Tuesday June 16th London and Donna Farhi's Yoga Intensive

Tomorrow is the last day of Donna’s intensive workshop. I woke this morning feeling heavy with exhaustion. I have slept fitfully most nights since I arrived. I’ve chosen to walk to the yoga venue at Primrose Hill each morning. It takes about an hour walking at a brisk pace. On my arrival at Triyoga I entered the large yoga room where around 50 people would be gathering yet again for a day of yoga in the hands of a very skilled teacher. It may sound like an impersonal environment with such a large group but Donna manages repeatedly to create an atmosphere of intimacy. With a combination of seriousness interspersed with lightness and humour she has guided our group of yoga practitioners to places that some of us reluctantly journeyed. From the strictest and most disciplined ashtangis to those practising freer expressions of yoga we are offered the opportunity to question her methodology. As well as experiencing my own trepidation it has been so valuable to listen to many of the participants sharing their feelings, doubts and awkwardness. Each day has been demanding, enlightening and at times downright confrontational. One of the many gifts this intensive has offered me is the opportunity to talk with other teachers and students as many express their fears and doubts. We come from so many different social, cultural and yoga backgrounds and yet again I am reminded of what we all have in common. We are human beings with our strengths and frailties meeting on the mat to continue on our quest for greater knowledge of ourselves and human nature. I again feel an internal turmoil and wonder where I am going to place myself and this knowledge. We have been encouraged to seek the truth of ourselves. To raise enquiries instead of being told what to do is a profound concept as we cultivate an ability to sense and honour our own experiences. This is yoga’s purpose.
I’m thankful to have a long summer break ahead of me to process the experiences from Donna’s teachings as well as the teachings of Jonas Westring from his Anusara workshop last weekend. We shall see what developments are made in next terms yoga teachings!!

5 day Intensive June 12-17th 2009, with Donna Farhi at Triyoga, London

Sunday evening in London and I am halfway through a five day yoga intensive with Donna Farhi at Triyoga, Primrose Hill, London. I registered for this intensive in February and didn't spend a lot of time contemplating what the course would contain or what I was hoping to learn. The description of the intensive spoke to me and the timing was perfect for me. My expectations were high considering the enormous respect I have for Donna's writing in the three books that I have read written by her. At this stage I have experienced a spectrum of emotions from feeling mystified and confused to a deep feeling of surrender. I am slowlybeginning to feel the shape and form of what this training is teaching me. Donna is unconventional in her approach to yoga (by my standards) and guides us to question our own practice and perception of what yoga means to us. I frequently feel ill fit and spend a lot of time throughout the sessions trying to make sense of what I'm hearing. We do very little asana and when we do it is asana I have never experienced before. Deeply moving and demanding on a level that I intuitively know is so right. There is an insistence to remain present and focused despite the lack of dynamic asanas. All in all I'm experiencing a yoga practice that I have been unconsciously craving for a long time. Deep guided yoga nidra, savansana and restorative yoga have offered me the space my yoga practice and subsequent teaching needs.
This yoga is opening the opportunities for who I can be. Being fluid enough to adopt a change in spite of the internal turmoil and conflict with my perception of myself.
In contrast to this quietening and slowing of the senses I have at the end of the last two days walked from Primrose Hill to Camden Town to the weekend street markets that are a rude contrast to the slowpaced environment at Triyoga!! I love being here on my own and having the time and space to digest the content of each session and being bombarded for a few hours by wandering through the market as a silent observer!!