Yoga in Rishikesh

The sweet little yoga studio where we practices Ashtanga on the ghats(steps) on the Ganges River


Sitting in the Sunset Cafe close to the dge of the river


Our amazing Ashtanga yoga teacher, Kamal, right outside his studio


This was one of the biggest cows we saw. Little Priscilla makes it look really big!


Priscilla and Kamal just before our last class with him:-(

Since we came back to Rishikesh we've been attending classes with "The Prince". That's not really his name, but Natalie started calling him that after her one and only class with him. When you look for yoga in India it's an unusual experience because you would think since yoga came from India to America that it would be everywhere here. It is, but's it's not what we call yoga. In America, as most trained yoga teachers know, we've turned it into something almost purely physical. In India it is still in it's original form. There are eight limbs (Ashtanga) to the ancient system that include breathing, meditation and focus, and of course, the physical postures. There are moral ways of behaving towards others and self too.

When we stumbled across this yoga oasis resting on the edge of the Ganges Rver we were intrigued. We peeked in the window and told ourselves that when the festival was over we would come and take classes here. Natalie was the only one with enough energy on that 8th day to follow through. When she returned from class to the ashram she was thrilled. She had found a true jewel on the Ganga. Priscilla and I decided to leave town pretty quickly after the festival so didn't get a chance to attend. But now that we are back it's at the top of our oriority list.

Kamal wa ytained by Shri Patabhi Jois himself. And it shows. His classes are filled with Westerners from all over. I don't think in all the classes we attended I saw one local person. It may be the 200 rupees ($4) that he charges keeping them away. To locals this is a lot of mula. But to us, it's a true blessing.We are lines up in two rows facing each other. Vrt traditional. We begin with the Ashtaga chant, three oms and a few gentle stretches. Then to standing to begin. Each Ashtanga practice begins with five surya namaskar a's and b's. He leads us through the first one then let's us go on our own, guiding those who are new individually.

As we move into the standing sequence of postures, he somehow manages to adjust every single one of us in every pose. He skips me occassionally. I tell myself it's because I don't need it, but reason that it could be because others need it more. I figured out after my first session that to be in the row facing the Ganga was a much better view. We get to each class early so we can face the holy river. When you are there it feels rather normal to be doing all of this. But when you return home and think back it all feels like a dream. To have the Karma(good fortune from past good actions) to be in such a situation. To practice Ashtanga yoga right on the Holy Mata ganga, is quite remarkable.

Kamal has a way of putting our bodies into places we didn't even know existed. He pulls our arms through our legs to take unknown binds. He lifts our legs up so high we are almost in full splits, standing. It's as if his confidence is contagious. When he is adjusting me I completely trust him. He is so intuitive and I feel so connected to him while I'm in his presence that I have no fear of being hurt. His adjustments are very strong, almost Iyengar like. But his sense of awareness penetrates any doubt that he knows exactly what he is doing. What an amazing teacher.

During our week back in Rishikesh we also attend a class in the Yoga Hall. This studio sits atop of some shops that back up to the river. When we are in one of our favorite restaurants near Laxman Jula bridge, the studio is directly outside the windows facing the river. it looks as if it is floating high in the sky with floor to ceiling windows looking down onto the river. What an amazing location. We have to navigate up several flights of outdoor stairs to reach it. A very large monkey scares the Bajesus out of us at the top.(to capitalize or not capitalize, that is the question?) He hisses and bears his teeth right in Priscilla's face. We both jump back. We notice a few little baby monkeys frolicking about and realize the mother was just being a mother- monkey style!

There are about 10 of us in this class. The teacher is a middle aged Indian man dressed in white. We have a beautiful view of the river from here but have little time to notice. The postures are done in ways foriegn to both of us but we graciously go along. He finishes the class with several versions of headstand then scorpio which he assists everyone in. Shavasana(final relaxation- the most inportant posture) is too short. It is dark out now and I want to sleep, I mean, relax. But we all sit up and chant and bow. I notice the teacher several times throughout the class drinking water and gazing out into the unknown. I wonder if he is bored or simply intuiting our next posture. After being in Kamal's classes I feel a bit neglected. We pay our 100 rupees and thank him for class. He asks me where i teach. i guess it shows. We find out later that what we were rpacticing was Sivananda Yoga. A young fench woman in the class tells us she is doing teacher training with him and loves it. We don't return mostly because we are so in love with our Ashtanga practice with Kamal and time is of an essence.

The morning after our crazy hike down the Himalayan mountain, when our legs felt like 300 pound weights and our walking mantra was, "ow, ow, ow", with each step, we decide to take in some Yin with Lynne on the balcony of our hotel room. It was about 9am and the sun was still behind the mountains. The wind is strong here in the morning but the building protects us and allows us to watch the trees blowing violently without affect. The yin practice opens joints and ligaments and increases flexibilty. Our muscles are so tight from our hike that working the joints feels even more amazing than usual. When we are done the sun is high in the sky and we are hot and lose. Ahhhh, what a feeling.

The last day in Rishikesh we head up the mountain, back to the place where our raft came back to shore. I noticed this little beach area that looked perfect for taping a yoga class on the Ganges River. We take the long walk down the path trying hard to beat the sun. The light is prerfect but we know eventually it will hit the horizon and dissapear. We set up the tripod and camera and my yoga mat and Priscilla calls out, "Action". Hahaha! The river is flowing behind me and the mountains create a sweet background. Rafting boats float by and a dog decide to enter the picture. There are dogs everywhere here so I'm not surprised. No big deal. My body is so tired and this is supposed to be a vinyasa video. So I keep plugging along. The sand is collecting on the mats and each time I bring my foot up over my head sand trickles down my leg into my face. The uneven surface creates lots of editing, that's ok. The sun below the horizon is a sweet surprise of golden glow on our skin so we keep rolling. We want to make sure we are not walking up the desolate dirt road to the main road in the dark. So we pack up and go. The taxi magically appears as we reach the top, panting and tired. Today we leave for Agra to see the Taj Mahal. A 10 hour drive never sounded so good. Namaste