Fitness Files: Yoga Retreat

I just got home from a yoga retreat at Seven Arrows East taught by the very talented Seth Lieberman. I recruited my mom and signed us both up for the retreat after going to an introduction to meditation class at the JCC. It was an eye-opening experience and unlike anything, I’ve ever done before.

We had a few hours to relax when we arrived at Seven Arrows East. Seven Arrows East is a beautiful property with waterfront views, hiking trails, a farm, and a yoga studio. The house is over 100 years old and is a family-owned property that hasn’t been changed since the sixties. The house is charming, there is a reading room, reading nooks, and lots of marble and velvet floral wallpaper. We put our bags in the ladies’ dorm room, shut off our phones, and napped or read (real paper books) until everyone arrived.

That night we went to a two-hour yoga class then met downstairs for dinner. A kind woman named Hira cooked the most nutritious, tasty, vegetarian meals. Before eating, we all held hands and sang the Johnny Appleseed song. I knew the song had sounded vaguely familiar but, without the internet, I was unable to look it up until just now. I realized that the weekend would be a little bit different than most. (Unfortunately, Starbucks does not break into the Johnny Appleseed song every time I order a grande soy latte.) We all talked and got to know each other.

After dinner, we went into the yoga studio and sat in a circle to talk about how we found the retreat and what we hoped to get from our time there. It was interesting to hear everyone’s stories. I set a somewhat lofty and personal goal and I think the weekend really did help me accomplish it. We also read some of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Nature and talked about the parallels between his writing and way of life and the teachings of yoga. I realized that yoga is about much more than exercise. I really want to start reading some of the books they mentioned like the Yoga Sutras. I clearly didn’t do much research before signing up for the trip. We discussed the agenda for the next day and the logistics of waking up for a silent hike without the use of our cellphones. Luckily someone brought and an alarm clock and we had a bell and a Tibetan bowl. Neither had snooze buttons, but they would work.

We started silence at nine o’clock at night and would continue until the next day at noon. I didn’t realize that part of silence meant not reading or writing. The house was calm and silent. I went to bed almost immediately but it was odd not to say “thank you” when someone held the door or “goodnight.” I’m also very used to reading before bed, but I learned that I can fall asleep without reading (or checking Instagram).

The next day we woke up and went for a silent hike in the woods. We had breakfast without talking, reading, or using technology, then did a two-hour yoga class before lunch. I had time to think about a lot of things that I might have pushed away if I had more distractions. In the end, I felt very calm and rested. I’m sure that Thoreau, his transparent eyeball, and my high school English teacher would be proud.

After lunch we all read, talked, or napped for a bit then took a restorative yoga class before dinner. After dinner, we did Kirtan which I learned is a time for music and chanting. We had a violinist, a drummer, a singer, a pianist, and a guitarist. We lit a fire, candles, and incense and sat together on yoga blankets and bolsters. The wallah (leader) starts chanting in Sanskrit and everyone chants back. It actually didn’t feel much different than when I go to services at my reform synagogue. I just read that Kirtan can lead to feelings of meditation and bliss. It was fun to sing, clap, listen to great music, and relax by the fireplace. After Kirtan we went to bed early so that we could wake up early to have a two-hour yoga practice before everyone had to start leaving.

The next morning we had a quick breakfast, did a two-hour yoga class, talked about our experiences on the trip, and had lunch. I was so rested and calm that it felt like we had been there forever not just less than forty-eight hours. I felt connected with everyone in the group and we shared a lot more than we probably would have if we were distracted by our phones, movies, TV, or being able to quickly Google something to find an answer out on the spot. It was also nice to bond with my mom…even if we weren’t talking some of the time. We want to go again with my sister.

I have a few takeaways that I want to incorporate now that I’m home:

• Don’t check email or social media before breakfast.
• Don’t check email or social media in my bedroom.
• Don’t stare at my phone when I’m walking somewhere. I’m so guilty of this!
• Try to keep my phone off more often. Do I really need to see if anyone uploaded something to Instagram? No.
• Try to get away and do a retreat or spend time in Westchester with less access to my phone at least once a season. When it’s warm out I love spending weekends in Waccabuc visiting the farm where I used to ride, going kayaking, hiking, cooking, spending time with my family, and going to my favorite yoga studio there.
• Go to more yoga classes and learn about the philosophy of yoga.
• Change my alarm clock ring tone to the sound of a Tibetan Bowl.

“The lover of nature is he whose inward and outward senses are still truly adjusted to each other; who has retained the spirit of infancy even into the era of manhood.” 
― Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nature