Recovering in Delhi

There’s no question that India has changed me forever. I feel so inadequate to put into words all the things that have happened in the last week or so. But here goes.

I left Goa and flew to Varasani, whose history dates back to 1400BC. Mark Twain wrote that “Varanasi is older that history, older than tradition, older even than legend and looks twice as old as all of them put together. “  It is the city of Shiva, the holiest place in India situated along the Ganges river.  According to Hindu mythology, if one dies and is cremated here, nirvana is achieved.  My experience was so vivid the night I went to the burning ghats(place for public cremations), this is what I came home and wrote:

Varanasi burning ghats.

Met a lovely Dutch couple on the street today and compared our travel experiences.  We decided to meet later that night at puja( offering, prayer ceremony) on the Ganges. After dinner we went to see the burning ghats.  There was no electricity in the entire city,  so the sky was pitch black .The fires from the cremations, about 20 of them, provided the only light. .We went on the roof of an adjacent building and sat for hours watching, mesmerized, transfixed on this ancient practice. We were informed that it has been taking place 24 hours a day for over 3500 years. We marveled at the apparent seamlessness of it all. No outward grieving.  Just men from the family standing around watching. Women aren’t allowed.  Apparently,  about 100 years ago one of them jumped into the fire with grief . We felt rather insignificant watching this very sacred event.  A stark reminder of the fact that our body’s are really just vehicles for consciousness. Just a mass of bones and flesh that are so easily and quickly reduced to a pile of ashes.  Actually it takes about 3 hours for one body to be completely incinerated.  Everything but the chest of the men and the pelvis of the women. When the fire has consumed everything else. These bones are carried to the Ganges with 2 sticks and are thrown in.  That’s it, then a new body is placed on the same spot after more water from the holy Ganges is thrown over the ashes.  It’s so hard to fully describe the impact of this visual experience.  I’m so humbled to have had the privilege of witnessing it. I think it will stay with me for the rest of my life. Our lives are very brief and not nearly as significant as we sometimes like to think.  No need to really worry about the things we worry about is there?

Ok , so that was Varanasi. Then I took a train to Bodh Gaya, the place where Buddha attained enlightenment.  Only the train was about 5 hours late, which meant I would get to Gaya at 3am, then have to take a 30 minute rickshaw to Bodh Gaya.  Not advisable since the Bihar district is the poorest and most lawless in India.  Everyone on the train started to go to sleep around midnight, and then I start thinking,--how am I going to know when we are in Gaya? There’s no announcement, the signs are in Hindi, and everyone is asleep.  My new friends, 8 of them in my compartment, just laughed and said, “set your alarm”. Really? OK, well maybe I’ll end up in Gaya maybe Calcutta. But sure enough, 3am came and the train started slowing down. That’s when I met this captain from the army , Vinay, who decided it was his duty to take care of me. He was my guide and protector. Noone even approached me coming off the train. Vinay cleared the path. It was amazing. He  helped me get to the hotel, gave me his phone number, and told me if I had any problem during my stay in India to call him. WOW! Incredible kindness.

Bodh Gaya was like Buddhaville. Buddhists from all over the world. Beautiful temples, statues,  and of course the bodhi tree. I spent all day underneath it. Doing some meditation and just enjoying the energy. A very powerful experience.

Unfortunately, the food in Bodh Gaya and my western GI tract did not see eye to eye.  Fortunately, since I was staying with the Cambodian monks I had met in Sarnath the previous week, I was well taken care of.  They brought me food(what little I could keep down), water,  and medicine. They basically had a mini pharmacy with them, antibiotics and all. Needless to say, Cipro has become my constant companion.

So now I am resting in Delhi for a few days, reflecting a bit on all the events of the past few days.  My stories seem to be consistent with other westerners I’ve spoken to here.  The most magical things happen in the midst of the most unfamiliar. For me, it’s just learning to let go of control and be wowed over and over again.

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Arambol Update

Once again my resistance turned to surrender and I ended up loving my time in Arambol. The town didn’t change  much, or any for that matter.  And the weird factor was ever so present. But after 2 or 3 days when I realized I was doing everything I wanted to do,i.e. meditating, yoga, watching sunsets on the beach every night, eating wonderful Goan food, hanging out with friends from the ashram, and meeting more interesting people from all corners of the world(even had a date for Valentines Day), I changed my view. I was suddenly very happy and very grateful to be in such a magnificent setting. Pigs, cows, chickens, hippies and all.  

Things only got better from there. The Iyengar course really resonated with me.  So much that I am now making plans to go to Dharmasala in April for more.  I leanrned so much about  body alignment and finding repose in the pose, as Mr Iyengar says.  I feel like I have a new relationship with pain after this course. The course was very challenging physically, but so rewarding.  I guess it’s not too much of a surprise that I connected with this practice. It’s  very meditative. Extremely technical, but calming at the same time.

So I’m off on another type of adventure for the next week. Varanasi, the holiest city in India, Bodh Gaya, the site of the Buddha’s enlightenment, and  hopefully to Agra to see the Taj before heading to Rishikesh.

India continues to fascinate, challenge and take me to higher and higher levels of adaptation. Who thought I would be so comfortable in a $8/night hut with a fan, mosquito net, and a cold shower. But really, what else does one need?

 

Greetings from the circus known as Arambol, Goa

It’s really the only way I know how to describe this place.  Goa is known for being a hangout for society dropouts and hippies, but I never knew a place could be so wacky. In short, I’m not crazy about it at all.  In fact, I would say that I hate it except that it’s so damn entertaining.  I’m trying to just laugh and have fun with it. Actually, it’s no effort at all to laugh because everything is hysterical.

For example, I pull up in my taxi to the guesthouse recommended by my friends and am greeted by wild pigs, dogs, chickens and cows everywhere.  Kind of like “Green Acres”, Indian style.  So I’m thinking well, OK this isn’t Varkala Beach where I spent the last week, but hey I can adjust, right? I’m here for a yoga intensive so I should be able to deal with anything, right?  I’m staying in a hut for about $10/night so I feel like I can’t complain.

I found my friends  and went to dinner on the beach, which was wonderful.  Wonderful except for the very loud mix of disco and rock music.  Oh and new age music with ecstatic dance.  Lots of white people with dred locks and not an Indian in site.  It all seems very far away from the ashram, which we are missing terribly at this point.  So we headed for a quite end of the beach after dinner, had a glass of wine, and reminisced about our teacher training days in the ashram that we thought we’d never miss. 

So today I hear about this “amazing” yoga class on the roof of a hotel by the beach.  It’s taught by Vijay, who has been practicing for 35 years and everyone raves about him. Well, I don’t want to miss it so I head over a bit early. Then I found out that Vijay has a substitute, a French woman with a very thick accent. I fight my disappointment and decide to take the class anyway. Another opportunity to adjust. Well, that’s when the fun began. The “studio” was fascinating. On the roof with no railings or barriers.  So when Sylvie asked me to come to the front far right, I was a bit hesitant. Mainly because there was at least a 20 mile/hour wind blowing debris everywhere and I imagine that the next gust of wind will blow me off the 4 story building. But I again think, no, just adjust and move.  But it just got more and more comical. I couldn’t do the sun salutations because I couldn’t see the teacher through the debris, couldn’t hear her instructions, and my mat kept flying up hitting me in the face. But I kept going because I’m intrigued and am laughing at all the challenges.  I mean really, can anyone in this class concentrate? So just when the wind settles down a bit, I hear all this noise on the grassy knoll below. There’s not 1, but 2  pigs chasing a rooster. The rooster is going nuts, which excites the dogs and they start chasing the pigs. Holy moly, this really IS a circus. OK I’m really trying to bring my attention back to my breath and the class, but just  happened to look over my shoulder and noticed this stunning Italian gentleman wearing nothing but a pair of work out shorts.  At this point I’m thinking I’m never getting through the class.  I thought I had seen everything, but this has pushed  the sensory overload button.  You see, we had a strict dress/conduct code in yoga class at the ashram.  Covered shoulders and covered knees for everyone, and no noisy farm animals.  I am certainly seeing the advantage of that now, and missing it terribly. I have enough distractions in my mind. I don’t need any additional sounds or visuals.  So just when I think it can’t get any worse, these crazy crows start flying through the “studio”.  Geez, now I’ve gone from Green Acres, to Tarzan, to The Birds. All in one yoga class.   Bring back the Ashram, Please!!!

Oh well, at least it’s been entertaining . Not really what I had in mind when I thought of getting more yoga training.  What’s the meaning in all this? I have no idea. Perhaps the message is that I have the training I need for the moment.. I don’t know. Perhaps just relax and enjoy the show.  One thing I do know however, Goa is not my kind of place.  The training starts Friday. I may be long gone from here by then or I may hang on for more entertainment.

Stay Tuned. 

Lessons Learned

Contrary to what I often felt over the past month, I actually did make it through the training.  I am now officially certified to teach yoga. YEA!  That last week proved to be the most grueling, yet in retrospect, most rewarding.  Reflecting a bit on it now, I think I thought I had reached my nadir at the end of the 3rd week, i.e. "I can't take it anymore!"  It was at that point that Maniji, our beloved teacher, asked us what we wanted to do during our 4pm asana(yoga)class. Most of the time we he asks that we scream, "sleep", or "swim". Actually just a break of sorts...anything.  I mean at this point we've been going full guns from 5am-11pm for 3 weeks. Scarcely time to catch our breath.   So what does he say but, "OK 108 Sun Salutations, ready inhale, exhale."  You have got to be kidding me! I thought, no way. Not this late in the day, not this late in the training. NO, NO, NO!!!!  But then as I began to surrender and got through the first 15 or 20, I started to feel good. Then after 50, I was flying. When 1 got to 108, I was ecstatic, and felt like I could go on and on and on. That's when I realized how wonderfully wise our teacher was. Not that I hadn't realized it before, but this was once again a nice confirmation.  

There are an endless amount of examples like this, where frustration turned to joy when shifting from resistance to surrender.  It happens both on and off the yoga mat.  It's why I love this practice so much. It helps me to look at my mind.  A painful process sometimes, but rewarding nonetheless. 

So now what?  Well, that's what I'm wondering. So I'm taking a few days to relax at the beach in the resort town of Varkala with some friends from the training. I plan to stay here through the weekend and then head up to Goa for some Kundalini and Iyengar yoga intensives. I figure why not get exposed to as many styles of yoga as I can while I'm here. Tentatively here is my plan for the next few months: After Goa, I want to visit a friend at an ashram just outside of Mumbai, then head east to visit Varnassi and Bodh Gaya. Next, I'm going to the International Yoga Festival in Rishikesh March 1-7, then perhaps do a bit of trekking in the Himalayas( I met  a guide during the training). Finally, I will head back south to Mysore for some Ashtanga yoga training and then do some teaching at the Sivananda Yoga Center in Madurai. That brings me to the first or middle of April when I will head back to LA...in principle. 

I am meeting some incredibly inspirational people from all over the world during this journey. So many people who are doing with their lives what they love.  As for me, I'm continuing to loosen that control grip I've held on to so tightly, and allowing the magic to happen. Truly it's just like the ad campaign states, Incredible !ndia.