Namaskar - Jan 2017

namaskar 

A VOICE FOR THE YOGA COMMUNITY OF ASIA January 2017 

YOGA IN PALESTINE 

Two Hong Kong yoga teachers volunteer to teach 

in the West Bank............................................p18 

YOGA & IVF 

How to support your fertility treatment with 

your yoga practice ...........................................p33 

HATHA YOGA PRADIPIKA 

Three yoga teachers explain how this ancient 

text is still relevant and helpful today..........p36 

Nigel Marshall in Pinchu Mayurasana, photo by Linda Rahmat 

Namaskar - Jan 2017.pmd 

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1/18/2017, 9:02 PM

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NAMASKAR - JANUARY 2017 

LETTER FROM 

THE EDITOR 

How many people are trapped in 

their everyday habits: part numb, 

part frightened, part indifferent? 

To have a better life we must keep choosing how 

we’re living - Albert Einstein 

This year I intend to make ample time for contemplation. On the routine how to teach my kids 

to be kind, what yoga sequence to teach next Friday, how best to support my parents, as well as 

more esoteric topics such as how I, and we as a society, are living. 

Here are some recent new items which I found interesting and frightening: 

1. Humans have triggered the Anthropocene era in which we are permanently changing the 

plant life, wildlife and even rock and soil layers of our planet 

2. It is likely elephants, giraffes and cheetahs will become extinct in our lifetime. 

3. Bee are now an endangered species. 

4. The smartphone generation has resulted in a decrease in human’s attention span from 12 

seconds to 8 seconds. That’s less than a goldfish’s 9 seconds. 

5. One in 5 adults over 80 suffer dementia; by 85 years old, it’s 1 in 3. 

The most challenging part of this resolution is making the time, and keeping that time clear of 

other activities. Only then I can pause and contemplate the traits I exhibit which, if expanded 

to a society level, could contribute to above conditions. 

I may not be able to impact the world in any significant way, but if I can make change in myself 

and educate and inspire those I come into contact with to do the same, together we could make 

some progress. 

If this is an interesting proposition to you, consider using the articles here in Namaskar to 

prompt your own contemplation. Certainly this issue offers a wide range of thoughtprovoking 

subjects. From our dristi on the ancient yogic text Hatha Yoga Pradipika; to two 

yogi’s journey to teach yoga in Palestine; to how to asses if you’re ready to lead your first yoga 

teacher training; to how to adapt your practice in preparation for in-vitro fertilization and; to 

transforming each meal into a meditative experience. 

The fifth item on the list above prompted our dristi for April – Yoga and Dementia. A casual 

investigation reveals what a massive global issue this is already, and how it will impact our 

world in the future unless a solution is found. We are interested to learn how we can support 

dementia suffers with yoga asana, pranayama or meditation; how we can adapt our yoga 

practice to prevent developing dementia ourselves, and; how yoga can contribute to world with 

so many dementia sufferers. If you have experience or knowledge of this subject, and would 

like to contribute, please send me an email fgairns@netvigator.com 

Finally I wish to record my thanks to the regular volunteers of Namaskar – Angela, Carol and 

Wai-Ling. Their tireless commitment to this magazine goes unnoticed by readers, but it 

critical to the success of Namaskar. 

I wish you a peaceful and joyful start to 2017. 

On the cover - Nigel Marshall takes a break from the 

photo shoot with a bit of Supta Virasana. Nigel leads a 

Mysore programme at Pure Yoga in Hong Kong. 

In This Issue 

DRISTI - HATHA YOGA PRADIPIKA 

LITTLE LAMP OF HATHA YOGA 36 

DETOXIFICATION IS KEY 40 

ANCIENT ANSWERS 41 

SPECIAL FEATURES 

YOGA IN PALESTINE 18 

Two yoga teachers see what it’s like to live and 

practice in the West Bank 

MEANING OF NAMASKAR 21 

What to think & feel when you bring your 

hands together at your heart 

MINDFUL EATING 25 

Extending your meditation practice into life 

READY TO LEAD A YTT? 27 

Things to consider before you launch your first 

teacher training 

ASSISTING FERTILITY WITH YOGA 33 

How to adjust your practice to support your 

fertility treatments 

SOUND OF THE GONG 34 

Why you should take a gong bath 

REGULAR CONTRIBUTIONS 

KULA UPDATES, WORKSHOPS, 

RETREATS, TEACHER TRAININGS 6 

PHOTO ESSAY 14 

MYTHOLOGY 45 

BOOK REVIEW 45 

RECIPE 50 

DIRECTORY 52 

ABOUT NAMASKAR 

ADMINISTRATION Carol Adams, carol@caroladams.hk 

NEWS EDITOR Wai-Ling Tse, wailing.tse@gmail.com 

CIRCULATION Angela Sun, angela.sun@gmail.com 

EDITOR & PUBLISHER Frances Gairns, fgairns@netvigator.com 

Namaskar provides a voice for the yoga community in Asia and 

around the world. The publication is an opportunity for 

practitioners on a yogic path to selflessly offer their knowledge, 

learnings and experiences with others. 

We welcome unsolicited submissions, therefore the opinions 

expressed within these pages are not necessarily those of Namaskar or 

its volunteers. 

Articles and photographs in Namaskar are contributed at no 

charge. Advertising income covers production, distribution, 

administrative costs and discretionary contributions to selected 

charities and causes. 

Namaskar, is published quarterly in January, April, July and October. 

About 5,000 copies are printed and distributed for free to yoga 

studios, teachers, fitness centres, retail outlets, cafes and yogafriendly 

outlets. Mostly distributed in Hong Kong, with 1,500 copies 

mailed to readers in 32 other countries. 

January 2017 3 


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CONTRIBUTORS 

CHARU RAMESH 

Charu is a classical homeopath, I 

Ching interpreter and a life guide. 

She studies Buddhist Psychology, 

and teaches dharma classes at The 

Still Space 

(www.thestillspace.org) & Asian 

Spiritual Classics (www.ascsg.org). 

rameshcharu@yahoo.com 

GABRIELLE MCMAHON 

teaching yoga in 2000, following in 

the footsteps of his parents. He 

also holds a Master’s Degree in 

Clinical Psychology and has a great 

interest in the scientific aspects of 

Yoga, Yoga for psychological and 

mental health, mantras and yoga 

philosophy, particularly Bhagavad 

Gita. www.yogapoint.com 

HERSHA CHELLARAM 

JEAN BYRNE 

Jean is the co-founder of Mindful 

Birth: Yoga for Pregnancy Birth & 

Baby, Spectrum of Life Yoga 

Teacher Training and owner of the 

Yoga Space in Perth, Australia. She 

has designed the first Spectrum of 

Life training that will launch in 

Hong Kong in March 2017. 

www.yogaspace.com.au 

Yogi, mystic, and practitioner of 

Ayurveda, Mas offers certification 

training programs throughout the 

USA, Asia, and India. Mas enjoys 

teaching integral yoga classes, 

offering health and wellness 

lectures and giving workshops that 

embrace core Ayurvedic 

principles. He is the founder/ 

director of Dancing Shiva Yoga 

Ayurveda, an international nonprofit 

educational organization and 

center based in California. 

masvidal@dancingshiva.com 

MEHTAB BENTON 

Gabrielle’s life work is Yoga, 

Meditation & natural living. She 

created BeBliss 10 years ago and 

works holistically with groups and 

individuals inspiring them to live 

their best life. 

gabrielle@bebliss.com.au 

GANDHAR MANDLIK 

Gandhar is the Director of 

International courses and of the 

YogaPoint Ashram. Originally an 

electrical engineer, he started 

Hersha has studied under the 

guidance of Sri Swami 

Satchidananda since she was a 

child. She has taught yoga and 

meditation for over 15 years around 

the world and offers the following 

teacher training programs: 200- 

hour, 500-hour, Prenatal & 

Children’s Yoga, and continuing 

education programs. 

www.hershayoga.com 

JANET LAU 

Dedicated to integrating yoga and 

mindfulness practices, Janet has 

served as an international teacher, 

trainer and retreat leader since 

2006. She holds a master’s degree 

in Buddhist studies, has presented 

at Tedx and is the author of the 

Chinese book “Living with Yoga 

and Mindfulness”. 

www.janet-lau.com 

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LINDA RAHMAT 

Linda picked up her first DSLR 

camera in 2007 and since it has 

been her constant companion on 

travels. She discovered Mysorestyle 

yoga in 2012, and her love for 

yoga and photography gave birth to 

her photo project “Pranascapes” 

which blends yoga pose with the 

urban landscape. 

linda.rahmat@gmail.com 

MAS VIDAL 

Mehtab is the author of three 

books on the Gong, Gong Yoga, and 

Gong Therapy that have appeared 

in seven international translations. 

He has trained hundreds of yoga 

teachers, sound healers, and 

therapists worldwide in how to 

play the gong for transformation 

and healing. 

www.gongteacher.com 

MOISES MEHL 

Moy is a yoga teacher and advocate 

of the raw vegan food lifestyle. 

The head chef of nood food, he 

was inspired by his grandmother, 

who was an agro-ecologist, 

vegetarian, soy and raw food 

pioneer, yogi and writer in their 


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home Mexico City. He qualified as 

a certified Raw Vegan Chef and is 

studying for a Master’s Degree in 

Raw Vegan Spiritual Nutrition. 

chefmoy@allnood.com 

NIGEL MARSHALL 

namaskar 

TINA BARRAT 

Now on-line at: 

www.issuu.com/namaskarasia 

Nigel is a KPJAYI Level II 

Authorised Ashtanga Yoga 

Teacher. He has been teaching 

Mysore style Ashtanga Yoga for 

over a decade, in the UK and all 

over Asia. Nigel has been teaching 

a Mysore programme at Pure Yoga 

since 2013. Prior to starting yoga 

practice in 2001, he was a long 

term practitioner of Advaita 

Vedanta-based traditional Indian 

philosophy and meditation. 

Nigel.marshall@pure-yoga.com 

SWATI PANDEY 

Tina designs recipes, cakes and 

desserts at Maya Café in Hong 

Kong. Inspired by her French chef 

grandmother and pioneering 

health food fanatic mum, Tina has 

been hooked on raw food for five 

years.mayacafe5@gmail.com 

VALERIE FANECO 

Back issues still at: 

www.issuu.com/caroladams 

April’s dristi: 

Yoga & Dementia 

For this dristi, we are looking for several articles about the role yoga 

can play in preventing, delaying and/or alleviating the myriad 

conditions related to dementia: 

• What is dementia & what are the main types of dementia? 

• How is dementia viewed from an Ayurvedic perspective 

• Which styles of yoga asana, pranayama or meditation can prevent 

or slow the decline of dementia? 

• Have you experience working with dementia suffers? What’s 

worked, what hasn’t? 

• What are the main issues facing the carers of dementia suffers & 

how can yoga help them? 

If you have knowledge or experience with this subject and are 

interested in contributing, please email me at 

fgairns@netvigator.com to discuss the angle you would like to take. 

Swati practices Ashtanga Vinyasa 

Yoga and is an avid student of yoga. 

supratim.swati@gmail.com 

TIA SINHA 

Tia teaches yoga asana, philosophy 

and Tibetan Buddhist techniques 

of meditation and translates 

Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo’s 

teachings and books into Hindi. 

Onlytia2@yahoo.co.in 

Valerie is a yoga teacher, yoga 

therapist, teacher trainer certified 

in the tradition of 

T.Krishnamacharya under 

supervision of his son T.K.V. 

Desikachar. She translated Frans 

Moor’s commentary of the Yoga 

Sutra into English in 2012. She lives 

in Singapore and runs courses and 

works as a yoga therapist. 

www.beinginyoga.com 

Contributions are also welcome on other topics. Final articles are 

welcome before March 10. 



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KULA 

Updates 

HONG KONG 

New Store for 

Hanuman 

Yoga clothing brand Hanuman 

has moved to a new location at 

Block A, 5/F 58 Peel Street, 

Hong Kong. Opening hours are 

Monday – Thursday 1 – 8 pm & 

Friday by appointment. 

For more information 

www.hanumanyogaclothing.com 

New Venue for 

Prana Yogam 

Yogaraj and his team have moved 

to a new location at Flat C, 7th 

Floor., Tai Chi Court, 132-134 

Austin Road, Tsim Sha Tsui 

(Jordan MTR Exit D). 


(852)94588242 / 

pranayogam@gmail.com / 

www.facebook.com/pranayogam 

Self-Attunement 

Meditation 

Amita Institute, Central 

A community assisting people, 

for the past two decades, in 

unbinding themselves from their 

inherent program to help bring 

about real change to a persons’ 

life. Held every Wednesday 8- 

9:30pm. 


www.amita-institute.com / 

www.picer.com / 

(852) 2167 8661 

Pranic Healing 

Sessions 

Jordan, Kowloon 

Experience Pranic Healing, a no 

touch, no drug energy medicine 

technique to obtain relief from 

many psychosomatic ailments 

such as headaches, irritable 

bowel syndrome, arthritis, 

insomnia, hypertension, 

menstrual cramps, stress, and 

depression. Free Pranic Healing 

sessions held every Thursday 6- 

7pm and Twin Hearts Meditation 

on every Friday 10-11am. 


hkpranic@gmail.com / 

whatsapp (852) 6233 2674 

Meditation for 

Beginners 

17 January 

Suitable for a complete novice or 

a struggling meditator, learn the 

secrets of mastering the mind 

and what to do when the mind 

just will not keep quiet. 


hershayoga.com 

Gong Relaxation 

for Self Love 

21 January (7-8:30pm) 

Celebrate international hug day 

with a chanting meditation 

followed by deep relaxation to the 

sound of the largest meditation 

gong collection in Asia. 


info@red-doors.com 

New Moon Gong 

Meditation 

27 January & 27 February (7- 

8:30pm) 

A short chanting meditation 

followed by deep relaxation to the 

sound of meditation gongs. 



Meditation 

lecture by 

Venerable 

Dhammadipa 

4, 11, 18 & 25 February 

Hong Kong University 

Czech born Venerable 

Dhammadipa is a meditation 

master and scholar. His teaching 

emphasizes that one starts 

training in virtue, which lays the 

foundation for training in 

tranquil mental states (Samatha) 

and then developing wisdom by 

direct seeing of the nature of 

reality (Vipassanâ). 

Understanding and practice of 

the Buddha’s teaching is 

Venerable Dhammadipa will be lecturing 

at Hong Kong University 

inseparable and should be 

realized for the sake of all 

sentient beings. 


hkucbs@hku.hk 

Singing Bowls 

Sound Bath 

10 & 27 February, 13 & 31 March, 

10 & 28 April 

Luxe Nova 

Everything in the Universe is 

made up of energy. In the time of 

new moon and full moon, the 

energy vibration is particularly 

potent. This vibration can affect 

each of us at different level. Some 

people feel more emotional or 

lethargic; some people may even 

be on the verge of turning into a 

werewolf. Instead of being 

influenced by the energy, we can 

take control by creating a sacred 

space for ourselves to work with 

this moon energy vibration. Join 

Heidy 7 – 8 pm for the monthly 

New Moon and Full Moon Quartz 

Crystal Bowls Sound Bath 


www.luxenova.life 

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Full Moon Gong 

Meditation and 

Relaxation 

11 February (7-8:30pm) 

Chanting meditation followed by 

deep relaxation to the sound of 

meditation gongs. 



Meditation 

with Kirtan 

20 February & 13 March 

IMI Central 

This session offers a unique 

blend of Meditation with Kirtan 

where the usage of gentle 

mantras will help you develop a 

simple mindfulness or meditation 

practice. 


events@imi.com.hk 

Cristina Rodenbeck leads Kirtan at Pause/ 

SOL Wellness and IMI Central in Hong 

Kong 

Kirtan at Pause/ 

SOL Wellness 

Central 

24 February & 24 March 

Pause/SOL Wellness, Central 

Join Cristina Rodenbeck for 

Kirtan at her new location in 

Central, 7 – 8:15 pm. 


cristina@manipurawellness.com 

Ajahn Brahm 

Ajahn Brahm’s 

Hong Kong 

Teaching Tour - 

How to Live 

Happily Everyday 

21-29 March 

Born in London and graduated 

with first class honours in 

Theoretical Physics from 

Cambridge University, Ajahn 

Brahm is currently the Abbot of 

Bodhinyana Monastery in 

Serpentine, Western Australia 

and The Spiritual Director of the 

Buddhist Society of Western 

Australia (BSWA), among others. 

He will be giving various public 

and private talks, offering fullday 

workshops and leading a 

retreat. He will explain how to 

maintain happiness even when 

everything is falling apart around 

us. In particular, that happiness 

is a choice and we can choose not 

to allow anyone, or any 

misfortune, to take away our 

happiness. 


www.bodhinyana.com 

Kita Yoga Opens 

Sheung Wan 

Kita Yoga is a newly-opened cosy 

neighbourhood studio with a 

strong focus on building a sense 

of community for the students, 

teachers and like-minded 

businesses in the area. 

Their classes are capped at 12 

people, so students get 

individualized attention. Each 

class includes asana 

practice together with pranayama 

and meditation. Their teachers 

also have backgrounds in 

nutrition, life coaching and Reiki, 

which will later be offered in 

workshops. These will include 

speaker series and creative 

events where yoga is 

combined with other art forms. 

They will also be offering free 

community classes and socially 

responsible events, with the 

long-term aim to partner up 

with neighbourhood businesses 

to offer perks for members. 


www.kita-yoga.com / 

nikita@kita-yoga.com / 

(852) 5323-1978 

HKU Master of 

Buddhist Studies - 

In Search of 

Sustainable 

Happiness 

September 

The University of Hong Kong, 

Pokfulam 

Now inviting applications for 

September. Topics range from 

the history and doctrines of 

different Buddhist traditions to 

contemporary Buddhism and 

Buddhism as applied in 

counselling, palliative care and 

psychotherapy, with particular 

reference to current scholarly 

research. Closing date of 

application: round 1: 3 February, 

round 2: 15 March. 


www.buddhism.hku.hk / 

(852) 3917-2847 / 

buddhism@hku.hk 

Evolution - Asia 

Yoga Conference 

8 - 11 June 

Hong Kong Covention & 

Exhibition Centre 

The 10th AYC promises to be 

something special. This year it 

brings some of the most senior 

international yoga teachers to 

Hong Kong. 


www.asiayogaconference.com 

15th International 

Association of 

Buddhist 

Women’s 

Conference 

22 - 28 June 

This year’s theme is 

“Contemporary Buddhist 

Women: Contemplation, Cultural 

Exchange & Social Action”. 

Entry is by registration 

only. www.sakyadhita.org/ 

conferences/15th-si-con.html 

Registration deadline is 15 April. 

INDONESIA 

7th annual 

Celebration of 

Life, Art, Yoga, 

Music, Dance A 

Thon 

18 March 18 

Desa Seni, Bali 

An event to raise funds for Ayo 

Kita Bicara HIV, Bali Peduli, Bali 

Rainbow Community, Yayasan 

Kerti Praja. This will be a day of 

community, art, yoga, music and 

dance, uniting like-minded people 

and businesses on this island to 

come together and spread the joy 

of life. 


events@desaseni.com 

BaliSpirit Festival 

19 - 26 March 

Ubud, Bali 

Join this annual festival of 

interactive workshops & 

seminars, a lively community 

market & healing center, a 

children’s activity zone, yoga 

classes and vibrant night time 

programs of live Bhakti and 

world music concerts, set among 

the picturesque rice-fields of 

Ubud, Bali. 


www.balispiritfestival.com 



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KULA 

Workshops 

HONG KONG 

Gong Workshops 

with Gong 

Master, Mehtab 

Benson 

28 January-4 February 

The series begins with a two-day 

intensive on ‘how to play the 

gongs’ for those who have 

never approached a gong before. 

Followed by three days of how to 

play a gong during Yoga classes, 

suitable for all Yoga teachers, 

and the last workshop is gong 

therapy. No experience 

necessary. 



All Night Gong 

Puja-rama 

4-5 February 

Imagine floating on a bed of 

sound in Yoga Nidra for 10 hours. 

Can learn to play gongs 

beforehand so you may join the 

other gong players who play in 

rotation all night long, or join 

simply to enjoy. Continental 

breakfast is included. Starts at 

8pm on Saturday and ends 6am 

on Sunday. 



Bhagavad Gita 

Module 2 with 

Sravaniya 

DiPecoraro 

10 February-17 March 

Alive Wellness, Central 

10-hour certificate course, held 

every Friday (7-8:30pm). 

Mehtab Benton will be at Red Doors in Hong Kong 


whatsapp (852) 9856 0799 / 

info@lifepath.am / 

www.lifepath.am/bg-module-2 

Full Moon All 

Night Gong Pujarama 

11-12 March 

Can learn to play gongs 

beforehand so that you may join 

the other gong players who play 

in rotation all night long, or join 

simply to enjoy. Continental 

breakfast is included. Starts at 

8pm on Saturday and ends 6am 

on Sunday. 



Inner Engineering 

with Isha 

16-19 March 

Inner Engineering is an 

opportunity to engineer an inner 

transformation that deepens 

your perception, bringing about a 

dimensional shift in the very way 

you look at your life, your work, 

and the world that you inhabit. 


(852) 5920 0385 / 

hongkong@ishafoundation.org / 

www.ishafoundation.org/hk 

One Love Concert 

with Guest Don 

Conreaux 

17 March 

Don is a Gong Master, Yogi and 

world peace activist. At the age of 

83, he travels the world to bring 

communities together bridging 

cultures through spiritual free 

jazz including gongs, drums, 

vocals and more. One Love is the 

house band of Red Doors Studio 

brought together to uplift 

and transform through 

soundscapes. 



Dynamic 

Alignment 

Workshop with 

Carrie Owerko 

24-26 March 

Iyengar Central, Central 

Carrie is a New York-based 

Senior Iyengar teacher, known 

for her fun and playfulness in 

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class. Workshop - 2.5hr x 5 

sessions. 


yogacentralhk@gmail.com 

Tai Qi & Qigong 

workshops & 

classes with 

Matthew Cohen 

The Yoga Room, Sheung Wan 

24 - 26 March 

Sacred Energy Arts Yoga for 

stress reduction and anxiety - 24 

March, 7:30 - 9 pm 

Sacred Energy Arts Yoga - 

Balance and Flow - 25 March 

Yoga - Tai Chi Fusion - 25 March 

Sacred Energy Arts Yoga & Tai 

Chi Class at Sun Yat Sen 

Memorial Park - 25 March, 9- 

10:30am 

Five Element Qigong Workshop 

26 March (1:30-4:30pm) 

Silent Disco Sacred Energy Arts 

Balance & Flow Yoga at Sun Yat 

Sen Memorial Park - 26 March, 

5:30-7pm 


www.yogaroomhk.com / 

info@yogaroomhk.com / 

(852) 2544 8398 

Iyengar teacher Carrie Owerko 

Art of Inquiry 

with Carrie 

Owerko 


27 March 2-5pm 


Carrie will share her experience 

and understanding in teaching 

yoga. Topics are highlights only 

and each participating teacher are 

welcome to email their specific 

questions before the workshop. 



Raja Yoga 

Foundation 

Course 

18-22 April 

Become well versed in the Yoga 

Sutras of Patanjali and learn how 

to apply this science of the mind 

to transform your personal and/ 

or professional life. This course 

is the pre-requisite for the Raja 

Yoga teacher training. 



Yoga philosophy teacher Srav DiPecoraro 

Bhagavad Gita 

Module 3 with 

Sravaniya 

DiPecoraro 

21 April-26 May 

Alive Wellness, Central 

10-hour certificate course, held 

every Friday (7-8:30pm). 

Cost: HK$1,800 


whatsapp (852) 9856 0799 / 

info@lifepath.am / 

www.lifepath.am/bg-module-3 

Iyengar Yoga & 

Wall Rope 

with Stephane 

Lalo 

29 April-1 May 


Stephane is a Marseilles based 

Senior Iyengar teacher, known 

for his sincere and seasoned 

practice and teaching. Workshop 

- 2.5hr x 5 sessions. 

29 April & 3 May – Level 1-3 

morning classes plus advanced 

led Iyengar Yoga practice. 



Stephane Lalo 

Teach & Practice 

with Discernment 

with Stephane 

Lalo 

3 May 1-4.30pm 


Stephane will share his understanding 

and experience in 

teaching yoga. Topics are 

highlights only and each 

participating teacher are 

welcome to email their specific 

questions before the workshop. 



Level I - Insight 

Yoga TT Intensive 

Yin/Yang Yoga & 

Mindfulness 

Meditation with 

Sarah Powers 

4-13 October 

Pure Yoga Hong Kong 

This intensive will deepen one’s 

ability to teach/practice both a 

receptive Yin style and an active 

flow or Yang style of yoga with an 

interest in promoting a conducive 

inner environment for meditation. 


sarahpowers.com/iyi/schedule- 

2017/level-i-teacher-trainingintensive-october-2017/ 

ITALY 

A Taste of Esalen 

3-5 February 

Tactus Studio, Turin, Italy 

Introduction to SpiritDance 

SoulSong, Esalen massage, and 

Touching Essence. 


www.movingventures.org/ 

tasteofesalenitaly / 

Tactus@Cumtactus.it 

SINGAPORE 

Deepen Your 

Practice with 

Matthew Exley & 

Maria Couanis 

10-12 February 

Yoga in Common 

In Matthew’s classes, you will 

move from a base of Kriya Yoga, 

connecting you to a deeper 

experience and the subtle aspects 

of Kriya to the more gross 

aspects of slower Vinyasa 

movements, leading to a calmer 

mind and a cleaner body. This 

opens up the stillness and 

awareness of the inner 

dimensions of yoga. Maria’s 

practice is drawn to Yoga Nidra 

and she brings the love of this 

practice to her students. 


www.yoga-incommon.com 

Joan Hyman 

Weekend 

Intensives with 

Joan Hyman 

3-5 March 

Kate Porter Yoga, Singapore 

Join Joan, Director of teacher 

trainings for Wanderlust who 



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draws upon the study of 

Ashtanga, Iyengar, Ayurveda, and 

meditation. With over 20 years of 

experience in leading retreats, 

trainings, and workshops 

worldwide, Joan collaborates 

with teachers who are experts in 

their field of study with the goal 

to create an eclectic training 

program for students at any level. 


www.kateporteryoga.com / 

www.kateporteryoga.com/ 

classes-fees/mastering/ 

applying the knowledge of human 

anatomy to your own practice 

and/or your teaching. 


www.newangleyoga.com 

Yoga Assists with 

Dr. Trish Corley 

27-28 May 

Empower your practice and your 

teaching by discovering how to 

assist over fifty 

yoga postures. As a student, you 

will gain an understanding of 

alignment and the 

possibilities of the poses. As a 

teacher, you will learn how to 

confidently assist 

students and empower them to 

experience their own greatness in 

each pose. Your 

hands already have the power to 

support and the workshop will 

give you the guidance to do so! 

KULA 

Retreats 

CHINA 

A Taste of Esalen 

5-12 May 

Hangzhou, China 

A series of introductions to 

SpiritDance SoulSong, Touching 

Essence, Esalen massage, and 

holotropic breathwork. 

Hotel Komune Bali 

Lisa’s 5 days/4 night retreat 

comprises early morning 

meditation, sunrise Vinyasa 

pracitce and an evening 

restorative practice. 


www.pure-yoga.com 

Anatomy & Baptiste Yoga teacher Trish 

Corley 

Yoga Anatomy 

with Dr. Trish 

Corley 

20-21 May 

Gain a clear understanding of 

yoga anatomy and put it into 

action on the yoga mat. 

The workshop consists of 

interactive lectures with 

anatomical models and 

illustrations and is integrated 

with full asana practices. Have 

fun while practically 



TAIWAN 

4-week Body 

Awareness with 

Ann Lu 

28 May, 4,11, 18 June 

Space Yoga, Taipei 

Drawing from her trauma 

therapy training, Ann will lead 

you to explore ways to connect 

and deepen your somatic 

awareness. This meditative way 

of working not only is the portal 

to a balanced nervous system and 

relieves stress, it also is the key 

to resolve trauma, help you heal, 

and develop emotional and 

spiritual wellbeing. 


www.withinspace.com 


21454450@qq.com 

INDONESIA 

SpiritDance 

SoulSong Retreat 

2-9 April 

Mimpi Menjangan, Bali, 

Indonesia 

Ellen Watson and Daphne Tse 

will help you discover your body 

as a musical instrument to find 

joy, healing and self-expression 

through the world’s oldest 

spiritual practices of singing and 

dancing. 


www.spiritdancesoulsong.com / 

contact@movingventures.org 

PHILIPPINES 

Getaway to 

Palawan with 

Clayton Horton 

29 April - 4 May 

The Nest El Nido Beach Resort 

Join Ashtanga teacher Clayton 

Horton in El Nido, Northern 

Palawan for six days of yoga in 

paradise. 

Days will start with asana, 

meditations and pranayama. 

Afternoons you will be free to 

enjoy the island, while in the late 

afternoons there will be 

restorative practices and 

teachings. And evenings will be 

focussed on fun and 

entertainment. 


www.pure-yoga.com 

SRI LANKA 

Yoga & Hula 

Hoop Retreat 

1-8 April 

Tallala Resort, Sri Lanka 

Eight days of holistic and playful 

hula hoop, dance and Yoga. All 

levels are welcome. 

Lisa Mak 

Bali Yoga Retreat 

with Lisa Mak 

7 - 11 June 


info@divine-light-yoga.com / 

www.divine-light-yoga.com 

THAILAND 

7-Day Samkhya- 

10 NAMASKAR 


10 


Yoga Retreat 

12-18 February; 30 April-6 May; 

4-11 June; 9-15 July 

Wise Living Yoga Academy, 

Chiang Mai 

People often speak about Yoga 

without realizing that it forms an 

integral part of a composite 

Samkhya-Yoga Philosophy, the 

oldest philosophical system in 

the world. Includes theory and 

practice of Yoga techniques and 

vegetarian meals in residential 

basis. 


(66) 825467995 / 

info@wiselivingyoga.com / 

www.retreats.wiselivingyoga.com 

Yoga, Pranayama 

& Ayurveda 

Retreat with Lana 

Lavanina 

18 - 25 February 

Samahita Retreat, Koh Samui 

Lana leads students through an 

exploration of hor yoga asana, 

pranayama, ayurveda, nutrition 

and meditation are interconnected. 

And how to apply each 

of these to everyday life. 

Originally from Finland, Lana has 

practiced yoga since 2001 and 

taught Ashtanga since 2004. 


www.samahitaretreat.com 

14-Day Samkhya 

& Bhagavad Gita 

Retreat 

12-25 February; 30 April-13 May; 

4-17 June; 9-22 July 

Wise Living Yoga Academy - 

Chiang Mai 

Other than the study of Samkhya 

Charlotte Douglas 

and many traditional practices 

and techniques, will be diving 

deeper into Yoga as the Bhagavad 

Gita will be explained in the view 

of the Four Paths of Yoga, 

namely Raja Yoga, Jnana Yoga, 

Bhakti Yoga and Karma Yoga. 

Includes theory and practice and 

vegetarian meals in residential 

basis. 


(66) 825467995 / 


www.retreats.wiselivingyoga.com 

Yoga Tour 

28 January-7 February 

Eco-Logic Resort, Pak Song, 

Elysia Resort, Koh Samui and 

Sukhumvit Bangkok 

Travel and Yoga through the city, 

beaches and rainforests of 

Thailand. 




Yoga & 

Meditation with 

Charlotte Douglas 

of Love Life HK 

24-28 March 

Chiang Mai 

Unwind the body, mind and soul 

with Charlotte, an experienced 

Yoga teacher and Yoga therapist. 

Starting the day with a gentle 

meditation before moving into an 

invigorating Yoga practice, as 

well as nourishing the body with 

delicious food, rest the mind and 

soul in the surrounding nature 

and finish each day with a deeply 

restorative and relaxing evening 

practice. 

For information 

(852) 6680 0340 / 

charlotte@lovelifehk.com 

Finding 

Emotional 

Balance & 

Freedom 

6-12 April; 27 April-3 May; 22-28 

June; 31 August-6 September; 2-8 

November 

Explore your emotional habits 

and learn to respond to life’s 

challenges healthily, guided by 

Kamalaya’s life enhancement 

mentors Rajesh Ramani, Smitha 

Jayakumar and Sujay Seshadri. 

Having been immersed in 

monastic lifestyles in India for 

over a decade, all of them are 

experienced teachers with a 

strong background in ancient 

Asian philosophies. 


www.kamalaya.com 

Yin & Yang Yoga 

with Simon Low 

13-17 April; 19-23 October; 7-11 

December 

Kamalaya Wellness Sanctuary & 

Holistic Spa 

Join Simon for this immersion in 

Simon Low 

Kamalaya’s nurturing environment 

with daily Yin and Yang 

Yoga practice, ideally complemented 

by nourishing cuisine and 

selected wellness treatments 


www.kamalaya.com 

Spiritual Heart 

Meditation 

Retreat 

8 - 10 June & 10 - 12 August 

Akasha Yoga Academy, Koh 

Pangan 

A retreat focussed mostly on 

meditation, but with yoga asana 

practice as well. 

Led by German yoga teachers 

Burkhard Langemann and 

Kirsten Reiss. 


www.akashayogaacademy.com 



11 


KULA 

Teacher Trainings 

AUSTRALIA 

New Modular 

Trainings in 

Byron Bay 

Byron Yoga Centre 

This new 50 and 25-hour 

modular trainings are designed to 

be standalone specialty course 

and also to be applicable as part 

of 200, 300 or 800-hour 

certificates. Choose from Yin 

Yoga, Remedial Yoga, Yoga for 

teens, adjustments and 

corrections and advance asana. 


www.byronyoga.com 

Rainbow Yoga 

200 & 300-hr TT 

1 – 28 April 

Byron Bay 

Rainbow Yoga is a style that 

recognizes that happiness is 

within us and all around us. The 

TT includes 12 specialisations to 

teach people at all stages of life. 


www.rainbowyogatraining.com/ 

200300hour 

HONG KONG 

Kidding Around 

Yoga TT 

11 & 25 February 

Learn interesting and fun ways to 

share this ancient practice with 

children aged 2-17. Founded by 

Haris Lender, kids will be 

laughing their way to peace 

and mindfulness. 



Accessible 

Prenatal Yoga TT 

6-17 March 

This training explores classical, 

dynamic and adaptive Yoga 

practices to suit any ability 

across all trimesters, and covers 

important details for labour and 

postnatal rehabilitation. Includes 

Yoga philosophy and anatomy. 



200-hr Hatha 

Yoga TT 

(Chinese) with 

Ann da Silva & 

Keiki To 

1-9 April & 27 May - 4 June 


This training will deepen your 

practice, inspire you to find your 

own inner teacher, and empower 

you with the knowledge and 

foundations to teach Yoga 

effectively and confidently. 

Conducted in Cantonese. 




(852) 2544-8398 

300-hr Advanced 

Yoga TT 

(Chinese) with 

Ann da Silva & 

Keiki To 

29 April - 7 May, 30 September - 

8 October 


12 NAMASKAR 

Suitable for yoga teachers with 

200-hour foundation training. 

Training modules can be taken 

individually without joining the 

full programme. 




(852) 2544 8398 

Ayurvedic Yoga 

Massage Training 

with Ananta 

Girard 

4 - 7 March & 9 - 12 March 


Ayurvedic Yoga Massage (AYM) 

combines traditional Indian deep 

tissue therapy and assisted Yoga 

stretching. AYM emphasizes deep 

strokes given with hands and 

feet, and therapeutic adjustments 

derived from Iyengar Yoga. 




(852) 2544 8398 

200-hr 

Foundation & 

300-hr Advanced 

Yin Yang Vinyasa 

Yoga TT with 

Janet Lau 

19 June – 1 July, 19 - 29 July, 23 - 

29 October, 8 - 17 December 


Suitable for those who are ready 

to teach, already teaching, or 

those who want to gain more 

clarity of their life purpose and 

learn to cultivate harmony within 

and without. Modules can be 

taken together or seperately. 




(852) 2544 8398 

Sarah Powers 

Level I - Insight 

Yoga TT Intensive 

with Sarah Powers 

4-13 October 

Pure Yoga 

Learn to teach and practice a 

receptive Yin style and an active 

Yang style yoga leading to a 

conducive inner environment for 

meditation. 


sarahpowers.com/iyi/schedule- 

2017/level-i-teacher-trainingintensive-october-2017/ 


12 


INDONESIA 

SpiritDance 

SoulSong TT with 

Ellen Watson & 

Daphne Tse 

2-28 April 

Mimpi Menjangan, Bali 

Ellen Watson and Daphne Tse 

will help you discover the skills 

and confidence to spread joy, 

healing and self-expression 

through movement and sound. 


www.spiritdancesoulsong.com / 

contact@movingventures.org 

ITALY 

Touching Essence 

Certification 

Training with 

Ellen Watson 

27 January - 2 February / 15 - 27 

May 

Tactus Studio, Turin 

Touching Essence is a multisensory 

healing arts practice that 

combines touch, smell and sound. 


www.movingventures.org/ 

touchingessenceitaly / 

Tactus@Cumtactus.it 

Julia McCabe 

TT with Julia 

McCabe 

19 April - 10 May 

Amalfi Coast, Italy 

Teaching since 2003, Julia’s style 

infuses over 13 years of practice 

and study with many teachers 

during her time spent teaching in 

Asia and Canada. Including 

Ashtanga, Anusara, Forrest Yoga, 

as well as pranayama with Sri 

Tiwariji and most recently 

Kundalini. 


www.breatheinlife.com/ 

trainings/julia-ytt-2017/welcome 

/ chris@breatheinlife.com 

SINGAPORE 

200-hr Hatha 

Yoga TT 

3 March-16 April 

Tatva Yoga 

This Yoga Alliance accredited 

course covers both theory and 

practice. Students are required 

to attend classes, posture clinics 

(focusing on 54 basic and 

advanced asanas), lectures on 

pranayama, kriya, human 

anatomy and the history of Yoga. 


enquiry@onewellness.com.sg 

200-hr Vinyasa 

Yoga TT with 

Trish Corley 

5 May - 4 June 

New Angle Yoga 

This training is based on Baptiste 

Yoga TM . Trish is a US licensed 

physical therapist and Yoga 

teacher accredited by the Yoga 

Alliance. Through the practice of 

yoga and self-exploration, you 

will gain the tools to confidently 

lead yoga classes and to access 

new possibilities in your 

practice, your teaching, and your 

life. 



TAIWAN 

150-hr Yoga 

Therapeutics 

Advanced TT with 

Hart Lazer 

24 February - 5 March, 17 - 23 

May, 1 - 10 December 


In addition to the physical, 

musculoskeletal therapy, this 

training includes in-depth 

material that helps with healing 

the nervous system, organic 

system, mental and emotional 

layer of your being, as well as 

various disorders and illnesses. 



Three-Year 300+ 

hr Iyengar Yoga 

Introductory I &II 

TT with Peter 

Scott 

22-28 March, 19-25 July 

6-12 April, 17-23 September 2018 



Experience Peter’s distinctively 

respectful and nurturing training 

method. 



10-day 

Mindfulness & 

Yin Yoga TT with 

Michelle Chu 

10-19 March 


This 80-hour training will guide 

you into a deeper, complete 

practice and teaching to 

complement your active asana 

practice with passive yin and 

mindfulness practices. This 

course is taught in Mandarin. 

For more information visit 


Iyengar Yoga 

Junior 

Intermediate I TT 

with Peter Scott 

30 March-2 April, 27-30 July 



This two-year programme 

prepares students for the Iyengar 

JI I assessment. Also suitable for 

those who have completed the 

Iyengar Introductory TTC, who 

are not yet certified or want to be 

a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher. 



200-hr TT with 

Heidi Chen 

April and May 


Heidi will bring the philosophy 

and knowledge of yoga to life in 

this training. As you deepen your 

practice and gain teaching skills, 

you will also be guided to 

experience your own inner 

transformation and exploration. 

Taught mostly in Mandarin, it 

will feature Carlos Pomeda 

teaching yoga philosophy. 



THAILAND 

200-hr Classical 

Yoga TTC 

12 February-10 March; 30 April- 

26 May; 4 June-30 June; 9 July to 

4 August 

Wise Living Yoga Academy, 

Chiang Mai 

A full immersion experience in 

traditional Yoga studies in an 

“Ashram-like” environment. All 

programs are residential and 

include vegetarian meals. 


(66) 825467995 / 


www.teachertraining. 

wiselivingyoga.com 

Children’s Yoga 

95-hr TT 

26 February-7 March / 21-30 

April 

Eco-Logic Resort 

A playful, therapeutic approach 

to children’s Yoga and 

mindfulness. 




200-hr Hatha- 

Vinyasa Yoga TT 

5 March - 2 April; 7 May - 4 June; 

2 - 30 July 

Power of Now Oasis, Bali 

Led by Myron D’Mello, Mallika 

Savalkar and Phoebe Waters, this 

training is a fusion of Hatha Yoga 

and Vinyasa Flow with 

philosophy, pranayama, kriyas, 

and meditation. Focusing on the 

in-depth understanding of Yoga 

philosophy to support students 

in developing awareness of their 

practice and spiritual journey. 

Philosophy will be translated into 

practical tips to impact daily life. 


info@powerofnowoasis.com 



13 


PHOTO ESSAY 

A SIMPLE LIFE 

In a complex conflict 

PHOTOS & TEXT BY LINDA RAHMAT 

The Israel-Palestine conflict makes regular headlines; an ongoing 

struggle since the state of Israel was established in 1948. I have always 

wondered what it would be like to see the country for myself. 

When my friend and yoga teacher Nigel Marshall proposed the idea of 

volunteering at a local yoga community in Ramallah, Palestine, I 

jumped at the idea. Nigel and another yoga teacher Dale Hoole taught 

yoga, while I documented our journey through photography. 

For this photo essay, I walked the streets of the occupied territories 

of the West Bank, photographing the local people and scenes. In 

addition, I organized yoga asana shoots, as part of my ongoing 

“Pranascapes” project. 

Beyond the news stories, rarely are the Palestinians presented in the 

context of everyday life. The vision outsiders might have of Palestine 

is bleak and more often than not reduced to politically fatigued news. 

Rather than portraying Palestine as such, I wanted to focus on the 

simplicity of everyday-ness, a more human story. Despite living under 

military occupation, the people I had the pleasure of meeting and 

talking with continue to live their life with utmost positivity. The 

Palestinians are extremely warm and friendly people who exercised 

kindness towards us everywhere we went. Their smiles and laughter 

go far beyond the conflict. 

The rise of yoga in Palestine has also brought about a powerful tool to 

combat political and personal struggle. From my conversations with 

local yoga teachers, what they hope for is more international yoga 

teachers to visit Palestine and teach. 

I see two direct benefits to this; firstly to help cultivate a very 

important emerging yoga scene. And secondly to help spread the 

message internationally that Palestinians deserve a decent life too. 

They want the yoga world to know teaching in Palestine is an 

incredible gift. 

14 NAMASKAR 


14 




15 


16 NAMASKAR 


16 




17 


KARMA YOGA 

VOLUNTEERING IN PALESTINE 

Ashtanga & Ujjayi in the West Bank 

BY NIGEL MARSHALL 

In October 2016, I went to Palestine with two 

friends, Linda Rahmat and Dale Hoole. 

I am a supporter of the Palestinian cause and 

I was deeply affected by the appalling 

destruction in the 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict. 

Increasingly, I wanted to directly contribute 

in a positive and meaningful way, and thus the 

idea to try to go there and teach. There is a 

fledgling yoga scene in Palestine, and after 

reaching out to a few people in the yoga 

world, I soon connected with volunteer 

teachers from Farashe Yoga studio in 

Ramallah, a city in the West Bank of 

Palestine. I was very touched when I heard 

even utilizing very simple breathing and 

awareness techniques, is proving to be 

enormously helpful to the people who are 

suffering under the occupation. 

We decided to go there to try to help, and a 

teaching plan was formulated. Our work in 

Palestine was to be given pro bono; we would 

ask for no fees and would manage our own 

travel expenses and accommodation. 

Additionally, we organised and – with the 

help of some generous contributors - paid 

for a shipment of 40 Manduka Pro mats to be 

sent from Hong Kong to the yoga community 

in Ramallah. 

Prior to our visit, Ramallah had been aptly 

described to me as the “bubble of apparent 

wealth and freedom in Palestine” and when, 

with great enthusiasm, we finally did arrive 

there, we found it to be a relatively 

comfortable and cosmopolitan city. Ramallah 

currently serves as the de facto 

administrative capital of Palestine, until such 

time as the control of Jerusalem is returned 

to the State of Palestine. 

We worked with the teachers at Farashe and 

we taught workshops and daily classes. 

Classes included three-hour afternoon/early 

evening Mysore sessions held at BeIt Mysore 

- the only dedicated Ashtanga Yoga program 

in Palestine, established four years ago. 

Our daily schedule was very full; in addition 

Nigel leads a group of Palestinian yoga students through Parsvokonasana 

to practicing and teaching, we explored the 

occupied territories. We visited the occupied 

city of Hebron, and were deeply disturbed at 

the state of things there. A few hundred 

illegal settlers, many of whom are US 

citizens, have been enticed to live in Hebron, 

with the promise of cheap housing and an 

easy life. Dreadful measures are being 

undertaken to maintain this unnatural 

situation, and existence is made an absolute 

misery for the 300,000 Palestinian 

population. 

One disgraceful example is settlers who live 

above the local market place routinely throw 

bricks, garbage and even human waste onto 

the Palestinian shoppers below. Israel has 

declared parts of Hebron constitute a closed 

military zone. In those areas, Palestinians 

have been forcibly removed from their 

homes and their businesses have been shut 

down. Palestinian residents in Hebron are 

subjected daily to repeated body searches, 

and have to obtain permits to move through 

the many military checkpoints in the city 

centre. Even the Palestinian civilians’ lives 

are routinely at risk in Hebron; many of the 

settlers casually stroll around town with 

automatic rifles over their shoulders, and are 

additionally “protected” by an entire brigade 

of Israeli soldiers. 

We also made it to a peaceful protest in the 

village of Bel-Ain, where the local villagers 

have been demonstrating weekly for more 

than a decade the theft of their farmland. In 

the past some of these demonstrations have 

been broken up by Israeli forces in very 

violent ways. On one occasion a protestor 

died from having a high-velocity teargas 

canister shot directly at his chest. Luckily for 

us, there was no tear gas fired that day, but 

we experienced first-hand what it was like 

being ousted from one’s homeland, and 

treated like a criminal and a terrorist. 

The attitude of a rational and humane person 

witnessing the appalling conditions the 

Palestinians have endured for over 50 years 

must surely be one of contempt and 

condemnation, and of extreme revulsion 

18 NAMASKAR 


18 


towards those who perpetuate or support 

this reprehensible situation. Desmond Tutu 

famously said conditions in Palestine are “far 

worse” than anything he witnessed in 

Apartheid South Africa. And John Dugard, 

who is widely regarded as the father of 

human rights in South Africa, recently 

stated,”I think it’s very clear that apartheid 

is practiced within the Occupied Palestinian 

Territories…” 

And indeed, the 30-foot high concrete 

separation wall, Israel has illegally erected 

around vast swathes of Palestine, which has 

armed watchtowers and checkpoints, is 

often referred to as “The Apartheid Wall”. 

We experienced this hideous wall, and it’s 

devastating effects on the communities it 

bluntly cuts through, almost everywhere we 

went in Palestine. 

Yoga practice is helpful for everyone. But 

particularly in times of crisis, engaging in a 

steadying activity is crucial to re-balance and 

re-attune ourselves to whatever the situation 

demands. The people of Palestine are 

permanently in a crisis situation; their 

existences are controlled and threatened by 

outside forces that are entirely negative and 

destructive to them, and their basic human 

rights are rendered non-existent. Human 

rights groups are unanimous in condemning 

what Israel is doing in Palestine. Most 

recently, the UN, on 24 December 2016, 

unanimously demanded an end to Israeli 

settlement building on Palestinian land. 

One of the ways Palestinians are asking the 

world to support their non-violent struggle 

for basic human rights, is via the Boycott, 

Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement. 

BDS works to end international support for 

Israel’s oppression of Palestinians and 

pressure Israel to comply with international 

law. And I strongly believe the yoga teaching 

community should acknowledge the 

principles of BDS apply to them also. So I 

hope to see from the yoga world that fellow 

yoga teachers will support the Palestinian 

struggle for justice, and apply these 

principles themselves, by travelling to teach 

in Palestine instead of Israel. 

Politics has never been my passion. 

However, what is being done to the people of 

Palestine, outrages me to the point where I 

cannot dismiss or marginalise it as simply 

politics. Equally, the apparent indifference, 

or worse; tacit agreement, to the current 

plight of the Palestinians, by such a very large 

number of people, I also find disgraceful. 

In Sutra 1.33, Patanjali states “…one should 

cultivate… equanimity toward the wicked”. It 

is my understanding this is an injunction to 

try to keep the mind as undisturbed as 

possible. However, it seems to me among 

many in the yoga community, this philosophy 

of equanimity is often incorrectly conflated 

with being passive and indifferent to social 

injustice, and to excuse a kind of selfishness 

in oneself. I simply don’t believe what 

Patanjali meant in this sutra, is one should 

take no action in the face of moral outrage. 

To quote Palestinian Ashtanga Yoga teacher, 

Mira Shihadeh, “Expressing moral outrage is 

not politics. Politics is silence, neutrality, 

indifference or justification for what is”. 

We took a lot of photos, and shot a lot of 

footage in Palestine; street scenes, teaching 

sessions, portraits, interviews, and yoga 

asanas in the streets. The photos will surface 

via social media, and in Linda Rahmat’s 

excellent ongoing “Pranascapes” Instagram 

project. 

The video footage will begin to see the light of 

day soon, in a project that has the working 

title of “We Will Win! Ashtanga Yoga 

Palestine”, via the YouTube channel and FB 

page, Nacho’s Films. 



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PHILOSOPHY 

THE MEANING OF NAMASKAR 

So much more than hello 

BY GANDHAR MANDLIK 

The first thing that comes to mind when we 

think of yoga is Namaskar. Both hands joined 

together to greet a person, or to become 

humble and express the gratitude and respect 

to the Universe. What is the purpose of this 

Namaskar? 

IMPORTANCE OF HANDS IN DAY-TO- 

DAY LIFE 

Hands have played a very important role in 

our evolution as human beings. Almost all 

our actions use the hands, such as daily 

activities of cleaning, washing, writing, 

holding (small objects to big objects), 

driving, using instruments etc. But other 

than these expressions there are other 

aspects such as emotions, gestures, 

communication, greetings, touching, arts and 

music which also involve the hands. 

STRENGTH OF HANDS 

Hands have very sensitive nerves which allow 

us to feel the temperature of the object (hot 

or cold), hardness or softness, wet or dry 

etc. Hands can do very delicate work as well 

as hard work. The muscles of the hands and 

fingers are so strong as to hold the weight of 

the body. 

BRAIN & HANDS 

It is very interesting to know the right hand 

and left hand are controlled by almost 50% of 

the primary motor cortex and the remaining 

50% is used for the remaining body parts. 

The area of the cortex used for the hands is 

huge, which is an indication of the 

importance of the hands in an evolved human 

brain. So when we use our hands consciously 

we are activating 50% of our cerebral cortex 

(mainly motor cortex). All higher functions 

of the brain such as thinking, planning and 

decision-making involves the cortex, so to 

control these executive functions the hands 

can play a key role and that is the purpose of 

Mudras. To control the state of mind and to 

make it peaceful, concentrated, creative and 

imaginative mudras have always been used in 

Yoga. 

It is very well known now that when we are 

stressed or angry or anxious or depressed, 

the sympathetic nervous system is 

stimulated via the Amygdala – Hypothalamas 

– Pituitary Gland – Adrenaline Gland. Stress 

hormones are released as a result (cortisol, 

adrenaline, nor adrenaline etc.). This is called 

stimulation to the HPA axis, but this can be 

deactivated by deactivating the amygdala and 

stimulating the frontal lobe which is the 

cortex. 

NAMASKAR FOR REDUCING STRESS, 

ANXIETY & DEPRESSION 

When we are practicing the mudras, our 

focus is on hand gestures which activate the 

cortex and brings more blood to the frontal 

lobe, reducing the blood flow to the 

amygdala. This deactivates the stress 

response which reduces stress, anxiety and 

depression. This is most essential for 

concentration and a peaceful, positive state 

of mind. 

When we are stressed or anxious our palms 

sweat and are often cold. This is called total 

peripheral resistance which reduces the 

peripheral blood circulation and increases 

the core circulation. The muscles in our 

hands are also tensed and some people even 

feel hand tremors. In Namaskar mudra we 

are trying to minimize the heat loss by joining 

both palms together and warming them. We 

are trying to stabilize the hands and minimize 

the tremors. So Namaskar can surely help in 

reducing anxiety, stress and depression. 

OVERALL HEALTH & WELL-BEING 

In Namaskar Mudra the left hand touches the 

right hand and the fingers and palms also 

touch each other. The left hand is connected 

to the right brain and right hand to the left 

brain. In Namaskar position, the left brain 

and right brain (motor cortex) are activated 

and synchronization between the two 

hemispheres of the brain is increased. It is 

well known that left and right brain 

synchronization is very important for overall 

health and wellbeing. Good health of the 

immune system and other systems in the 

body is the result of good synchronization of 

brain hemispheres. 

ANGER, EGO, HUMBLENESS & 

RELATIONSHIPS 

Namaskar is useful for reducing anger, 

aggression, hatred and jealousy as the 

amygdala is deactivated. When we greet 

someone we should not have any anger as it 

will negatively affect the relationship. When 

the anger is not there, the ego is also not 

there. Becoming humble is the purpose of 

this mudra and being humble and peaceful is 

the strong starting point of any relationship. 

MARMA POINTS & ACUPRESSURE 

POINTS 

In the palms there are a few important 

marma and acupressure points which are 

connected to the heart, lungs, immunity and 

reproductive system. In Namaskar mudra 

these points are pressurized which is 

beneficial for these core organs. 

RELIGIONS & NAMASKAR 

Other than Hinduism there are so many 

other religions which have given importance 

to Namaskar. Buddhism, Jainism, 

Christianity, Shinto in Japan and Sikhism 

have used Namaskar mudra for prayers 

where humility, concentration and peace of 

mind are important. 

Let us all do Namaskar while chanting 

mantras and meeting people. 



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MEDITATION 

ANYONE 

CAN 

MEDITATE 

ANYTIME 

Even when 

eating a 

carrot 

BY JANET LAU 

When it comes to meditation, many of us 

have the image we must be sitting on our 

meditation cushion, palms on our laps, our 

eyes closed, with a peaceful look on our face. 

But meditation is more than that. It is a state 

of mind in which we bring our focus on the 

present moment with a receptive and nonjudgmental 

mind. With enough practice, it 

will give us some peace and various insights 

about life. Understanding how life is everchanging 

in turn leads us to stop identifying 

ourselves with the changes we encounter 

through life. 

So with this understanding, meditation can 

be practiced any time. In fact, the more we 

practice aligning our mind to the present, the 

stronger we become at it. 

Here I share with you a method of practicing 

mindfulness while eating which I have 

learned from Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. 

LOOKING AT YOUR EMPTY BOWL 

My bowl, empty now, 

will soon be filled with precious food. 

Beings all over the Earth are struggling to 

live. 

How fortunate we are to have enough to eat. 

According to the United Nations, nearly 800 

million people in the world do not have 

enough food live a healthy life. This gatha is 

to remind us to be grateful for the food we 

have, as we vow to search for ways to help 

others who suffer from hunger. 

SERVING & EATING FOOD 

In this food 

I see clearly 

the presence of the entire universe 

supporting my existence 

If you look at a piece of broccoli deep enough, 

it contains the whole universe. Without the 

sun, the broccoli would not be on our plate; 

without the cloud, there would be no water 

to nourish this plant; without the earth, 

there would not be a place for the broccoli to 

grow from; without the farmer, the plant 

would not be so beautifully harvested; 

without the driver, we would not have the 

plant with such convenience; without the 

chef, we would not be able to enjoy such 

wonderful tasty food. So the broccoli 

contains everything inside it. 

to the food that is inside your mouth. Chew 

until the food becomes liquefied, which takes 

about 20-30 times of chewing, and this 

practice can lessen the workload for our 

digestive system. 

Be mindful to only chew the carrot, not your 

projects or your worries. Your carrot is 

present for you and you can also be present 

for your carrot. If you are occupied with 

your worries or your sadness, you can 

practice mindful breathing for a while until 

you can be present to your food. Spend time 

with your food, every minute of your meal 

can be a happy and joyful moment. Not many 

people have the time and opportunity to sit 

down and enjoy a meal like that, let our food 

reminds us how fortunate we are. 

FINISHING YOUR MEAL 

The meal is finished. 

My hunger is satisfied. 

I vow to live for the benefit of all being. 

A lot of times we rush to the next thing as 

soon as we finish our food. Instead, spend a 

few minutes being grateful for the food that 

nourished you just now. Also, remember 

everything that came to be that gives you such 

moment of contentment. We can practice to 

show our gratitude before we ate as well as 

the entire process of eating and after. 

The more we practice this way, the more our 

peace will shine upon everyone around us. 

This spreads peace and joy to others who 

have yet to learn about peace and joy. 

Lastly let your practice adapt so it is always 

enjoyable, and never stressful. For 

beginners, you can invite your friends and 

family to practice mindful eating with you 

once a week. Slowly, as your mindfulness 

practice become more deeply rooted, you can 

start to expand your practice. 

Before you start eating your meal, pick up 

one piece of carrot without putting into your 

month right away. Look into the carrot and 

see for yourself that it contains the sunshine, 

the rain, the love and a lot of hard work by 

many others. Once you can see the interconnectiveness 

of the carrot, then you can 

slowly place it into your month, chew it and 

taste it with mindfulness. Take your time to 

eat, just taking one bite at a time, put down 

your utensils so that you can be fully present 

Thich Nhat Hanh 



25 


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26 


FOR TEACHERS 

ARE YOU READY TO OFFER A YOGA 

TEACHER TRAINING? 

You are a student first and foremost 

BY HERSHA CHELLARAM 

Deep in the forests of Buckingham Virginia, 

the Satchidananda Ashram-Yogaville began a 

teacher training without their Guru, Sri 

Swami Satchidananda in his physical form. 

This was in 2002 and happened to be my first 

yoga teacher training. Sri Gurudev (as he was 

fondly known) had just left his body and we 

were all grieving. I had planned to spend six 

weeks with him but had to accept that it was 

going to be a different experience. 

From 5 am until 9 pm, the teacher training 

was intense and raw for the trainers too. 

Being at the ashram at this transitional time 

allowed for the most profound shifts to 

occur. Realisations bubbled up about my past 

and future. I felt vulnerable and completely 

frightened about facing the changes I needed 

to make. 

Just then, the teacher training ended and I 

was thrust back into my old life, left to fend 

for myself in preventing old thought patterns 

to reemerge. Without Gurudev in his 

physical form, integrating back into the 

outside world was tough. I ruthlessly ended 

old friendships, quit my job and went on an 

additional year-long search in South India to 

find myself. 

Over the next 15 years, I have gone through 

many more trainings and spiritual 

development programmes, each one unique 

and transformational. The journey has been 

worth it because I have found deep peace, 

resilience and inner-strength that has carried 

me through many extreme life challenges. 

When I was authorised to become an Integral 

Yoga Teacher Trainer, I went within to find a 

place authenticity — a part of my experience 

that was relevant and meaningful. Here’s 

what I have learned and continue to share. 

ASANA IS ONLY PART OF A TEACHER 

TRAINING 

Teaching asana is straight forward and while 

the study of anatomy may be tricky, it’s not 

too difficult to learn safe practice. Integral 

Yoga’s (IY) 200-hour training respects the 

limits of the body as a method for progress. 

Foundational asanas lay the right 

groundwork for moving into advanced 

postures. Too many students favour how a 

pose looks rather than how it feels. The 

challenge is in training others to experience 

yoga internally and teach it to their future 

students. This is an essential component of 

yoga — the complete practice — yet only few 



27 


Staying humble and dedicated are signs 

of a great yoga student and a great yogi. 

teachers share this in a classroom experience. 

TO BE AN EXCELLENT YOGA TEACHER, 

FIRST KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A 

YOGI 

These are the wise words of my Guru. In fact, 

this is why his teacher trainings required 

students to uproot their lives and go and live 

at an ashram for a month. IY’s approach to 

yogic living set the bar for the standards of 

teacher training since the 1960s, and was 

adopted by the Yoga Alliance when it was 

founded. Hong Kong trainings are not held at 

an ashram, but the essence of ashram life is 

still present. Students learn humility and 

service are the starting points of a 

transformational journey. Without a 

willingness to shift attitudes and live 

selflessly, personal growth cannot happen. 

SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT IS ESSENTIAL 

While asana respects the body’s limits, 

inner-exploration ventures outside a 

student’s comfort zone to shift old 

conditioning. This transformational aspect of 

yoga is experienced through IY’s Six 

Branches. Students must learn to challenge 

their fundamental beliefs and release their 

past stories. Only then can they create 

meaningful reconnection with the universe 

(or any individual expression of Divinity). In 

that space of vulnerability, students can 

reveal their authentic selves. Only then are 

they prepared to transmit the teachings of 

yoga to others. 

STUDENTS NEED SUPPORT TO 

INTEGRATE NEW REALISATIONS INTO 

DAILY LIFE 

If we do not learn to live compassionately or 

be non-judgemental, yoga will always be a 

point of contention with those we love. The 

mistakes I made were so valuable that I 

pledged to support students in their quest to 

integrate the teachings into their personal 

lives. Through mentoring and group support 

over 10 months of training, students 

experience the very real results yoga delivers. 

Graduates have said this aspect of the 

training was key to healing their bodies/ 

minds, mending broken relationships, and 

changing their lives for the better. 

A SANGHA IS THE MOST VALUABLE 

ASSET FOR A TEACHER TRAINEE 

The friendships made at a teacher training 

can be life-long, and these can be maintained 

by regularly attending sangha or spiritual 

community. Integral Yoga’s Hong Kong 

community practices together weekly and 

serves the Hong Kong community 

frequently. We have grown into a family over 

the years, where each member supports one 

another in a loving and non-judgemental way. 

Many students lean on the sangha in times of 

need and it has provided them with strength 

and encouragement to keep going. 

200 HOURS ARE JUST THE BEGINNING, 

& THERE IS NO END TO GROWTH 

Many students emerge from a teacher 

training with enthusiasm and a wealth of 

knowledge to share with the world. This is 

fantastic, but it is just the beginning. 

Constantly learning and growing is key to 

staying inspired and authentic. My body and 

mind are totally different from 15 years ago. I 

have seen how the mind can easily trick us 

into going back to our old egotistic nature, if 

we are not careful. If any part of our physical 

vitality or mental peace are absent, we always 

have the chance to start over. We are all 

evolving in this journey together and all start 

at different points. Staying humble and 

dedicated are signs of a great yoga student 

and a great yogi. 

28 NAMASKAR 


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32 


FERTILITY 

YOGA & ASSISTED REPRODUCTION 

Soften to support the fertility process 

BY JEAN BYRNE 

Yoga is a wonderful way to prepare the body 

for pregnancy. It helps reduce stress, balance 

hormones and can help us feel well in body, 

mind and spirit. 

Yet sometimes, no matter how much yoga we 

do, or how healthy we are, we may find 

ourselves struggling with infertility. 

Infertility is the failure to become pregnant 

after 12 months of unprotected intercourse 

when no other issues are present (and you 

are in your 20s or early 30s). 

For any women menstruating, in her early 

30s or younger, and otherwise well - if you do 

not conceive in the first 12 months of regular 

intercourse, then go see your doctor. If you 

want a family, and time is not on your side, 

see if there are any issues to be addressed. 

If you have already begun treatments it is 

time to reflect on how our yoga practice can 

support and nurture us during this process. 

Even though there are myriad benefits from 

exercise, once we begin In-Vitro Fertilisation 

(IVF) consider moderate, rather than high 

intensity exercise. While exercise keeps us 

healthy, too much high intensity exercises in 

the years prior to IVF may not be helpful. 

A study published in Obstetrics and 

Gynaecology explains women who exercised 4 

hours or more per week for 1–9 years were 

40% less likely to have a live birth and were 

almost three times more likely to experience 

cycle cancellation and twice as likely to have 

an implantation failure or pregnancy loss 

than women who did not report exercise. 

For those of you who love Restorative or Yin 

practices, as long as you follow the pregnancy 

modifications, there is little reason to change 

what you are doing. Your body and mind will 

be nourished and the stress positively 

impacted by your practice. 

If you are practicing high intensity yoga such 

as Ashtanga, Power or Hot Yoga such as 

Bikram, reassess what you are practicing and 

how your practice might be modified during 

IVF or other fertility treatments. 

While the research is far from clear in this 

area, a Danish study suggests lean women 

who change their exercise from high intensity 

to medium intensity slightly improve their 

chances of natural pregnancy. While we can’t 

know absolutely the implications of high 

intensity yoga or exercise during fertility 

treatments, it makes sense to pull back a 

little. Remember your body is working hard 

to produce eggs and make a baby! 

It can be difficult to change your exercise 

routine. However, the beauty of yoga is that 

it can be adapted throughout our life to 

support and nourish you, no matter what you 

are going through. The change in intensity is 

not forever. Hopefully you will soon be 

pregnant. And after your baby’s birth you can 

return to your high intensity exercise, or if 

you do not conceive, when you are finished 

with fertility treatments you will be able to 

return to your previous levels of activity. 

My advice for women practicing yoga and 

undergoing fertility treatments is to find the 

space to soften your practice. IVF is very 

stressful and can bring lots of joy or heart 

ache. Having our head in the right place can 

help us on this journey. 

Further, women are likely to blame 

themselves if they have a failed IVF cycle, or 

are unable to conceive for whatever reason. 

We don’t want to look back and wonder if 

yoga was a contributing factor to our lack of 

IVF success. The following suggestions are 

to guide you through this difficult time, 

however they do not replace the advice of 

your health care provider or your 

experienced yoga teacher. Practicing with a 

teacher during this time can help you learn 

how to transform your practice into a less 

dynamic, but soft and nourishing practice. 

ADVICE ON YOGA PRACTICE DURING 

IVF OR FERTILITY TREATMENTS 

• In the months leading into your IVF 

cycles if you have a normal Body Mass Index 

scale back on high intensity yoga practices. 

Start to be more gentle and less forceful, 

reduce the amount you are sweating, try to 

keep a steady and even breath during your 

practice. Tune into your body, you may 

notice the effects of your cycle, become 

attuned to when you ovulate. 

• Once you begin a fertility cycle, do very 

gentle, pregnancy-appropriate yoga. The 

hope is you will have successful pregnancy, 

so begin practicing as if you are now. 

• Include meditation and visualisation 

daily to help with your stress levels. Develop 

a soft pranayama or mindfulness practice. 

• Once you start injecting hormones, 

honour the intensity of this process with a 

ritual. A nice cup of tea, a delicious juice, 

inject in a quite space. Use your practice to 

help you remain centred. By now the 

physicality of your practice has lessened 

greatly. Vinyasas are few and far between, 

but you can opt for longer holds in less 

strenuous positions, and move between the 

positions with the breath. By now you have 

dropped all twisting postures, inversions, 

postures which require jumping or unstable 

movements, intense forward or backbends. 

• Egg Removal: Allow yourself some time 

to practice meditation or pranayama on the 

morning of your retrieval. Do this in the 

hospital bed while you are waiting! 

• Embryo Transfer: If you are lucky 

enough to reach this point, again practice 

pranayama or meditation on the morning of 

transfer to keep your nerves in check. This 

will be an emotional time. Refrain from any 

physical yoga in the days following, but 

maintain a seated or laying meditation / 

relaxation practice 

• The 2 week wait - torture! Try 

restorative yoga with pregnancy 

modifications. Gentle, passive stretching, 

breathing and lots of relaxation! 

• 6 weeks: Pregnant! Congratulations. Be 

sure to find a wonderful pregnancy yoga class 

with an experienced teacher. 

• 6 weeks: Not Pregnant. Devastating! But 

you have done everything you could, 

nourished your body and mind, and 

ultimately there was no more you could have 

done. Now be kind to yourself, and respect 

the changes the IVF have put your body. 

Slowly and gently return to your practice. 

Yoga can be a wonderful way to support the 

body and mind during IVF. Be sure to seek 

the advice of your health care provider 

before taking up new forms of exercise, and 

when you should practice yoga. Even without 

asanas the other limbs of yoga can nurture us 

on this journey. 



33 


PRACTICES 

THE SOUND OF THE GONG 

Healing & Transformation 

BY MEHTAB BENTON 

The gong has been involved in every kind of 

human activity, from the earthly to the 

ethereal. In Buddhist monasteries, gongs call 

the attention of the gods. In ancient Greece, 

they open the realm of the dead. In Borneo, 

they are beaten to frighten away storms. In 

Ceram, gongs are given as wedding gifts. In 

Assam, they are used as funeral pyres. During 

war, gongs intimidate enemies and gather 

troops. In peace, they celebrate festivals and 

accompany dances. 

The gong has played an important role in 

ceremonies, rituals, and inner journeys 

among all the world’s peoples. Deaths, births, 

marriages, and initiations were all 

accompanied by the sounding of the gong. 

More than simply a musical instrument, the 

gong has been used as an agent of 

transformation. 

From the purely physical, to the emotional 

and spiritual, the sound of the gong can 

promote a positive change in the listener. In 

addition to yogis and yoga teachers, doctors, 

music therapists, psychotherapists, and 

researchers have used the gong as an adjunct 

to their healing modalities and have seen its 

therapeutic benefits in their students and 

patients. 

The applications for Gong Therapy as part of 

the complementary healthcare field are 

limitless. The gong has always been used to 

mark and ease life transitions, so we are 

seeing its use by midwives before and during 

the birthing process and by hospice nurses 

for end of life patients. 

The gong has been used since the early 1970s 

for treatment of addictions and for those in 

recovery programs. Psychotherapists are 

reporting beneficial results for patients who 

suffer from depression, anxiety and anger. In 

Sweden the gong is part of a medical yoga 

program and in Greece there is interest and 

acceptance of its use in the nursing 

profession. Children with special needs, 

disadvantaged youth, and students with 

learning disabilities have responded 

favorably to its use in the classroom. 

The gong and gong therapy is becoming 

accepted in Western culture, much like yoga 

achieved in the late twentieth century, as a 

benign and affordable way to enhance 

physical, mental and emotional well-being. 

Yet the potential audience for gong therapy 

exceeds that of yoga and many other 

alternative healing modalities. Its entry 

requirements are small – we only have to 

relax and listen - and its healing power comes 

from the sound that has awakened the human 

consciousness throughout the ages – the 

Sound of the Gong. 

Mehtab Benton leads a gong session 

34 NAMASKAR 


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35 


DRISTI - HATHA YOGA PRADIPIKA 

LITTLE LAMP OF 

HATHA YOGA 

Guiding us for 700 years 

BY VALERIE FANECO 

DETOXIFICATION IS THE KEY 

Similarities between HYP & Ayurveda.................................................40 

ANCIENT ANSWERS TO MODERN QUESTIONS 

How HYP helped me..............................................................................41 

36 NAMASKAR 


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37 


Yogis sought to be in good health, 

to reach the highest state 

of development in the mind. 

Hatha-yoga is familiar to millions of people 

who use it to describe the kind of yoga they 

practice, yet there seems to be a great deal of 

confusion about what it really is. The Oxford 

English dictionary defines it as “a system of 

physical exercises and breathing control used 

in yoga”, and some schools interpret it as a 

very strong practice of postures combined 

with powerful techniques of purification. A 

closer look into it reveals it is a multidimensional 

system, a map of how the 

ancients understood our structure long 

before the development of modern science. 

The Hatha-Yoga-Pradipika was composed 

around the 15 th Century AD and is one of the 

greatest classics on the subject. It is divided 

in four parts: chapter I is about working with 

the body (asana), chapter II is about working 

with the breath (pranayama), chapter III is 

about combining body, breath and energy in 

special positions with energetic seals 

(mudra), and chapter IV is about the 

experience of the inner sound as a meditative 

practice (nada). 

In that era diseases were often fatal and life 

expectancy was low. Yogis sought to be in 

good health, not for the sake of being 

physically fit or supple, but to reach the 

highest state of development in the mind. The 

pursuit of this freedom is the work of hathayoga, 

and the freedom itself is called rajayoga, 

meaning “royal” yoga because it is 

about finding the master in one’s self, when 

the goal of hatha-yoga is accomplished. 

Therefore, it is said hatha-yoga is “the ladder 

to reach raja-yoga”, the means to an end. 

MAVERICK YOGIS 

The author of the Hatha-Yoga-Pradipika was 

Svatmarama, a sage who may have belonged 

to a group called the Kapalikas. These 

ascetics devoted to Shiva used human skulls 

as begging bowls, hence their name, “skull 

men”. They were known as eccentrics 

because the techniques they practiced were 

rather extreme compared to those of the 

orthodox Brahmins who taught yoga then. 

Some of these techniques were not revealed 

to everyone but reserved to selected 

members of this hierarchical society. A 

typical example of this is samantrakapranayama, 

literally “the control of life 

force by working with mantras in breathing”. 

Mantras are positive affirmations or phrases 

pregnant with meaning; their repetition helps 

to focus the mind but also to measure the 

length of the breath and to acquire certain 

qualities embedded in the vibrations of their 

syllables. This practice had profound effects 

on the practitioner so mantras were 

prescribed with caution. 

Since such refined techniques were a no-go 

for the majority of people, spaces were left 

open for a few “maverick yogis” to come up 

with alternative methods. And since some of 

those methods were radical and 

controversial, it is likely they had to hide to 

practice them. 

LIGHT & SHADOW 

What does the name ‘Hatha-Yoga-Pradipika’ 

mean? 

‘Hatha’ is composed of ‘ha’ and ‘tha’ which 

mean ‘sun’ and ‘moon’ in Sanskrit. They 

symbolize dual forces in Nature: activity and 

calm, strength and comfort, inhalation and 

exhalation, etc. Ancient yogis considered the 

union of these forces as the platform of Selfrealization. 

‘Pra’ conveys the idea of something good. A 

‘dipika’ is a lamp. Back then lamps were 

fuelled by oil so their light was not 

necessarily very bright; they brought light to 

some areas but left others in the shade. So 

‘pradipika’ means “a lamp that sheds some 

positive light”. 

The name gives an important clue: the Hatha- 

Yoga-Pradipika is not comprehensive so it 

should not be read as a manual and it was 

never meant to replace direct instruction. It 

only presents some aspects of the hatha-yoga 

system. Certain techniques are described 

with abundant details but others are not. A 

few asymmetrical techniques are described 

on the left but not on the right. 

Why is it so inconsistent? We cannot be sure. 

Perhaps the author assumed his readers 

were already well informed. The Hatha- 

Yoga-Pradipika was probably compiled for 

experienced yogis who worked under the eye 

of their teacher. The author even 

occasionally contradicts himself, admits 

others “do it differently” or “call this by 

another name.” Opinions about yoga already 

differed in those days! 

This confusion and the metaphoric 

description of many techniques fuelled a 

great deal of misunderstanding in the 

modern yoga community. The promise of 

spectacular results may have led some people 

to try out radical methods that have for the 

most part become irrelevant in modern 

times. An example of such methods is the 

shat-kriyas, the six cleansing techniques 

described in chapter II, some of which are 

now considered invasive and even violent. 

In Svatmarama’s time it was already essential 

to be taught hatha-yoga techniques by a 

competent teacher, as he says explicitly a 

number of times throughout the text. In 

some cases he says: “Do it like this”, and later 

adds: “But you must always follow the 

instructions of the guru”. This aspect of 

Hatha-Yoga is crucial but too often ignored: 

the “good” teacher (sat guru) knows the 

student, has his best interest at heart and can 

adjust yoga’s tools based on the climate, 

season, location, and many other factors. 

Boys became disciples of a master around the 

age of 7 and lived with him until they were 

young men. In this gurukula - a kind of 

boarding school - they studied the Vedas and 

practiced yoga under the guidance of a 

master. They also learnt to live by certain 

rules, cooking, eating, and performing 

mundane duties like cleaning the toilets. 

THE IMPORTANCE OF PRANA 

Yoga practice works with the energy (prana) 

to purify all the systems, including the mind 

and the way it operates. 

In this domain the Yoga-Sutra identifies five 

problems preventing the mind from 

functioning well: confusion, ego-ism, craving 

(I want), rejection (I don’t want), and fear. 

These behaviours are regarded as “toxic 

waste” to be gotten rid of or at least 

diminished because they obstruct the path to 

Self-realisation. In hatha-yoga it is believed 

the most direct and efficient way to cleanse 

ourselves is to work with our breath 

(pranayama). It is even said the practice of 

pranayama alone can yield extraordinary 

results. 

ANATOMY OF A YOGI 

The removal of obstructions to let energy 

circulate freely is a central idea of the Hatha- 

Yoga-Pradipika. To explain this we can 

compare the person to a sprawling 

38 NAMASKAR 


38 


Janet Lau in Camatkarasana (Wild Thing) 

metropolis where the suburbs are connected 

by a wide network of roads that criss-cross, 

overlap, and intersect. 

The suburbs represent our vital functions 

and the roads represent a network of 

channels called nadis. The big intersections 

are cakras (energy centres). The job of the 

nadis is to carry energy everywhere. When 

we are healthy these paths are free of 

obstructions and our energy is distributed in 

just the right amount to support the physical 

systems and the subtle mechanisms like 

sensory perception, the ability to listen, 

remember, etc. Hatha-yoga texts tell us we 

have thousands of nadis but that they are not 

all equal. Some hatha-yoga texts say we have 

72,000 nadis, or 86,000, or 108,000. 

Three nadis can be looked upon as “prana 

highways”. They are called ida, pingala, and 

sushumna. Ida and pingala are lateral 

channels originating at the base of the trunk, 

respectively left and right of the centre; they 

run from there to the space in the centre of 

the head between the eyebrows, but they do 

not go up in a straight line. Their paths curve 

like U turns, left to right, right to left, 

crossing one another. Sushumna, the central 

nadi, is the only one that runs a straight 

course all the way up. 

These three channels intersect in “hubs” - 

the cakras. Incidentally, if we link this with 

modern anatomy, all of this happens along 

the spine, the axis of our body and 

“superhighway” of our nervous system. 

Everything would be fine if prana moved 

smoothly and if it were balanced in each part. 

This would be the equivalent of complete 

health, from yoga’s point of view. But for the 

majority of people prana does not move well; 

in some cases, it does not move at all. 

The problem becomes a little more 

complicated because when prana is stuck the 

toxins accumulate. Think about a big traffic 

jam turning into gridlock. Toxic matter can be 

blocked in any part of the system, creating 

knots in other parts. Toxic matter here does 

not just refer to physical impurities but also 

to a negative mind-set, as indicated earlier. 

SMOOTH TRAFFIC 

The Hatha-Yoga-Pradipika, being a very 

symbolic and poetic text, describes this stuck 

energy as a coiled snake – Kundalini. The aim 

of hatha-yoga is clearly stated: the coiled 

snake must be “un-coiled”, knots must be 

undone, blockages must be removed so prana 

can move unhindered. Once it starts moving, 

it flows in all channels and eventually, as the 

yogi gains more expertise in the practice, it is 

directed in the two lateral paths. Finally it 

enters the middle path (sushumna). 

Because the entrance of this middle path is 

symbolically located at the base of the trunk, 

behind the base of the spine, the metaphor 

suggests Kundalini, the coiled snake, is asleep 

in the entrance. The Hatha-Yoga-Pradipika 

lists a number of techniques focusing on the 

lower abdomen and lower back to “awaken” 

the snake, which means to unlock this area 

and help energy move in that space. In hathayoga, 

Kundalini’s slumber at the entrance of 

the sublime middle path is the symbol of 

heaviness and ignorance (tamas), in contrast 

with the lightness and radiance of wisdom 

(sattva) cultivated by the yogi. 

Obviously, these flamboyant metaphors only 

serve to illustrate a message: it is actually 

prana, the life-force, that has to be 

unleashed. It is prana that enters the “royal” 

path and moves inside it. The end of the 

process is the merging with Pure 

Consciousness, a state of wholeness 

impossible to describe, where the mind is 

completely dissolved. It does not cease to 

exist but it is obsolete because it has fulfilled 

its purpose. 

Although this process may seem esoteric, we 

should attempt to understand it from the 

perspective of yoga rather than from a 

scientific viewpoint. Prana and the mind are 

not tangible entities like organs or muscles. 

We cannot see these mysterious dimensions 

but we know they exist because they manifest 

as breath and thoughts. 

If the movement of prana is restricted, it is of 

no use to us. Likewise, if the mind down is 

bogged in all sorts of negative behaviours, it is 

of no use to us. What the yogis of the past 

discovered is still true today: working with 

prana helps to refine the mind, and both of 

them are instruments of our liberation. 

This is the message of hatha-yoga. 



39 


Nauli 

DRISTI 

DETOXIFICATION IS THE KEY 

Lessons from Hatha Yoga Pradipika 

& Ayurveda 

BY MAS VIDAL 

The Hatha Yoga Pradipika (HYP) is a unique 

text of the Nath yogis that enumerates some 

interesting methods for purifying the body. 

Swami Svatmarama, the chief disciple of 

Swami Goraknath authored it during the 

medieval period. Evidently, Matsyendranath, 

founder of the Nath (synonym for Shiva) cult 

along with Goraknath understood clearly the 

importance of mind-body purification as 

requisites for spiritual evolution and thus 

created a six-fold system (shat-karma) of 

detoxification. 

This popular yoga text is composed of four 

chapters. In brief, the first chapter deals 

with postural yoga (asana); chapter two 

deals with the six actions of purification 

(shatkarma and pranayama); chapter three 

describes the physical gestures and energy 

locks (mudras and bandhas), and chapter 

four discusses spiritual liberation 

(samadhi). The placement of the shatkarmas 

(purification practices) in the second 

chapter prior to the last chapter on samadhi 

(liberation) indicates the importance of a 

clean body to attain spiritual freedom. 

This article highlights the correlation the 

detoxifying actions described in chapter two 

of the HYP with those mentioned in the main 

Ayurvedic text, Charaka Samhita. 

Interestingly, the HYP methods have much in 

common with those used in Ayurveda, yoga’s 

sister science of self-healing. Similarly, 

Ayurvedic mastermind Charaka, devised a 

five-fold system (pancha karma) for 

purification of the doshas (vata, pitta & 

kapha) to improve the mind-body 

relationship. 

The concept of detoxification, which boldly 

appears in both yoga and ayurvedic systems, 

demonstrates a long history of interconnectedness 

between the two sciences. 

While yoga is mostly a science focused on 

expansion of awareness or consciousness 

40 NAMASKAR 


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The most important consideration 

[is] detoxification ... occurs slowly as a 

lifelong process 

beyond the illusions of the material world, 

Ayurveda has mostly been centered on 

healing of the physical body as it embraces 

the science of tri-dosha, which follows the 

biological forces of air fire and water. 

CAUSES OF TOXICITY 

The Vedantic concept of maya holds that this 

world appears as an illusion that produces 

desires that perpetuate the cycles of birth 

and death (samsaras). The Buddha 

proclaimed suffering is an inevitable part of 

life and is the direct result of samsara, which 

leaves us with the residues of samskaras 

(seed-habit tendencies). Samskaras can be of 

three types, pure (sattva), active (rajas) and 

dull (tamasic). The later two are responsible 

for producing toxicity in the body as a result 

of poor eating habits and imbalanced daily 

and seasonal lifestyles. 

The most important consideration of 

Ayurveda with regards to detoxification is 

healing occurs slowly as a life-long process, 

because health and wellness are not merely 

focused on the physical anatomy and 

systemic functions, but includes increasing 

present moment consciousness of the mind, 

emotions and purification from patterns not 

in accord with natural evolution. 

The HYP lists six main factors that create 

toxins in mind-body complex and thus create 

the need for purification. “Overeating 

(increases kapha), exertion (loss of ojas), 

talkativeness-gossip, adhering to rules 

(pitta), being in the company of common 

people (society) and unsteadiness (vata) are 

causes which destroy yoga.” 

practice for improving respiration in general, 

but more importantly it helps the lungs 

expand to the fullest capacity, a key factor for 

enhancing meditation. Dhouti involves 

swallowing a long cloth or drinking large 

amounts of salt water to induce vomiting. 

These first four actions are mostly aids in 

reducing kapha from its sight in the 

stomach, lungs and upper respiratory tract. 

Nauli is also an important practice to release 

pitta from its sight in the small intestine and 

mid-abdomen in general. Trataka purifies 

the eyes of excess pitta, as the radiant glow 

of ghee induces the eyes to tear, flushing out 

the tear ducts, thereby cooling the eyes and 

brain where heat rises from excess fire in the 

gastro intestinal tract. Basti is a strong way 

to cleanse the rectum and lower colon of 

excess vata, where apana (downward prana) 

is commonly blocked. 

Three of Ayurveda’s five (pancha karma) 

actions are the same as the yogic practices of 

nasal cleansing, enemas and stomach 

cleansing. The key point is yogic purification 

addresses crucial sites where doshas 

accumulate. Most importantly, both yoga and 

Ayurveda detoxification were designed with 

awareness of the two main physical areas 

with very subtle mystical sensitivity. These 

being the base of the spine where the nadis 

(subtle pranic channels) are linked and at the 

top of the nose at the spiritual eye, both of 

these areas are controlled by apana vayu 

(descending prana) and udana vayu 

(ascending prana), the main forces 

responsible for controlling the mind and 

attainment of Samadhi (liberation). 

DRISTI 

ANCIENT 

ANSWERS TO 

MODERN 

QUESTIONS 

How Hatha 

Yoga Pradipika 

helped me Live 

my Yoga 

BY GABRIELLE MCMAHON 

The Hatha Yoga Pradipika (HYP) has been an 

excellent resource for answering many 

questions I’ve had during my years of yoga 

practice. Using Swami Muktibodhananda’s 

2009 translation of HYP as my reference, I 

offer my own interpretation to readers. 

“Your body’s changing” a friend told me. 

Lovely to hear, even though I didn’t start 

yoga to improve my physical appearance. 

Rather it was the sheer joy I experienced in 

class, and the break it gave me from my 

stressful career. Fortunately I had been 

learning about the power of the ego in yoga 

class, so didn’t get too taken by the flattery. 

SIX YOGIC PURIFICATION ACTIONS 

The HYP enumerates six purification 

practices that yogi’s can implement for 

internal cleansing of the body and mind. 

Although it is important to note these 

practices are quite austere and require 

training or supervision by a trained yogi. 

These are kapalabhati (pranayama), neti 

(nasal cleansing), dhouti (stomach cleansing), 

nauli (abdominal undulations), trataka (eye 

and nerve purification), basti (enema). 

Each of these focuses on areas of the body 

where the doshas accumulate and creates 

obstacles for the expansion of 

consciousness. Kapalabhati pranayama is 

one of the best exercises for removing 

congestion and dullness from the sinuses and 

mind. Neti requires flushing the nose with 

water or other methods which include use of 

a cloth, milk or ghee. Neti is a powerful 

PHYSICAL PURIFICATION LEADS TO 

SPIRITUAL FREEDOM 

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Cleanliness is 

next to Godliness” a reminder the body is the 

real physical temple of God, although, for 

that consciousness to exist, the body must be 

clear of impurities of the doshas. 

The six-fold system of the HYP aligns 

perfectly with the ayurvedic intention of 

removing the obstacles of the doshas. Both 

yoga and Ayurveda recognize the importance 

of integral healing with such purifying 

practices, however Ayurveda provides more 

detailed wisdom on maintaining balance of 

the body according the seasons and various 

stages of life, along with diet and uses of 

herbal medicines that can bring much 

efficiency to anyone’s hatha yoga practice. 

The balance of yoga and Ayurveda is sure to 

bring success if practiced with regularity and 

according to ones doshas and karmic code. 

SO WHAT IS THIS PRACTICE FOR? 

For those with a dedicated practice, it is 

possible to go beyond the simple by-products 

such as a slimmer body, healthier glow, 

positive attitude or realization of higher 

mental potential. 

The abilities which come to us are not the end 

goal, but rather in chapter 1, verse 2, HYP 

reminds us to “use the power for good.” The 

gifts along the path to enlightenment should 

not distract us from experiencing the 

universal spirit. 

Through my yoga career, I’ve tried many 

different practices and systems. Though I 

always come back to the original practice my 

guru taught me. 

SHOULD I TRY MANY STYLES? 

“The highest state of raja yoga is unknown 

due to misconceptions [darkness] created by 



41 


there are many 

ways of reaching 

the goal as there 

are individuals in 

the world. 

varying ideas and concepts.” This quote from 

HYP chapter 1, verse 3 seems to recommend 

we stick with one style rather than dabbling 

in lots of different styles. 

Many of us are tempted to move to different 

styles of yoga or different teachers when we 

don’t agree, understand or are impatient 

with our existing practice or teacher. Such is 

the prevalent behavior of our society, 

My guru would often say to me “with the 

grace of your guru you can enlighten.” I 

wondered about this, as I thought I was the 

one doing all the work. 

WHAT IS THE ROLE OF A GURU? 

The guru is mentioned several times in HYP, 

namely chapter 1, verse 1 & 14, and in chapter 

4, verses 8 & 9: “…yoga should be practiced in 

the way instructed by the guru.” Fortunately 

I already had a living guru to give me the 

lessons and knowledge I needed to progress 

along the path. I offer him respect and a deep 

sense of love and devotion. 

And there’s further clarification on where 

that path leads “he reflects the brilliance of 

your spirit and what you see in him is actually 

your own self.” Which I have understood to 

mean that there is a guru within me as well. 

But even under the guidance of a guru, this 

has been a challenging journey, full of ups and 

downs, stops and starts. 

WHY IS IT SO DIFFICULT TO KEEP UP 

OUR PRACTICE? 

HYP speaks of six obstacles to yoga, yoga 

being the union of the pranic and mental 

energy flowing in the body. To achieve this, it 

is stated in chapter 1, verse 15 that we “… 

must avoid all activities which waste energy 

and distract the mind.” 

These activities include overeating, over 

exertion of the mind or body, talkativeness, 

adhering to rules, being in the company of 

common people and finally unsteadiness. 

Overeating is seen as a major obstacle, as it 

makes the mind and body sluggish and one’s 

energy goes towards processing and 

removing the toxins rather than to 

progressing in your practice. 

Around this festive period, it is important to 

be mindful of where our precious energy 

goes. The consumption and processing of 

food, being overworked, over exercised, over 

stimulated and over conversed, can limit our 

potential to rise to higher spiritual thinking 

and being, when we need it the most! 

I always wanted to be successful at yoga, and 

thought if I could do Padmasana (Lotus 

Pose), that would be a great achievement. So 

as a new student I asked my teacher “how 

long before I can sit in Padmasana?” He 

answered “…if you practice Badhakonasana 

(Butterfly Pose) every day for three months 

you should be able to do it.” I practiced it for 

a few weeks along with other morning poses 

for my yoga teacher training. However I saw 

little progress, I lost hope, focus, was lazy, 

I’m not sure, but I didn’t continue the 

recommended pose. 

HOW CAN WE SUCEED? 

My initial enthusiasm waned, the gains were 

not coming quickly enough for me when I 

realised I had to put more effort into it and 

persevere. I was holding myself back. 

Chapter 1, verse 16i talks of “Courage, 

perseverance and faith go hand in hand…” 

This was my first lesson in respecting that 

yoga is a journey, it can take a whole life time 

and I learned to develop a positive attitude, to 

persevere and to have an unshakeable faith in 

my practice that I was going in the right 

direction. I quickly learned to have greater 

discrimination over the company I kept, as 

well as in all my daily activities – eating, 

talking, and material possessions. It’s still a 

daily work in progress. 

AND WHERE ARE WE GOING? 

If “samadhi …eliminates death and takes one 

to the greatest bliss of Brahma,” (chapter 4, 

verse2) then why are we not all practicing 

with dedication and determination? Why do 

many of us start and not continue our 

practice? Maybe because we can’t imagine 

what a state of bliss might be like and how it 

would add value to our lives. 

It requires qualities we may be still 

developing: determination, dedication, 

correct practice, time, after all “…there are 

many ways of reaching the goal as there are 

individuals in the world.” 

Maybe we can focus on the process of raising 

our consciousness by the things we do each 

day, take advantage of the opportunities 

presented to us to be better people. To be 

kind and compassionate in our daily 

activities, to be patient with our families and 

co-workers. To have compassion for 

ourselves as well. To live mindfully is a 

stepping stone to discovering that greatest 

bliss within us. This is living our Yoga. 

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43 


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44 


MYTHOLOGY 

THE SAGE 

MAREECHI 

Great power & a bad 

temper 

BY TIA SINHA 

Sage Mareechi (Marichi) is one of the seven 

Brahmarishis. These were seven great sages 

also known as ‘Saptarishis’, the Sanskrit 

name for the constellation, the Great Bear. 

Sage Mareechi was one of Lord Brahma’s 

sons. 

Legend has it that Mareechi was also one of 

the ten ‘Prajapatis’. These beings were 

created by Brahma from his own mind to 

help him create the universe. They were 

therefore also referred to as ‘Manasputra’ or 

sons born from the mind. 

Another legend tells us about Sage 

Mareechi’s short temper. One evening, the 

sage came back exhausted from the forest 

where he had gone to collect some wood and 

flowers. He asked his wife Dharmavrata to 

wash his feet. While the obedient wife was 

washing her husband’s feet, out of the blue, 

Lord Brahma happened to pay them a visit. 

Dharmavrata was confused about her duties 

to her husband and her duties to her fatherin-law. 

In order not to offend her father-inlaw, 

she stopped washing her husband’s feet 

in order to attend to Lord Brahma. Sage 

Mareechi did not appreciate the unfinished 

business of washing of feet. 

Enraged, Sage Mareechi cursed 

Dharmavrata. The curse turned 

Dharmavrata into a stone forever. (Some 

husbands can be truly charming!) Even Lord 

Brahma, Dharmavrata’s powerful father-law 

could not undo the curse as Sage Mareechi 

was so powerful. Even Dharmavrata’s 

meditations and entreaties, in the form of a 

stone, to Lord Vishnu could not help her. 

Lord Vishnu did bless her though with the 

boon that the gods would be with her forever 

and that her stone form would be a sacred 

and powerful form. That stone is believed to 

be in present day Gaya in Bihar. 

The seated twist, Mareechi Asana is named 

after Sage Mareechi. Mareechi symbolizes 

great power, wisdom and the cosmic force of 

creation. 

MYTHOLOGY 

LESSONS 

FROM 

PATANJALI 

Receiving the Divine 

Offering 

BY CHARU RAMESH 

There are many myths surrounding the birth 

of the sage Patanjali. In one of the myths, his 

mother was a skilled yogini, who desired a 

son to whom she could pass on her wisdom 

and knowledge. 

One morning she was praying at the river, 

with her hands placed in anjali mudra filled 

with water that she was offering to the Sun. 

As she raised her hands and made her 

offering, a tiny snake fell into her cupped 

palms. She accepted him as a gift from the 

heavens and raised him as her son, calling 

him Patanjali. Patanjali went on to become a 

great sage, composing a range of texts 

including the Yoga Sutras as well as 

important commentaries on the system of 

Ayurveda and Sanskrit grammar. 

The Sanskrit name Patanjali is a compound 

word made of the prefix pat which means “to 

fall”, and the word anjali, which refers to the 

gesture of placing the hands together, slightly 

hollowed, usually in reverence, supplication 

or offering. Patanjali therefore means “one 

who fell into hands placed in reverence”. 

The story of his birth is itself a great 

teaching. Anjali mudra brings both the hands 

together, symbolizing the union of the left 

and right sides of the body. These represent 

the two poles of duality, prana and citta 

shakti, or yin and yang; complementary 

forces in the inner and outer universe that 

come together into wholeness when we 

perform this gesture. 

In most yoga classes we bring the hands 

together, palms touching at the heart, but 

anjali mudra can also be done with the hands 

held out, open and slightly apart, as shown in 

the image. The slight hollowing of the palms 

represents our inner emptiness, letting 

everything go to create space for offering and 

receiving. When our inner and outer being 

comes together in this way, whatever we 

offer is sacred and whatever we receive is 

divine. 

In the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna says: 

Whatever is offered to me with devotion 

– be it a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water - 

I accept that devotional offering. 

(Chapter 9, verse 26) 

Thus it is not what is offered which is 

important, rather how it is offered. In the 

space of offering, I can let go of my agendas, 

my desires, my sense of me, and out of this 

letting go, a pure and clear offering can be 

made. At the same time, the process of pure 

giving invites me to surrender and be an 

empty vessel, and somewhat paradoxically, 

allows me to receive whatever comes my way. 

I can then trust that whatever the universe 

gives me will be what is best for me and 

accept it gratefully, just as Patanjali’s mother 

accepted the snake that fell into her hands 

and her life. 

The attitude of open-heartedness with which 

I made my offering is the same attitude that 

allows me to receive reverentially what 

comes back to me from the universe. And 

what may at first seem like a surprising gift 

turns out to be one that has the potential to 

change not just our lives but those of 

countless others. 



45 


BOOK REVIEW 

INNER 

ENGINEERING 

– A YOGI’S 

GUIDE TO 

JOY 

By Sadhguru 

REVIEWED BY SWATI PANDEY 

Sadhguru’s latest book “Inner Engineering – 

A Yogi’s Guide to Joy” is a must read for yoga 

practitioners or just for anyone who “seeks”. 

Born to a non yoga family, a father who is a 

physician, Sadhguru shares his own journey 

of self transformation in the first part of this 

book. A skeptic by nature and logical in his 

approach, his moment of enlightenment left 

him ecstatic and baffled. He shares how this 

changed his experience of life and kindled the 

desire to bring this experience of joy and 

bliss to the whole world. The content of this 

book does not come from books or 

scriptures, it comes from direct experience. 

The book is thought-provoking, rich with 

insights, answers and methods. There is also 

a small chapter dedicated to what yoga 

means. 

Sadhguru shares how each one of us can 

design our own destiny and gives tools for us 

to be able to do so. Given the human 

mechanism is nothing but a composite of 

body, mind and energy, he shows how to 

work on these layers and re-wire ourselves 

so joyfulness becomes a sustained state of 

being in us. 

He says: “Although we are wingless 

creatures, we have still in the last one 

hundred years, managed to fly. How? Not by 

breaking the laws of nature, but through a 

deeper understanding of the laws of nature. 

So the technology we are going to explore in 

this book is a small part of the much deeper 

science that eventually enables an adept to 

take the very process of life and death into 

his or her hands.” 

Sadhguru is the founder of Isha Foundation, 

India. He is sought after by prestigious global 

forums today such as the United National 

Millennium Peace Summit, The Australian 

Leadership Retreat and the World Economic 

Forum. 

BOOK REVIEW 

LOVING- 

KINDNESS, THE 

REVOLUTIONARY 

ART OF 

HAPPINESS 

By Sharon Salzberg 

REVIEWED BY TIA SINHA 

Perhaps everything terrible is in its deepest 

being, something that needs our love. 

- Rainer Maria Rilke 

In Sharon Salzberg’s words, “Throughout 

our lives we long to love ourselves more 

deeply and to feel connected with others. 

Instead we often contract, fear intimacy, and 

suffer a bewildering sense of separation. We 

crave love, and yet we are lonely. Our 

delusion of being separate from one another, 

of being apart from all that is around us, 

gives rise to all of this pain. What is the way 

out of this? 

“Spiritual practice, by uprooting our 

personal mythologies of isolation, uncovers 

the radiant, joyful heart within each of us and 

manifests this radiance to the world. We 

find, beneath the wounding concepts of 

separation, a connection both to ourselves 

and to all beings. We find a source of great 

happiness that is beyond concepts and 

beyond convention. Freeing ourselves from 

the illusion of separation allows us to live in a 

natural freedom rather than be driven by 

preconceptions about our own boundaries 

and limitations.” 

The Buddha described the spiritual path that 

leads to this freedom as “the liberation of the 

heart which is love.” He taught a systematic, 

integrated path that moves the heart out of 

isolating contraction into true connection. 

That path is still with us as a living tradition 

of meditation practices that cultivate love 

(maitri in Sanskrit), compassion (karuna in 

Sanskrit), sympathetic joy (mudita in 

Sanskrit), and equanimity (upeksha in 

Sanskrit). Together, they are known as the 

Four Immeasurable attitudes or the 

Brahma-viharas in Sanskrit and Pali. 

Brahma means ‘heavenly’ and Vihara means 

‘abode’ or ‘home’. When we cultivate these 

four qualities, we establish love (the wish for 

oneself and all beings to be happy), 

compassion (the wish for oneself and all 

beings to be free from suffering), 

sympathetic joy (delighting in one’s own 

happiness and the happiness of others) and 

equanimity (our ability to live free from 

clinging attachment to some and aversion to 

others) as our home. 

In this beautifully written book, Sharon 

Salzberg shows us how to develop lovingkindness 

in our hearts. Great love or lovingkindness, 

according to Buddhism, is the 

wish, “May all beings be happy and have the 

causes of happiness”. The practice of lovingkindness 

or metta in Pali affirms and 

honours a core goodness in ourselves and 

others, and every being’s wish to be happy. 

Metta is the ability to embrace all parts of 

ourselves, as well as all parts of the world. 

Metta is its own support, and thus it is free 

of inherently unstable conditions. Metta 

occurs in timelessness. Metta takes us 

outside the realm of time, expectation and 

disappointment. 

She discusses the two root meanings of the 

Pali word metta. One is the word for gentle. 

Metta is likened to a gentle rain that falls 

upon the earth. The rain does not select and 

46 NAMASKAR 


46 


choose – “I’ll rain here, and I’ll avoid that 

place over there.” It simply falls without 

discrimination. 

The practice of metta, uncovering the force 

of love that can uproot fear, anger and guilt 

begins with befriending ourselves. The 

foundation of metta is to know how to be 

our own friend. According to the Buddha, 

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the 

entire universe, deserve your love and 

affection.” With metta practice we uncover 

the possibility of truly respecting ourselves. 

We discover, as Walt Whitman put it, “I am 

larger and better than I thought. I did not 

think I held so much goodness.” 

Confidence in our innate potential to be 

loving human beings empowers the 

cultivation of metta. Our potential to love is 

very real and is somehow not destroyed, no 

matter what we experience, all of the 

mistakes we might make, all of the times we 

are caught in reaction, all of the times we 

have caused pain, all of the times we have 

suffered. Throughout everything, our 

potential to love remains intact and pure. 

Through practising metta in meditation and 

in daily life, we cultivate this potential. 

entail the practice of all the Four 

Immeasurables in any given moment. And 

how ethics or non-harming conduct can be 

found in the Four Immeasurables, the 

Brahma-viharas, the heavenly abodes that 

are the revolutionary source of true 

happiness. 

She discusses in depth, hindrances to 

cultivating each of the four Brahma-viharas 

and suggests concrete steps to overcome 

them. 

This classic containing traditional Buddhist 

meditation techniques to open the heart is 

dotted with personal anecdotes from 

Sharon’s life as a student of meditation and 

later as a meditation teacher and with quotes 

from the creations of writers and poets who 

have influenced her, in addition to examples 

and quotes from Buddhist texts. This classic 

is a gem which one who is committed to 

opening their heart could easily visit and 

relish bit by bit every day for an entire year. 

The very simple and practical meditation 

techniques explained here can become a part 

of one’s life and help one transform one’s 

negative mind into a positive, wholesome, allinclusive 

and joyful one. 

Sharon also shares techniques to develop 

compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity. 

She devotes a chapter each to generosity and 

ethics. She shows us how generosity can 



47 


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49 


50 NAMASKAR 


50 


LIVE & 

RAW EGG 

NOG 

Guilt-free 

holiday 

favourite 

BY MOISES MEHL, RAW FOOD CHEF, 

NOOD FOOD 

Raw 

RAW ALFREDO SAUCE 

WITH TRUFFLE OIL 

For Zoodles or Raw 

Risotto 

BY TINA BARRAT, RAW CHEF & 

INSTRUCTOR, MAYA CAFE 

RECIPES 

INGREDIENTS 

Serves 5 shots of 60 ml 

1 cup almond milk (250 ml) 

1/3 cup cold pressed coconut oil (75 ml) 

½ cup raw cashews soaked for 1 hr (60 gr) 

1/3 cup fresh Thai Coconut Pulp 

3 Tbs raw honey (75 gr) or (maple syrup for a 

vegan version) 

1/8 tsp Turmeric powder 

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon 

1 vanilla pod or 4 drops of vanilla extract 

METHOD 

Place all ingredients on a high speed blender 

and blend until fully emulsified. Place in small 

shot glasses and add a dash of cinnamon for 

decoration. 

Keeps refrigerated for 2-3 days 

INGREDIENTS 

300 gr cashew nuts soaked for 1 hour or 

overnight (drained and rinsed) 

2 cups drinking water to cover cashew nuts in 

the blender 

1/3 cup Extra virgin olive oil 

2 tsp Himalayan salt 

1/2 tsp Cracked black pepper 

2 tbsp good Truffle oil 

METHOD 

Throw all the ingredients in the blender and 

process until smooth. Adjust the seasonning if 

necessary. 

This sauce goes with zoodles (zucchini 

spagetti) or hot pasta and even works as veggies 

dip or anything calling for a creamy sauce, enjoy! 



51 


DIRECTORY 

Guide to yoga studios 

& teachers 

ANAHATA VILLAS & SPA 

RESORT 

Ubud, Bali, Indonesia 

s: group retreats, yoga for 

private & corporates. Yoga 

studio available for rent. 

l: Indonesian & English 

t: (62) 361 8987 991/ 8987 992 / 

(62) 811 8748 910 / (62) 811 1442 

233 

f: +62 361 8987 804 

e: sm@anahataresort.com / 

info@anahataresort.com 

w: www.anahataresort.com 

ANAHATA YOGA 

18/F Lyndhurst Tower, 1 

Lyndhurst Terrace, Central, 

Hong Kong 

s: Hatha, Ashtanga, Yoga 

therapy, Yin and more. Groups & 

privates 

t: +852 2905 1922 

e: enquiry@anahatayoga.com.hk 

w: www.anahatayoga.com.hk 

ANANDA YOGA 

33 & 34/F, 69 Jervois Street 

Sheung Wan, Hong Kong 

s: Private and Group Classes : 

Yoga Therapy (neck, shoulder, 

back, hip, knee and joints), 

Hatha, Power, Ashtanga, 

Vinyasa, Detox, Yin Yang, 

Kundalini, Chakra Balancing, 

Pranayama, Meditation 

l: English 

t: (825)35639371 

e: 

adm.anandayoga.hk@gmail.com 

w: www.anandayoga.hk 

Anna Ng 

Privates 

d: Hong Kong 

s: Hatha yoga 

l: Cantonese 

t: (852) 9483 1167 

e: gazebofl@netvigator.com 

BEING IN YOGA – 

SINGAPORE 

Teaching yoga in the tradition of 

T Krishnamacharya and TKV 

Desikachar. 

s: yoga therapy (customized 

personal practice), teacher 

training (Yoga Alliance RYS 500 

hours+), in-depth yoga studies, 

small group classes for children 

and adults, workshops, 

meditation classes, Vedic 

chanting, continuing education 

for yoga teachers. Certified 

Teacher Trainer – Yoga 

Therapist - E-RYT 500 

RYS 500 

t: +65-9830-3808 

e: beinginyoga@gmail.com 

w: www.beinginyoga.com 

B.K.S. IYENGAR YOGA 

ASSOCIATION OF MACAU 

174, Rua de Pequim, Edif Centro 

Com. Kong Fat, 7A, Macau 

s: Iyengar 

t:(853)2882 3210/6662 0386 

e:yoga@macau.ctm.net 

w:www.iyengar-yoga-macauchina.com 

David Kim Yoga 

E-RYT 500+, Senior YogaWorks 

and YogaWise Yin Yoga Teacher 

Trainer;International TTs, 

Workshops & Retreats 

d: USA, Japan, China, Vietnam, 

Korea, Malaysia, Greece 

s: Yin Yoga, YogaWorks, Vinyasa 

Flow 

l: English, some Korean 

t: +1 310 480 5277 

e: david@davidkimyoga.com 

w: www.davidkimyoga.com 

FLEX STUDIO 

Island South 

Shops 308-310 One Island 

South, 2 Heung Yip Road, 

Aberdeen, Hong Kong 

s: Vinyasa, Power, Detox, Hatha, 

Pre-Natal, Kids Yoga 

t: + 852 2813 2212 

f: + 852 2813 2281 

e: info@flexhk.com 

Central 

3/F Man Cheung Building, 15- 17 

Wyndham Street, Central, Hong 

Kong 

s: Detox, Power, Pre-Natal Yoga 

t: + 852 2813-2399 

f: + 852 2812 6708 

e: central@flexhk.com 

www.flexhk.com 

IYENGAR YOGA CENTRAL 

s: Boutique studio with Iyengar 

Yoga classes; flexible timings for 

corporate wellness, small 

groups, and privates 

l: English, Cantonese, Mandarin, 

French, Malay 

t: +852 2982 4308 

e: yogacentralhk@gmail.com 

w: www.yogacentral.com.hk 

fb: Iyengar-Central 

MND STUDIO 

7/F Tack Building, 48 Gilman 

Street, Central, Hong Kong 

s: Hatha, Yin, Therapy, 

Ashtanga, Iyengar, Pilates 

Equipped yoga studio for groups, 

privates, aerial yoga classes and 

workshops. 

t: +852 5400 8824 

e: info@mndasia.com 

w: www.mndasia.com 

PURE YOGA 

China 

L6-615 iapm mall, 999 Huai Hai 

Zhong Road, Xuhui District 

Shanghai 

t: +86 21 5466 1266 

Hong Kong 

16/F The Centrium, 60 

Wyndham Street, Central 

t: +852 2971 0055 

25/F Soundwill Plaza, 38 Russell 

St, Causeway Bay 

t: +852 2970 2299 

14/F Peninsula Office Tower, 18 

Middle Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, 

Kowloon 

t: +852 8129 8800 

9/F Langham Place Office 

Tower, 8 Argyle Street, Kowloon 

t: +852 3691 3691 

4/F Lincoln House, TaiKoo 

Place, 979 King’s Rd, Quarry Bay 

t: +852 8129 1188 

2/F Asia Standard Tower, 59 

Queen’s Road, Central 

t: + 852 3524 7108 

Level 1 The Pulse, 28 Beach 

Road, Repulse Bay 

t: +852 8200 0908 

3/f Hutchison House, 10 

Harcourt Road, Admiralty 

t: +852 8105 5838 

Singapore 

391A Orchard Road, #18-00 

Ngee Ann City Tower A 

t: +65 6733 8863 

30 Raffles Place, 04-00 Chevron 

House 

t: +65 6304 2257 

Taiwan 

151 Chung Hsiao East Road, Sec 

4, Taipei 

t: +886 02 8161 7888 

4/f Urban One, 1 Qingcheng St, 

Taipei 

t: +886 02 8161 7868 

Ling 

Yoga and Wellbeing, Private 

Yoga Teacher, Privates, Groups, 

Corporates, Free Yoga 

Community Event: Yoga in the 

Park with Ling www.meetup.com/ 

yogaintheparkhk 

d: Hong Kong, China 

s: Yoga Therapy, Sivananda, 

Hatha, Svastha, Mindfulness, 

Yin, Breathing (Pranayama), 

Guided Meditation, Total 

Relaxation (Yoga Nidra) 

l: English, Cantonese, Mandarin 

t: +852 9465 6461 

e: yogawithling@gmail.com 

w: www.facebook.com/ 

yogawithling 

RED DOORS STUDIO 

21/f, 31 Wong Chuk Hang Rd 

s: Gong meditation and training, 

labyrinth facilitation and 

construction, kundalini 

therapeutic yoga and 

complementary practices to 

elevate energy. Multiple studio 

spaces available to rent. 

t. +852 21110 0152 

e. info@red-doors.com 

w. www.red-doors.com 

SPACE YOGA 

s: Hatha, Ashtanga, Advanced, 

Flow, Yin, Yin Yang, Restorative, 

Hot, Yin/Meditation, 

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namaskar 

Pranayama, Mat Pilates, 

Jivamukti, Universal, Myofascial 

Release Yoga, Mindful 

Yoga, Rope Wall Yoga, Yoga 

Nidra and Yoga Therapy 

l: English and Mandarin 

w: www.withinspace.com 

An-Ho Studio 

16 F, No. 27, An-Ho Road, 

Section 1 

Taipei, Taiwan 

t: +886.2.2773.8108 

Tien-Mu Studio 

#5, Lane 43, Tian-Mu E. Road, 

Taipei, Taiwan 

t: +886.2.28772108 

Sravaniya DiPecoraro 

d:Hong Kong 

s: LifePath Yoga Philosophy, 

Vedanta, Bhagavad Gita, Yoga 

Sutras; beginners and advanced; 

ACBSP disciple (1971), YA E- 

RYT500, Sivananda Certified 

(1991) 

l: English and Mandarin 

t: +852 9856 0799 

e: info@lifepath.am 

w: www.lifepath.am 

THE YOGA ROOM 

3, 4, 6, 16/F (Studios) & 15/F 

(Office) Xiu Ping Commercial 

Bldg, 104 Jervois St, Sheung 

Wan, Hong Kong 

s: Hatha, Hot, Ashtanga, 

Vinyasa, Candlelight Yin, Yoga 

Therapy, Jivamukti, Hammock 

Yoga, Mindfulness Yoga, Detox 

Yoga, Pre-natal Yoga, Pre-natal 

Pilates, Mat Pilates, TRX, Kids 

Yoga and Mum & Baby Yoga 

l: English, Cantonese 

t: + 852 2544 8398 

e: info@yogaroomhk.com 

w: www.yogaroomhk.com 

KUNDALINI @SHAKTI 

7/F Glenealy Tower, 1 Glenealy, 

Central, Hong Kong. 

s: Kundalini, Reik healing, life 

coaching, Shamanic healing, 

Ayurveda, Feng Shui 

consultations, Angel Cards 

t: +852 2521 5099 

e: info@shaktihealingcircle.com 

w: www.shaktihealingcircle.com 

THE COLLECTIVE, DESA SENI 

SCHOOL OF YOGA 

Jl. Subak Sari #13, Canggu, Bali, 

Indonesia 

s: Full service resort, Ashtanga, 

Embodied Flow, Hatha, 

Kundalini, Restorative, Tantra, 

Therapeutics, Yin, Yang, 

Vinyasa, Buddhist Meditation, 

Vedic Meditation. Teacher 

Trainings, Intensives, Privates, 

Workshops, specialising in 

hosting retreats. 

t: +62 361 844 6392 

e: info@desaseni.com 

w: www.desaseni.com 

TRUE YOGA 

Singapore 

9 Scotts Road, Level 4, Pacific 

Plaza, Singapore 228210 

t: +65 6733 9555 

9 Scotts Road, Level 5, Pacific 

Plaza (Bikram Original Hot 

Yoga), Singapore 228210 

t: +65 6735 9555 

Taiwan 

337 Nanking East Road 

Section 3, 9 & 10/F, Taipei 

T: +886 22716 1234 

68 Gongyi Road, West District 

12 & 13/F, Taichung 

t: +886 43700 0000 

s: Ashtanga, Bikram, Flow, 

Gentle, Hatha, Kids, Power, Pre- 

Natal, Vinyasa, Yin, Yoga Dance 

w: www.trueyoga.com.sg / 

www.trueyoga.com.tw 

WISE LIVING YOGA 

ACADEMY 

198 Moo 2, Luang Nuea, Doi 

Saket, Chiang Mai, Thailand 

s: Classical Yoga, Hatha Yoga, 

Yoga Therapy 

t: +66 8254 67995 

e: info@wiselivingyoga.com 

w: www.wiselivingyoga.com 

4 times a year 

6,000 yoga practitioners 

32 countries 

DISPLAY ADVERTISING RATES & SIZES 

Outside back cover HK$25,000 210 mm x 297 mm 

Inside front cover HK$3,500 210 mm x 297 mm 

Inside back cover HK$2,700 210 mm x 297 mm 

Full page HK$2,200 210 mm x 297 mm 

1/2 page (horizontal) HK$1,500 180 mm x 133.5 mm 

1/2 page (vertical) HK$1,500 88 mm x 275 mm 

1/4 page HK$700 88 mm X 133.5 mm 

1/8 page HK$440 88 mm x 66 mm 

LISTINGS 

Individual listing HK$640 for full or partial year 

Studio listing HK$1,300 for full or partial year 

PUBLICATION DATES, BOOKING & MATERIAL DEADLINES 

Publication date Booking Deadline Material Deadline 

January December 1 December 10 

April March 1 March 10 

July June 1 June 10 

October September 1 September 10 

NOTES 

Advertising materials should in black & white and submitted as 300 

dpi high resolution .tif files (no pdf or ai files please) 

Listings should be submitted as text only (approx 35 words) 

PAYMENT 

Payments should be made in Hong Kong dollars to: 

Namaskar c/o Carol Adams, Flat 101, Block L, Telford Gardens, 

Kowloon, Hong Kong 

INFORMATION 

Carol +44 75432 55886 / carol@caroladams.hk 

Frances +852 9460 1967 / fgairns@netvigator.com 



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Namaskar - Jan 2017

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