Lake Atitlan is renowned as one of the most beautiful lakes in the world. The indigenous Mayan who live around her shores revere it as the “Umbilicus of the World”, sacred and powerful waters where magic and possibility are palpably alive, a place where the veil between myth and reality bend deeply into one another. This past March, twenty four of us spent a week together practicing, playing, exploring, and remembering.  At the end of this amazing week, the only question remaining was ”When are we coming back?!!!” The answer: March 2-8, 2013!

Next year’s retreat will again be held at Villa Sumaya Retreat Center, with its loving hospitality, delicious food, beautiful rooms and yoga/practice spaces, and the legendary unobstructed views of the three immense volcanoes surrounding the lake. There will be new excursions available, including ziplining at the Atitlan Nature Reserve in Panajachel, and an option after the conclusion of the retreat to visit the ancient Mayan ruins of Tikal!

For more information, please read the detailed description below and follow the links at the bottom for Prices, Registration, and the optional Tikal Itinerary. Space is limited, so register early to hold your spot and to take advantage of the Early-Bird Discount!

Yoga & Meditation Retreat w/ Tilak Pyle & Asha Greer
March 2-8, 2013
Lake Atitlan, Guatemala

Join Tilak Pyle and artist and mystic Asha Greer for a week combining transformative spiritual practices, nature adventures, fun, relaxation, and meaningful inner and outer explorations in this Central American paradise. Days will include meditation, body and heart opening yoga classes, self-discovery and healing exercises, scrumptious vegetarian meals, and time to take full advantage of all the unique opportunities that Villa Sumaya and the surrounding area provide.

Villa Sumaya Retreat Center is situated on the picturesque shores of Lake Atitlan (at 4500 ft above sea level), in the heart of Guatemala’s highlands, and offers opportunities to discover Lake Atitlan’s living and legendary landscape. With an uninterrupted vista punctuated only by a skyline of three perfect volcanoes, Villa Sumaya is the ultimate high for romantics and adventurers in search of rest, reflection and ageless natural beauty.

Villa Sumaya’s thatch roofed complex has fifteen comfortable and elegantly decorated rooms, modern accommodations, spacious gardens, café, juice bar, hot tub, sauna, pool and outdoor pergolas that are all hidden in the natural surroundings providing secret refuges for our guests. The on-site Harmony Spa offers a complete line of massage and body treatments to help make your retreat special and healing.

Additional opportunities include swimming, kayaking, zip-lining, hiking to waterfalls and hot springs, diving, horse back riding, climbing the San Pedro volcano, shopping at local markets, tours of nearby Mayan villages, and many more!

Prices for the Villa Sumaya retreat are $1140/Triple, $1230/Double, and $1410/Single, and includes all yoga classes & workshops with Tilak and Asha, accommodations for 6 nights, 3 gourmet meals per day, unlimited tea and coffee service, a tour of Amigos de Santa Cruz Artisan Market, an Eco Sumaya tour, and Guatemalan taxes.  Space is limited. Register today!

Registration Form
(right-click, choose ‘Save Target As’)

Optional Tikal Excursion

Workshop Information

• Teacher: Tilak Pyle
• Date: Saturday, March 2nd 2013 - Friday, March 8th 2013
• City: Tilak Pyle in Lake Atlitlan
• Venue: Villa Sumaya
• Country: Guatemala
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

One morning as I followed Asha down the wooded path towards the Tea House, I paused on a rocky outcropping to take in the beauty of the stream below. To my right a flash of white caught my attention. Being shaded, the entire stream was a calm dark with the exception of one small spot where the sunlight broke through. It gave the otherwise tranquil water the appearance of a bubbling brook, as if the water there were instead at the bottom of a waterfall. I said out loud to myself, “Oh, wow!” Asha overheard me and excitedly turned around and asked, “Which?!”

The response struck me as unusual because my assumption is that 95% of people, upon hearing someone say “Wow!”, would instead ask “What?” But in a world filled with beauty and wonder and surprise, the response is of course an excited, “Which?!!”

One of the most magical moments for many of us during the retreat in Guatemala was when a young Mayan shaman came to perform a Fire ceremony. He was such a wide-open beautiful soul who lived from his heart with a profound connection to all of nature. At the precise moment when each round of prayers would end, the wind on the lake would whip up and roar, the birds would go crazy, and then everything would get quiet again until the moment the next round ended. It was awesome!

After the ceremony concluded, he was invited to stay and share a meal with us. The highlight was listening in as he and Asha had a conversation on a wide range of subjects, picking up what we could in Spanish and her graciously translating the rest. They were speaking on what we as Americans need spiritually, and then she asked, “Habla de la muerte. Speak on death.”

He paused, bowed his head, and closed his eyes for several moments. Then he looked up and said quietly, “People are afraid of death because they don’t know how to truly live. Life is knowing that every person we meet is our brother. That the trees and the animals are our brothers. The plants and rocks are all alive and are our brothers. Unless we live with this awareness, we are walking death.”

Nourishing Spirit – Giving Birth to Light
A Winter Solstice Yoga Celebration

Thursday, December 22
6:00-8:00pm
At The Barn at Split Rock Farm
(1040 Owensville Rd. 22901)

The Winter Solstice is a transition time in nature ideal for reflecting on the past year, looking clearly and honestly at where you are on your path, and recommitting to a life of meaning and authenticity. In this unique and inspiring class, Tilak Pyle will incorporate powerful breathing practices, purifying Vinyasa sequences, visualizations, meditation, and personal and collective ritual to facilitate a meaningful journey into your body and heart. Take a break from the frantic pace of the holdiay season to spend time consciously nurturing your Spirit and cultivating your greatest gift to the world: the light that you are! Come ready to look clearly, feel deeply, play intensely, and love fearlessly!

COST: $35 ($25 if paid before Dec. 1st)
Register now (select the Workshops tab )
Or mail check, Payable to AYC: POB 263, Ivy, VA 22945

I sometimes hear voices. When I told the following story in class, a student who works at a mental hospital said to see her afterwards, that she may be able to help me with that. :) In all honesty, it rarely happens, but occasionally when my mind gets really quiet I am aware of a distinct dialogue already in progress just below the surface that I can listen in on. It’s different from my own normal mental chatter in that these voices have different accents, rhythms, genders, and the really wild thing is that sometimes I even hear both sides of an ongoing conversation. I find myself asking, “How did this guy with a New Jersey accent get in my head!?” or “Just who is this lady?” . . . I know what you’re thinking; trust me, I’ve thought it myself, but just hang in there with me. I’ve learned that they sometimes have things to teach you.

Halfway through a meditation one morning with Asha, everything was silent and still when all of a sudden a woman pops into my head. This time I could even see her face. She was talking to herself in a steady, determined voice, making a commitment to extricate herself from the games that she repeatedly found herself playing in her life, conversations, and relationships. She was making this declaration in the form of a list of all the things that she was no longer going to do. ‘I am going to stop doing X. I am going to stop doing Y. I am going to stop selling yesterday’s papers. I am . . . ’ And then she got halfway into the next one and I went, “Woah! Woah! Woah! Hold on! ‘Stop selling yesterday’s papers.’ I don’t think I have ever heard that phrase before. That is fascinating!”

I kept mulling it around, playing it all of these different ways, exploring what it could possibly mean. I ended up getting so much mileage out of it. The main image I got was that of a kid on the streets of New York City finding a stack of discarded, day-old newspapers and then going out on the street and trying to sell them to the people walking by. And knowing that those who come up to him, once they see what they really are, aren’t going to buy them because they know they are worthless, pointless. So I think what this lady was saying was that she had realized that her normal way of being in the world and with other people was essentially a commodity exchange using worthless, irrelevant parts of her life drama; stuff she should have been done with, worked through and processed yesterday, not stuff that she should still be working on and bringing to the table today.

I spent the rest of the day thinking about how much of our time and conversations with people are spent rehashing old issues, dramas, and identities that we should be done with by now, things that don’t really have any real relevance to today and to where we’re at in the moment. So whoever that lady is, I have to thank her because it was really a sweet, sweet little gift – the kind of gift that those voices will sometimes give you if you listen.

This prayer was written by the Trappist monk, Thomas Merton, in his book Thoughts in Solitude. It is a favorite of my wife, Michelle, who keeps a framed copy on our dresser. Thanks to our dear friend Calvin Mercer for gifting it to us years ago.

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

This is one of my favorite stories about Sufi Sam (Murshid Samuel A. Miller/ Sufi Ahmed Murad Chisti), from the book In the Garden. It’s an account of someone coming to him for initiation.

Initiation

“As I approached the Montorgarten (Murshid’s center) my stomach started to flip flop and I got cold shills, along with the shakes. As I entered the hall I felt something missing, for there were not any trumpets, nor even any music. Wali Ali, his secretary, came in and asked me what I wanted. To my own surprise I explained that I had come to receive bayat (initiation). He said to wait a minute, because Murshid was taking a nap, and he would have to wake him. I told myself that this surely couldn’t be true: Murshid napping before an initiation? He was probably meditating in order to contact the Hierarchy. Somewhat perplexed, I waited until Murshid walked into the room, or should I say sleep-walked into the room. He was attired in a v-neck t-shirt, a pair of stained khaki pants, one sock on and one sock half off. He asked my purpose in coming and I explained. Upon hearing this, he called Wali Ali and began immediately. I felt like saying, “But where is the incense, the music, the robes?,” but totally annihilated, I stood there. Murshid was about three-fourths through when he told me to drink from this cup. But there wasn’t a cup! He asked Wali Ali to get one while we waited. Wali Ali was right back with the cup, but there wasn’t anything in it. Murshid said it was all right, just fake it and act as if you’re drinking from it. When the initiation was over he asked me if I wanted to watch Perry Mason with him while he peeled potatoes. Stunned, I could only say yes. During Perry Mason all he did was peel potatoes and give me penetrating glances out of the corner of his eye. When this was over I got up and left, somewhat dismayed. After a time I realized that this was the most paramount of experiences in my life.”

-Fazul

My First Retreat
Looking back, I have to say that my first retreat was the summer I spent working in Yellowstone National Park just after my freshman year of college. It turned out to be both a very pivotal time in my life and the beginning of my spiritual path.

I remember flying into Jackson Hole, Wyoming at the end of May with my parents’ old green, hard-shell suitcase, a couple bucks in my pocket (literally), and a Montana address where I was supposed to eventually make my way. I didn’t know anyone, had no clue how I was going to get up to West Yellowstone, and was horrified to discover that it was sleeting outside! To an 18 year old farm kid who had just flown across the country on his first airplane ride, it was both a scary and exciting adventure.

Not knowing what else to do, I gathered my things and started walking with my thumb out. Fortunately, I didn’t go far before a Chinese family of five took pity and picked me up. Only the son spoke English. They were going through the park, insisted I have the front seat, and drove me all the way.

I worked and lived just 150 yards from Old Faithful in the heart of the magical Geyser Basin. The next three months were dedicated to an intensive outer exploration of the Park and an inner exploration of who I was. As a jumping off (or “in”) point, both the time and place were perfect. I spent every day immersed in nature, hiking hundreds of miles of trails, and living and working alongside many who were asking the same questions, who were there for the same search.

When I flew back home in August I wasn’t the same person. I still had a lot of growing up to do, but I had changed in ways that I couldn’t have imagined, and in ways that I would not have had I spent that summer at home.

Elements of Retreat
Having participated in many retreats and personal journeys since then, I’ve learned the importance of several key components to retreats and how they facilitate openings in the body, mind, and personality.

Get Away
The first and most important component of retreats is removing yourself from your normal physical and social environment. By getting away from “home” and the roles and people that define you, you have the opportunity to create space around the fixed identity and unconscious patterns of who you think you are. Without stepping back, you don’t have the perspective shift necessary to see clearly. This seeing, this awareness, is the priceless gem. The greatest gift of retreats is what you learn about yourself.

Take the Time
The second essential component is time. There is a natural cycle to inner work that can’t be rushed. My Watsu teacher, Theri Thomas, says that during a Watsu session people subconsciously know exactly how much material they can safely bring out to work with in the allotted time, and only very rarely, if ever, will they bring out more. It is the same with retreats: there are deep places within our hearts and minds that will not allow themselves to be seen or shifted if there’s not enough time intentionally set aside to process what is discovered/uncovered. It’s a built in protective mechanism, and it’s there for a reason. I’ve personally found a week to be an ideal amount of time to dive deep and for all of the unique and necessary steps to take place: the excitement, the boredom, the doubt, the fear, the revolt, the surprise, the release, the receiving, the integration, the gratitude. I’ve seen that timing work for others as well.

Spiritual Practice
The third component is practices that keep turning you back inward towards yourself. Yoga, meditation, conscious walking, conscious eating, conscious speaking, conscious not speaking, are all mirrors. They show you where you’re stuck, where you’re holding, avoiding, defending. They’ve been around for thousands of years because they work. Use them.

Nature
The final component is the healing power of nature. We often forget that we are a part of nature. By immersing ourselves in nature’s rhythms, sounds, colors, and sensations, we re-tune and bring balance back to our bodies and minds. Lying in the sun, walking barefoot on the ground, soaking in water, eating fresh healthy food. So simple. So effective. So often overlooked.

This year give yourself the gift of retreat! To journey on the path of growth and discovery is why we’re here.

The original venue filled very quickly, so we have changed it to a larger space to accommodate the additional people wanting to experience Eoin and his teaching during this rare East Coast visit. It will now be held at the Charlottesville Waldorf School’s beautiful new Music & Arts Building. Registration has now re-opened! Below you can read the Workshop Description and Eoin’s bio. If you would like to reserve your spot, click the “Register and Pay” button below.

Eastern Mysticism, Yoga, and Your Nervous System
a workshop and flow practice with Eoin Finn

The “mystic experience” is the heart of so many philosophical and religious movements throughout history. Much of the Eastern Wisdom we cherish including Yoga is founded in the mystical experience. What exactly happens during a mystical experience is a mystery and thus the name, mysticism. All we can say for sure is that, in the words of Bob Marley, “Who feels it, knows it.” One thing all mystics from all traditions of the East and West talk about is that there is a deep feeling of stillness, of peace and the feeling that all things are deeply connected. Interestingly, a lot of the techniques these yogis and mystics cultivate, can be explained through understanding the nervous system.

Join Yogi, Surfer, and Blissologist Eoin Finn as he explains some of his exciting discoveries after over 23 years of studying philosophy, yoga, meditation and human anatomy in this intriguing workshop. We start with a lecture and discussion, then flow into an amazing vinyasa yoga class to end with a first person experience of the “mystic experience.”

About Eoin: One of Canada’s most well-known and well-loved yoga instructors, Eoin Finn has been a long-time disciple of Yoga, Philosophy, Martial Arts and Meditation. He has been teaching his unique, authentic and transformative style of Yoga and Blissology for over a decade. Eoin teaches all over the world and shares his passion for living well through yoga. He is a strong advocate of the belief in Yoga, Environmentalism and Social Change and founded the world’s first Yogathon + Blissfest in 2001 in Vancouver, Canada where the practice of 108 sun salutations in community to raise funds for a worthwhile cause began. Eoin’s teaching offers a heart-opening, invigorating and experiential practice grounded with humor, dynamism and a focus on both physical and energetic alignment. Yoga, when practiced with this holistic awareness, becomes fluid therapy, movement guided by the innate knowledge of our anatomy and evolution.

What: Workshop and Flow Practice with Eoin Finn
When: Sunday, January 23, 1-4pm
Where: Charlottesville Waldorf School, Music & Arts Building, 120 Waldorf School Road, Charlottesville, VA 22901
Cost: $50 by January 15; $55 thereafter.