I Think Therefore I Am Not

Dear Yogis

I hope the year is going well for you so far. Me... I've had a cluttered mind! If yoga is encouraging us to still the fluctuations of the mind, why has my mind been fluctuating like a crowded Jacuzzi? In Savasana yesterday I had to laugh at the endless chatter. What is it this time!!! Events over Christmas and a marathon 16 hours looking after an old neighbour addled my brain but, in truth, the poor grey matter has been fuzzy before and will be foggy again... And so it goes!

This is exactly where yoga kicks in; to point out when you get tangled up in thoughts. Yoga is the art of disentanglement.  Problems occur when we attach to the story and then endlessly regurgitate it to make it palatable. So obvious, eh! I can see exactly when the mind bubbles with those self-spin-doctored stories. (Sometimes it’s like having my own personal Iago.) It’s just thoughts, that’s all. Mental phantoms. And when people do or say something hurtful, well, they are supposed to! They are helping to make the mind a stronger and quieter place.

Next week the news will be full of ‘Blue Monday’, supposedly the most depressing day of the year (originally press-released to make you book a holiday!). Really is should be called Messy Mind Monday. Don’t get tangled up – it’s just a news-filler. Clear out the Jacuzzi mind instead!

Greek Yoga Retreat

My website has been updated with details of the three retreats: the Greek retreats in September and the Devon ‘Complete Wellbeing Retreat’ in October. The retreat with Lisa has a waiting list. There are plenty of spaces on the other retreats.

Home Studio

The effect of Triyoga in Ealing seems to mean the general interest in yoga is on the rise and new people are coming to give it a go in my little Home Studio. New Year resolutions make for an exciting time.  There are plenty of places to book for next week.  I seem to have lost my Paypal button. Until I rectify the situation, you can pay online with my Paypal email, taniashillam@hotmail.com but please write and let me know. (Please don’t book with no intention of coming!)

Yoga in the News

Newspapers seem to think it interesting to send unfit journalists to yoga classes and spiritual sceptics to ashrams for a dose of yoga and meditation. However, this article from the Inde is quite fun. ‘Nepal yoga retreats: Are spiritual holidays a load of nonsense?’. It turns out the answer is ‘no’.

Not to be outdone, the Guardian kicks in with ‘Yoga for lazy people: seven moves to make you happy’. More interesting is the Guardian’s travel guide and yoga guide to Mysore (Mysuru).  Mysuru, India, city guide: what to see, plus the best yoga centres, hotels and restaurants. Makes me feel like going!