Day 8 - Finale

Sunday was the eight and final day of the celebration. This was a day almost exclusively ear marked for feting the volunteers. The owners/venue providers from all eight centres were represented and each of them spoke about how the Nikam Guruji Yoga activities had created, community bonding and health awareness in their immediate vicinity. Swami Muktirupanandaji of the Ramakrishna Mission the pioneer venue for Nikam Guruji yoga activities talked about our presence in the RK Mission with an excellent analogy:

He talked about an Arab who had pitched a tent in the cold dessert evening. In the night he found the camels snout was in the tent. On asking the camel said he was cold and wanted a little shelter for his snout alone...a little later he found the entire face and the Arab welcomed him...a little later more of his body parts.....and the Arab did not protest, by morning the camel had occupied the entire tent. Swamiji quickly added that it was a welcome camel and they would be willing to accommodate 10 such if space permitted!

Each of the centers and the V.I.P who represented them for the first time got an idea of the scale and breadth of the yoga activities we conduct. Each and every volunteer was given a memento and a beautifully worded certificate. In fact I consider mine a testimonial as worthy or more than any other. I would proudly include it among my other testimonials and certificates.

The finals days proceedings, especially the tribute given to the long standing volunteers was very moving, I felt once again extremely happy being part of this organization and wanting to be involved with it for as long as I can.

Day 7

Saturday was a day dedicated to the volunteer instructors. There was a 3 hour long yoga challenge. Competition was between the eight centers where we teach and the level of competition was very high and so were the spirits. Some outstanding performance by the volunteers put a lid on the fact that it is instructors of the highest caliber that teach at the Nikam Guruji Yoga Kutir and what's more they teach selflessly, free of charge, for the love of yoga!

Day6 Workshop5

The final discourse was very impressive. Swamiji did a presentation on the eight limbs of yoga-asthanga, with the help of power point slides. This kept the pace crisp and the visual aids were excellent. There are various texts on the internet and in books about Patanjali's yoga sutra written almost 4,000 years ago. I will not go into all the aspects but certainly am transcribing the text for texts for friends who have asked for it. It was interesting to not that the entire yoga sutra was written in aphorisms which he explained are like mathematical formulas and need interpreters to read and explain it in depth. Suffice it to say that he established yoga is not about sculpting and toning the body (lines we used in the debate against commercialization) but a series of steps that gives us guidelines on how to live our daily life and following the eight steps attain samadhi or awareness.

The exercises consisted mainly of the all important Surya-namaskar, the ten step sun salute. Performing which one can tone each and every part of the body, overcome lethargy and make our body flexible and supple. The Suryanamsakar is a complete exercise in itself. This was followed by Shavasn, the dead body, a complete mind body relaxation technique from which the participants emerge completely relaxed and rejuvenated. Finally a demonstration of 'tratak' a very powerful technique to improve, the eye-sight, concentration, ability to meditate and even improves personal magnetism it is said.