It is believed that bathing in the Ganges River, the Ganga, during Kumbha Mela cures the bather of all sins and evils and grants the bather salvation. Sweet deal, right? In 2012, I attended the second royal bathing day of the Kumbha Mela in Haridwar, India. It is unknown exactly how many people attend this auspicious [...]
The drought-ridden Indian state of Bihar is achingly poor, chronically dusty and famous for its corrupt politicians and gun-toting bandits. But Bihar has another, quite contrasting distinction, as the place where 2,500 years ago the thirty-five-year-old Guatama Buddha realized the innermost potential of the human mind under the Bodhi tree in the present-day city of [...]
Paradise Found Yoga: Retreating For The Soul When I walked into my room at Sat Guru Nomi Lyons’s Paradise Found, there was a spray of orchids waiting for me. They’re my favorite flower. Lyons knew because it was one of the questions asked in the pre-retreat questionnaire, designed to facilitate a personalized experience in Paradise. [...]
Namaste And Other Traditions With A Future Rishikesh, Northern India. The stories Paramahansa Yogananda tells about running around in these hills in his youth are filled with miracles of higher consciousness: levitating swamis, meditators who could subdue man-eating tigers through the power of the mind, saints who appear and disappear at will and mystics with [...]
A simple sentence grabbed our attention: “Sometimes our most profound, life-changing experiences happen far away from home.” This was the introduction for Billy and Patti Asad’s YogaWorks Couples Retreat at Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort. Under the Couple’s empathetic guidance, the program offered four yoga sessions interspersed with socializing, hiking, cycling and hot-tubbing. Sycamore [...]
Playing With Flight. Making the Sacred Fun When Brett and I arrived at Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort after four days camping in Yosemite, we were covered in dust and nursing tired, cold bodies from miles of hiking. I was not only excited about my first yoga retreat, but also having a decent shower. [...]
Remembering To Breathe. Two hurdles prevent my giving yoga the consideration it deserves: time and my brain. In juggling work and deadlines, my personal time often suffers. As a result, the Wednesday night and Saturday morning yoga sessions my friend teaches never quite eventuate. So my LA YOGA editor and partner Natalie joined forces to [...]