How do i explain yoga?

for most people, being able to 'survive' 2 months in india is something intriguing and thus, i have successfully generated a lot of buzz about india and yoga since coming back in xmas last year. have to admit, i'm really getting sick of explaining to people what exactly i did in india. again, to most, spending that amount of time in india, is something unheard of. i told that 2 months is nothing compared to other europeans who spend 1 year going from one place to another so my stay is considered short by their standard. so, how do i explain yoga to these people? funny that amidst all the media exposures that yoga been getting last 2 years, there are some who actually think that yoga is all about meditation...where have they been really??? my answer, i admit, depends on the mood i'm in at that particular moment though at times, i prefer to cut the conversation short by saying..."what do you know about it so far" or "why are you interested?". and while they ponder trying to figure out an answer, i muttered something like "yoga has been getting bad rep in m'sia....such a shame....would be great if more people are taking up yoga" and then i gave a weak smile and changed the topic completely. wanna know about yoga?? google it and if still unclear, buy a book on yoga. just don't waste my time by asking a meaningless question on which you'll forget the answer as soon as i'm done explaining...

Diet and yoga

Some people are under the impression that yoga is all about diet and the first thing they ask is 'so, are you a vegetarian?/ do i have to be vegetarian?'. the answer is yes and no. i'll leave that for another entry.
when i was in mysore recently, i picked up a book titled 'don't lose your mind, lose your weight' written by a really spunky person i met some 3 years ago in rishikesh. she is now so uber famous in india. i use the word 'uber' because a.kareena kapoor wrote foreword for her book, and b. rujuta, the author, has list of famous clients. i'm on the 3rd chapter of her famous book and am now convinced that she has figured it all out, as far as diet is concerned. she outlined 'calm state of mind' as one of utmost important thing when eating. in yoga, we strive to achieve calm state of mind with all the asanas, pranayamas and meditation that we religiously practise (or not) daily and we gush when others (non yogis) commented how calm we are when we engage ourselves in conversation and in dealing with daily tasks in general. we politely tell these 'uninitiated' people it's all due to yoga that we've been at last few years. so technically, being a yogi, i had achieved the no.1 rule of eating due to my calm state, well, most times. then, we move on to the next rule 'how to eat: relearn'. now, most of us would be offended when told that we've been eating wrongly all these while but hey, i didn't say this but she did, and i agree with her, as someone used to say to me, 100%. my favorite part is on overeating and bloatness because that i get that a lot. yes, being a yogi doesn't make us immortals and we do get problems like other mortals do. back to the rules, basically, the power of calm state of mind will easily be taken over when one is ignorant or pure blatant disregard about sensitivity of stomach which is why she outlined on 'what to eat: rethink'. in this chapter, she explained in details about carbs, protein, fats and other important things that our body requires on daily basis for it to optimise and most importantly, for me, to have fat loss. why i used the word 'fat loss'? you have to read the book to understand because until you read the book, what i just mentioned may seemed greek to you.
why do i take such interested in this book, one may ask? well, there are few reasons. 1. i met her before and think that she's kinda cool 2.it worked well on kareena 3.her recommendations and examples are more closer to home, malaysia, that is, since i eat significant amount of indian food, and malay food can be as nasty (or not) in terms of its oilyness (is there such word?!nevermind). i've also attached here the cover of the book for your next visit to the bookstore. good things must be shared, same goes for good book. the book might changed your life, quoted by kareena, or it might not or you decided not to buy it at all. i like to use quotes from swami vivekananda "take one idea. make that one idea your life. think of it,dream of it. live on that idea...."

Weird terms in yoga

This term first came about when i was in a meditative posture and were asked to watch my breath. in yoga, we are constantly engaging ourselves in countless awkward positions that makes 'watching the breath' sounds normal. this is, of course, when the conversation is among yogis. we are so used to weird sounding terms like 'keep the collar bones smiling' and the likes that make our conversations, most times, plain weird. a friend once told me about a teacher who told her to hug her shins and no, by no means using hands, at all. i guess that is one of the reason why some people think that yogis are bunch of weirdos. then again, most people have the knack for generalising for fun sake which has absolutely nothing to do with religion or belief. of course, after spending sometime in india, i do admit that some yogis do behave strange and give an open invite to wrong interpretations. as for me, i try to sound as normal as possible i.e. using easily understood terms when conducting classes for simple reason that i want the students to focus more on their breathing then wasting thoughts and energy trying to decipher my words. it is hard as it is to connect mind, body and breath when doing the asanas so let's not make it more complicated by using hard to understand jargons.

Life is Mysore: Part 2

since coming back about 4 weeks ago, i've been asked a lot on how i find living in mysore. i got these strong feeling that most of those who asked expected me to say not-so-nice things about the place. for benefits of others, mysore is about 3 hours by car from bangalore, yes the IT hub of India. mysore is in state of karnataka, where the people speak 'kannada', a slight twang from tamil language, at least what i used to hear in malaysia. it is one of the cleanest part of india that i've ever been anyway. for 2 months, i stayed in a middle/middle upper class neighbourhood called gokulam. it is a really nice area especially when it comes to security. i can certainly vouch for that having to walk at 5.30am daily to yoga shala. i never walk so much in my life till i get there and my heels were the testimony of that. even after 4 weeks being back, the cracked heels are stubborn at healing. over there, everything is within walking distance, be it 5 or 20mins walk. then again, with the cool breeze and good company, i'll take the walk anytime. sadly, my interaction with locals was limited to my landlord and family, tina (the cafe owner), pritti (the lady from lucknow), the 'brothers' at my fav chai shop, and lokesh the tailor. during the first week, i was so excited about learning hindi so i can converse with the locals but soon enough i realised tina is the only person that speak hindi at home while the rest don't. i don't even wanna talk about the rest of mysore population. so, safe to say that i kept the 'conversation hindi' book that i bought away with other books to be shipped back home. i did learn on how to count and simple 'how do you do' and 'i want some chai' in hindi. i called that progress! given the packed daily schedule, most of my interactions were with my coursemates and breakfast and lunch operators. sad, i know. but hey, i signed up the course to socialise so i had to make do with the little interactions i managed to get daily except perhaps on sunday where i can hang longer at breakfast joins without having to rush back or anything like that. so, sunday was for me and my book and tall glass of chai and if at santosha, some beautiful music. heavenly. a place called 'the coconut stand' is a very famous reference in gokulam. for example, someone who want to explain the direction will asked you whether you know the 'coconut stand'. curious why is it called such?!! simple. because it is just a pile of coconuts both fresh and used. at rs10 each, you get the freshest coconut and so nutritious. the thing about india is you can get the healthiest things at fraction of the cost back home and i'm saying that coming from malaysia. i can't imagine for those european, americans, japanese and others. india is so diverse as society and yet so cultured. i know i used the word 'cultured' because that is a fact. it has so much to offer if one willing to learn and let live. no wonder some who came would find it hard to leave...and those who left, can't wait to come back!

Life in Mysore: Part 1

It is rather impossible to condense my two-months living in mysore in just a paragraph or two. i think a 'short story' would be pushing it as the experiences are far beyond my imaginations....i told verity how much i 'dislike' the place and didn't plan on going again, has turned into (after few weeks).."i love this place and can't wait to come again.." such was my reaction when asked about my being there. what not to love..weather is great (H-24degrees, L-14degrees), food is good, though some europeans may not agree with me, and things are relatively cheaper compared to malaysia. i absolutely love it!
Initially, i do plan to give details on my daily lives there but i find that a bit much effort especially after the course started and my need to sleep/eat/rest superseeded everything else that i plan on doing before the madness begins..
i just got back on eve of xmas and rather prefer to chill with family and selected friends, at the moment. there are so many things to catch up on, so many things to share, to tell, to explain, to do, to change....the list is long but for now, i just wanna get my practice back on track and breath...

Min in Mysore

Min is in Mysore, India, pursuing her dream, living and learning yoga for the next two months. I spoke to her today, curious about her experiences as a non Indian in India. She can't comment on that yet she said, because she hasn't interacted with the Indians yet. The town is a magnet for international yoga students, Americans, Japanese, others- serious and just a little dull.

But Min's immediate problem will be how to be rid of a hanger on. We've all met her, the kind that comes with you when you go off to wander by yourself in a far off land - after you've made the arrangements and paid the bills. The 'friend' who drops by and sponges off your generosity and who does not understand that at this time you really, really want to be alone.

KL Marathon: my 10k run

It has been a while since i last took part in a run...let's see..about 1 year. that's awful long time for me. This run is special because i managed to convince few friends to take part in the run. Some are not that ambitious and only taking part in 5km but i must admit that it felt good that they have somehow decided to give it a go. Well done. 'Run for your life'...i always say because it sure comes in handy in some point of our lives. It certainly did good for me especially when going thru the tough times.

And for others who have been wanting to lose some weight, well, this is the best exercise there is! Start slow but be consistent. Run with someone who is encouraging and patient enough especially so at the initial stage. Over the years, i have introduced running to few and i'm proud to say that they are still running till today. Currently, i have a student-now-become-friend running with me and will taking part in the 10k. We started walking together mid last year and had long absence in between but over last 2 months we started to run. Initially, we started with only 20mins run but up to yesterday, we ran non-stop for 70mins...without panting! We usually start at 6.30am few times a week and i must admit, it's addictive. So, for those are looking at running as an impossible feat..well, let me say this...nothing is impossible...echoing adidas tagline "Impossible is nothing". I know that the KL marathon will be about 3 weeks from now and this maybe a late call but hey, there's many runs coming up. Let us aim for the Penang Bridge Run late this year. Nasi kandar never tasted better! It's worth it.