately, Functional Synergy)
Earlier this week, I received a request from a Facebook Fan to comment on a recent New York Times article, How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body, that has created quite a stir in the yoga world. I posted a short comment on my facebook page, with a promise to fill it out later …
And, here is my take.
Yoga is amazing. All of us yoga teachers have been awed by watching what can happen with yoga. And, when not done appropriately, major problems can occur. You would be shocked with how many emails I receive each week from yoga teachers – from the “rock star” yoga teachers, as well as from teachers who are “less known”. They ask questions with a similar theme . . . “why is my back sore, I do yoga!” As I share the mechanics of what is happening, I also add….”it is because you do yoga that your back is sore”.
Y’see the trouble is two fold. First, we have to remember that we are westerners pursuing an eastern philosophical movement program that has important tenets (yamas and niyamas) as the foundation. If we follow those tenets, we’ll progress in our practice – in all its forms – physically, mentally, and spiritually. Second, we need to consider the term “Asana” which, when loosely translated means, “sitting comfortably and still”. This means, that no matter the asana you are practicing, are you “sitting comfortably and still” or are you in “tension”?
Consider your practice – when you are in Warrior 1, Warrior 3, Triangle, Headstand, Downward Dog, or any other myriad of asanas, are you in tension? If you are. . . you aren’t practicing yoga . . you are “doing fitness”.
It sets up an interesting predicament, doesn’t it? A predicament which has me understand and have compassion for why it is so difficult for yoga practitioners in the West “to get it”.
I am all for a physical challenge, and for the mental and spiritual stretch required to see my “blind spots” so that those things that restrict or limit me can be resolved; just as I enjoy practicing with energy and prana and transcending the physical plane. But truth be told, the physical plane is where we live, and Newton’s laws still reign true. Biomechanics and Kinesiology are facts of life on this earthly plane, and we need to honour their principles. If you don’t honour them, you will suffer the consequences.
Does this mean that “some people should give up yoga all together” as written about in the article? Well, that assumes that yoga consists only of the physical postures in their classic form. Perhaps in those times of injury, it is actually time to read up and embody the yamas and niyamas so the journey back to the mat, the journey back to living the life you want to live, through great yoga therapy and then modified asanas, is one of exploration, curiosity and awe.