In January 2008 I was extremely blessed to
experience and enjoy a 2 week period of rest
and reJOYvination in Verkala, Kerela, South
India on a Yoga retreat. At the time it
seemed appropriate to see what the special
time would offer before I sowed the seeds of
my year, so here is my story ...
When I booked the retreat towards the end of
2007 I felt it was time to recharge my
batteries. This was unusual for me as "I do
what I love and love what I do!" and
consider myself very lucky to be happy,
healthy and full of vitality. However, I
always look and listen to the messages that
come to me everyday, and there was a
sequence of events. On meeting a friend for
lunch in late September her parting comment
was; "I can see you going to India". This
was a surprise as I really couldn't see that
happening at the time. Then soon after when
I was shopping with a friend I spontaneously
bought some T shirts for casual wear, and
heard a voice in my head saying "Good
because you'll be going on holiday soon!" As
I began to think of where I may like to go I
spoke to a friend who had just been on a
sailing holiday in the Bahamas. I thought
this may be an idea for my adventure, but as
that was to see her friends rather than an
organised trip, that was not an option. The
same afternoon the word "Kerela" kept
repeating itself in my mind. As soon as I
got home I searched the internet for: "Kerela+India+Retreat"
and instantly became inundated with information. I was drawn to the "Shining
Minds" website initially because of the name itself, and when I spoke to the
organiser I very quickly decided this was THE ONE for me. All my arrangements
happened SO easily, with good flight times and visa availability. This, was
DEFINITELY the right thing for me to do ...
The WHOLE experience was SUCH a great
pleasure in many different ways. On an
organised note there was 30 minutes
meditation from 7.30am, followed by 1.1/2
hours Yoga from 8.00am to 9.30am, and
another Yoga session from 4.00pm to 5.30pm
on most days. For 7 out of the 14 days there
was also a 1.1/2 hour Ayurvedic treatment.
One morning was focused purely on self
development which I found to be an extremely
powerful experience. This happened on the
Wednesday morning before we returned home on
the Saturday, so it temporarily bought me
back down to earth with a BIG BANG (more
about that later)! There were also many
extra curricula activities that were a HUGE
bonus. The hotel owners' daughter got
married by coincidence while we were there,
so the whole group was invited to an Indian
wedding, which included the pre-wedding
Friday night party at a FABULOUS Indian
Mansion - WOW! The architectural features
included an amazing curved hard wood
staircase with a Lion's head carved on the
bottom pillars, internal water features and
twinkly lights everywhere. A complete feast
for our eyes! We also went to a Temple
Festival one evening, which was full of
atmosphere and excitement with music,
drumming and dancing. As white English
people we were as much a spectacle as what
we went to see! The most RELAXING day was
spent cruising on the backwaters near Varkala, on a very luxurious wooden barge,
which is often used for honeymoon trips and
romantic occasions. The detail to the finish
of the boat was incredible as even the
en-suite basin was heart shaped. We were SO
well looked after that day and the food was
all vegetarian and very delicious.
An AMAZING part of the experience was to be
within a group of complete strangers who
very quickly become an instant family that
respected each other's views, privacy and
need for independence, yet always looked out
for each other. There was a wonderful
harmony within the group and we very quickly
developed a holiday catchphrase "We love you
we do" which bought lots of laughter and
softness. A group of us in the swimming pool
on a couple of afternoons were seen to be
swimming through each others legs and
floating on each others fingers - what fun!
The two weeks just flew by, yet it was the
most amazing time bubble, which offered SO
many gifts. I have SUCH huge gratitude for
the experience which created a FABULOUS
golden time bubble of memory for us all.
It was also inspirational to see people of
all ages and cultures enjoying time together
on the beach at Varkala. It was common for
people to befriend each other and travel to
different areas of the country to expand
their adventures. At the time we worked out
that you could spend 3 months there in the
winter and live on £1,000 including your
flight, albeit very basic, but when you have
sun, sea and sand what else do you need?
There were 76 rupees to the £1.00 at the
time we were there. Fresh fruit juice was 25
rupees, a plate of fried rice 100 rupees and
you could even get lunch for 14 rupees or a
sandwich for 6 rupees in town! Overnight
accommodation in a bamboo hut was 400 rupees
(or even cheaper) and reasonable
accommodation 700 rupees. The clothes were
also very colourful and great value. So if
you are an adventurer, listen to your
intuition and see the signs and Go! Go!
Go!
The conclusion of my BIG BANG moment of
Epiphany during my Varkala self development
exercise was that my "specific changes I
wanted to accomplish" were:
My "Prayer for World Peace" is
internationally recognised
I am known as a Revolutionary working with
the Power of Love
So here we are now in 2015, the seeds well
sown as the inspirations were put into
action and all is achieved. The moral of
this story is if you ever feel you need a
break to get away from everyone and
everything and clear your mind, know you
can, make a plan, sow the seeds and be brave
and courageous, go for it and put your ideas
into action and make life happen. Listen to
the signposts along the way and share your
plans with others to seed your ideas, and
let your imagination expand and go wild as
your dream becomes a reality. Remember the
only real gift we can ever give is TIME, so
make sure you gift yourself this freedom in
loving yourself. Have fun**
Vandaeh Works