Diary of a Yoga retreat - Day 9 - am class

This morning is the last Mysore tyle class of the retreat. Ashtanga Yoga is a system of yoga that is made up of a set series of postures, practiced in the exact same order and same way every day.

Traditionally on a Sunday and Friday morning the teacher leads the class and they practice as one, as in everyone moving and breathing at the same time and they practice the Primary Series of Ashtanga Yoga.

Mysore Style practice means that everyone also practices these postures, but they do so in their own time and way. The teacher is available for assistance and adjustments. This is quite different from the led classes and your own likes and dislikes can shine through.

I enjoy both styles as I love this practice and each style has its own benefits to offer.

Mysore style this morning though. Last one of the retreat. Time has flown. I am feeling very emotional this morning. Trepidation and excitement fill me. They are similar are they not? I am going home. A lot of feelings are within me.

Again, as each day here has begun, we practice the full standing postures together. I enjoy this and feel our breaths unite and grow stronger. It is an unusual but uplifting experience to link your breath with a group of people. The energy is palpable in the shala this morning.

Suryanamaskara A and B then we begin to fly. Today I feel the postures very deeply within. I feel that they are coming from the core of me, from my centre. My body feels elongated and stretched and allows a large amount of light to settle within me. My energy feels clear and my head feels calm. This is great and I am happy today. Yoga is a great tool for me, maybe not for everyone but for me it works.

This path to enlightenment that has been written about and taught for centuries is very accessible to everyone. Even a housewife from Byron Bay can learn to be still and happy. This is something that can work for anyone if they follow the path. The steps are not so hard. It works.

This morning I do not go within as much as normal. Today I am aware of everyone in the room (still trying not to look too long at cute guy..). I am trying to drink in their energy and find a place in my heart for them all to stay as they are today. Practicing and flowing back and forth across their mats. Allowing their hearts to shine and to look at mine. This will not last once I get home. I know that. Life will appear and take over and that is ok. I need to find a place to keep this moment as it is now, pure and sweet. Put it there and take a look whenever I need to.

It seems impossible that for someone to connect their breath with movement for their heart to remain untouched. Over an extended period of time of this type of practice the heart will shine and grow. Today I feel I am witnessing the vulnerability of all of us, taking a look and letting it grow. This is a rare experience and I acknowledge this.

I see 15 hearts before me and that is quite remarkable. Worth treasuring.

We begin sitting postures and second series begins for me. I am loving it and working hard. I find that the more attention I place on my breath the easier the practice becomes for me. Second series is quite difficult but I am beginning to fly with it. I wonder what would happen if this retreat was a month long?

I find myself at Yoganidrasana (second series posture). This is quite a tricky one. You ly on your back and place both legs behind your head, crossed at the ankles. Your hands attempt to wrap around the back and clasp each other.

When I first began Ashtanga Yoga I would look at the other practitioners doing this and think them so clever and bendy. I am very surprised at the ease with which I complete this posture. I find it extremely relaxing which is amazing really. You are tied up in knots but my breath finds it way in and out so effortlessly. The correct procedure is 5 breaths but I am beginning to take 10 in this posture as I find it so calming and rejuvenating. Life can be a big surprise if you let it.

Enlightenment sounds so hard to reach. So lofty and hard won. I am beginning to think that it just means filling yourself with light. Once you are full with light no darkness can come in and life will be more simple. I am starting to get there, it is a slow walk but I feel I am walking nonetheless"..