Tag: 2011 Travels

Among Friends

Anne Nowell

Six weeks in San Diego have flown by.  I am fortunate to have many beautiful friends in San Diego and, indeed, it does feel like home. As the saying goes, “Home is where the heart is.

Muchas Gracias to all the beautiful event participants. Since the material covered was largely philosophical, I hope that everyone came away with new concepts to ponder. Thanks to Adesh Khalsa, the Kundinyasa Teacher Trainees, and to the Mystic Water Kava Studio for hosting me with Vedic Chanting and History of Yoga. Likewise, thanks to Duke Doudna and Yoga Oasis for sponsoring Energy Anatomy and to Oreste Prada for the photos. Teaching what one loves is truly a blessing!

Here are some of the highlights from this time spent with friends. Now I am off to the frontier lands of Montana. Thank goodness for Facebook (it is a way to stay in touch, even though increasing commercial!). Blessings for a beautiful spring wherever this finds you. I will probably find snow in Montana! Surely there will be some great photos. 🙂

Please click back and forth on the photos for the full images.

Namaste

March Workshops in San Diego

Anne Nowell

Thanks to everyone who stopped by for the Feb. 25th Kava tasting! It is a wonderful development that there is now such widespread interest in yoga. In the following workshops I would like to bring to light some additional pertinent information about yoga practices.  It would be great to see you at one of them. Here are the fliers for the classes in San Diego. Please contact me if you need a scholarship or for more info at yoga@annenowell.com

Namaste

SoundYogaWithAnneNowell

History of Yoga2Layout 1

Hindu Spiritual Practice

Anne Nowell

Upon writing this, I realize it is February and I have neglected to wish you all a Happy 2011! Since we are into the second month of this new year, I would hope that your year is shaping up to be full of good health, success, and happiness.  As my blogging efforts are irregular, many thanks to all of you who are reading and commenting on my travel log!

For the past 10 weeks I have been immersed in the discipline of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Ashram in Grass Valley, CA. One of my friends has compared it to military basic training and that is not a bad analogy. Rising at 5am to share one bathroom with 8 other females, attending up to 6 hours of practices (asana, lectures, meditation) daily, and contributing to the work force of the ashram in daily duties has been full time to say the least. Similar to basic training, it has been tremendously beneficial in deepening my own relationship to personal practice. As I move onto the next leg of my journeying I feel blessed and renewed for the return to life in the “real” world.

In the following photos I have captured aspects of the devotional art and practices that play a big role in Hindu ritual. Puja is a worship service to help deepen one’s emotional connection to the Divine. When the senses (eyes, ears, nose) are engaged in worship the effect is of a heightened experience. The somewhat personal nature of these rituals limits the opportunity to take photos, as photography feels like a distraction (flashes are so rude!). If you live in a metropolis there is likely a Hindu temple where you can experience a puja service. There is also the opportunity to arrange a weekend retreat at the Ashram here in Grass Valley.  Check out their programs at http://www.sivanandayogafarm.org

Be sure to click back and forth on the photos to get the full view.

Namaste