In January 2018 I completed an Advanced teacher training in the Sivananda Hatha yoga style on Paradise Island, the Bahamas. Here's how it went . . . .
Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centre, Bahamas
Firstly please allow me to tell you how I came to be in the Bahamas.
14 years ago, on a vision board, I had a picture of an Indian guy teaching yoga on a platform outdoors to many people in an orderly scene.
7 years ago whilst learning Kinesiology a girl on the course had come straight back from a teacher training yoga course in Neyyar Dam, India.
She was glowing.
I was going, and a few months later I did.
Upon walking into the reception area of the Ashram in India, I saw the same picture that was on my vision board - Sivananda Ashram in the Bahamas.
I took 5 more years and I was there.
Advanced Yoga Teacher Training
Pranayama - Loved it! Up at 4.30am every morning for various breathing techniques to get the prana energy moving. There are lots of breathe retention and I meditate best in that place.
New appreciation for its power in healing and awakening naddhi's (energy nodes).
Vegan / Vegetarian Food - Delish! I ccould eat it forever if some one or many were to be cooking it. So nice to have such a variety of tastes and flavours made with veg and herbs. Being gluten free there were days that the food wasn't ideal and I'd literally eat water soup over rice.
However I did have a back up plan. Organic Olive oil 3 dessertspoons 3 times a days.
Oil is a brilliant source of energy and reduces appetite.
Having good energy was important for the intense regime.
The idea of an ashram is to keep you busy all the time.
Didn't miss meat at all however did miss the Barry's tea.
Yoga - Born Yogi! Sure would be happy if I had not one thing better to be doing in this world only living yoga. This month was nice for me to switch off from being an instructor and be lead into the depths of Hatha Yoga. As its a 4 week course I paced myself for the long haul, with a 'give it 70% motto (lol - can't run a marathon at a sprint) the class was graduated also.
Each week we'd do more advanced poses and holding poses longer and longer.
Restorative yoga and yoga nidra's are very pleasant, passive yoga meditations that really appeal to me and inspire me to get a move on getting this yoga studio opened. Its on the vision board.
Sivananda Satsung in the Bahama's was average enough as happy clappy sing a longs go. However do highly recommend them in Indian ashram's where you have singers singing from there heart. The mantra's are very pleasant and soothing. It is called Satsung which generally means an enlightened one sharing their knowledge. Sing-a-long is generally known as Kirtan. This is more like kirtan with fairly dodgy singers, however one of the lads in an orange costume does a really good good Aarti tune at the finishing up of proceedings.
The group energy of enthusiast yogi's is really pleasant.
Here's the Schedule
- 4.30am Wake Up
- 5.00am Pranyama
- 6.00am Satsung (Meditation, Chanting, Lectue)
- 7.45am Asanas Yoga Class
- 9.00am Advanced Anatomy & Physiology
-10.00am Brunch - Vegetarian
-11.00am Paddle in the water (not on itinery)
-12.00pm Raja Yoga / Sanskrit
- 2.00pm Vedanta Philiosophy
- 4.00pm Asanas / Advanced Yoga
- 6.00pm Dinner
-6.45 pm Karma Yoga
- 8.00pm Satsung
-10.00pm LIghts out
Yoga Buddies Amy and Tami
This was the back garden :)
It was incredible to have manifested the image on the vision board, however this was a lesson alike meeting your idol's in real life, this experience of the Bahamas had two side of the coin. Mechanically it was all there, ticked the boxes so to speak.
I knew from being here that if I really want to know yoga, its heart is in India.
There was something more to this trip than yoga. Life was teaching me incredible lessons.
I could see many hypocrisies - how the teaching said one thing and in front of my eyes was something very different. Couldn't find any compassion energy here, nor a guru for that matter. And that was the greatest and most beautiful lesson I received from the Bahamas.
It was a microcosm of the macrocosm.
If I could find peace here, I could find peace anywhere.
The world shows us what is within.
The Guru is within.
The hardest part for me was in the intense geoengineering, oh mother of god the frequencies were so overwhelming. Especially between 10pm and 3am.
I was already shocked by the man made hurricane Ophelia hitting Ireland October 2017, had planned to be in yogi bliss for a month to over come the fear in my mind. I was exposed to far more severe weather creations on this holiday. Hurricane's apparently when man-made are created closer to the equator due to the atmosphere then sent north wards bombarding the US with storm after storm. I was in a tent and hit with high winds for the whole months,rarely ever sleeping before 3am.
I was grateful for the training, had expected yoga training, this was only a part, got something similar to survival training also. When an earthquake hit local islands the entire ashram become sick the next day, vomiting, diarrhoea, body aches etc. Impressed myself with my herbal collection, I never had any illness, however it became quiet as many people were sectioned to there sleeping quarters not to spread the illness.
I got a lot more bang for my buck than I could have ever imagined.
Mental, physical, emotional training.
Having a warm blue green ocean to dip into daily certainly helped calm to mind.
It was in the Bahamas that I felt the most incredibly loving connection to Master Sivananda.
His image would bring tears to my eyes with the love, integrity, devotion and compassion his image expressed to my soul. His energy guided me through every step with ease.
I would wonder where are the Jesus's, the buddha's, the sivananda's in the this age.
Where on the earth are they hiding.
Within is the answer to all questions.
When the course ended and the students left the island, I remained for a few more days to enjoy a holiday on Paradise Island, reflecting enjoying the surroundings. There was an Indian man in orange robes who is the New York Vedanta teacher. In half an hour he explained the basics of Vedanta so beautifully. We had Vedanta classes which made no sense at all. This guy got it. With the hugest gratitude to my guides, the angels watching over me protecting me. This night wrapped up proceedings very well.
The object is outside of you and you are the seer.
You can witness yourself seeing.
Your eyes are the object your mind is the seer.
You can witness your mind having thoughts.
Your thoughts are the object, the observer is the self.
Boom! Vedanta.
The yoga was the lure the leyline was the work to be done.
On the last night, on a cresent, blue and blood moon.
With a group of warm hearted strangers sitting on the beach tuning into the energies of what would be, this ending was so beautiful, so perfect, so satisfying.
I learnt far more than I had bargained for, experienced incredible energies within myself.
Saw how this island and this leyline could be raised to Christ most high of the universe.
With highest gratitude to the God most high of the Universe
Thank you
