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This was my first Sattva Summit and it was a feast for my eyes and senses! The colours, the sounds, wisdom talks, music, conscious conversation, laughter, connection… it was immense and also intimate, grounded and also transcendent, dynamic and also still. It was in essence, the very nature of Sattva Yoga itself. And yet, with all the stimulation and nourishment for the physical senses, it was my internal experience where I really got fed. My soul was filled with powerful knowledge and guidance from Master Anand, deeply transformative morning journeys with him and guest teachers, and, I had the opportunity to be of service to the community of beautiful souls attending. All in all, it felt as if every physical and energetic cell of my being was transforming each day.

I’ve long meditated on the temporariness of human existence (I’m THAT person – the one considered morbid by friends and family as I used to extol to them that they may as well live life to the full as we’re dying every day anyway!) But there was a particular moment in one of the morning journeys with Master Anand, he was talking about confronting our own death as a way to really free ourselves… and I suddenly got it. I saw it in a way in which I never had before, it was like it really sunk in at a different level of consciousness… And I cried… Not because I was in any way distressed at a fact I have long accepted. No. These were tears of Grace, with a feeling of such surrender and lightness that it overwhelmed me. And a stillness, a peace arose in me and I could see it so clearly – when one fully accepts death, one becomes deathless. When we accept that the body dies, Buff we open fully to the truth that we are actually, and in fact, soul, eternal, infinite – not as a theoretical piece of information that we can quote or recite to show how ‘spiritual’ we are, but as a visceral experience, a deeper inner knowing. That moment, that realisation had such a profound impact on me… and still continues to every day.

I’ve been at Sattva for many months and have seen and felt the different movements of energy that ebb and flow around students coming for teacher training, retreat groups, and other activities. But the energy around Summit was completely unique. There was something really special about Sattva family from all over the world coming back home for this event. It’s a time where newbie Sattva teachers can mingle with teachers who graduated either many years ago or more recently – when doesn’t actually matter as there’s no sense of division, there was such a warmth and generosity and openness of spirit. Previous to the Summit I had said on a few occasions, in conversation with fellow sangha and with new students, “once your Sattva, you are always Sattva” and I really saw that at the Summit. When all the sangha came together at the event, we were just one family – continuing to expand and grow together. Like Sattva itself! Visit mofos.com xxnxxx. The Summit saw the inauguration of the newly built Brahmanda Hall, which provided the space for so much laughter and joy, tears and transformation, song and dance. One of my favorite moments was on the cultural evening where we had wonderful performances from the children at Khushi Foundation, plus a show featuring Lord Krishna himself and many spinning plates (not all of which managed to stay in the air, much to the supportive laughter of the audience!) At one point I turned around and saw that at the back of the hall, all the Sattva staff had come in to watch…ALL! Housekeeping, Reception, Kitchen, Maintenance… and it filled my heart to see it, as it is the Sattva way…we’re all family.

For me I experienced so many moments at Sattva Summit of such deep clarity and gratitude, that it planted seeds which are continuing to be nourished by wisdom from Master Anand, knowledge from the sacred texts and, most importantly, putting into practice the teachings and techniques… Aside from that, my overriding memory of the Summit was that it rocked! It was so much fun!! There were so many activities to get involved in, so many people to connect with and so much vibrancy in the air that the whole event was like a celebration of being alive… And ultimately, isn’t that why we’re here? Liberation and celebration!

Namaste.

Silence, spaciousness and interconnection to Nature
No words can tell exactly my experience in Sattva (Rishikesh, India). Preparing the ceremony of EarthPainting has been above all an experience of love and sacred silence, that I cannot reduce in concepts and words. So I will share here some of my feelings.

Continue reading “Preparation of EarthPainting in Sattva, Rishikesh, India”

Sattva Summit is such a unique gathering as it has a full array of offerings from Yoga classes with Master teachers to small, intimate sessions on yogic living to festive Indian music and dance in the evenings. I loved every moment! There were so many offerings at times it felt impossible to choose between them! My favorite aspect is being in Sangha – sacred community- with each other…. and sharing how evolution is happening within each of us. I’ll be back next year for sure!!

Aditi

Sattva Summit 2018 – the ground for creativeness, coming together and evolution. My experience of it started some weeks before the Summit. We were given the space and allowance for creativity to flow, fully, was nothing I experienced before. So beautiful. Creativity in all directions. Building, painting, drawing, measuring, colouring, and styling – so much inspiration and happiness in the process. Seeing ideas turned into different unique expressions, was like give blissful food to the soul. Deeply nourishing and satisfying. Feelings of freedom.

– Sari

Everything is yoga. Yoga is everything. Each day at the Sattva Summit, there were Satsangs, Journeys, practices, music, chanting, kirtans, discussions and more – something for everyone. We could choose from such a variety of classes offered. There were classes showing us perspectives on yoga that we may not have considered. Each presenter brought their own vibrant interpretation of the important aspects of yoga in their own world. And each one of them was right! What a wonderful diversity of aliveness we were able to experience!

~LH

This was my second year at Sattva Summit and it was even more evolutionary, celebratory, and full of grace than the first one! I wouldn’t have known about this event in the first place if there wasn’t a campaign run by themarketingheaven.com in the past few years. It was the perfect blend of consciousness-expanding practices and soul-warming, joyous experiences. As with all things, it gave me more the more I poured into it. It goes without saying that all the classes and journeys were transformative and fun. But it was the moments where I got to connect with the big-hearted Sattva sangha that I’ll remember most. Whether it was the fire ceremonies by the river at 4am, dancing in the new Brahmanda hall to live Indian music, eating a traditional Indian meal on the lawn in the garden, or painting with our feet in a collaborative earth painting, it was the people that made the experience deeply profound and transcendent. The Summit really showcases the full spectrum of yoga practices and how yoga can bring together an international community to celebrate life in all its colors, textures, tastes, and tones.

Chad

You are here, you take the step, and everything else will follow. Live with courage. We cannot keep waiting for everything to line up and everything to make sense for us to live our life. Otherwise life passes us by. Do not wait anymore. Wait for what? Whatever you are waiting for is a lie. It is like waiting for Godot, who never shows up. See, nobody knows who Godot is, but everybody is waiting. So it is important that we stop using our life as a waiting room. A lot of humanity is just using life as a waiting room. Waiting for what?! For a better life? When? I mean, we are not certain of what is going to be the future. To live for a better life somewhere in a distant future… Wait no more! Get out of the waiting room! Live fully now, die fully now. Whatever you are doing, give it your all. And you have come so far. Learn to go all the way. Go all the way.

You see there is a great tendency in the human being to self sabotage. That we reach a point and then we sabotage ourselves. We do not go all the way. It is important, like the eagle was just flying… It flew all the way! When the eagle dives for its prey, it goes all the way. It is committed to that movement. It does not wait. You see waiting is not there, it sees the appropriate timing and takes action. There is a distinction between waiting, and seeing the appropriate timing. Waiting is not living here and now… waiting for life, versus, developing the great capacity within yourself to see what the timing is asking for, as rice grows in the season of rice and wheat grows in the season of wheat. But to grow wheat we have to take radical action in the moment of the wheat growing timeframe. And then nature will support that action. So we have to learn to be in alignment with the flow of time. Not waiting. If we are waiting, we are not in alignment with the flow of time. We are waiting for something and not paying attention to what is here now. And we are not going all the way, to what is here now. Therefore, we are missing out on life. So it is important that we learn to go all the way.

When you have heard that voice in your heart, that silent voice, which once you hear it, you cannot drown it out. Once you hear that voice, if you start to follow the whispers of your heart, the whispers of your spirit, you will find yourself in places, in moments, which you never thought even existed. Like right here. This place, we never knew it existed. It’s just a silent voice in the heart that carried us here, and here we are, looking at this incredible play of light. It is stunning. But you have to learn to follow that inner voice. When you learn to follow that inner voice and you learn to go all the way, and not wait anymore, what you will find is a life full of magic; a life full of ecstasy; a life full of bliss. Not a life which is constipated. You see waiting is like being constipated, who wants to feel that? Constipated. Let it flow!

When you have come so far, learn to go all the way, for there is nothing that can hold you back. Only your own ideas of what you think is possible for you. That is the only thing that can hold you back. You are infinity itself. There is nothing that is not possible for you. What you think is possible and what you think is impossible is only your attachment to a limited positionality of who you think you are.

As you learn to know who you are, there is nothing that is not possible for you. So what are you waiting for? If not now, when? What needs to happen for you to listen to your heart and follow the call of your spirit? Whose life are you living? If you are not living the life that is being called to you, whose life are you living and how do you think you can find fulfillment in a life that is not yours? Your life is meant to fulfill you and as long as you are not living your life that is being called to you, that life that is calling in the very intimacy of your heart, you will keep fighting, looking for your place in the world, wearing masks, waiting and hoping that somewhere in the future you will find yourself. Wait no more! The time is now. You are the very being for which the nonbeing turned into being. Be fooled no more by the lies that have been told to you. Do not let yourself be distracted by the lies that the world has told you.

The infinite is knocking at your heart. The time has come. Pay attention. Listen, see it. Pause, and you will find infinity looking back at you. And this infinity is you, and infinity cannot wait. Wait no more, go all the way! Wherever you are is the starting point. Have the courage to honor yourself. Have the courage to move in the direction of your own life. There is nothing more sweeter than the radical gift of owning yourself fully. There is no possession sweeter than you owning yourself fully. Otherwise, you have everything but you do not have yourself and if you do not have yourself, you will feel weak and afraid. It is only when you begin to own yourself, only then, you can really taste fearlessness. For there is nothing more that you need. You do not need to prove anything to anybody anymore.

So you can listen to the voice of your heart. It does not matter what people think, it does not matter what somebody said, it does not matter if it fits in or makes sense to the rational linear mind or not. For what makes sense to the rational linear mind is nothing but its own history. So it is just trying to live the ever repeating past, over, and, over, and, over, again. Where as, the heart longs to discover, to have an adventure, to taste and drink from the banks of infinity itself. Wait no more! Go all the way!

As I mindfully walk and guide of the many retreat groups who come to experience the wonderful vibrations, cultivate expansive and evolutionary relationships, and travel deep within themselves. I am struck with a great sense of awe and filled with an immense feeling of abundance as we travel in silent reflection through one of the many trails that lead up the many foothills of the Himalayas which surround the stunningly beautiful grounds of the
Sattva Retreat Centre, that tower over any mountain range that I’ve ever seen back home that are the Great Appalachians. I express to the group and invite them to always be mindful of how beautiful this and each present moment was and what things in their individual paths lead them to that very moment. I very sincerely remind them that “Being” not only in the foothills of the mighty and sacred Himalayas is a gift in itself, and that the overall gift was just simply “Being”, and in that beautiful moment I instantly download from my consciousness and present state of awareness the extreme gratitude for the amount of growth and evolution that has been passed on to me and so masterfully taught to myself and all who have sought out some of the best yoga teacher training in the world, have and will find it here on the grounds of the Sattva Retreat Centre taught by my Master Teacher AnandMehrotra.

The word Sattva means truth, balance, wholeness. It is at the core of who we truly are. As individuals we strive to return to that space of wholeness. We become so immersed in the “busy”ness of our lives that we oftentimes loose contact who we are, as we are constantly moving and doing.

Disconnecting from the normal “routine” and taking a journey to a new place provides a great opportunity for evolution. Also, Offering the body the opportunity to slow down and harmonize with nature and return to “Sattva” or come to stillness is quite healing. In the stillness the inspiration flows.

Choosing India as a place to visit has been one that I hold immense gratitude for. It is here that I discover a deeper understanding of my truth. I first journeyed here in 2014 and now call it home. One of the things I enjoy most about spending my time in Rishikesh at Sattva is meeting yogis from all over the world. Having a Sangha, or “community” is so important when you are on this path. When we are together with one common intention to evolve it creates a powerful energy that can be life changing. Choosing to attend an event or gathering provides a great opportunity to connect with people you wouldn’t otherwise meet. As one of the teachers at The Sattva Summit, I look forward to sharing the teachings, tapping into joy and time together as a Sangha in this sacred land!

With love
Annemarie, Sattva Yoga Teacher

If you are asking yourself, why should I come to Rishikesh, India for the Sattva Summit, here is the reason. Sitting here on the banks of the sacred Ganga River, I feel her presence, her vibration, and her message.

Beings travel from all parts of India, and all parts of the world to dip into her sacred waters and experience the power of being in the true presence of Shiva’s dreadlocks, the Himalayas. The Sattva Centre is located amongst the lower Himalayas, and is an incredible vortex of healing energy. The land where the Sattva Summit is held is the most powerful place I have been. It is where I do my deepest inner work of transcendence, evolution, and divine meditation. This space has transformed so many lives in magnificent ways. The mantras, dancing, meditations, yoga practices, and transformations of many can be felt strongly on this land. You can see this in the life here.

The birds, butterflies, trees, flowers, water, and life are abundant. All nature is flourishing and filled with joy in the Centre. It is a dreamland where your magical dreams can come to fruition. India, in general, is one of those places that forces you to rise to your highest Self or you can be bothered by the little things. I think this is why I am so drawn to this place. I have to be in my truth at all times and shine my light the brightest or I can be a little bit bothered. This allows me to experience most of the play here with a smile and grace.

Finding humor in the beauty of humanity. By spending so much time here, I can deeply integrate this practice into my being, not to fall out of my truth or light at any moment when I am in India or leave. These are my blessings for this incredible magic filled land and community. Come experience Shiva, Shakti, and everything in-between.

In light,
Corrin