Over a year ago my friend Arvind told me that a 300 hour yoga teacher training was in the works for December 2014 at Rishikesh Yogdham, led by an extraordinary teacher named Dominque. As much as I love Rishikesh, and love Yogdham, I thought back then that I'd do whatever I could to make it. I didn't know at the time how I'd ever take 6 weeks off of work, but vowed to just do it. So last spring, I went ahead and registered for the course. Nearly a year in advance, just to set the wheels of the universe in place.
I arrived last night to Rishikesh and the program orientation was today! It is an extremely diverse group - includes people from China, Japan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Malaysia, Italy, Philippines...wow. Many of the participants have done a 200 hour training with Dominique already, either in China or Vietnam. Everyone on the course has at least a 200 hour training certificate, so this immediately sets the bar high in terms of knowledge/experience we're supposed to already have. During our orientation and dinner, Dominique already dropped enough hints regarding her preferred styles and philosophy regarding yoga that I know this will be a very enriching experience. She mentioned that she believes in the truth of anatomy - either a pose is good for your body or it is bad for your body. And we'll learn more why, no doubt. She also mentioned several points on the importance of a balanced vegetarian diet which are very in line with how I feel.
Today marks the beginning of a near three month journey ahead related to yoga. It's a hobby and passion that I think has become important enough to merit taking this much time to study seriously. I hope that after these months ahead, I'll be ready to share different aspects of yoga with others on a wider scale. We'll see. At the very least, I am so grateful for this opportunity and look forward to the times ahead. There's lots to learn!
I arrived last night to Rishikesh and the program orientation was today! It is an extremely diverse group - includes people from China, Japan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Malaysia, Italy, Philippines...wow. Many of the participants have done a 200 hour training with Dominique already, either in China or Vietnam. Everyone on the course has at least a 200 hour training certificate, so this immediately sets the bar high in terms of knowledge/experience we're supposed to already have. During our orientation and dinner, Dominique already dropped enough hints regarding her preferred styles and philosophy regarding yoga that I know this will be a very enriching experience. She mentioned that she believes in the truth of anatomy - either a pose is good for your body or it is bad for your body. And we'll learn more why, no doubt. She also mentioned several points on the importance of a balanced vegetarian diet which are very in line with how I feel.
Today marks the beginning of a near three month journey ahead related to yoga. It's a hobby and passion that I think has become important enough to merit taking this much time to study seriously. I hope that after these months ahead, I'll be ready to share different aspects of yoga with others on a wider scale. We'll see. At the very least, I am so grateful for this opportunity and look forward to the times ahead. There's lots to learn!