Breath in, breath out. Feel the oxygen fill your lungs completely. Take a moment to clear your head of all thoughts. On that note, let me say a few things about our time in the Sacred Valley at the Sradhavan yoga retreat. After the exhausting days of Cusco, a retreat was exactly what all of us needed. I really wasn’t sure what to expect going into it. I imagined standing upon high plateaus surrounded by mountains beyond mountains defying the laws of physics with our yoga contortions. While this may not have been the reality, the actuality of the situation was equally grandiose and life-changing in a more subtle way. We stayed in a comfortable two-story hut that looks out across the winding river between the narrow valley. It was a very serene space. I felt much more connected with nature and with myself. The retreat is run by a lovely man named Chaitanja. He has soft features, a bright smile, and a comforting voice. He is one of the nicest, friendly people I have ever met and he made it very easy to be open to all of the new ideas we were exposed to over the five-day retreat. We met so many interesting people while on the retreat, from a spunky, lively Brazilian girl named Moniki to space-guru Jesus, but we’ll get to that later.
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We began each day with an hour of meditation at 7. For me, this was the perfect way to begin the day. We all sat in a circle around the beautiful lotus pattern on the floor of the yoga studio, focusing on our breathing and mainting our posture. It was amazing how the times fly when you let your thoughts go and just breath. My mind would occasionally wander to interesting places, memories I thought I’d forgotten, random shifting images in my head, and questions about what I wanted in my life. After this we would begin our two-hour yoga practice. The yoga experience of our group members varied highly (Michelle is a certified yoga teacher and many of the students had done little to no yoga), but we all committed fully to the practice and as a result got a lot out of it. Throughout the week we practiced many, many things. We mastered sun salutations, improved our downward dog, attempted (sometimes succeeding) handstands, and generally learned what yoga is really about. It made me feel stronger, more flexible, more grounded and completely rejuvenated. I was inspired to continue the practice in my life back home and am excited to see where it takes me.
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After this we would have breakfast. I want to take a little bit of time hear to talk about how mind-shatteringly good the food was. All vegetarian meals. Mounds of fresh fruit and honey, bread that tasted like real bread, fresh milk, a plethora of veggie stews, quinoa lasagna, and even homemade pizza. The food was incredibly good and a good way to recharge after a few tiring hours of yoga.
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In the afternoons we would have workshops of various kinds and then more yoga leading into dinner and free evenings. Some highlights from the workshops were learning the seven chakras in depth (there was a strong influence of Indian tradition at Sradhavan that heavily contrasted our other South American experiences in a good way), learning about Pranayama (breathing technique), practicing free form dancing, forming a chanting circle where we just sang whatever sounds and notes we felt like (this was my favorite one it was amazing to hear how everyone’s voices melding together in such an organic unpredictable way), and about Hindu astrology.
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The sheer beauty of the place was breath taking. On one of the days we took at hike up a steep steep trail to the top of a plateau looking down the valley two ways. Far down the river was a craggy snow capped mountain and we meditated as a group surrounded by the majestic vista. There were many profound and incredible experiences on the retreat. I remember sitting under the stars with a friend watching the lighting silently light up the sky from behind the mountains to reveal the clouds covering the constellations. I remember listening to a traveler (the Jesus looking one from before) elucidate his strange beliefs which seemed to be a mix between science fiction and all the religions of the world. He talked about star elders among us, how all the gods of this earth are beings of light from other unlimited dimensions, and about how we were all rainbow warriors of light. Despite how ludicrous this all sounds he was hypnotic. His voice was quiet and firm and the candlelight (we didn’t use electricity) cast his shadow large against the back wall adding to the dramatic effect. We met a German woman who traveled with a caravan of mucisians, actors, and healers across South America. I remember just talking with Chaitanja about how he got to where he is. I remember waking up early in the morning and watching the sun rise over the mountains and listening to the sounds of the river rushing by. There were so many unforgettable things that have happened on this retreat and I really do think that it changed my life. It reminded me to be greatful for everything and it helped me to find a little more about who I am and what I am truly passionate about.
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Now, as we move on to the Amazon, I feel that we are closer than ever as a group. There seems to be so much mutual compassion and openness between all of us. Though we have only a few short weeks left I believe that we will revel in every moment that we have together and for relationships and memories that will last us our entire lives.
I must be going now. I should really be getting some sleep before our early flight tomorrow, but I hope you enjoyed the update on our little adventure.
With love,
Ian Rice.