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India blog 6
For Sunday's lunch we went to Highway 18 - Edwins choice and the food was really good, as was the conversation and the 'gezelligheid'. Paul and I were back in Gokulam just in time for our sanskrit class, which is getting more and more complicated. The grammar is the worst ever maybe, but well, see what happens... After the Sanskrit class, we had another conference and this time it wasn't as good as other times according to me.
We went out for dinner at green Leaf and I ordered a paper dosa - not sure whhat it was - and it was like a very thin, meter long dosa! It was so funny - Zuzanna has taken a picture, I'll try to get it of her so I can post it with this blog.
Monday was a big shopping day: Paul had to buy some presents - he's leaving thursdaynight - and Zuza and I decided to sent some things home, sharing a box, so I can actually buy some books I really want to have - they're só cheap here! It will take up to 40 days before it arrives, but we'll both be travelling after Mysore (Zuza will go to Hawaii) and returning the 2nd of mai, so that's fine. At the market we found out that it's going to be Holi on Thursday, which means that people will throw water (in little plasticc bags) at each other starting the 7th and on the 8th (happy Holy :)) it will be water ànd colours.. I experienced this once before in Nepal and it's a crazy thing.. We had a big lunch at the Food Kourt (that's the way they write it) and I just had yogurt and fruit for dinner.
Wednesday after practice, Zuza and I went to Yayashree for some chanting and philosophy. It was a very nice session. We're planning on going there every day now (mon-thur). Last time I bought the cd's with the mantra's/yoga sutra's and the baghavad gita. It's really nice.
Afterwards we shared a rickshaw with a man named Philippe (born in Switzerland, but he's amedican, lives in CA) and he went to this hotel (that's what they call a restaurant here) that was supposed to be really good. We joined him and we did have a very nice and very cheap lunch - even cheaper, because he insisted on paying - he said 'I have dollars' and he meant obviously that it was just so cheap for him, but for us too right? We had to pay all together about 1,60 euro.. thank you Philippe!
In the afternoon we checked a little shop here in the street and they had nice things but we didn't buy enything in the end. I had 1.5 hrs of Sankrit afterwards which was a bit much and even more complicated... but I will get there, I hope..
I picked Zuza up for dinner at Tina's Cafe, nothing fancy, just a paratha and some curd, and we picked up Paul - so we had dinner with the tree of us.
On Thursday wee didn't have practice, because it was a moonday, so it was time to hit the swimmingpool again :) I played ping pong with one of the staff members - he's really good and thus a nice challenge - and we met up with Free, Katie (friend of Free) and Franziska. We me Clayton Horton (a 'famous' yogi) and we had a nice chat about... surfing :) Next week there will be kirtan and he and his friend Mark Robberds (?) (also a surfers) will play guitar - that will be nice.
We had a (very) late lunch - Paul's last Indian one - at Green Leaf and after saying goodbye to Paul, Zuza and I went home: we had an aryuvedic doctor's appointment at 6pm. The (female) doctot was recommended by Sri Narasimhan (he teaches the philisophy at Jayashree) and the consult was about 300 roepies, which sounded okay.
Zuza went in first and me second. I got lot's of medication :( starting with a not very nice smelling paste that I have to take in the morning - empty stomach - just half a reaspoon - and after breakfast I have to boil milk and water with a powder I got - until it'reduced to half the quantity, then i have to filter it and drink it. I can add some jaggery (kind of non refined canesugar) for taste and it actually taste nice. 20 min later I have to powder 2 tablets and add cucumber juice and drink it (morning and night). That's quite a ritual in the morning! Takes me forever to finish breakfast and medication, but well, if it works I'll be the happiest person on this planet. We'll be going back there in 2 weeks to get a consult about nutricion and other things... that will probably be more expensive, but well, if it keeps you healthy... My medications was actually quite expensive - about 22 euro's... but Zuza only paid 6 euro's for hers..
As for Holi, we did see some colored children and young people, but we were not attacked, which was nice :)
On Friday we went to Jayashree again after practice and we had a cheap (late) lunch here in Gokulam. After some fruit, cucumber, milk and filter shopping, we went home and we had a relaxing, quiet night.
Saturday after some food shopping, I went to dr V. together with Free (guy from sanskrit class). Dr V can make and read charts (astrology) and does handpalm readings as well. Free left his date of birth etc with him earlier that week and he went there for the reading. Franziska and I were interested as well, so I brought her date and time of birth etc with me to drop it of so we could go pick it up and have the reading later that week. As I was there, he told me he could read my palm if I wanted to.. and well, I did. So he told me all about my future and it's not looking bad according to him ;) we'll see...
sundaymorning my first 4.15 am practice which was actually really nice. I went to the Chakra House for lunch: my friend Carla had made a raw-food lunch and I promised her I'd come by and have some and it was really nice. Clayton Horton and Mark Robberds were having lunch as well and we had aa nice chat about surfing, surfspots and surfboards :) I was just in time for sanskrit class which is really getting even more complicated: they've got 8 cases (naamvallen) and that doesn't make things easy.. At one point I'll have to learn them by heart... but not this trip.
The conference today was pretty nice. Sharath talked about injuries and body pain and that a new pose will give you a new pain - which explains the pain I have on the back of my knees, probably because I do garbha pindasana all the way since I got here - I didn't put my arms through at home... Saturday is a day of rest and you should take it easy and have an oil bath :) The injuries happen if there is non-conciousness during your practice.. The bandha's will come automatically when you have a daily practice for about 1-2 years. The jumping back and uth plutihih will get you there - you need your bandha's there. By using your bandha's, your live span will increase and you'll gain controll over the mind (source = mula bandha). The sweat contains good minerals and you should not wipe it with a cloth, but rub in into your skin. If you do that, more toxins will come out and your body will become light and strong.
The asana should be stable and comfortable. Once there is stability in your asana's. The mind will get calm and you're making progress. If you want to deepen your yoga practice, it's important to practice the yama's and the niyama's.
A good yoga teacher: - gives you good feedback. - knows how yoga can help you in your life, - the yoga should be a part of the teachers life, - is pure inside so the yoga can grow within, - treats everybody/ everything/every student equally.
On Monday we went to Jayashree again after practice and we went for lunch at Green Leaf. The next day we had a reading from Tanchos - the bhoeddist monk. Edwin invited him over to give a lecture to a small group of people and it was realy nice - he's the sweetest monk ever. In between we had lunch at Anus - where we'll be doing a cooking workshop next week. After lunch, Philippe showed up at Edwin's - so funny that he knows Tamchos as well and he's planned to go to Bylakuppe that Saturday with some friends and invited us too. Ofcourse we said yes!
After Sanskrit class, Franziska and I went to dr V to pick up our charts and have them read. Interesting, well I can share with you that I'll be travelling for the next 2.5 years and the next 3.5 years will be the best years of my life.. I might get married and have a baby too somewhere in the near future, so if you guys don't here from me - I'll be busy doing all that ;)
Furthermore my health is going to improve heaps after the 12th of may and financially I'll be sound, which was nice to hear, but ofcourse he also said I could marry a wealthy man - yeah that's how it works - not... anyway, what to believe...
On Wednesday, Philippe invited us for lunch at his place: the pink house - where I had my first cooking workshop! Lunch was great - we were 6 people in the end - and I was so tired that I went to bed almost straight after - to tired for anything else.
When finishing the backbends on Thursday with Saraswati, Sharath came over and asked me why I didin't do Pasasana (first asana of the intermediate series). I told him 'because I've never done it' (here). After an Indian chat with Saraswati, he walked away, confused. When finished in pachimottanasana, he walked over again, saying: you didn't do pasasana. No, I said. Why not? He asked. 'Because you never told me to', was my reply. Silence... Monday, Monday pasasana... So Monday, the first day of my 7th week here, I'm doing the first posture of the second series... never thought I would...
Since Philippe paid for our lunch two times already, we invited him for lunch the next day and we had a nice luch at this Indian place somewhere near the university. After some shopping and a chai - we bumbed in to Franziska and her friend and she told me she wasn't going to go to Sanskrit class, because she didn't do the homework - we went back home, where I had a recovery shower just before Sanskrit class. He didn't give us homework for next class and there are only 2 classes left.. time flies.. in 2.5 weeks I'll be in Sri Lanka!
It was really hard to fall asleep on Thursday. It getting really hot here. Friday morning I had LEDclass at 4.15 am and in the end I only slept about 4 hours, but after the yoga, a a coconut and a shower I had a really nice and long sleep. Zuza and I went for a cheap brunch - masala doso and a kesari bath (sweet) -, but later on we checked out some jewellery at Silver Nest and we both ended up spending money anyway.. In the evening we went to a Conférence Dansée, organised by the Alliance Francaise de Bangalore at the university here in Mysore. It was really interesting: the dancer was a daughter of a french mother and a Sri Lankan (tamil) father and she grew up in France. Her dancepiece Hybride is a mixture of the Shouth Indian classical dansstyle and the comtemporary western dance. It was so nice to actually have a 'proper' cultural night out :) I do miss the Dutch theatre a little bit...
Saturday we have the day of, but we had to get up early anyway (we left at 6 am) to go to Bylakuppe again to visist our monk friend Tamchos and check out the Golden Temple amongst other ones. We were 6 people (Zuza, Philippe, Andrew from New Zealand and Sunniva from Norway with her Indian yoga teacher) and Philippe arranged a car plus driver, so the trip over there was way nicer than the busride we had a couple of weeks ago. We had a nice Indian breakfast (Idly and chai) just before we arrived at Tamchos'monastery. In the first monastery they just started praying by the time we got there. After the prayer, the monks had some food and we got served as well ( we were just sitting outside the temple - door were open, so you could see the monks and hear the prayer), which was so sweet! At the next temple, there was a monk that was taking care of two babay owl's. They were so cute! I had one on my hand for a while, but I think he was a bit stressed out, if you know what I mean (he didn't control his bladder while sitting on my hand ;))
After a visit at the golden temple - which was beautiful - we went to another temple,we went to visit one on Tamchos' brothers - the youngest one - who is a monk as well and after that, we had lunch together - one of Tamchos student prepared it for us and it was (obbviously) really good :)
I was another amazing day and we got back home around 6pm, which was a good time, because Sunday practice always starts at 4.15 am...
So the Sunday practice was a very heavy one - for me- the back of my knees really hurt and it's okay to do padmasana (lotus) when I'm warmed up properly, but Sharaths counting is too fast for me, so I wasn't warmed up properly and thus it hurt :( I fell asleep after practice and slept till 10 am. After some shopping, I went to Sharz - she's in my Sanskrit class - to help her with her Sanskrit, because she didn't understand some things. I had lunch with Zuza and after Sanskrit class, I attended the conference, which was reallly cool: Sharath actually did a demonstration to clarify the importance of the bandha's: he got into padmasana (lotus), lifted himself up and from there he went into handstand - his legs still in lotus - where he stayed for a while - about 15 counts - then he slowly went down, his body horizontal to the floor, still only on his hands and from there he unfolded his legs into chaturanga - plank - it was amazing to see...
Sharath: 'yoga is not that easy. You have to be very careful. You have to plan each day and each week. On Saturday you start with an oil bath and afterwardsyou prepare yourself for Sunday. It needs a certain kind of mindset to do yoga- you should only focus on yoga, devote yourself to the practice'.
At the end of the conference, he told us that everyone starting at 6am or later, should come half an hour earlier on Monday.. pfff that means practicing at 5.30am! As I was rolling my eyes, Sharath looked at me and he smiled - busted!
In the evening, Zuza and I went for an icecream before going to bed - we totally deserved that! :)
So on Monday morning, I had to get up way to early and I was at the shala 10 minutes early
(to show my devotion ;)) and as I walked in, nobody was waiting, so Sharath called me in and said: 4.30 tomorrow... SERIOULY!! 4.30!! That's an hour earlier... NONONONO... but what can you say... so I found out later, that 4.30 shala time is not 4.15 real time, but you're expected to be there at 4.05 am... not looking forward to that tomorrow...
Anywas, as I posted on my facebook:
This is the day that
- Sharath told me to come at 4.30 (shala time) from now on (as early as it can get)
- I was told to do Pasasana (first asana of the intermediate series)
- Sharath talked me through Krouchasana, Salabhasana A, Salabhasana B and Bhekasana (the next 4 asana's of the intermediate series)
- Sharath looked at my yoga pass to see what my name was (and said it out loud)
- I hit my neighbor with my elbow coming up from the drop backs - poor girl - luckily sshe was laughing about it and not crying -
So this was a special day... It was actually really funny. As i'm not wearing my glasses during practice, I don't always know when Sharath is talking to me. So after Pasasana, he told me 'don't lie down', but I didn't know he was saying that to me. When I found out, he told me to jump back again, and then he said Krouchasana. From that moment on, he talked me through all the vinyasa's and the drishti's (focus points), which was really nice.
After the practice, as I walked out of the shala and said thank you, he nodded his head many times and smiled :) well, there is some progress going on in my practice and I'm happy with it.
After a shower, I slept till 10.20 am, and as I woke up, I realized I was going to chanting with Zuza at 10.25 am, so I brushed my teeth, put some clothes on and then she knocked on my door.. pff just in time. After chanting, we had a nice breakfast at Santosha's. This afternoon we'll have a late lunch at the cheap standing place (no chairs) and afterwards we'll walk to the lake.. No it's time to post this very long blog... please leave a message, I still really appreciate it :) big hug all the way from Mysore: only 15 days left here!
- comments
Pieter Congratulations Saske met alle vooruitgang die je boekt! En het vroege opstaan pffff haha maar je doet het allemaal wel; goed hoor! Dikke zoen en veel succes de laatste weken!!
migui Thank you for writting all what is happening to you there! Loved to read it:) see you soon ( i hope ) in sunny den haag!
Joop V. dit is wel even iets anders dan de impressies van je surfreis. Twee verschillende werelden. Wens je ook hierbij veel plezier en ben vooral onder de indruk van je aanval op het Sanskrit! morgen moeten wij ook 'n uur eerder op want de zomertijd is begonnen.'n Lentegroet uit Den Haag, Joop