My plan is to convince her to go to the east village, and/or that it's too cold to stay there too often.
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- Thread starter jks9199
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I'm baaaaaack!
Ah cool! Yeah an ashram is like a spiritual 'hub', a place that is dedicated to a particular spiritual pathway or discipline. It usually has longterm residents there who live there in order to focus on their spiritual path in a more intense way, and they usually also welcome people to stay there for if they want to spend some time to really develop spiritually, or even just for respite and time away from the world. They're usually very very simplistic and lead a very simple life, residents maintain the ashram and are involved in the life of the place, help to clean, garden etc. And alot of ashrams are mostly self-sufficient as well.
This one was a yoga one, but not just the asanas/poses and physical body practice (that's just one very small portion of what yoga is), but these guys are devoted to the spiritual path of yoga. Really really cool!
I only really do a little of the asana practice at home and meditation, and am not devoted to this particular tradition, but it was really fascinating, I immersed myself in their daily schedule and did all the sessions. They even did chanting mantras (all in the Sanskrit language) which I didn't quite get or feel any benefit myself, but I do understand why they do it, and it's also a great form of focusing the mind. Mainly all devotional and are different names of God and attributes of God etc.
The morning asana class was great, and they also had karma yoga, which is helping out around the ashram doing some jobs around that needed doing, but all in the spirit of letting go of attachment to the fruits of your effort. So you're doing the task to 'gain' anything, not looking for praise or to do it absolutely perfectly, or not doing it for any reward (physical or emotional), but for itself. Remaining completely present during the task, and letting go of outcomes of good, bad, whatever. And yeah I found when you stop the mental noise and expectation surrounding the task, it builds a really natural flow of ease, and it becomes really joyous! Because nothing is rising on the outcome anymore, nothing is at stake.
Also had yoga nidra (basically you lay down in shavasana, blanket too if you want!), and they guide you through a meditation. Soooooo relaxing, many people nodded off and fell asleep haha!
And meditation session later on. And in the gaps in between I would just meditate, look at nature or walk around alot. Doing NOTHING. I highly recommend doing absolutely nothing
.
Lots of chanting 'Om' at the start and end of every session, and the 'Om Shanti' peace invocation. Was a really really beautiful community of people, so welcoming and actually mostly down to earth, not super head-in-the-clouds type people! Only a couple of fruitloops there ;D
It was not without its challenges haha.. many blocks came up within myself, but I could recognize the limitations I had on myself, especially with karma yoga, beliefs of "I can't do this, I don't know anything about gardening" etc etc.. but all went totally fine! And pretty sore in upper back from seated meditation posture haha.
The location was stunning... in the midst of a forest, beautiful scenery and wildlife, walks etc. And all vegetarian food provided (I'm not vegetarian, but the food was incredible...).
I feel so, so refreshed from having gone, and I truly enjoyed my time there. Very rejuvenated. Just needed some time away to let things settle within myself... and learned alot. Just to return to simplicity, and wanting to live a simpler life. At more ease with the comings and goings of what happens, and I left with a feeling of relaxed stability.
The schedule is below! And @AngryHobbit I reckon you'd LOVE doing one! Highly recommend them! It was 4 nights that I stayed, and was a good amount of time. Would definitely go back, even for a full week.
Ah cool! Yeah an ashram is like a spiritual 'hub', a place that is dedicated to a particular spiritual pathway or discipline. It usually has longterm residents there who live there in order to focus on their spiritual path in a more intense way, and they usually also welcome people to stay there for if they want to spend some time to really develop spiritually, or even just for respite and time away from the world. They're usually very very simplistic and lead a very simple life, residents maintain the ashram and are involved in the life of the place, help to clean, garden etc. And alot of ashrams are mostly self-sufficient as well.
This one was a yoga one, but not just the asanas/poses and physical body practice (that's just one very small portion of what yoga is), but these guys are devoted to the spiritual path of yoga. Really really cool!
I only really do a little of the asana practice at home and meditation, and am not devoted to this particular tradition, but it was really fascinating, I immersed myself in their daily schedule and did all the sessions. They even did chanting mantras (all in the Sanskrit language) which I didn't quite get or feel any benefit myself, but I do understand why they do it, and it's also a great form of focusing the mind. Mainly all devotional and are different names of God and attributes of God etc.
The morning asana class was great, and they also had karma yoga, which is helping out around the ashram doing some jobs around that needed doing, but all in the spirit of letting go of attachment to the fruits of your effort. So you're doing the task to 'gain' anything, not looking for praise or to do it absolutely perfectly, or not doing it for any reward (physical or emotional), but for itself. Remaining completely present during the task, and letting go of outcomes of good, bad, whatever. And yeah I found when you stop the mental noise and expectation surrounding the task, it builds a really natural flow of ease, and it becomes really joyous! Because nothing is rising on the outcome anymore, nothing is at stake.
Also had yoga nidra (basically you lay down in shavasana, blanket too if you want!), and they guide you through a meditation. Soooooo relaxing, many people nodded off and fell asleep haha!
And meditation session later on. And in the gaps in between I would just meditate, look at nature or walk around alot. Doing NOTHING. I highly recommend doing absolutely nothing
.Lots of chanting 'Om' at the start and end of every session, and the 'Om Shanti' peace invocation. Was a really really beautiful community of people, so welcoming and actually mostly down to earth, not super head-in-the-clouds type people! Only a couple of fruitloops there ;D
It was not without its challenges haha.. many blocks came up within myself, but I could recognize the limitations I had on myself, especially with karma yoga, beliefs of "I can't do this, I don't know anything about gardening" etc etc.. but all went totally fine! And pretty sore in upper back from seated meditation posture haha.
The location was stunning... in the midst of a forest, beautiful scenery and wildlife, walks etc. And all vegetarian food provided (I'm not vegetarian, but the food was incredible...).
I feel so, so refreshed from having gone, and I truly enjoyed my time there. Very rejuvenated. Just needed some time away to let things settle within myself... and learned alot. Just to return to simplicity, and wanting to live a simpler life. At more ease with the comings and goings of what happens, and I left with a feeling of relaxed stability
.The schedule is below! And @AngryHobbit I reckon you'd LOVE doing one! Highly recommend them! It was 4 nights that I stayed, and was a good amount of time. Would definitely go back, even for a full week.
AngryHobbit
Senior Master
This sounds fascinating. I think many people could seriously benefit from the practice of doing NOTHING - myself included. I am TERRIBLE at it (just ask @gpseymour - we have this conversation every time I get sick). I also wonder whether there are such retreats for other disciplines. I would love a belly dancing retreat!I'm baaaaaack!
Ah cool! Yeah an ashram is like a spiritual 'hub', a place that is dedicated to a particular spiritual pathway or discipline. It usually has longterm residents there who live there in order to focus on their spiritual path in a more intense way, and they usually also welcome people to stay there for if they want to spend some time to really develop spiritually, or even just for respite and time away from the world. They're usually very very simplistic and lead a very simple life, residents maintain the ashram and are involved in the life of the place, help to clean, garden etc. And alot of ashrams are mostly self-sufficient as well.
This one was a yoga one, but not just the asanas/poses and physical body practice (that's just one very small portion of what yoga is), but these guys are devoted to the spiritual path of yoga. Really really cool!
I only really do a little of the asana practice at home and meditation, and am not devoted to this particular tradition, but it was really fascinating, I immersed myself in their daily schedule and did all the sessions. They even did chanting mantras (all in the Sanskrit language) which I didn't quite get or feel any benefit myself, but I do understand why they do it, and it's also a great form of focusing the mind. Mainly all devotional and are different names of God and attributes of God etc.
The morning asana class was great, and they also had karma yoga, which is helping out around the ashram doing some jobs around that needed doing, but all in the spirit of letting go of attachment to the fruits of your effort. So you're doing the task to 'gain' anything, not looking for praise or to do it absolutely perfectly, or not doing it for any reward (physical or emotional), but for itself. Remaining completely present during the task, and letting go of outcomes of good, bad, whatever. And yeah I found when you stop the mental noise and expectation surrounding the task, it builds a really natural flow of ease, and it becomes really joyous! Because nothing is rising on the outcome anymore, nothing is at stake.
Also had yoga nidra (basically you lay down in shavasana, blanket too if you want!), and they guide you through a meditation. Soooooo relaxing, many people nodded off and fell asleep haha!
And meditation session later on. And in the gaps in between I would just meditate, look at nature or walk around alot. Doing NOTHING. I highly recommend doing absolutely nothing
Lots of chanting 'Om' at the start and end of every session, and the 'Om Shanti' peace invocation. Was a really really beautiful community of people, so welcoming and actually mostly down to earth, not super head-in-the-clouds type people! Only a couple of fruitloops there ;D
It was not without its challenges haha.. many blocks came up within myself, but I could recognize the limitations I had on myself, especially with karma yoga, beliefs of "I can't do this, I don't know anything about gardening" etc etc.. but all went totally fine! And pretty sore in upper back from seated meditation posture haha.
The location was stunning... in the midst of a forest, beautiful scenery and wildlife, walks etc. And all vegetarian food provided (I'm not vegetarian, but the food was incredible...).
I feel so, so refreshed from having gone, and I truly enjoyed my time there. Very rejuvenated. Just needed some time away to let things settle within myself... and learned alot. Just to return to simplicity, and wanting to live a simpler life. At more ease with the comings and goings of what happens, and I left with a feeling of relaxed stability
The schedule is below! And @AngryHobbit I reckon you'd LOVE doing one! Highly recommend them! It was 4 nights that I stayed, and was a good amount of time. Would definitely go back, even for a full week.
Oh yeah it's such a beneficial thing... just to come to a place where you're comfortable doing nothing, with no projected outcomes or any way at all we try to manipulate reality or our experience. I spent alot of time just looking, observing nature, and seeing how effortless it goes with life rather than against.
And yeah there are boatloads of different types of retreats, for so many different disciplines and people. Worth looking into! Ah yes that would be an awesome retreat for you!
AngryHobbit
Senior Master
AngryHobbit
Senior Master
Speaking of dancing, I found a little snippet of our belly dancing class filmed at the Y back in August. Not sure if it embeds right - here is the direct link.
AngryHobbit
Senior Master
There must be something wrong with me or the Universe. I had a very busy day at work - one of those where I went from one task to the next, to the next, to the next. I did eat at some point, but otherwise, I was working. So, at 4:30 pm I hit a wall. I decided I was tired and just... went home. And now I am considering going to bed at 8:00 pm and just... reading. Anyone sensing the disturbance in the Force?
dvcochran
Grandmaster
Sounds like a good plan to this old man.
I had to get up early and drive to Mobile, AL today. As soon as I got here I spent about 2 hours with a customer who said they had an unsolvable problem. 7 hour drive for 2 hours of hand holding for a “problem” that could have been resolved remotely if they would allow access to their controllers.
Energy companies can be a real pain in the xxx.
I had to get up early and drive to Mobile, AL today. As soon as I got here I spent about 2 hours with a customer who said they had an unsolvable problem. 7 hour drive for 2 hours of hand holding for a “problem” that could have been resolved remotely if they would allow access to their controllers.
Energy companies can be a real pain in the xxx.
damn, you are relatively close....
Depending on the direction you drove....
Scary.
you could be right in my neighborhood.....
Spring time...
I have been.... VERY tired the last few days.. just exhausted. Although it's usual when I come home from a retreat into a world where there is constant and fast moving stimuli.
But maybe a disturbance in the Force... ?
dvcochran
Grandmaster
Yes!! We were outside much of the time and I did not dress accordingly. That was a cold blow yesterday.
AngryHobbit
Senior Master
Not really - it's like 2 deg F outside.
I'm really tempted to start a thread with the question "What language is better, american or english?", nothing in the subject, and see what happens.
AngryHobbit
Senior Master
Are you trying to start another war?
Seriously, though, I struggle with that. When I was learning English at school, they taught us British English. But since I came to the States in 1994, I've been speaking American English. I can go between ok, but I am sure some of the idiom on both sides is bound to slip through the cracks. And I do love British accent. When working with narrators to produce my publications as audiobooks, I often opt for the British accent.You'd probably get a couple of overly zealous comments on each side, then it'd fade away.
Personally, I view neither as better or worse than the other.
One is a bastardised mishmash of mispronounced, misspelled imported words with optionally similar or completely different meanings to the originals. The other is the same thing, but with the process taken a little further...
So, it'd solely depend on whether you're dealing with an English speaker or American speaker.
It's somewhat like asking whether Italian or Spanish is better - two languages with a superficially similar backstory but a much longer timeframe of independent development with little interaction so less cross contamination - Spanish being derived from the Latin taken to the Iberian peninsula and Italian being derived from the Latin that never left it's home...
Give it a few hundred years and (if we're still around) it's likely that most of the world will be speaking pretty much the same basic language with regional differences.
Are you trying to start another war?
It's interesting that you got taught English at school - I think the further east you go (past the Indian subcontinent) the more likely that TEFL curricula (teaching English as a foreign language) shifts further toward American.
It's also interesting when people mention "the British accent"
Where I am, the accent is distinctly different to say London and some areas in Scotland may as well have a different language entirely - hence the need for the film trainspotting to have subtitles for some parts of the US market...
My wife was born and raised around here, and she also struggles with some of the other regions.
Us/we as a species, not as individuals.
AngryHobbit
Senior Master
Whichever version we are taught, it is mandatory in most countries. It's just assumed you are going to need English at one point or another. I had to take the TEFL test as part of the exchange program that got me here - very familiar with that.It's interesting that you got taught English at school - I think the further east you go (past the Indian subcontinent) the more likely that TEFL curricula (teaching English as a foreign language) shifts further toward American.
It's also interesting when people mention "the British accent"
Where I am, the accent is distinctly different to say London and some areas in Scotland may as well have a different language entirely - hence the need for the film trainspotting to have subtitles for some parts of the US market...
My wife was born and raised around here, and she also struggles with some of the other regions.
When I say "British accent" I mean the standard BBC accent. I have friends all over the UK as well as Ireland - and they all have their own different accents. My friend from Wales sounds completely different from the friend who lives in London and is a scientist and a writer, and is completely different from the friend who used to live in London and now lives closer to Scotland, and is different from the friend who is from Ireland, but lived in France for a number of years, and then went back to Ireland.
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