Gosaikunda, the power of the Himalayas. By Gaby

Bharaivkund lake frozen

It is difficult to express fully the experience of walking to Gosaikunda and my experience may not be that of everyone as I have cultivated a life long relationship with the mountains but with the Himalaya and its connection to yoga even more so recently. 

Gosaikund is not like any place, it is a sacred place and has been fed with people's faith, imagination and myth as much as with water form the glacier of the Langtang region. 

Gosaikund is born from the Trishul (trident) of Lord Shiva, after he had swallowed the poison liberated from the churning of the Ocean of Milk (see Samudra Manthan) Lord Shiva felt so thirsty that he needed fresh water immediately, he poked his Trishul into a mountain and drank from the water springing forth. The same spring created the lake known as Gosaikund. It is believed that both sacred river of Kathmandu Valley the Baghmati and the Vishnumati, originating form the Sivapuri hill, north of the city, get their water from Gosaikund. It is also said that the area has 108 lakes...

The lament of the lakes in their prison of ice echoes the lament of my soul in its prison of flesh

In December the lakes are frozen. At dawn or dusk, with change of temperature the ice dilates or retract and cracks. As a result, the lake is chanting and the sound is like the chants of the whales or a musical saw. The first time I heard I was struck: the complaint echoed in the mountains around, something out of this world. I had to listen many more time to figure out what it was. The next day we walked to see as many lakes as possible. We reached a point were we were surrounded by 4 lakes, Gosaikund, Bharaivkund, Kyumachkund and Chandrakund. In the early morning, all the lakes were chanting like talking to each other, each with a different voice. As I sat in silence listening, feeling the vibration deep inside my chest, I had the feeling that the lakes were speaking to me. Not me as an separated individual but me as a part of the universe. The moment was powerful and emotional, at this moment he above words came to me: the lament of the lakes in their prison of ice echoes the lament of my soul in its prison of flesh.

Silence is one, undivided, eternal

Beyond the lament of the lake their were few noisy distraction: the place was amazingly silent. Almost no wind which is rare at this altitude and season. They were moments of silence so deep that your breath and heartbeat became the most noisy part of this universe. I started to listen with concentration to the silence and here too I heard these words: "I am the silence, I am you, you listen to me with your ears but I am also inside of you. The silence you hear now and the silence you seek in meditation are one. Listen to me and you will know what to look for. Listen inside you, you will find me there too."

Between Infinitely big and Infinitely small

Nothing seems to be at human scale in the Himalaya. The sky and mountains are humbling in their size. Almost nu human or animal life, like an invitation to turn toward the small. It is a feast for all the senses here, we walk on plants called Sunpati (the Tibetan burn them in honor to the Gods) and their spicy smell is entrancing, the symphony of color is amazing bright yellow, orange, red, gold... the lichen, moses, flowers, grass offer all kind of textures for the touch from the smooth ice, the rugged rock, the soft cotton like flowers. All these details seems to tell you to turn away from the gross and to focus on the subtle, another form of inner journey.

A dip in a holy (and icy) lake is always a transformative experience!

Spiritual inclination

All through the journey I had this quote from Albert Einstein in mind: "Do not look for miracle, your entire life is a miracle". From the lake echoing the lament of my soul looking for freedom, to the silence mirroring the silence of meditation, the infinitely small grabbing your attention to look inside, all these messages made the trip so magical. My meditation up there was like the lakes, profound and still, it was different, there was a deeper clarity about it.

If the mind is talking but it cannot resist the transformation process that is taking place, much beyond the mind, it is making an ultimate attempt to resist but it already knows the silence that is coming.

Love and Light from Kathmandu!

Don’t panic, you’re free, the sky is limitless. By Shannon Lough.

Everyone once and a while someone will tell you to “have a little faith” and for a moment you release into the hope that yes, everything will work out. Even with all the uncertainties, and the slight knot of panic that burrows inside when you think about the future, you submit yourself to that little bit of faith.

Faith, a word that denotes God, the Divine, or complete spiritual devotion in intangible concepts. You don’t have to be religious to have faith. It’s simply an act of submission. An act of complete trust in someone or something without any expectations or demands. 

In Yoga, there are specific rules of conduct to follow called niyamas, as compiled by Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras. Of the five niyamas, the first four being purity, contentment, austerity, and self-study, the final is the most abstract at first: Isvara Pranidhana, which asks for complete surrender to God or the Divine to achieve Samadhi. Through this surrender you can achieve an elevated state of consciousness when you connect with the universe. How does this apply to our lives?

Isvara Pranidhana is the faith that we need to embrace. When the present becomes disturbed by thoughts that drift into apprehensions about the future, allow yourself to open up to the idea of surrendering. We cling onto our structured lives, the safety bubble that we lock ourselves into because it seems like a sure thing. Sometimes we find ourselves outside of that bubble, whether you’ve just finished university, a contracted job abroad, or a career. You’ve been released from the safety net that let you sleep comfortably at night. You’re like a free bird that doesn’t know where to find its flock. Don’t panic, you’re free, the sky is limitless. This is the best time to listen to the wind, and the signs that the universe lays out before you and invites you on your path. 

The concept of the Divine turns some away. It seems too religious and enigmatic for the secular world we live in the West today. In regions of India and Nepal, you can witness daily rituals by the locals, surrendering to their definition of their Divine, through puja’s or acts of worship. They ring bells, light candles, chant mantras, send silent prayers to divine images and maintain their altars. In Japan, you see the locals walking in silent meditation through the forest as they sweep the path, or standing before the a temple, and washing themselves in the ash of incense and removing their shoes before prostrating themselves before the Buddha. These are acts of submission, of humbly disrobing the ego-self and embracing the divinity in themselves.

Even in a secular society, we can let go and search for the divinity inside ourselves by connecting to the universe. It’s all about perspective, and how you choose to define the Divine. Instead of thinking of a theoretical being, identify it with what you know. The miracles that are already present inside our own bodies, our beating heart, expanding lungs, our untapped mind. The miracles around us, in nature, the cycles of the moon and the pull of the ocean’s tide, the smell of the forest and the shelter it provides for so many beings, a rolling field of flowers and the powerful presence of a mountain range. Even the miracle of our technology, in the brilliance of the city lights, the sound of communication in the buzz of a mobile phone, or laptop. In moments of obscurity, instead of being the rock, allow yourself to be the stream. Listen to the flow that moves within and outside of you. If you let go, and give trust to surrender completely into universe, it will guide you. Listen to it’s presence and you will find your way.

Cherry blossom petals are falling

Beautiful like snowflakes.

The remaining rest do cling.

Without knowing their destiny. (Zen proverb)

Shannon Lough is a 200RYT, who completed her yoga and Thai massage training with Yogi-Nomad in Nepal.  She practices daily, and follows the principles of Tibetan and Zen Buddhism, after traveling to India and living in Japan for three years.  She is a marathon runner, a hardy backpacker, and an avid writer.  If you have any questions or comments please email her at s.a.lough@gmail.com 

Self Love for Valentines day! By Shannon Lough.

Happy Valentines Day everyone! A day of roses, romance or repulsion. If you’re with someone, it’s full of expectation that your special someone has to do something for you, or else they don’t really care. If your single, you cringe at the excessive PDAs (public displays of affection), overplayed diamond ads, and gaudy material items being sold at every corner. 

This year, instead of loving or hating Valentine’s Day, I’m going to use it as an opportunity to foster my yogi values from the great Patanjali. Ages ago, this legend compiled the Yoga Sutras, and set out the foundations of yoga philosophy. One of the keys to reaching liberation and clearing the mind is to overcome the Kleshas, or afflictions of the mind that make us suffer in this life. I want to focus on two of these Kleshas.

Raga - desire, wanting. That which makes us chase only what is pleasurable in our minds, and makes us want to repeat the experience continuously. Like, having a wildly romantic romp with your lover, after a candle-lit dinner followed by chocolate dipped strawberries. Every year, you want this experience, or better, and you’re drawn to this particular date because it’s a special time when you can relive that moment. 

Dwesha - repulsion. The opposite of raga, it makes us run from the undesirable and unpleasant. It’s full of disgust, negativity, and blocks us in moving forward. So you hate the idea of anything that screams lovey-dovey, because you might throw up a little. It makes you despise this particular holiday because it makes you feel nothing but hurt and disappointment inside.

The Kleshas are afflictions of the mind. Not the heart. Valentine’s Day is just another day that we decide whether we like it or not. The day itself is just a perception that we have created in amongst our many afflictions. We suffer because we allow this day to take on an importance in our lives. We are stronger than that. We don’t let society create our expectations. Instead, let go and let it be as it is. It’s a day of love, so love fully and consciously. 

I’m usually the cringing type that loves to bad mouth February the 14th, but secretly I always hope something special and unexpected will happen. Which again, is an expectation, and therefore will ultimately lead me to suffer in my own disappointment. 

This year, I’m going to fight the Kleshas, those petty afflictions, and embrace the day as though it’s a greater excuse to send all my compassion to everyone I meet. To those I don’t see, I’ll be sending some your way too. It will also be a chance to focus more on self-love. Why not? Who said that Valentine’s Day is only about love for another. How about loving yourself first? I think that means I have an excuse to eat some dark chocolate, and then some.

I dare you to try: Watch your mind, and see where it goes when you see a cheesy advertisement, or when you go on a date with your partner. Try to stay present and embrace every moment as it comes, without expectation, clinging, or wanting more. Everything you need is right there, so enjoy it. 

Only think or say positive comments towards yourself all day. Avoid the negativity that you hold on to. Take a break for at least one full day. So instead of saying “I like” or “I don’t like” try to stay neutral.

Love yourself and love others with the fullest of your compassionate heart. 

The Rose

Misery and joy have the same shape in this world:

You may call the rose an open heart or a broken heart.

-Dard (Sufi wisdom)

Shannon Lough is a 200RYT, who completed her yoga and Thai massage training with Yogi-Nomad in Nepal.  She practices daily, and follows the principles of Tibetan and Zen Buddhism, after traveling to India and living in Japan for three years.  She is a marathon runner, a hardy backpacker, and an avid writer.  If you have any questions or comments please email her at s.a.lough@gmail.com 

Samudra Manthan: The churning of the Milk Ocean. By Gaby

(a modern interpretation)

Dear yogis, you have probably heard the story of the churning of the milk ocean, one of the most famous story of the Puranas. If not let me recall here a summary:

The Devas (demi-god) made an alliance with the Asuras (demon) to jointly churn the Milk Ocean in search for Amritam, the nectar of immortality. They used mount Mandarachala as a churning rod and Vasuki, the king of serpent as the churning rope. But together with Amrita also emerged Halahala a poison so toxic that it could destroy all creation. Shiva was called and, out of compassion, kept the poison in his throat to protect the world form destruction (in the process Shiva’s throat turned blue hence one of his many name: Neela-Kantha, the blue throated God). When the heavenly nectar of immortality emerged, fierce battles ensued between Devas and Asuras for its possession.

I always loved this story, it had an incomprehensible appeal, something more real than its mythological exoticism. I could not stop to compare this ancient myth to a more recent story. Here is another summary:

Homo Sapiens have been digging the earth and the ocean floor to extract pockets of Sun (coal, oil, gas...). Two liters of oil provide energy equivalent to the work of a single bare-handed-man for a year. Today humans consume in a year the energy from oil alone, the equivalent of 400 years of their bare handed work. For example, we can now travel around the globe in a day, allowing us to live in a single lifetime what may have taken hundred of life time before the age of oil.

As a specie, this energy has allowed us to grow from a 2.5 billions in the 50’s (when oil digging really started to get serious) to 7 billions by the end of 2011 (almost 300%!). In a single year we extract from the earth energy captured during millions of years by millions of plants and this more than a hundred million years ago. During this recent period our life expectancy has doubled.

Doing in a life time what could have only been done in a thousand lifetime may not be “immortality” but it comes very close. I would dare to say that oil is our modern “Amrita”.

Further parallel with the myth: since the industrial exploitation of oil, there is hardly a conflict in the world which does not find its source in the dispute for its control. The demi-gods and the asuras are still fighting today.

So tell me where is Halahala?

A confluent of the Bishnumati Khola, Buddhanilkantha, Nepal

 All the toxic products derived from the oil industry, all the plastic bags polluting our rivers, our oceans, all the toxic chemical and pesticides killing animal life at a rate 1000 time the natural rate, the air pollution and acid rains destroying forests. All the carbon that we are returning to the atmosphere and that was once absorbed by the plants to make life on earth possible. Everywhere we can see destruction due to a model imposed by our dependance on oil.

Shall I go further? I think the Halahala of our modern time is for all to see.

In Kathmandu, Halahala is so obviously present that people wear mask for air pollution. In a city of around 1 million inhabitant still surrounded by a lot of nature, it is unusual. Kathmandu won the sad honor of the most polluted city in Asia in 2006, with 6 time more air pollution then the maximum healthy international standard. For the water, the picture above speaks for itself and Nepali specialist Govind P.S. Ghimire calls this a "major crisis" in his 1985 environmentalist report. Any one living in Kathmandu will tell you that it has only gone worse since. But other burdens are also very obvious, traffic has become hell and crossing the city at rush hour is a true challenge for such a small city.

Halahala is everywhere in Kathmandu, catching the city at the throat and asphyxiating it. What was once an exquisite urban mandala, built to honor the Divine Absolute and to respect cosmic harmony, is falling into the darkest pit of the Kali Yuga (The age of loss) in total disconnection with the environmental awareness that should sustain the city.

Back to our mythological story: Kathmandu protector God is Bhairav, a wrathfull form of Shiva. But the benevolent Lord Shiva must be busy somewhere else these days, and it seems we are missing the compassionate yogi who is ready to protect the world from destruction.

May be we need to do more penance and meditation to call him back to this place he once loved so much that he was hiding under the form of a deer in its surrounding forest (see previous post). 

For more information on yoga in Nepal: yogi-nomad.org

Kathmandu, Nepal

January 1, 2012

Beginner Yoga for Men

Exercise has become even more important in recent times, mainly due to our lifestyles and diets. Many years ago we didn’t have escalators or lifts or 12-hour days working in offices. In addition, our diets contained far fewer substances that cause the build-up of fat. Combined, these factors cause the need for more exercise. However, exercise is often not fun, can cause injury and is mostly inconvenient. Swimming is the best, but it requires a pool, time to prepare, swim, and shower and change afterwards. Jogging is a good cardiovascular workout, but damages knees and other joints. One of the best solutions was created thousands of years ago in what is now known as India. Yoga is proven to be a wonderfully healthy and effective form of exercise that can benefit experts and beginners alike. Moreover, it can be performed at any time of day and in almost any place where there are two square metres of floor space. For the beginner yoga may appear rather intimidating, but with good advice, some respectful training and a little patience, one can advance swiftly to become proficient, and at the same time healthier.

Unfairly, yoga is often regarded as a woman’s activity, or only performed by men who are less masculine than those in the gym or on the football field. Those men who are broad-minded enough to at least give yoga a try will soon realize the benefits and be able to perform in the gym, on the football field, or even in the bedroom much more effectively in a very masculine way. Nowadays courses and rooms that focus purely on yoga for men are becoming more available and more popular. Beginner yoga lessons are gentle on the muscles and joints, and do not leave the new students with any form of ache or pain. The improvement process is smooth and gentle and one does not become an expert overnight. Those who try too hard too early will only set themselves back further. This could also be said for any other form of exercise.

Of course, one needs to learn a little about the activity before trying to arrange their feet behind their head. A good teacher will be patient and understanding. A good school will have plenty of yoga pictures showing examples and a list of yoga workouts for all levels to practise.

The biggest step, especially for men, is the psychological one that restricts the taking up of yoga. The stigma of being thought of as a leotard wearer or a hippie is far from easy for any man to swallow, but that first hurdle is the only one that is difficult to pass. After accepting that it is beneficial in so many ways and discovering that other men, real men, are already performing yoga to help their performances in other, manly, activities, one can relax and enjoy a long and healthy life.