by Kara-Leah Grant, Musings from the Mat The day we arrived at Anahata Yoga Retreat, nature and God were both sodden, and the retreat was wrapped in the clouds. I hadn’t thought to check the driving conditions before arriving at Anahata, and Samuel and I were traveling in my long, low, loaded-up station wagon. I made it round the first muddy gravel corner and thought. “Nope, there’s no way I’m going up there.” There was a sense of defeat in letting the road stop me now, after I’d got … [Read more...]
Hope for the world – Swami Muktidharma speaks
by Kara-Leah Grant The last time we had Swami Muktidharma on YLB, he shared the story of dreaming about his guru before meeting him. To our western minds, it sounds magical and mystical. But in the world of yoga, and yogis, it's commonplace. Yoga deals with many different layers of reality, and indeed, is a way of seeing clearly what reality actually is, beyond our limited sense of the material world. It's that ability to see deeper, and wider, that makes sitting in the presence of Swamis … [Read more...]
An interview with Swami Muktimurti about the power of sound to transform
There is a rich Satyananda Yoga tradition in New Zealand, which means we are fortunate to often play host to traveling Satyananda Swamis from around the world. Next month (March 2010), Anahata Retreat just outside of Nelson is hosting Swami Muktimurti from Mangrove Mountain near Mountain. An expert in Mantra and ancient Sanskrit, she is hosting a nine day/ten night retreat focused on Nada Yoga, or the yoga of sound. Swami Muktimurti is well known for her singing. She has pursued a deep … [Read more...]