Diary of A Vipassana Retreat – Day 3

This is the third part of my series on my vipassana retreat in early may. Today i am writing down my notes from day three.

The alarm clock rings at 05:45, I am very tired, because I was already awake at shortly before 5 am. The morning meditation is therefore difficult for me at first. I have done several rounds walking outside in the courtyard beforehand. Towards the end of the one hour mediation again the feeling that arms and legs do not belong to me. I float at the level of my head. Feeling of absolute silence. In the gardening after breakfast I weed for 45min. At 09:15 the meditation continues. Here again quite quickly the feeling that arms and legs do not belong to me. Also the breathing does not belong to me, it just happens. I have the feeling to float in the air and my consciousness now encompasses the whole meditation room. After the short break after the walking mediation, I immediately go to my room to write my experiences down. Overall, I am very hungry and thirsty for just sitting and meditating.

In the next meditation session then the feeling that a sphere spreads around me. Shortly before the lunch break I have pain in the lumbar spine, I am tired and long for the lunch break. After the lunch break I have a chat with the meditation teacher. I do some yoga during the lunch break, take a walk in the forest, take a long shower and drink 2 cups of coffee with a piece of rhubarb pie. I am refreshed again. In the conversation the meditation teacher tells me that I reached the first level of immersion, jhana.

In the afternoon we do a new mediation, Vedanupassana. We go step by step through the body. The meditation lasts 50min. My arms and legs are no longer part of my body, the breathing pause is very long. Absolute silence. It is as if I float out of my body. Partly I only feel my eyes, the rest of my body is no longer there. I am very tired and exhausted after dinner. I would prefer to stay in my room and sleep, but I don’t want to miss the lecture.

The meditation teacher gives a lecture on the ego and the influence on meditation. I feel caught. He describes how transcendental experiences like from the first stage / jhana can affect the ego and you want to force it and that does not work. In the meditation after the lecture I was again very absorbed, the body disappeared I virtually floated above me, the breath was very still and calm. I am very tired after this eventful day.

Diary of a Vipassana & Silence Retreat – Day 1 & 2

This is the second part of the series on my vipassana and Silence Retreat. I now report on my first two days at Benediktushof and my experiences. The retreat started Sunday evening at 6pm with dinner.

Day 1

Arrival was good, I met an older woman on the bus who was also driving here to Holzkirchen to take a course at Benediktushof. Totally idyllic place. My room is small but clean and with a beautiful view of the courtyard of the Benediktushof. I explore the grounds and especially like the Zen garden which also has a place to meditate outside. I immediately notice the silence of this place and the peace that is radiated. Even the birds seem to be less skittish and do not fly away when you are near them. Dinner begins at 6 pm with a small welcome, the other participants and the teacher seem at first glance to be very friendly, but there is already silence and communication is not possible. The food is vegetarian, very tasty and fresh. 7:20 pm then begins our first meditation. I am having a hard time getting into meditation. There is a short lecture from the teacher on the subject of meditation, which I enjoy. The silence is going well so far. I plan to spend a lot of time in the fresh air during the breaks.

Day 2

5:45 am the alarm clock rings. I am very tired. A little bit of walking in the fresh air before the morning meditation begins and a cup of warm tea are waking me up. At 6:20 am then the first meditation. 2 times 30min in a row with short break for slight movement. My thoughts are still buzzing in my head. I feel a slight pulling in the back of my feet and lower back. After the first hour of meditation we have breakfast. I long for a cup of coffee. At 8 o’clock I work in the garden, the activity in the fresh air is very good. I enjoy the work in the sun.

At 9:15 am we continue with meditation alternating with mindful walking. I like the mindful walking very much, especially walking outside in the courtyard. The different surfaces such as meadow, gravel, stones feel so different to each other. I notice how i can get more and more involved in the meditation. However, my body is making itself known, my lower back hurts slightly. Immediately after lunch, i go hiking for 1.5 hours and enjoy the beautiful surroundings. This is very relaxing, the weather is very good. I sit on a bench in the sun, drink tea, write a diary and read. I enjoy the nature, the birds chirping, it’s pleasant that it’s just normal here to want to be alone. But everyone smiles at you nicely, I feel comfortable in the group. My mate from lunch jogs by and we say hello.

The mediation room is very nice, clean and structured. At 3:45 pm we continue with the meditation. The breakthrough in my meditation after not even one day. My gaze becomes softer, I have the impression of being washed, clear water flows over me. The first out of body experience follows, I have no arms anymore, gradually also no legs, shoulders, I float at the level of my head. The pulling in my lower back is gone, I hardly feel it anymore.

As the day goes on, I make a few more corrections to my meditation posture. Now I sit comfortably. In addition to the absence of body parts, the feeling of being breathed is now present in the meditation. At the end of the day we do a Metta meditation. The teacher again gives a very interesting lecture on meditation and Buddhism. Again I have the feeling of floating in the final meditation, but not as intense as in the afternoon. Tired and with so many new impressions, I go to sleep around 9:30 pm.

My Blogger Year 2020 and Happy New Year

Awareness is like the sun. When it shines on things, they are transformed.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

I started this blog in August 2019, so 2020 was the first year I blogged one whole year about my yoga journey.

I started this blog as a way to document my yoga teacher training experiences and new inspiring ways for topics for yoga classes and meditation sessions. These are the Yoga Inspiration Spreads and Yin & Yang Inspiration Spreads you can find on my blog. Also I started a series on Meditation with some reviews.

I love my little blog which by now has readers from all over the world. This makes me very happy, I am glad about every like and follower. But what makes me feeling grateful is that with sharing my journey and feelings I can hopefully inspire others.

In this blog post I would like to link you the top 10 articles (by likes) from this year and some thoughts on it and reviewing the year in this way.

• This year I started teaching Yoga and Meditation to some friends and colleagues online. I learned so much from it and I enjoy teaching Asanas, Pranayama and Meditation. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/11/15/online-yoga-course-first-steps/
• In this thread I am sharing all the literature I have on Yoga, Meditation, Philosophy, Buddhism etc. As I am really a book worm this list is quite long and is updated regularly. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/01/25/literature-on-yoga/
• For my yogateacher training I had to write a essay on the Yogasutra by Patanjali. I got many questions from my Yogateacher trainers and first the reading was quite hard and I struggled with the questions. It took me over 4 weeks to answer them. I learned so much on yoga in this process and now the Yogasutra is a inspirational source for me. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/05/16/yogateacher-training-my-short-essay-on-the-yogasutra-of-patanjali/
• I love being in nature and taking pictures of the blossoms, trees and animals. I am combining them with inspirational quotes in these blog posts. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/01/13/inspirational-quote-on-going-your-own-way/ https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/11/06/inspirational-quote-29/
• In this blog posts I wrote about my experiences on my yogateacher training weekends. This was really a intense year and I learned so much and really made progress in my own yoga practice. So grateful for this. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/07/09/yogateacher-training-weekend-thoughts-experiences-and-guided-meditation/ https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/02/02/yogateacher-training-thoughts-and-experiences-of-the-fourth-weekend/
• I started a little training online on Yin Yoga with Singing Bowls. This is really a fascinating combination which I want to learn more on. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/10/15/yoga-and-massage-with-singing-bowls/
• In the Yoga Inspiration Spreads I try a creative way to get topics for yoga classes and combining them with philosophical topics or specific asanas. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/10/24/yoga-inspiration-spread-with-inspiration-from-the-bhagavad-gita/
• I started meditating this year and began a series on this blog on the topic. https://yogaschnegge.com/2020/06/13/meditation-series-book-review-communication-with-the-self-the-som-program/

I wish you all a good start into the new year 2021 and look forward to a new blogging year with you.

Namaste

Melanie

Meditation Series: Journey through the Chakras

At my last Yogateacher Training Weekend we did a Chakra Meditation / Journey through the Chakras.

In this meditation we had a look into every chakra. We opened the door, went inside and felt the sensations that arised. We went up from the root chakra to the crown chakra step by step and then back down from the crown chakra to the root chakra.
We stayed here for a while in each chakra, all sensations were allowed here and should be looked at. Very intensive and versatile perceptions arose here, about which I write here today.

Rootchakra: A very warm and comfortable physical sensation came up

Sacralchakra: I felt a unpleasant pull

Solarplexuschakra: A soft light feeling at my back

Heartchakra: I saw a very huge but empty room with many windows. Light came into this room through the windows. I opened them, looked outside and saw wonderful nature with the sun, a weadow and a forest.

Throatchakra: I felt an oppressive feeling in my throat. Suddenly I became very sad and some tears were flowing.

Third Eye Chakra: I heard a voice that kept saying yes to me

Crownchakra: I felt very little, just a slight breeze over my head

Yoga and Massage with Singing Bowls

Today my new Singing Bowls arrived.

At the moment I am doing a online course on Singing Bowls in Yoga Sessions and Singing Bowl Massage and I decided for the Himalaya Singing Bowls from Peter Hess. I am so exited to try them out in private and next year also in my courses.

Yogateacher Training Weekend – Forward Bends, Seated Twists and Bhakti Yoga

This weekend I had my 7th Yogateacher training weekend. The focus of this weekend was on forward bends and seated twists. As a topic for philosophy we had a introduction into Bhakti Yoga and the Bhagavad Gita.

Friday evening we started with a blessing of the beginning of our now second year of our Yoga teacher training. Afterwards we had a soft yoga practice and short introduction into Bhakti Yoga.

On Saturday we started the day with a more intense yoga practice with focus on forward bends and seated twists. After a short breakfast break we did a session on didactics of these asanas and how to teach them.

These asanas we learned this weekend:

• Dandasana
• Janu Sirsasana
• Baddha Konasana
• Parivritta Janu Sirsasana
• Paschimottanasana
• Trianga Mukhaikapada Paschimottanasana
• Upavistha Konasana
• Ubaya Padangusthasana
• Parivritta Sukhasana
• Bharadvajasana
• Vakrasana
• Ardha Matsyendrasana

After lunch we were divided into groups and some of us had to teach specific asanas to the others. I had Baddha Konasana to teach and again it was a nice and very insightful experience to sit in front of a class and teaching it. I also learned quite much from the feedback the other students got.

After a short teabreak we closed the day with chanting mantras and a short group discussion about God and our religious beliefs. It was a very interesting and inspiring talk I had with my classmates.

On Sunday morning we started again with a more intense yoga practice that had focus on forward bends and seated twists.

After a short breakfast break we had a session on anatomy, common problems as backache, lumbago or herniated vertebral disk. We also had a look at how the pelvis and spine are connected to each other via the sacroiliac joint and what to pay attention to in specific asanas.

We closed the weekend with a introduction into the Bhagavad Gita and a meditation session.

As a preparation for the next weekend I have to read the Bhagavad Gita and to mark the sections I am agreeing with.

Again a very inspirational and instructive weekend. Feeling now a bit tired but very happy.

Yogateacher Training Weekend – Sitting asanas, Vijñāna Bhairava, Writing a guided meditation

Last weekend I had my sixth Yogateacher Training Weekend from overall 14. The weekend had the focus on sitting asanas and the Vijñāna Bhairava. We started at Friday in the evening with yoga practice and meditation.

The yoga practice at Friday evening was soft and with focus on relaxation and sitting asanas. Afterwards we did 30min of meditation practice inspired by the Vijñāna Bhairava.

Following sitting asanas we focused on this weekend:

• Vajrasana
• Dandasana
• Sukasana
• Malasana
• Baddha Konasana
• Gomukhasana
• Virasana
• (Half) Lotus Pose

At Saturday and Sunday we were in a park. Due to Corona at my yoga school just 6 pupils are allowed in the room. Because of the good weather my teacher decided to do the training in nature. This was a very good idea.

At Saturday we started in the morning with a long and intense yoga practice. Afterwards we talked about anatomy especially regarding sitting asanas. After a lunch break we did a philosophical talk on the Vijñāna Bhairava. We were divided into groups and every group got questions which were discussed. One question was to develop a meditation based on the Vijñāna Bhairava. This question I liked the most and I decided to provide my meditation on the blog as part of my meditation series.

On Sunday we started again with a longer and intense yoga practice. After a short breakfast break we talked about the results we got in the groups on the Vijñāna Bhairava and a few had to guide their meditation to the group. So we had very different meditations, with music, with visualization and with focusing at the sky.

Really a lovely and interesting weekend.

Meditation Series – Book Review: Communication with the Self. The SOM Program.

This is the first blog post on my personal thoughts and reviews on books about meditation. The first book I will review is from Shri Balaji També, a ayurvedic expert who is also researching on the healing effects of mantras and music. I also found out reading the book that there is a ayurvedic center of him not that far away from my hometown.

So what I really like about this book is that També connects the topic meditation with his knowledge on ayurveda, Sanskrit and music. The book also contains a CD with guided meditations for the morning, evening and music. Also a special Asana and Pranayama Practice is described in the book. This is the so called SOM Program.

So the book isn’t just on meditation, it also provides a overview on meditation, asana and Sanskrit. Also philosophical topics from the Vedas or Patanjali are contained in the book.

This book is therefore suitable if you are looking for a holistic approach. It isn’t providing introduction into mindfulness meditation where you e. g. focus on your breath and body sensation. També describes techniques as recitating Sanskrit, Trataka (staring into a flame, technique is described in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika) and Yoga Nidra.

So I would say this is a very good reading for anyone with a interest in meditation, ayurveda and philosophy and anyone who is looking for a daily program that contains meditation, asana and pranayama.

Yogateacher Training – Experiences and diary of my retreat at home

From Saturday last week until Wednesday I had my first Retreat of my Yogateacher training. Because of Corona the retreat was at home via YouTube Streams. I was very curious making this experience and my expectations were exceeded. I have learned so much in these 5 days. The daily schedule was as following:

• 09:00 until 09:30: Morning Meditation
• 10:00 until 12:00: Asana Practice
• 15:00 until 17:00: Asana and Pranayama Practice
• 17:30 until 18:00: Evening Meditation

Meditation: Here we did mindfulness meditation for round about 20 to 30 minutes. Step by step we refined the perception from the focus on the body and the breathing in the abdomen towards to the focus on the breathing stream in the nose and between nose and upper lip.

Asana Practice: Here we did a huge selection of Asanas and three different variants of Sun Salutations. Classic Asanas were enriched by multiple variations.

Asana & Pranayama Practice: The afternoon asanas were designed to soothe and make room for the breath. As Pranayama techniques we did Abdominal breathing, Full Yogic Breath, Ujjayi and Alternate nostril breathing.

During the Retreat I wrote a diary to record my observations and feelings. Here you can find my entries:

1.Day

It took some time for me to relax and get fully involved in the retreat. circulatory problems during the asana practice, very strong thirst, getting less air during Full Yogic breathing than during abdominal breathing. In the evening very tired, 1h sleep directly after the evening meditation, went to bed early.

2.Day

In the dancer pose I found the right side much easier than the left. In crow pose it helps me to stand on blocks. circulatory problems, strong thirst. Transitions into Warrior 1 and 2 are still difficult within the new Sun Salutation variations, came well into pigeon pose. Less air comes into the right nostril than into the left, fitter and less tired than yesterday.

3. Day

During meditation I did not feel the exhalation through the nose at the beginning but the perception became better and finer from minute to minute, I managed the crow pose very well today, circulatory problems in the sun salutation, Ujjayi breathing is difficult when inhaling, Full Yogic breathing while laying on the mat is easier than in sitting, strong thirst, perception in meditation has further refined, slight exhaustion in the afternoon.

4.Day

Tired in the morning, crow pose worked again very well, I needed no belt for Janu Sirsasana today, Ujjayi difficult while breathing in, strong thirst, notice that I am exhausted, so many new impressions.

5.Day (just until 12:00, no afternoon program)

Tired in the morning, pranayama techniques are significantly easier than yesterday, new sun salutations now go more smoothly.

Even though it was physically and energetically exhausting I am very happy to have made that experience. Within a very short time I did not need any more tools for certain asana and also the perception in mediation and pranayama increased very quickly. Motivation for more yoga, but not 5 hours per day. Will try to do daily for 30min, perhaps longer sessions on the weekends.

Namaste.

Yogateacher Training – Yoga Retreat online at home

From Saturday to Wednesday next week I have my yoga retreat as part of my yoga teacher training. Because of Corona it will take place online and I will join from home. I am very curious making this experience. We will have 2 hours of meditation and 4 hours of asana and pranayama daily. To get a retreat atmosphere at home I have decided to abstain from coffee, sugar, alcohol, gluten. I also want to spend the days with as little digital media as possible and just switch off.  No Facebook, Instagram, Netflix and Co. I’m really looking forward to these five days and so I’m logging off for now.  Of course I will write a review at the end of the next week on this.

Namaste