MSY 2008 Workshop Highlights

Whoa! We’re off to a great start!
The 2008 Maha Sri Yogam has gotten off to a flying start!

Guru Mahan (Guruji) arrived in Dallas from Omaha on July 23rd as scheduled. Our youngest Yogini Anjana Kumar and her dad received him at the DFW airport. The workshop began at 6:30 PM on July 24th.

You may have noticed from the web announcement that the event was sold out! This group has 29 participants – an interesting mixture of regular yoga practitioners as well as beginners. The age range varies from six to sixty.

Day 1: Off to a turbulent start!
For all the planning that went into launching this event, it got off to a turbulent start! Due to developments beyond our control, the event had to be moved to a different venue at the last minute –literally! But did it faze the organizers or the participants? NO! The move to the new venue went smooth and the curtains went up as scheduled. We are thankful to such a group of true yogis.

After brief introductions, Guru Mahan took the stage and held the audience captivated with his vast knowledge and keen sense of humor. Under his guidance the practical sessions commenced. By the time day one concluded everyone felt energized and was eagerly looking forward to the next session.

Day 2: Back to the original venue – The Arlington Yoga Center.
The second day was as hectic as the first. Everyone wrote down their personal experiences after the first day. Guru Mahan has a way of bringing fun into strenuous exercises. The breathing techniques taught by Guru Mahan became quite popular with the group. Stuffed noses magically got cured when we did the ‘chicken dance’. From the enthusiastic flapping of arms and thunderous stomping of feet, it was obvious that the exercise was an instant hit. The class, although scheduled for 2 hours ended after two and a half hours. And even after that the group left the Center reluctantly.



Day 3: Fun and more fun
On the third day we decided to add some fun to the proceedings. After the classes we had a sumptuous feast! Everyone had brought something to eat. Then the Hare Krishna group from Dallas provided soul lifting chants followed by divine dancing. The frenzy reached its zenith when everyone joined in the dance. Guruji offered advice and joined the chanting.

Day 4: Although there were no classes scheduled for the day (Sunday) the day started with meditation at Kumar & Sella’s house; Marinda, Ashley & Pete joined us. Guruji then met with a few of Kumar’s friends from work. By the time the last person left it was 3:00 PM. The highlight of this session was a yoga performance by Anjana and Claire. Guruji guided the two six year old girls as they performed. Their flexibility and energy rubbed off on all of us as some of the adults began to perform as well.

Day 5: When word got around that a small group had a meditation session the previous morning with Guruji, we were slammed with requests from the other participants; they too wanted to join the morning session. To accommodate their wishes, we moved the morning meditation to the Center. 18 out of the 29 participants showed up at 5:20 AM! After this, morning meditation became a regular event until Guruji left on Friday.

By now everyone wanted to spend one on one time with Guruji. It was getting to be quite hectic for Guruji but he waived aside our concern. During the first three days he met three participants, giving them an hour each. By the fourth and final day of his stay in Arlington, to accommodate the rest of the group, he saw ten people, giving them half an hour each.

Classes continued as scheduled. The sessions were beginning to go past the scheduled hours – such was the interest of the participants.

Day 6: Classes continued as scheduled way past the scheduled hours.

Day 7: And then we had the class that everyone had been waiting for – the Laughing Exercise! It was fun to watch everyone rolling on the wooden floors with their arms flailing and tears streaming down their faces, laughing like children. After classes, we distributed a hand out (created by Universal Peace Foundation) which provided in depth guidance on Maha Sri Yogam. Participants were thrilled to receive them and said that it would help them to practice at home. We also took our group photos that evening.

Day 8: Classes were completed as scheduled. Then everyone began to talk about their experiences. Some of them broke down and wept during their testimonials. Everyone was moved as we sat listening. They thanked Guruji from the bottom of their hearts and all of them asked him to come back soon. As has become a tradition, everyone again brought food and we had a delicious dinner before saying our goodbyes.
Our heartfelt thanks to all of you for your energetic participation and generous donations to Guruji’s Ashram in India.

SANTHOSAM! SANTHOSAM!! SAN_THO_SAM!!!