Yoga in Rishikesh – a reminder of my true connection to India

I have rewritten and edited this blog post so many times, and I feel at a loss for words about my experience over the past 8 days. How do I even begin to describe the fullness of my heart, the stillness of my soul, the peace in my mind, the vibration in my body, the rekindling of my deep passion for all 8 limbs of Yoga in my life as well as the warmth of connecting to incredible, like-minded people. I hope this description does it some sort of justice…

I arrived at Phool Chatti Ashram (a 120 year old ashram) a day before our 7 day yoga programme began, and instantly knew I belonged. Located about 7kms North of Rishikesh, on the banks of the Ganges, the energy and peace I felt in the Ashram as I arrived was a grateful welcome after my time in Bodhgaya. Welcomed by Lalita-Ji, who has been at the Ashram for 20 years, the resident Yoga teacher was ever so humble about her knowledge and loving energy. The Ganges River (or Mother Ganga) so close to source is clear and clean, and the sound of the water rolling over the rapids made me feel an instant spiritual connection to Mother Nature. And of course the 4 gorgeous resident dogs made me feel particularly happy and at home.

Our schedule was pretty intense, 5:30am wake up through to 9pm bedtime, filled with nature walks, Meditations, Yoga asana (poses/physical practice) Kriyas (including Neti pot cleansing), pranayama (breath control practice), and Kirtan mantra chanting. I loved that it involved all the additional limbs of yoga, other than just the asana practice that is most known in the West. The schedule also included silence during all 3 meals and from 9pm to 1pm each day, which is a difficult, but fantastic and necessary practice for mindfulness. The ashram can take up to 60 people, but our small group of 14 was just perfect. I always believe that the right people (and energies) come together at ashrams and retreats, and it felt especially true here. The conversations we all had, sharing insights from life experiences to inspirational books, and the energy of love and gratitude around the yoga and ashram experience gave us a special connection.

On our second night, our schedule was slightly different, with the celebration of Diwali, making our stay extra special. We all got involved setting out and lighting the hundreds of the little clay oil lamps (Diyas) in celebration of the Festival of Lights. Dressing up in white for the special occasion, chanting, puja (Temple ceremony), fireworks (silent ones-to my delight) and sweet treats, all in celebration of the triumph of light over dark. The ritual of preparing the diyas all together gave me a real sense of connection to my ashram family. I felt truly grateful for the experience.

I went through some interesting feelings over the duration of the programme, at times feeling a bit withdrawn and reclusive, at times feeling a little irritable, and initially in “teacher mode”, concerned about the alignment of some beginners, rather than my own practice. But slowly, thanks to the meditation, yoga asana and particularly the mantra chanting, my mind settled and I became more present in being in each experience, down to the mindful practice of eating in silence. Discovering, with curiosity the intricate white lines in a pomegranate seed and the sweet popping taste in my mouth, it truly is amazing what eating in silence can do. Some practices were difficult, of course, for some reason I really struggled with the Kapalabhati (a purification breathing technique). I giggle now, because I can still hear Lalita-Ji’s voice: “and chin lock, and breathe in, and out, and relax…( I excitedly anticipated that each time she said this, it was the last round) but she would always the say, “and again, breathe in…”

One of the most powerful memories of the week was the day of our Ganga Bathing ritual. Our meditation in the morning was a mala meditation – chanting a mantra while running the 108 beaded mala through our fingers. For some reason the mantra that came to me was “I am love”. Pure and simple, yet often too hard to believe that of myself. The Ganga is believed by many to have powerful healing energies. And call me naive, but I am pretty convinced of it’s powerful energy. So with all of us standing on the banks of the river, with flowers to offer to the divine mother, we chanted “Om Ganga Mai, Ganga Maim, Ganga Mai Mai”, chanting the universal mantra “Om” to the Goddess Ganga and the divine mother. We stepped into the cold mountain water, and stood there for a while in silence, then offering our flowers, letting go of what we personally chose to let go of, we dipped right under the water three times. I don’t know how else to describe this experience, I was so overwhelmed with feelings of connection, the process of letting go brought me to tears. And to add to this, I was wearing my mala beads (which were given to me at my teacher training 6 years ago), in order to cleanse them. Yet, after my first dip, I noticed they had disappeared. Floated down the river, carrying with them all the energy that they had taken on over the past 6 years, all the energy that no longer serves me… upon return to the ashram, I walked past Guru-Ji’s tomb/shrine (the second Swami of the ashram). I just stood there, still crying, thanking him for the opportunity to have this place to come to and heal. I then looked down at my sand covered feet and noticed that I was standing on a circle of hearts…alignment, synchronicity…

The following day, we were told we could not skip the morning asana practice because it was a different type of yoga we were practicing. It was day 4 and with the amount of physical practice and emotion of the day before, my body was tired. I sat on my mat hoping that our “different” practice would be restorative yoga. Instead, Lalita-Ji told us to all push our mats together and that for the next hour I experienced laughter yoga for the first time. The release was amazing and the energy of all of us laughing together gave me such a sense of connection to the 13 other souls in the room. A bit of dancing and more laughing at the end, was the reminder I needed that yoga (and life) does not need to be taken so seriously, and also a reminder that sometimes what we think we want is not what we need. Laughter yoga definitely re-energized me more than a restorative class would have done. I still have a giggle at Lalita-ji saying “now Lalita-ji is not calm, now she is fierce tiger”.

The week was filled with so many moments that I will treasure forever; The vibrations I felt while doing the Mantra meditation (not even noticing a full hour had passed), and the mediation connecting to the sounds of the Ganga at sunrise were also just as transformational. Feeling my body strengthen with regular asana and nutritional vegetarian food, as the week progressed, reminded me how important my daily practice is. The nature walks, along the Ganga, to the waterfall, to the rice paddies, and through the ashram herb garden, the tingle of tasting fresh Tulsi (holy basil) and the bitterness and then sweetness of amla fruit; all reminded me of my spiritual connection to nature. The 108 chants at the final fire ceremony showed me again how healing chanting is. And finally, dancing around the fire on our last night, drinking chai and eating extremely sweet treats, laughing and sharing songs from all our different countries, made my heart so full and warm. Connecting with this tribe, my ashram family, has filled me with a deep sense of love and gratitude.

I was really sad to say goodbye to such amazing people, and a little jealous that some of them are still spending time together in Rishikesh. I honestly could spend the rest of my trip between the town and the ashram… but alas, I am often too much of a planner (sometimes to my detriment), and so I have moved on to my next destination… maybe a lesson for me in adding more spontaneity to my life…. But these are memories and people that I will treasure in my heart forever. Namaste beautiful souls (the divine in me recognizes the divine in you).