Yoga with Yatren

It's a beautiful thing knowing I can find a yoga class anywhere in the world that will give me what I need to get right in my body and mind. My fiance and I are both certified teachers (she's way better than I am), and a huge chunk of our life together revolves around yoga. Simply put, it's the oldest, and most comprehensive system of health & knowledge ever created by our species. If you've never tried it, you're missing out on the best preventative medicine money can buy, and if you have tried it, well, then this entry is for you...

Desperate to do something nice for my body before this week of beer-drinking debauchery begins, I sought out a yoga studio today to get at least one practice in before I start typing 70 words a minute, 7 hours a day, for the rest of this week. I try to practice wherever I travel, and I've been to some really interesting classes in Bangkok, Buenos Aires, Sydney (at this absolutely gorgeous studio on the water), and now, Melbourne. Today's class at the Yoga Arts Academy was easily the best class I've been to outside of the US, though, and it's gratifying to find a system of yoga that I had never heard of before that was comprehensive, systematic, and taught with authentic mastery and creative sequencing. The good folks at this academy teach what they call Sakshin Ghatastha Yoga, "a flowing style of Yoga comprised of techniques for transforming the subtle essences of the body and developing its energy channels." Check out the link, it's an interesting and effective approach. I always find it inspiring to come across someone who shares the same passions as you, a similar education, and yet manifests that knowledge in a completely different way. Enter Yatren.

The teacher was a desi guy with an aussie accent, rocking a kesh-style ponytail and a friendly and approachable demeanor. He made me feel comfortable right away, and welcomed me into the large, carpeted studio with a big smile. I changed and lined up my mat in what I thought was the back corner, only to discover at the last minute that I'd lined up in the very front of the room right next to Yatren. I was mortified. It takes a special kind of narcissism to want to be in front of class and on display, and I'm not that type of guy. I like to hide in the back. Well, ultimately it didn't really matter, because the class was engrossing, stimulating, profoundly satisfying, and really quite a learning experience. I picked up some things I'm going to have to try...or convince my love to incorporate into her teaching... I left the studio refreshed, revitalized, attuned to my inner workings, and fully free of the jet lag that had plagued me all day. Thank God for yoga...I'd be a broken man without it...