I have arrived! Actually, I arrived yesterday at about 2:30am. It was a long journey, which makes me especially glad that I am staying for such a long time. I tried to summon the energy for a Thoughts from the plane 2 between Germany and Mumbai, but I couldn't do it. i was feeling tired and just a little crabby. My time was better spend on ujjayi and mantra. My smooth travels carried me all the way here. There was hardly any line at customs in Mumbai, which was a very pleasant surprise. I have never experienced hardly any line at customs. I didn't think that was possible. It felt very auspicious!
I started looking for my driver when I came out of the airport. Yogini's son, Sanjeev, made the arrangements for someone to come pick me up. I am always so surprised and grateful that the drivers are willing to travel to the airport for a midnight landing. To my delight, I recognized the driver that was there to take me to Ganeshpuri. He was the same driver that drove my friend and I around Mumbai the day before I left last year. His name is Jagan, and being greeted by a familiar face felt great.
I did not have it in me to head to the temple when I arrived in Ganeshpuri. I headed to bed. I still haven't figured out the whole sleeping on a plane thing. Instead, I do lots of ujjayi and mantra. It felt great to stretch out my legs and have plenty of space to sleep. I'm in the same room I had last time. What I really love about this room is the separate shower and toilet. The standard all in one bathrooms here in India still feel very foreign to me. I'll be sure to dedicate a post to touring you around my quarters!
After a few hours of sleep and breakfast, I showered and unpacked. Last time, I lived out of my suitcases. I feel more settled already with everything in it's proper place and my suitcases stowed under my bed. For those of you that remember the challenges I had with my checked bag last year, I am happy to report that it arrived in Mumbai with me.
I headed down to the temple shortly after 10am. I had visiting to do, and enjoyed some sweet reunions with friends. One of my friends, Vijaya, was so surprised to see me. I had sent her a message that I was coming on the 7th, but she didn't understand my English. Surprise! After some visiting, I headed to Bhimeshwar, which is the ancient Shiva temple next to Nityananda's Samadhi shrine. It is my favorite place in Ganeshpuri. It is so full of powerful shakti (energy) and I love to meditate in there. And I attended the noontime Arti in Nityananda's Samadhi shrine.
Then back home, for lunch and afternoon rest. I was happyto discover many of the same people working at Yogini's house. They welcomed me the same way I was welcomed when Yogini was alive, with a beautiful garland and Arti (candle flame ceremony). That's the tradition in India.
It's so easy to fall into the daily rhythms and routines here. I love the afternoon rest. It's the hottest part of the day, so I am happy to be ensconced in my air conditioned room. I caught up on some emails before laying down for a lovely Shavasanap. That's my term for an afternoon extended ujjayi practice. It feels like a nap, but it is more beneficial for my body. You should try it sometime! I really needed yesterday's Shavasanap, since I was running on such little sleep. Even with all the ujjayi I did on my flights, I needed more. I felt like I was emptying my prana tank as quickly as I was filling it up as I traveled here.
The pervasive bliss in Ganeshpuri is powerful fuel, and my prana tank still needed some more filling. Ujjayi pranayama does that. For those of you that are not familiar with ujjayi pranayama, it is the breathing practice that we teach in Svaroopa® yoga classes. Being a pranayama, it is a prana building practice. Prana is your life force energy - it's what keeps you going. When you are low on prana, you feel tired and cranky. You get sick. When your prana tank is full, it shows. You can read more about ujjayi pranayama in these two articles by Gurudevi - The Magic and Mystery of Ujjayi Pranayama and Breath and Beyond. If you've been wanting to try yoga, this breathing practice is a great place to start. Find a Svaroopa® yoga teacher near you, or email me and we'll schedule a private session online to learn ujjayi pranayama.
After my Shavasanap, it was time to tune in to Meditation Club. I love how technology connects us! Granted, my meditation time at home isn't usually 5pm-6pm (or 4pm-5pm after daylight savings time tomorrow), and I really appreciate that deep dive to complete my afternoon rest. I also appreciate staying connected to my Guru and my community in this way when I am halfway around the world.
Thursday nights are Palki night at the temple. This is the only Thursday I'll be able to attend the Palki, since I'll be teaching online from 6:30-8pm the rest of the Thursdays that I am here. I hope to see some of you in class! You can register here.
I'll make a separate post about the Palkis - there is an extra long one today for Mahashivaratri. I'll also make a separate post about Mahashivaratri. This is getting lengthy! After the palki, I enjoyed more meditation in Bhimeshwar, the Shiva temple, and then I headed into the big hall (Nityananda's Samadhi shrine) for evening Arti.
After evening Arti, I made the trek back to Yogini's house. Trek makes the walk sound longer than it is - it takes about 10 minutes. But it's all uphill, which sure makes it feel like a trek. Then it was time for dinner, which is the same schedule I followed last time I was here. It is sweetly familiar, though dinner at 9:30pm is quite late for me. In the US, 9:30 is when I'm usually going to bed. Not here, though. That's when that afternoon rest period really comes in handy!
I've given you enough of the details of my first day. It's time for breakfast for me, so I will wrap this up. I am grateful to have this platform put words to my thoughts and experiences. That is a powerful practice, as you know if you've ever taken a Svaroopa® yoga class and been asked to share the differences you notice after the second marker pose. And I am grateful to you, dear reader, for listening to my thoughts and experiences. Until next time... Namaste from Ganeshpuri 🙏💛🙏
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