I went on a 2 week Yoga Adventure tour of India hosted by Ali from Sadhana Yoga NZ. The tour took us to Delhi, Haridwar and Rishikesh, onwards to Varanasi and finishing up in rural Barsana. Ali guided us through the whole trip with a deep understanding of the spiritual side of what we were experiencing and helped provide added meaning.
Ali ensured that although we started as relative strangers we formed a strong group and Ali help encourage us all to support each other and by the end of the trip we were all very closely bonded yogis.
India is an assault on all senses and it’s good to ensure you have downtime – Rishikesh was a peaceful place that encouraged a slower pace and stiller mind. Varanasi was fascinating with a wonderful old town of winding lanes full of hustle and bustle. The rural tranquillity of Barsana was a great end to the trip and it was where I found great spiritual connection.
I recommend this trip for anyone that is considering their first trip to India as Ali will ensure you are safe and well looked after while also encouraging self development and growth. It is a great trip for anyone that likes a little adventure such as sleeping on a train platform or eating exotic foods. If you are looking to deepen your spiritual practice or understanding of yoga in a breath taking setting this is the trip for you.
Sadhana Yoga’s yoga adventure is very much an adventure! The experience really pushed me out of my comfort zone and helped me to learn more about myself and my capacity to be resilient. Ali’s knowledge about India and incredible planning skills made this trip something you can never experience as a regular tourist. And on top of all the wonder and grittiness of India, you get to do yoga and meditation with a master. It’s not a journey for the lighthearted. Take on this experience and be ready to do the inner work and exponentially grow! I am forever grateful to Ali and Milan for the life-changing opportunity
Barsana is the rural homeland of the Goddess Radha. The greeting Radhe! Radhe! is commonplace. Radha’s birthplace is brimming with temples, pilgrims and amazing wildlife. Migratory birds flock here from northern altitudes. This is also where Guruji’s final resting place is.
Sitting at Gurujis ashram and spending time with my friends in the village is always a privilege. The group took a barefoot walk around the local forest and got to relax with the locals
Barsana is off the beaten track and it provides a great contrast to the rest of the trip. Here we got to enjoy the simple life and relax with people who were happy to see us again after 5 years away.
Wow! Firstly our overnight train was delayed for four hours, which meant we had to sleep on the train platform for four hours. Two of our male yogis kept guard as we slept, some of us surprisingly comfortably. We arrived in Varanasi in the evening and the next day we spent time exploring this ancient city of many contrasts.
The 3500 year fire rituals of the burning ghats sat in sharp contrast to the new Modi-inspired mega mall of the Kashi Vishwanath Mandir. This is a place we’re people wear VCRs to see the temple, where high tech CCTV and police are everywhere, and ATMs and cashless QR codes are the norm. India has largely embraced this high tech leap but some things remain tgr same. Watch our NZ! The new world order is already here in India!
Rishikesh possesses unparalleled beauty. Milan organised the group to do partner yoga on a private beach. After yoga on the roof the second night, the super moon rose up out of the mountains providing the focus of our breathtaking meditation. We ate at delicious food at lovely Western style restaurants. Bathed in the Ganga for full moon blessings and went up to a powerful shakti peeth high up in the mountains. We also meditated at the powerful Makar Vahini Ganga Ji Temple. Big program, non stop but an wonderful 3 day visit!
Haridwar delivered an amazing jam packed programme. We had many Maya Devi darshans, bathed in the river, hung out with the sadhus, visited Mansa Devi, explored the markets, and did yoga on the roof! Rekindled old connections and made some new connections. A very transcendent surreal visit
Gritty, chaotic and endlessly vibrant, Delhi delivered lots of fun and adventure for each member of our group. We drank morning chai on Arakashan Road, explored the night market at the main bazaar, and held our team building session – a Circle of Trust – exploring our goals and fear for our forthcoming trip.
Spring brings our garden to life and fills the corner of High Street and Stewart Street in Marton with colour and birdsong.
Thanks to our garden guardians Leighann, Anna and Julie for looking after the garden and fish while I’m in India with my yoga group for November. You are wonderful yogis!
Today, I celebrate 20 incredible years of teaching yoga. I’d love to share with you my wisdom and experiences from two decades of teaching, practicing, and living a yoga lifestyle. Yoga is the gift that keeps on giving. It is a lifestyle that has brought me balance, strength, and wisdom.
Bending, Breathing, and Blessings: lessons learned along the way
Having taught over 8500 yoga classes… met my Guru at an Indian Goddess Temple… visited sacred places across India, Nepal and Tibet… run two yoga centres, taken 5 yoga groups to India (next one due, November 2024)… run numerous workshops and spiritual events… completed a Masters focused on Yoga communities in Aotearoa … and presented at yoga conferences… you think I would have learnt a thing or two about yoga right? Well, the answer is yes, absolutely. Yoga is an incredible teacher. But I’m still grateful to be learning every day as well.
The amazing thing for me right now is that a number of people who I taught yoga to over the years have gone on to qualify as yoga teachers. Also, previous students are not only still joining me for yoga pilgrimages to India and attending the retreats I run across the lower North Island, some of them have also become my closest friends. The yoga community is one of the most profound gifts yoga has given me. Yoga’s other special gift is is the incredible health benefits it brings. At 60 years old I feel fantastic and hope to for many more years to come. All of this is thanks to yoga!
I met my Guruji – Ravananda Saraswati – at a Goddess Temple in Haridwar – a holy town in northern India. Guruji and I travelled all over India together. I was also blessed to be able to live with him at his humble ashram in Barsana before he died in 2016.
I learned you don’t need a guru to practice yoga, or to even to be a genuine yogi. But having a guru is very beneficial if you want to flourish spiritually. Having a guru is like growing a great garden. You don’t need anyone to help you grow your garden, but if you want your garden to flourish and grow abundant fruit then it helps to find people who have successfully gardened before you and learn from them.
Guruji taught me that to sit in silence is one of life’s greatest joys. Also, that to give with an open heart helps you the temper the materialistic drive that spins the wheels of Western culture. While there is safety and comfort staying within our individual identity, Guruji taught me it is much more exciting and expansive being part of a tribe, living life as a fully conscious being within the Universal matrix. Om Namo Narayan!
My other guru was my godmother and Aunty Pauline (see B&W picture below). Aunty Pauline taught me that if you have a calling to teach yoga then you should your listen to that call, even if it means getting old first. Although teaching yoga has kept in me in ‘genteel poverty’ for 20 years, it has also made be wealthy beyond measure. I thank Aunty Paul for planting that initial seed and showing me what it takes to be a fierce yogini.
Kailash Yatra – Tibet(2005)
The Mount Kailash Yatra is not for the fainthearted! Yet, for serious yogis it is one of the most significant pilgrimages you can do. Standing in front of the north face of Mount Kailash is both awe inspiring and breathtaking. And, when I say breathtaking, I mean that at 14,500 feet the oxygen is so rare that it’s often hard to put one foot in front of the other without panting. Furthermore, traversing the Dolma-La pass at 18,000 feet alone without a guide was without doubt the most difficult thing I have ever done. Nonetheless, this pilgrimage taught me to listen to the path because the earth and the rocks hold the songs of the yak-men and will keep you on course. This pilgrimage also reminded me to always invite the ancestors on every journey, because you never know when you might need their support. I ended up doing part of this 4-day walk solo though a snow blizzard. This taught me that even when things seem tough at the time, in 20 years from then they’ll become your fondest memories. Hardship is good! It builds tapasya.
Wisdom gained from taking people to India
I have learned so many lessons from taking people to India. Here are just some of them:
You can’t carry people’s baggage for them…
If people are carrying lots of unresolved issues or addictive habits then India inevitably brings them to the surface, often on Day One!
The biggest two obstacles to taking Westerners to India are their habits and their unconscious egos: drinking barista coffee, drinking alcohol, and eating meat on a weekly basis is the antithesis of a yoga lifestyle. So, when we land in India’s holy places it is strict vegetarian and teetotal and some people have a visceral reaction to having to adapt to the yoga lifestyle… even though they have been encouraged to adapt to a yoga lifestyle weeks before. However, we each grow at our own pace.
Moreover, some people are so entrenched in their egoistic behaviours (I, me, mine) they cannot see themselves or are able to reflect on their own behaviours. On previous trips one or two people have acted as if they deserve better than everyone else. Yet, being able to go without luxury and home comforts for a few weeks gives people with Western lifestyles a chance to reset and grow from it. Many insights can be gained from such experiences.
I have learnt you can never be fully prepared for what India has to offer, but it pays to be as prepared as possible.
Fun people are naturally good humoured …
Fun people generally bring lots of laughs and good times with them on the trip. Find the fun people and invite them on your trip, they make it all worthwhile!
When you go with the flow magic happens…
When you go against the flow you may end up slipping over in cow dung and getting metal filings in your shoes. So, it’s best to surrender to moment and go with the flow. Trust that the Universe has a plan for you.
You may not be able to teach all people how to feel gratitude,but you can coach most people on what it takes to be thankful
An old saying goes, you can’t feel resentful and thankful at the same time. People who appreciate the experience and have no problems being gracious and self-aware provide a real blessing. The area outside comfort zones is where magic exists … keep going and you will eventually be able to look back and see all of your experiences as beads on the mala of life.
You might not be able to teach people how to feel gratitude, but you can hold Gratitude Circles and encourage people to find things and situations they are thankful for.
Wisdom gained from running a Yoga Centre
I have learned so many amazing lessons from running a yoga centre. Here are just a few:
PeopleSkills: People are the most important part of running a yoga business. I know everyone who comes to my centre on a first name basis and I always try to take an interest in how they are feeling and what they want each time they come to class. The classes I teach are collaborative and I always try to incorporate my students needs and wants. This input from my clients and students provides diversity, a sense of community and brings joy and good humour to our classes.
Running a company: I set up Sadhana Yoga Ltd as a limited company back in 2006. Having a company is great because you can offset business expenses like study and travel, as well as all the business running costs. Registering a company is easy and I recommend it for any teachers who want to make yoga their full-time job. https://companies-register.companiesoffice.govt.nz/help-centre/starting-a-company/
Property – to buy or rent? I rented my old studio in Miramar for 11 years and it was very difficult trying to make ends meet. I was lucky enough to buy a humble freehold property in Marton 7 years ago and was able develop the property into both a working yoga centre with gardens and creative space for my various community art projects and exhibitions. While rates on the property in Marton have recently gone up, owning a commercial property is a much better option than renting. Also, setting up a small yoga centre in a rural town allows you to meet some amazing Kiwis and benefit from interactions with local people who know what it means to be part of a community.
Running retreats: Retreats are an amazing way to help people expand on their self-care, meditation, healthy eating, and group adventure. I have been privileged enough to take yoga groups on yearly pilgrimages to the hot pools, conducting workshops and yoga challenges, weekend retreats to beautiful locations around the lower North Island, and of course to India. Retreats and group events are a great way to build community and keep excitement and adventure alive for your community.
All I can say in closing is thank you Yoga for the last 20 years and I looking forward to the next 20 years! May we all keep on growing wiser with yoga.
Ali
If you would like to come on one of our retreats, need professional advice on how to run a yoga business, or want me to give a talk at your next yoga conference please don’t hesitate to ask. I am so grateful for all the lessons and insights I have gained from being a studio owner, teacher, and retreat leader for the last 20 years
You can contact me by email at nzyogacentre@gmail.com or phone and leave a message on my business line on 06 327 4108.
NZ Yoga Centre - AOTEAROA 
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