And now, Yoga begins *. By Ana Paula Martinez

 by Ana Paula Martinez

GANESH - KATHMANDU

It has been one month since I came back to Mexico, after the most magical and transforming trip of my life. The return has not been easy, as the changes in me are very profound. And it is interesting to see, once again, how we create our reality according to how much we let our mind participate. But there are many layers. As my yoga teacher Neera told me recently: Now the real Yoga begins.

It is not easy to describe the experience of a Yoga Teacher Training. I haven’t even understood yet how deep the inner transformation goes, and even more, how to manage to stay there while living in a society in which distractions are everywhere and darkness is present.

So when somebody asks me about my experience in the Yogi Nomad Teacher Training in Nepal, my feeling is that as hard as I try to explain it, my words will remain in a superficial level. It is like trying to describe what is impossible to say. In a Yoga Teacher Training we are exposed to a huge amount of information, which is hard to digest in such a short time; a very intense physical challenge; a deep exploration of the mind, going to indescribable places; and a strong energetic management that is hard to understand with our logic. In the Yogi Nomad teacher training, we also learn Thai Massage and Ayurveda. All these practices require absolute awareness, constant observing and discipline. Fortunately, the result from these six intensive weeks is equally positive in all levels: physical, mental, emotional and energetic. In terms of my yoga practice, I feel that it was greatly enriched. I learned that an advanced yoga level is proportionally related to the ability to be present and fully aware during the practice, instead of just being capable of doing complicated postures. I also realized that my practice is always different, it changes everyday, just like my body, and therefore, the experience of my yoga practice is always a new challenge.

HIMALAYAS VIEW FROM BANDIPUR

 My trip to Nepal was not only to the Yoga Teacher Training, but it was extended to traveling around in this wonderful country, around this sacred land that has magic in the air. Moreover, I was able to see directly many of the matters studied during the course, in the Nepalese culture daily life.

Since the first day that I arrived to Kathmandu, I felt it. I knew that nothing would ever be the same after Nepal. And it isn’t. Describing this experience is not easy either. In this journey I witnessed the most evidently strong peace that I have ever felt as 

I was approaching to the Vajrayogini Temple in Sankhu and its mystery. I spent many hours 

SANKHU – STEPS TO THE VAJRAYOGINI TEMPLE

observing life’s impermanence in the beautiful Pashupatinath, and was overwhelmed when I found myself in front of the Himalayas in Bandipur. I spent almost three weeks in Boudhanath, embracing the sense of ‘being home’ and feeling deeply grateful at every step I took in that beautiful place with such a powerful gravitational center.

ASPHODEL SCHOOL - KATHMANDU

Thanks to Shannon, a friend I met during the training, I spent one week painting a mural with the kids at an orphan school in Kathmandu, where I was deeply inspired by those beautiful little human beings.

This trip was not only to another country, to another culture, to the other side of the world, but it was also a journey inside myself. The Yogi Nomad team offered me this amazing opportunity through the Scholarship that they gave me,  and I will always be profoundly grateful with Gaby and Val for their generosity. Thanks to them, today I can tell this story.

Namaste.

Mexico, January 2012

BOUDHANATH, KATHMANDU

* Athayoganusasanam, Patanjali Yoga Sutra I-1

Yoga, some like it hot... By Gaby

A early morning experience at Pashupatinath...

This morning, wake up at 4h30, to attend a Ram Dev Yoga Class (a famous saint teaching yoga to large crowds in India) at Pashupatinath, the main burning ground of Kathmandu, with Poonam and Ashok, two upper class Nepalis. We enter the temple area, cross the bridge over the Baghmati River, and walk up the big stairs through lines of sleeping monkeys and freezing beggars sitting around bonfires.

We sit on a large carpet placed outdoor, it is still completely dark and by 6 am, the class commences. It is in Nepali and I can only get the Sanskrit names of the practices. There are about 25 persons sitting and waiting for instructions from the "guru" speaking in a mike. Students are of both sexes, of all ages and from all levels of the Nepali society. The sound system makes high sharp noise and there is a guy who does his best to fix it. On our left side, the stone shrines of Pashupati overlook the scene. Some stray dogs are sleeping between the rows of student, on the comfortable carpet that seems to be here just for them. On the wall in front, monkeys are looking for mischief and I am told to keep my bags close by, just in case. It smells of garbage burning and people around wear heavy winter jacket, hats and socks, and for a reason: it is 5°C and it feels like it.

We start with Om and mantras: I am happy to know them and to participate as everyone chant. Then we do a series of warming exercises like jogging on the spot and jumping back and forth between Urdva Mukha Svanasana (upward dog) and squat in order to beat up the cold, followed by some classical Surya Namaskar (sun salutation). We sit again for some pranayama (breathing techniques) and then some floor poses, always with some hand clapping and rubbing at interval to keep some feeling in our fingers numbed by the cold. The classes goes on for 90 minutes, alternating between gentle asanas and pranayamas, nothing that would satisfy the basic rules of a "flowing sequence" as modern yoga standards, but nevertheless a very classical practice. None of the challenging poses we see in the west neither and that was not expected by anyone here. People are in blue jeans or kurtas (local casual dress) and you can see they will probably go straight to work after this.

Shavasana is a challenge; the cold is biting fingers and toes. However, there is deep source of heat that comes from the center of my body, something that creates a bearable balance. I can feel a fire inside, working to keep the body warm, but from where I look, strangely there is no feeling or cold nor hot. After a few more rubbing hands, we finished with Simhasana (the Lion pose) and everyone roars wholeheartedly (not the shy practice I am used to) and then a good minute of laughter yoga. Such a genuine energy is coming out of this group that I can only feel humbled and grateful to be here.

By then the smell has changed to Chai (milk masala tea) and Aloo paratha (potatoe fried pancakes), the day is coming out, however the sun will need another half hour to come, the temperature is now 4°C. The power went off, so no more light nor mike, something everyone is used to here with more than 6 hours of daily power cut. The Pujaris (men in charge of the prayers at the shrines) are ringing bells, chanting and burning incense, the dogs are playing and fighting, the monkey roaming around in search of food. The beggars are sitting wrapped in rags in front of their begging bowls, the painted sadhus prepare to receive the crowds of tourist for the day. The first corpses are burning on the Ghats reminding us to appreciate every moment while we are here. Today we were closer to the Aghori (form of yoga practice on burning grounds). When we walk back over the bridge showing a once mighty Baghmati River, now looking more like a sewage drain, with barely enough water remaining to carry away the ashes of the departed souls, I feel sad for the little respect we pay to our home, mother Earth.

I know Pashupati (a form of Shiva) was here all along, I felt his strong and powerful presence. The legend says that Shiva was hiding in the nearby forest under the form of a deer (Pashu means animal), until worried; the other gods forced him back into his divine form. In the process, Shiva broke one horn and it became the linga worshipped here and one of the holiest places in the whole sub-continent.

Today the cold was our tapas (meaning heat, but also discipline and austerity). I can't help to think about how many times I have heard students complain about the "conditions" of practice, either too hot, too cold, etc. Always trying to fix something outside to feel good inside. I also think about Hot Yoga or Bikram yoga so in fashion these days, were the heat does not come from your practice but from the heated room and also about Tumo yoga a form of Kundalini Yoga practiced in the snow in Tibet. Here there was no performance, no fluorescent yoga mat, no Lulu Lemon clothing, the class was free, everyone was smiling and lighthearted, no one complained. Something was present here that I have never felt in any other classes in.

I think it was just simple and genuine faith, embedded in daily life and not something made up or pretending to be anything else. Some people told me "it is hard sometime but we feel so good after... will you come tomorrow?", I had tears in the eyes...

For info about Yoga Training in Nepal check yogi-nomad.org

Kathmandu, Nepal

December 12, 2011

For more info about classes and retreats in Kathmandu http://www.yoganepal.com ; http://pranamaya-yoga.com

Yogi-nomad Announces Yoga Teacher Training in Himalaya Mountains

Yogi-nomad, a non-profit, international yoga organization announces its Yoga Teacher Training Course (YTTC) in the heart of the Himalaya mountains, near Kathmandu, Nepal, from October 3 to November 12, 2010.

Yogi-nomad, a non-profit, international yoga organization announces its Yoga Teacher Training Course (YTTC) in the heart of the Himalaya mountains, near Kathmandu, Nepal, from October 3 to November 12, 2010. This professional training course offers more than the standard yoga teacher training as it includes Thai Massage and nutrition components and is offered in a location which is the seat of many sacred and historical places.. Recently awarded Registered Yoga School RYS 200 by Yoga Alliance International, for maintaining high standards and perpetuating the ethics and the tradition of Yoga worldwide, Yogi-nomad has designed a course most conducive to studying the art of being al Yoga Teacher. Yogi-nomad has trained over 150 students and conducted 7 similar trainings in the last 2 years.

All students following a Yoga Teacher Training Course with Yogi-nomad will be granted the recognition RYT 200 or Registered Yoga Teacher by Yoga Alliance and offered a year of free membership to Yogi-nomad international network. Early Bird prices are available now.

Yogi-nomad is a newly formed organization dedicated to expanding consciousness through yoga worldwide and is an international network of Yoga practitioners and teachers linked by the belief that value-driven Yoga practices can overcome today’s global challenges and our collective illusion of separation. Yogi-nomad’s teachers are driven by ethical actions and cultivate mindfulness in their Yoga practice and their daily lives. Yogi-nomad hosts yoga events around the world and share resources to continuously initiate the change within that will transform our planet and benefit all beings. Yogi-nomad conducts Yoga retreats and training in Varanasi - India, Kathmandu and the Everest region - Nepal, and workshops in Europe and the Americas and combines yoga with other enlightening practices like Nutrition and Thai Massage. Visit www.yogi-nomad.org for more information.

“The greatest miracle is the miracle of teaching and transforming people” said The Buddha, this opportunity certainly is a way to make the world a better place that should not be missed.

Yogi-nomad is a non-profit organization dedicated to expanding consciousness through Yoga worldwide. Yogi-nomad holds Yoga teacher training Courses (TTC) Nepal at yoga centers in Kathmandu, plus workshops in Asia, Europe and the Americas.