We reached the beaches of Arambol in northern Goa on January 31st, just 24 hours after leaving Chennai, four days after returning from Sri Lanka and one year after leaving California.
Kamala enjoying the open door train ride ~~~ Indian passengers in Chennai station
Ever since friends in France had been visiting India in the 70’s, I had thought that Goa was a town. Little did I know it was a state with some 24 beach towns strung along 80 miles of Arabian Sea coast line, each village with its own personality and type of tourist, ranging from young backpackers to charter bus groups, from old hippies to five star resort guests.
A brief glimpse of Goan history
In the Vedic times, Goa was referred to in Sanskrit as Gomantak, “a land similar to paradise, with fertile land and good waters”. Its geographic situation bordered by the ocean to the west and separated from the southern plains by a low mountain range to the east made it a destination of choice for colonists.
In 1510, the Portuguese fleet landed in Goa to establish a port and control the spice trade, so far dominated by the Arabs. Goa became the jewel of its eastern empire, referred to as "Golden Goa". Despite a turbulent history of repressed revolts, failed plots and the rise and decline of its commerce, it remained under Portuguese rule for 450 years - compared to the 250 years of English rule in India-. In 1961 Nehru resorted to military force to take Goa back from the Portuguese; he found no resistance.
We loved the old Portuguese houses everywhere around Goa
From 1560 on, the inquisition in Goa pretty much eradicated any Hindu religious practice; its goal was to convert all and prohibit any penetration of Hindu practices into the Catholic rituals. The Inquisition Tribunal had powers to confiscate property of the accused and to condemn them to death by burning on the stake. This lasted until the late 18th century. For more history, check out http://goacentral.com/index.htm.
Goans have thus been converted to the Roman Catholic Church centuries ago by the power of coercion. So nowadays, in a country that has an 82.5% Hindu majority and a strong 11.6% Muslim minority, Goa sticks out as a state of Christian majority, while only 2.3 % of all Indians are Christians. This may well have a lot to do with Goa’s popularity as a western tourist destination over the past 40 years.
I was reflecting on what a collective religious identity actually means, when a fraction of a country’s population is converted to a religion whose origins reflect a totally different culture and region of the globe...
Our first weeks in Goa
Back in July ’08 when we left the Himalaya Iyengar Yoga Centre (www.hiyc.com) in Dharamsala, we were hoping to stay in India long enough to participate in our teacher’s Spring Intensive class in Goa, 7 months later. At the time we still had our November return tickets to California and no idea how travel events would unfold… After my fall in November, I doubted I would be in good enough shape to do so. But by early January, 6 weeks after the accident, we were committed to attend and I was envisioning the intensive as physical therapy that would allow me to attain complete, in depth recovery.
We arrived in the late afternoon and found our teacher Sharat directing a class. It was moving to see him and his partner Lila for the first time in 7 months. We were all excited to be together again, as we had spent 4 months living around each other at the Dharamsala yoga center.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Entrance to the yoga center~~~ Sharat had grown a beard and was looking great!
Kamala at Mapusa market~~~~~~~~~Nanda, the very friendly coconut vendor
Applying his instruction I gain an unprecedented level of awareness, concentrating and listening into my body, increasing my ability to sense what is happening and reducing the craving my mind has to push the body into the posture through command and assess its “performance”. It’s a tricky game to tame the mind and distinguish when it is driving versus when the body is allowed to get into a posture and experience it on its own. Practicing “being” through my body versus “doing” through my mind has brought a centered, balanced feeling and a more relaxed state to both. The mind can now become the observer of what is happening within my body.
Stretchhhhh the groin!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flexxxxxx the back and hips!
Balancing Trikonasana ~~~~~~~~~ Flexing the back while activating the thighs
The mosquito proof yoga hall ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Afternoon lecture under the canopy
Observing Richard's permanent back knots~~~ Kamala going further and further
I observed how difficult it was to maintain even a simple, non-demanding posture for a sustained amount of time, when it triggers tensions or pains in your body. To stay with the pain, submit to it, to not react and allow the tension to be, finally brings an unexpected, relaxed state to that part of the body. It acts in the same way as in Vipassana meditation, when one is sitting totally immobile, allowing pain to arise, observing it without reacting by shifting positions, which brings the pain to vanish altogether after some time. Relaxing in a posture, as challenging it may be, is one of the goals of the practice. It requires dropping tensions, letting go of our sense of pain, -our attachment to it- and softening our body at the same time it’s being stretched, twisted, or flexed.
~~~~~~~~~~
Kamala in hand stand~~~~~~ Very effective neck/shoulder release inversion
In Panjim, a week after we arrived~~~~ 6 weeks later, the last evening in Arambol
Kamala enjoying the open door train ride ~~~ Indian passengers in Chennai station
Ever since friends in France had been visiting India in the 70’s, I had thought that Goa was a town. Little did I know it was a state with some 24 beach towns strung along 80 miles of Arabian Sea coast line, each village with its own personality and type of tourist, ranging from young backpackers to charter bus groups, from old hippies to five star resort guests.
A brief glimpse of Goan history
In the Vedic times, Goa was referred to in Sanskrit as Gomantak, “a land similar to paradise, with fertile land and good waters”. Its geographic situation bordered by the ocean to the west and separated from the southern plains by a low mountain range to the east made it a destination of choice for colonists.
In 1510, the Portuguese fleet landed in Goa to establish a port and control the spice trade, so far dominated by the Arabs. Goa became the jewel of its eastern empire, referred to as "Golden Goa". Despite a turbulent history of repressed revolts, failed plots and the rise and decline of its commerce, it remained under Portuguese rule for 450 years - compared to the 250 years of English rule in India-. In 1961 Nehru resorted to military force to take Goa back from the Portuguese; he found no resistance.
We loved the old Portuguese houses everywhere around Goa
From 1560 on, the inquisition in Goa pretty much eradicated any Hindu religious practice; its goal was to convert all and prohibit any penetration of Hindu practices into the Catholic rituals. The Inquisition Tribunal had powers to confiscate property of the accused and to condemn them to death by burning on the stake. This lasted until the late 18th century. For more history, check out http://goacentral.com/index.htm.
Goans have thus been converted to the Roman Catholic Church centuries ago by the power of coercion. So nowadays, in a country that has an 82.5% Hindu majority and a strong 11.6% Muslim minority, Goa sticks out as a state of Christian majority, while only 2.3 % of all Indians are Christians. This may well have a lot to do with Goa’s popularity as a western tourist destination over the past 40 years.
I was reflecting on what a collective religious identity actually means, when a fraction of a country’s population is converted to a religion whose origins reflect a totally different culture and region of the globe...
Our first weeks in Goa
Back in July ’08 when we left the Himalaya Iyengar Yoga Centre (www.hiyc.com) in Dharamsala, we were hoping to stay in India long enough to participate in our teacher’s Spring Intensive class in Goa, 7 months later. At the time we still had our November return tickets to California and no idea how travel events would unfold… After my fall in November, I doubted I would be in good enough shape to do so. But by early January, 6 weeks after the accident, we were committed to attend and I was envisioning the intensive as physical therapy that would allow me to attain complete, in depth recovery.
We arrived in the late afternoon and found our teacher Sharat directing a class. It was moving to see him and his partner Lila for the first time in 7 months. We were all excited to be together again, as we had spent 4 months living around each other at the Dharamsala yoga center.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Entrance to the yoga center~~~ Sharat had grown a beard and was looking great!
That evening, our first impression of Arambol was soft and relaxed. The weather was mild with a warm breeze blowing in from the sea and the beach was full of European families with babies and young children playing in the sand, young Indians playing cricket, volleyball or soccer, dreadlock tourists, fire twirlers, and several dozen beach restaurants made of bamboo and coconut leaves. We had the first lettuce and avocado salad in our one year in India, and even ordered a glass of wine to celebrate the crisp, fresh, delicious veggies!
Sunset beach cricket ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Locals playing on the beach
Sunset beach cricket ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Locals playing on the beach
During the 3 weeks leading up to the Intensive, we attended class from 7am to 11am, then headed down to the beach for a swim in the ocean before having breakfast at Carpe Diem, our favorite beach café held by Arun and his family. The mix of sustained yoga practice and warm ocean bathing was starting to strengthen and energize my body.
Carpe Diem cafe ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Arun, Ayush and Arpita the owners
I had been physically struggling after the accident, especially recovering while traveling to Sri Lanka; at times, walking for more than an hour was an ordeal. At that time I was clumsy in my movements, and though I had since felt my energy slowly coming back, my body was lacking confidence, and for example would be tentative when walking up stairs in the dark. Though everything looked fine externally, my body needed to get a grasp of its balance, its strength and its ability; the active memory of the recent trauma needed to heal, fade and go away.
Time passed quickly in this relaxed setting and we found ourselves staying in Arambol without the yearning to discover the surrounding area. We took a memorable scooter excursion to Panjim, the capital of Goa, to admire the European architecture in the old Portuguese neighborhood of Fontainhas.
As the weeks went by we felt the increasing benefits of the regular daily practice and the swimming, and we were back into “yogic shape”, ready to start the intensive wholeheartedly.
The Intensive
Twenty students of all ages and venues of life were enrolled, coming from 15 countries: Poland, UK, Canada, Malaysia, Japan, Peru, Russia, US, Italy, Holland, Mexico, Sweden, Austria, Germany, and France About 70% were female and 30% male.
Our group of students~~~~~~~~~~Sharat during a noon lecture under the canopy
Carpe Diem cafe ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Arun, Ayush and Arpita the owners
I had been physically struggling after the accident, especially recovering while traveling to Sri Lanka; at times, walking for more than an hour was an ordeal. At that time I was clumsy in my movements, and though I had since felt my energy slowly coming back, my body was lacking confidence, and for example would be tentative when walking up stairs in the dark. Though everything looked fine externally, my body needed to get a grasp of its balance, its strength and its ability; the active memory of the recent trauma needed to heal, fade and go away.
Time passed quickly in this relaxed setting and we found ourselves staying in Arambol without the yearning to discover the surrounding area. We took a memorable scooter excursion to Panjim, the capital of Goa, to admire the European architecture in the old Portuguese neighborhood of Fontainhas.
As the weeks went by we felt the increasing benefits of the regular daily practice and the swimming, and we were back into “yogic shape”, ready to start the intensive wholeheartedly.
The Intensive
Twenty students of all ages and venues of life were enrolled, coming from 15 countries: Poland, UK, Canada, Malaysia, Japan, Peru, Russia, US, Italy, Holland, Mexico, Sweden, Austria, Germany, and France About 70% were female and 30% male.
Our group of students~~~~~~~~~~Sharat during a noon lecture under the canopy
Schedule
5:00 wake up
5:45 inversion self-practice in the yoga hall
6:45 morning chants
7:15 posture/asana class
10:45 end of class, clean yoga hall (Kamala and I had this task)
11:00 lunch served at the center
12:00 daily lectures on Ayurveda and on Yoga
2:00 rest
3:30 relaxation postures self-practice (with guidance/correction)
4:30 breathing/pranayama/relaxation
6:00 break – sunset on the beach
7:00 dinner served at the center
By now we were missing our cherished time in the ocean! The schedule was packed and allowed virtually no time for other activities, by design. We had one day off per week that we spent doing some self-practice, going into the neighboring town for the ATM and errands, or just for hanging out on the beach. The next day of intensive arrived very quickly.
5:00 wake up
5:45 inversion self-practice in the yoga hall
6:45 morning chants
7:15 posture/asana class
10:45 end of class, clean yoga hall (Kamala and I had this task)
11:00 lunch served at the center
12:00 daily lectures on Ayurveda and on Yoga
2:00 rest
3:30 relaxation postures self-practice (with guidance/correction)
4:30 breathing/pranayama/relaxation
6:00 break – sunset on the beach
7:00 dinner served at the center
By now we were missing our cherished time in the ocean! The schedule was packed and allowed virtually no time for other activities, by design. We had one day off per week that we spent doing some self-practice, going into the neighboring town for the ATM and errands, or just for hanging out on the beach. The next day of intensive arrived very quickly.
Kamala at Mapusa market~~~~~~~~~Nanda, the very friendly coconut vendor
Sharat’s teaching
Sharat is a senior student of BKS Iyengar and has taught for the past 25 years. Beyond this, the particularity about his teaching is how he shares his practice on the spot, himself doing the postures and taking the class through minute descriptions of what is happening throughout the body. With the detailed instructions of how to achieve the proper alignment and what we should be feeling in our bodies, he leads everyone from a live experience rather than from a scripted class sequence. In fact, Sharat re-creates his class every day, exploring his own body, which allows him to engage his passion and be totally present in his teaching. A perfect example of a teacher role-modeling an essential attitude for the practice of yoga: presence.
Being a Vipassana meditator as well, he brings a focus on the inner experience of subtle levels, on the being, while encouraging us to stay alert to keep the mind from taking over in its habit of controller-achiever, in doing. He constantly repeats “Let go of your mind. Be in your body, not in your mind!” and gives tips on how to tell when we are in our mind, thinking a posture rather than doing it, such as when we can notice a slight hardening of the eyeballs in their sockets or a tightening of the breath, the neck or the throat.
Sharat is a senior student of BKS Iyengar and has taught for the past 25 years. Beyond this, the particularity about his teaching is how he shares his practice on the spot, himself doing the postures and taking the class through minute descriptions of what is happening throughout the body. With the detailed instructions of how to achieve the proper alignment and what we should be feeling in our bodies, he leads everyone from a live experience rather than from a scripted class sequence. In fact, Sharat re-creates his class every day, exploring his own body, which allows him to engage his passion and be totally present in his teaching. A perfect example of a teacher role-modeling an essential attitude for the practice of yoga: presence.
Being a Vipassana meditator as well, he brings a focus on the inner experience of subtle levels, on the being, while encouraging us to stay alert to keep the mind from taking over in its habit of controller-achiever, in doing. He constantly repeats “Let go of your mind. Be in your body, not in your mind!” and gives tips on how to tell when we are in our mind, thinking a posture rather than doing it, such as when we can notice a slight hardening of the eyeballs in their sockets or a tightening of the breath, the neck or the throat.
Applying his instruction I gain an unprecedented level of awareness, concentrating and listening into my body, increasing my ability to sense what is happening and reducing the craving my mind has to push the body into the posture through command and assess its “performance”. It’s a tricky game to tame the mind and distinguish when it is driving versus when the body is allowed to get into a posture and experience it on its own. Practicing “being” through my body versus “doing” through my mind has brought a centered, balanced feeling and a more relaxed state to both. The mind can now become the observer of what is happening within my body.
Stretchhhhh the groin!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flexxxxxx the back and hips!
Over time I’ve discovered how different parts of my body are intimately inter-connected. For example, when I bring all the elements of my lower body together in a posture: the soles of my feet, mounds of my toes, equal extension of my toes, lateral stretching of my feet, grounding of my heels and activation of the center of my thighs,… it creates an extension and ascending thrust of my upper body, naturally elongating my spine and opening my rib cage, without any direct, local effort.
When standing, if I rotate my thighs slightly inwards and consciously ground my heels on the floor, a lateral movement of my hips is initiated that in turn creates space in my sacrum and my lower back…
Sharat is guiding us through each muscle, tendon and bone, while emphasizing how in doing so we can pull our energy towards the center, into the core of our body, and experience this powerful centering and self alignment, that then paradoxically creates an expansion from the core outwards and upwards.
When standing, if I rotate my thighs slightly inwards and consciously ground my heels on the floor, a lateral movement of my hips is initiated that in turn creates space in my sacrum and my lower back…
Sharat is guiding us through each muscle, tendon and bone, while emphasizing how in doing so we can pull our energy towards the center, into the core of our body, and experience this powerful centering and self alignment, that then paradoxically creates an expansion from the core outwards and upwards.
Balancing Trikonasana ~~~~~~~~~ Flexing the back while activating the thighs
In Yoga, the practice of body postures is meant to eliminate physical and mental tensions and create the physical condition that allows us to still our body and calm our breath. This in turn allows us to silence our inner dialogue and quiet our mind through meditative practice, and gain access to higher states of consciousness. A good physical shape is the prerequisite to being still and to work on the next step. As an illustration of this step by step process, how can we find peace of mind when our body is in illness and/or in pain? How can we calm the mind if our breath is tight, shallow or erratic?
Our lunch was a moment of repose and joy. A fresh vegetarian salad buffet complete with sprouts, yogurt, bread and soup was the reward for a morning of fasting and long practice. We hadn’t eaten this much raw food since we had left Thailand after our fasting experience and our bodies had been craving for it for months. Of course we had prepared our own grated carrots and beets now and then, but it’s practically impossible to find lettuce in many parts of India.
Our lunch was a moment of repose and joy. A fresh vegetarian salad buffet complete with sprouts, yogurt, bread and soup was the reward for a morning of fasting and long practice. We hadn’t eaten this much raw food since we had left Thailand after our fasting experience and our bodies had been craving for it for months. Of course we had prepared our own grated carrots and beets now and then, but it’s practically impossible to find lettuce in many parts of India.
The mosquito proof yoga hall ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Afternoon lecture under the canopy
The afternoon lectures were held under the canopy attached to the coconut trees in the yoga center, and covered principles of the ancient Indian science of life and health, Ayurveda, presented by Joilly, a local Ayurvedic doctor, or theoretical aspects of yoga such as yoga philosophy, breathing techniques, or how to consider the application of Ayurveda principles to a Yoga practice. After our experience at KYM, the yoga school in Chennai, and Arya Vaidya Sala, the Ayurvedic hospital in Kerala, this was an opportunity for us to integrate further our understanding of both disciplines.
After an hour of rest back at our guesthouse, we would resume the asana practice for an hour of relaxing poses, practicing new postures, or in my case consistently working on two or three postures that specifically addressed parts of my body that I needed to heal, by releasing the residual tensions from my accident. This session was meant to prepare for the later afternoon breathing-relaxation, by choosing postures that would open up the thoracic cage while being effortless from a strength or flexibility perspective.
After an hour of rest back at our guesthouse, we would resume the asana practice for an hour of relaxing poses, practicing new postures, or in my case consistently working on two or three postures that specifically addressed parts of my body that I needed to heal, by releasing the residual tensions from my accident. This session was meant to prepare for the later afternoon breathing-relaxation, by choosing postures that would open up the thoracic cage while being effortless from a strength or flexibility perspective.
Observing Richard's permanent back knots~~~ Kamala going further and further
I observed how difficult it was to maintain even a simple, non-demanding posture for a sustained amount of time, when it triggers tensions or pains in your body. To stay with the pain, submit to it, to not react and allow the tension to be, finally brings an unexpected, relaxed state to that part of the body. It acts in the same way as in Vipassana meditation, when one is sitting totally immobile, allowing pain to arise, observing it without reacting by shifting positions, which brings the pain to vanish altogether after some time. Relaxing in a posture, as challenging it may be, is one of the goals of the practice. It requires dropping tensions, letting go of our sense of pain, -our attachment to it- and softening our body at the same time it’s being stretched, twisted, or flexed.
~~~~~~~~~~
Kamala in hand stand~~~~~~ Very effective neck/shoulder release inversion
By the same token I admit that I would naturally gravitate towards wanting to achieve more by making my posture –even a relaxing one- challenging, by pushing my flexibility for example, to attain the healing goal I had set to myself throughout the intensive. Were we speaking earlier about not being in the mind and only being in the body?...
We practiced the pranayama/breathing and relaxation at the end of the day in lying position, with the objective of totally relaxing the body to allow the flow of breath to be completely free, unrestrained, to enhance the subtle life-energy (prana) circulation in the body. This was accomplished by a guided relaxation and simple breathing exercises.
It took us to the end of our day’s work.
Sharat -shaved - leading the meditation~~~~ End of pranayama session
During the late afternoon break we would head down to the beach to see the sunset. I would usually take this time for my daily swim and play with the crashing waves. Over the weeks we spent in Goa the weather got warmer and warmer, as did the water, and the days became windier, especially in the evening. The ocean could be furious with 6-10 foot waves and I had befriended it by sheer playfulness, deciding to learn to bodysurf. It gave me a fine sense of my body’s power and its liveliness, feeling so vigorous and daring. It reminded me of my sense of self when I was a young teenager. I knew that I was completing my healing with a renewed vitality…
After a shower we would head back to the camp and have a typical north Indian dinner with our fellow students, composed of dishes of rice, mixed vegetable sabji and lentil dahl, and a sweet porridge that would usually be in short supply... We then retired and would be in bed around 10:30.
Three weeks of this regime followed our three weeks of preparation, and I felt my body transformed, back to the shape it was in when we had left Dharamsala late July ’08. I felt in great physical and mental shape as I have each time we’ve practiced with Sharat. We feel a deep and pervasive well being, a centered, lively and balanced energy, and a heightened sense of our inner being.
We practiced the pranayama/breathing and relaxation at the end of the day in lying position, with the objective of totally relaxing the body to allow the flow of breath to be completely free, unrestrained, to enhance the subtle life-energy (prana) circulation in the body. This was accomplished by a guided relaxation and simple breathing exercises.
It took us to the end of our day’s work.
Sharat -shaved - leading the meditation~~~~ End of pranayama session
During the late afternoon break we would head down to the beach to see the sunset. I would usually take this time for my daily swim and play with the crashing waves. Over the weeks we spent in Goa the weather got warmer and warmer, as did the water, and the days became windier, especially in the evening. The ocean could be furious with 6-10 foot waves and I had befriended it by sheer playfulness, deciding to learn to bodysurf. It gave me a fine sense of my body’s power and its liveliness, feeling so vigorous and daring. It reminded me of my sense of self when I was a young teenager. I knew that I was completing my healing with a renewed vitality…
After a shower we would head back to the camp and have a typical north Indian dinner with our fellow students, composed of dishes of rice, mixed vegetable sabji and lentil dahl, and a sweet porridge that would usually be in short supply... We then retired and would be in bed around 10:30.
Three weeks of this regime followed our three weeks of preparation, and I felt my body transformed, back to the shape it was in when we had left Dharamsala late July ’08. I felt in great physical and mental shape as I have each time we’ve practiced with Sharat. We feel a deep and pervasive well being, a centered, lively and balanced energy, and a heightened sense of our inner being.
At the same time we were doing the intensive I was daily emailing and calling colleagues and friends to set up what would be our next step: a couple of weeks of high tech business networking in Bangalore. As I write, we are on the train leaving Bangalore to Rajasthan, so stay tuned in for a very different next blog: “Bangalore Blast”.
