One of the most beloved days in India, the festival of bright colors and nationwide water-fight: Holi. At Prem Baba's satsang on Tuesday evening, eve of Holi, an Indian swami told the story of the origin of Holi, only about half of which I understood, but it is related to Krishna and Radha and the victory of good over evil. Prem Baba spoke a little after the swami, and ended with these words: Tonight and tomorrow, it is time for us to renew our vows with the Truth.
A little backtrack to Monday morning. Up shortly after 6 after another interrupted sleep. Mostly the mosquitoes this time, and some festive music coming from the ashram at various times during the night, in celebration of some elder's birthday. This week, I added another block to my schedule, the morning meditations at Trika. They are optional, led by Nic, who starts with about 15 minutes of talking about a different meditation technique or aspect, mostly from Ramana Maharshi, and always related to the biggest question humans can have: Who Am I? This is followed by 45 minutes of silent meditation, then the regular morning class goes from 8:30-10:45 (or usually 11 for me, since I always have questions). So every morning this week, I'm in the Trika hall from 7-11.
After class, I walked over to Swati's, but she wasn't home (she had gone into town to Arnav's school to get the results of his exams... he's in kindergarten!). Her mother-in-law insisted I still stay for a bit, and fed me breakfast: sweet chai with parantha and a vegetable-curd mix. Then she brought out a box of sweets they had been preparing for Holi and had me sample a few. Yum!
Walked over to Krishna Cottage for some internet, and when Roshan walked in, I finally asked him about the possibility of taking home a few of my drawings. (We never burned them as planned, and he told me that he had decided against it because of my drawings and those of another girl. He felt it wouldn't have been right.) So he said I could choose some to take with me, but also leave a few behind to leave some of my energy with Yog Peeth. Alright, I'm ok with that. More shopping and bargaining, some fruit salad from the fruit cart, then back to my room. Had my first cold bucket shower (water heater not working) and did my last load of laundry. Hooray! (How nice it will be to go home to a washing machine after 2 months of doing laundry by hand.) Then it was time for the afternoon Trika class from 4-6, followed by the lecture on vegetarianism from 6-7. Ended the day with a delicious moussaka (Israeli dish: baked aubergine with cheese sauce, rosemary potatoes and salad) at Oasis, then home for what would be my first good sleep in 3 days (only one mosquito, which I managed to kill; quiet ashram, quiet animals).
My alarm actually woke me up Tuesday morning, which hadn't happened in a long time. It went off at 6:30, and I got up feeling rested and rejuvenated, ready for meditation at 7:15. I actually managed to stay seated cross-legged, without having to stretch out my legs, for the full 45 minutes. Longest still-sit I've done in my short history of meditation. And then at the end of the morning class, held my longest steady headstand, about 6 minutes. Progress continues! After class, bonded with my neighbor, Ralph, from Sweden, over books (until then having only said hi in passing). I gave him one on yoga, and he gave me one of science fiction short stories by his favorite author (whose name I've already forgotten). Went to the the bakery, then internet, then day 5 of massage course (Sunday and Monday were off). I practised the back massage, then saw the demo of Nasya, oil drops in the nostrils to relieve cough, cold, congestion and sinus problems.
At 3, walked to Laxmanjula, went up the hill to Pyramid Cafe (one of my dad's favorite spots from last year), where I drank a delicious kombucha and had the Pryramid salad - fresh veg from the onsite organic garden, fresh sprouts, and spirulina on top. Delicious. Back down onto the main path, stopped into Scott's rock vendor to pick up a set of 7 essential oils, one for each chakra, and put aside a beautiful emerald ring, which I'll go back and pick up tomorrow. It was then time for Prem Baba, at 5, where this blog started.
I seem to be getting more carried away with my blogs as this trip comes to an end, so I'll wrap this one up here, even though I haven't even gotten to the title of it! All about Holi celebrations in the next post.
A little backtrack to Monday morning. Up shortly after 6 after another interrupted sleep. Mostly the mosquitoes this time, and some festive music coming from the ashram at various times during the night, in celebration of some elder's birthday. This week, I added another block to my schedule, the morning meditations at Trika. They are optional, led by Nic, who starts with about 15 minutes of talking about a different meditation technique or aspect, mostly from Ramana Maharshi, and always related to the biggest question humans can have: Who Am I? This is followed by 45 minutes of silent meditation, then the regular morning class goes from 8:30-10:45 (or usually 11 for me, since I always have questions). So every morning this week, I'm in the Trika hall from 7-11.
After class, I walked over to Swati's, but she wasn't home (she had gone into town to Arnav's school to get the results of his exams... he's in kindergarten!). Her mother-in-law insisted I still stay for a bit, and fed me breakfast: sweet chai with parantha and a vegetable-curd mix. Then she brought out a box of sweets they had been preparing for Holi and had me sample a few. Yum!
Walked over to Krishna Cottage for some internet, and when Roshan walked in, I finally asked him about the possibility of taking home a few of my drawings. (We never burned them as planned, and he told me that he had decided against it because of my drawings and those of another girl. He felt it wouldn't have been right.) So he said I could choose some to take with me, but also leave a few behind to leave some of my energy with Yog Peeth. Alright, I'm ok with that. More shopping and bargaining, some fruit salad from the fruit cart, then back to my room. Had my first cold bucket shower (water heater not working) and did my last load of laundry. Hooray! (How nice it will be to go home to a washing machine after 2 months of doing laundry by hand.) Then it was time for the afternoon Trika class from 4-6, followed by the lecture on vegetarianism from 6-7. Ended the day with a delicious moussaka (Israeli dish: baked aubergine with cheese sauce, rosemary potatoes and salad) at Oasis, then home for what would be my first good sleep in 3 days (only one mosquito, which I managed to kill; quiet ashram, quiet animals).
My alarm actually woke me up Tuesday morning, which hadn't happened in a long time. It went off at 6:30, and I got up feeling rested and rejuvenated, ready for meditation at 7:15. I actually managed to stay seated cross-legged, without having to stretch out my legs, for the full 45 minutes. Longest still-sit I've done in my short history of meditation. And then at the end of the morning class, held my longest steady headstand, about 6 minutes. Progress continues! After class, bonded with my neighbor, Ralph, from Sweden, over books (until then having only said hi in passing). I gave him one on yoga, and he gave me one of science fiction short stories by his favorite author (whose name I've already forgotten). Went to the the bakery, then internet, then day 5 of massage course (Sunday and Monday were off). I practised the back massage, then saw the demo of Nasya, oil drops in the nostrils to relieve cough, cold, congestion and sinus problems.
At 3, walked to Laxmanjula, went up the hill to Pyramid Cafe (one of my dad's favorite spots from last year), where I drank a delicious kombucha and had the Pryramid salad - fresh veg from the onsite organic garden, fresh sprouts, and spirulina on top. Delicious. Back down onto the main path, stopped into Scott's rock vendor to pick up a set of 7 essential oils, one for each chakra, and put aside a beautiful emerald ring, which I'll go back and pick up tomorrow. It was then time for Prem Baba, at 5, where this blog started.
I seem to be getting more carried away with my blogs as this trip comes to an end, so I'll wrap this one up here, even though I haven't even gotten to the title of it! All about Holi celebrations in the next post.
Funny girl, getting wraped up in her blogs... we all enjoy it!
ReplyDeleteReally looking forward to see your last chakra drawing ... and your sweet face, as Jill would say, next week : )
J'ai hate de te voir aussi! On se planifie un petit repas de famille la fin de semaine du 6-7? Brunch, souper... A bientot :)
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