I decided to extend my time in India and join Mieke at an ashram. She picked one that was recommended by friends, the Sivanada Yoga Vendanta Dhanwawnthari Ashram. The program focuses around yoga and also includes meditation, chanting and talks. We committed to staying for 2 weeks to participate in the Yoga Vacation program. There are actually 2 Sivanada Centres in Canada, one in Toronto and one in Montreal.
To get a taste for the yogic lifestyle, this was the daily schedule:
05:20 am Wake-up bell
06:00 am Satsang (1.5hrs) Group meditation, chanting and usually a talk.
07:30 am Tea and a small snack.
08:00 am Yoga (2hrs)
10:00 am Breakfast – All vegetarian, all the time.
11:00 am Karma Yoga aka chores. Once the chores are finished it’s free time until the lecture.
12:30 pm Optional coaching for yoga and meditation.
01:30 pm Tea and another snack.
02:00 pm Lecture
03:30 pm Yoga (2hrs)
06:00 pm Dinner – More vegetarian delights.
08:00 pm Satsang (1.5hrs) More meditation and chanting.
10:30 pm Lights out. With the early mornings, nobody seems to have a problem with this one.
We’re expected to attend the entire program, and follow a few basic rules. It hasn’t been as strict as they made it sound when we first got here though. We’re supposed to observe silence before the morning satsang and after the evening satsang and during meals, but usually everyone talks. No mobile phones either, but I haven’t seen that strictly enforced. They have wifi in one of the halls, so during free time everyone is sitting around on their iphones or laptops. The wifi was a very nice surprise!
We have more free time than I expected we would, and it’s nice to have the chance to read or swim in the lake. The food is really delicious, and it was surprisingly easy getting used to eating vegetable curries and rice in the morning. The only downside is that the food is a bit repetitive.
It’s my first time trying out the vegetarian diet and so far so good. It’s easy when there’s someone making the food! We’re allowed dairy but no eggs, onions or garlic. Onions and garlic are stimulants that can negatively affect the mediation process by making it more difficult to concentrate and focus so a definite no go. During meals we sit in long lines on the floor and eat with our hands. They serve us this strange smoky tea that is a blend of ayurvedic herbs that’s supposed to aid digestion, but it tastes so gross I can’t drink it.
Four hours of yoga a day might seem like a lot, but the first half hour of each class is just different breathing exercises. Definitely not my favourite part! Between the meditation and the breathing exercises we end up spending a lot of time sitting in a “comfortable” cross legged position, with our backs straight and shoulders down. I have yet to discover the comfort in this position. We also spend a lot of time resting in savasna aka corpse pose. So really not much as much of a workout as I initially hoped for. They take a long time showing us how to do each pose properly, so hopefully I can remember some of it for when I get back home. We are working on poses I’ve never tried before, like headstand and shoulder stand, so that’s pretty cool.
Everyone at the ashram is really friendly. Everyone is required to pay for a minimum of 3 nights, but some people end up staying less or more time. Quite a few people are participating in the yoga vacation and staying for 2 weeks. Most people stay in the dorms, and they’re actually really nice! Our dorm has some low walls dividing up the room, so there’s more privacy than if it was just a giant room filled with beds. The showers are always cold, but it’s so warm here right now it’s actually refreshing to take a cold shower.
The grounds here are really beautiful, and the ashram is up on top of a hill with beautiful views. Most of the karma yoga chores are cleaning and maintaining the different buildings of the ashram. I’m on bins, so I have to empty bins in a certain area and wash them out. A pretty decent chore actually, since it only takes about 20 minutes! Other people serve food and clean up the dining hall, or clean and sweep the dorms. Some people work in the Health Hut, a little cafe open during our break, making smoothies, fresh fruit juice and other healthy snacks. They have some many people doing all the chores, nothing really takes that long. And I haven’t seen anyone stuck scrubbing the toilets with a toothbrush!
I’ve found 2 weeks to be enough time for me to really enjoy the experience and gain some beneficial insight, but I’m definitely ready to move on to the next place, and have some beer and chocolate!
Practicing the headstand:
Practicing the headstand:
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