[This is a guest post from my husband, James, who just had his first two led classes at the main yoga studio in Mysore, India].
---
I woke up to the sounds of a woman throwing up for fifteen straight minutes. It might've been the woman who lives next door. Vomiting seems to come with the territory in India. And vomiting is not one consistent sound. If someone says to you, “I just heard a note from a piano”, you’d have to ask, “was it a C sharp? Was it from the high end of the piano or the deep end? Was it loud, soft, long, staccato? For fifteen minutes this woman played for me a complete symphony. The deepest recesses of her throat were the most beautiful instruments I had ever heard.
Which brings me to yoga. I’m not an athlete (but I was a mathlete in school). I’m not flexible, pliable, and my back muscles aren't ripped and shredded. I've never stood in my head. And I get embarrassed when I hear people chant for religious reasons. So, practicing yoga in India becomes a story of humiliation, weakness, disappointment, and frustration for me. And I’m only on my second class here. Some of the things hard for me so far:
1. Worst in class. In class, I’m the first one who was forced to stop. There’s about 100 people at my level (beginner). The moves start off fairly easy, and then get harder and harder. Saraswati, the daughter of Pattabhi Jois, who started Ashtanga Yoga is leading the class. About 45 minutes in she looks over at me. I’m drenched in sweat. Everything hurts. The other people in the class are shining like gods, their sweat illuminating the etches of their brilliant muscles. I smell like gutter. Saraswati looks over at me, “you stop now.” So I’m the first to stop.
2. Everyone looks at me. I have to stay until the end of the class because we all do the closing moves together. So I’m sitting there not sure what to do. I’m in the back of the class. There’s one move where everyone twists around. When I say “twist around” its almost like a science fiction movie where the aliens twist around their waist 360 degrees in order to make sure there’s no danger. So everyone is twisting around in this impossible position, looking straight at me, the one guy in the back of the room not doing the move. Is this fair? Do I look back at them? Should I pretend I’m the teacher and they are all looking back at me for approval? Instead, I look down and act like I’m meditating.
3. The men in the class are perfect. I’m the only guy in the class who keeps my shirt on. Which is why I mention above I smell like gutter. Its worse than that though. I smell like something is dead in the walls of your house. The other guys take their shirts off. They have tattoos of dragons on their backs and crawling up their arms. They have muscles in places called tibias, femurs, psoas. Parts of the body I never heard of. Like when you suddenly look at a map of the world and realize for the first time that Africa is broken up into many tiny countries that you never knew existed and most likely will never visit.
(maybe this is what I will look like in a few years)
4. My secret revealed. There was a move where both teaching assistants and Saraswati had to come over and put me in position. I knew that they knew my secret then. That I was just pretending to be here. One woman pushing my back down. The other woman whispering urgently, relax your arm and stretch it out this way. Saraswati saying, “leg wants go here!” My leg had never taken directions before. It never wanted anything before. I was praying at the time, “just let the fingers from my left hand clasp the fingers from my right hand behind me so they could leave.”
5. Yoga vision. Today I was waiting outside for Claudia to finish her class. Today was my “rest day”. The advanced class was waiting to go in so there were about 40 advanced level students and me waiting outside. They all looked at me when I showed up. I was the special guest. Yoga supposedly makes your eyes shine brighter. This is what Claudia tells me. All of the advanced students looked at me with their x-ray vision. Their heat vision. I melted into the dust.
6. Sanskrit. At breakfast at a local restaurant there were no Indians. Only yoga students, still glistening from the sweat of their practice. Everyone was comparing notes on their class. “I had trouble with the full stretch on Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana”. “I finally got past Ardha Baddha Padma Paschimottanasana”. It seemed like everyone was fluent in some sort of yoga-ized Sanskrit. They all ordered things like granola. I had two orders of pancakes with bananas inside. Mmmm. It was good.
7. Chanting. At the beginning of class there’s a chant. It starts off with a big “Ommmm”. I can handle that. But then it goes into something else that I can’t understand. Everyone else is doing the chant. For some reason I blush and I try to hum along with it but then blush more because why am I even humming?
8. Earnestness. People say things like, “its good its crowded here. More people in the world are doing yoga.” They are earnest about it and everyone is agreeing. I’m not sure how to respond. Maybe, “I feel like world peace might be right around the corner.” Or, “If only everyone had a fully developed tibia muscle less people might get divorced.”
9. Coconuts. After practice on the first day I was sweating so much I thought I would have no more water left in my body. “Drink coconut juice,” Claudia said to me and there was a guy cutting coconuts right outside the class. “It will give you electrolytes.” All of the other students were outside drinking coconut juice already. They knew the drill. We’re monkeys from a million generations ago and we need our coconuts so we can mate and have children. But I don’t like coconut juice so we leave the other students there, all filling up with electrolytes so they can laugh and flirt once again.
(Claudia)
10. Cold Shower. After the first class I went home to take a shower. But I’m not quite used to the smell of the water here yet. I am saying this very politely. And I couldn't figure out how to get hot water. So I took a freezing cold shower and couldn't get the soap off my skin. So for the rest of the day, after the soap dried into my skin and mixed with the general grime and dust outside, I was scratching all over like a wild animal, leaving scratch marks everywhere.
Its day four and I’m loving every minute of my trip here. Tomorrow is my third class.
Related Posts by James Altucher:
Give and You Shall Receive
How to Live Forever
--
Picture credits from here (female yogi), and here (male yogi).
---
I woke up to the sounds of a woman throwing up for fifteen straight minutes. It might've been the woman who lives next door. Vomiting seems to come with the territory in India. And vomiting is not one consistent sound. If someone says to you, “I just heard a note from a piano”, you’d have to ask, “was it a C sharp? Was it from the high end of the piano or the deep end? Was it loud, soft, long, staccato? For fifteen minutes this woman played for me a complete symphony. The deepest recesses of her throat were the most beautiful instruments I had ever heard.
Which brings me to yoga. I’m not an athlete (but I was a mathlete in school). I’m not flexible, pliable, and my back muscles aren't ripped and shredded. I've never stood in my head. And I get embarrassed when I hear people chant for religious reasons. So, practicing yoga in India becomes a story of humiliation, weakness, disappointment, and frustration for me. And I’m only on my second class here. Some of the things hard for me so far:
1. Worst in class. In class, I’m the first one who was forced to stop. There’s about 100 people at my level (beginner). The moves start off fairly easy, and then get harder and harder. Saraswati, the daughter of Pattabhi Jois, who started Ashtanga Yoga is leading the class. About 45 minutes in she looks over at me. I’m drenched in sweat. Everything hurts. The other people in the class are shining like gods, their sweat illuminating the etches of their brilliant muscles. I smell like gutter. Saraswati looks over at me, “you stop now.” So I’m the first to stop.
2. Everyone looks at me. I have to stay until the end of the class because we all do the closing moves together. So I’m sitting there not sure what to do. I’m in the back of the class. There’s one move where everyone twists around. When I say “twist around” its almost like a science fiction movie where the aliens twist around their waist 360 degrees in order to make sure there’s no danger. So everyone is twisting around in this impossible position, looking straight at me, the one guy in the back of the room not doing the move. Is this fair? Do I look back at them? Should I pretend I’m the teacher and they are all looking back at me for approval? Instead, I look down and act like I’m meditating.
3. The men in the class are perfect. I’m the only guy in the class who keeps my shirt on. Which is why I mention above I smell like gutter. Its worse than that though. I smell like something is dead in the walls of your house. The other guys take their shirts off. They have tattoos of dragons on their backs and crawling up their arms. They have muscles in places called tibias, femurs, psoas. Parts of the body I never heard of. Like when you suddenly look at a map of the world and realize for the first time that Africa is broken up into many tiny countries that you never knew existed and most likely will never visit.
(maybe this is what I will look like in a few years)
4. My secret revealed. There was a move where both teaching assistants and Saraswati had to come over and put me in position. I knew that they knew my secret then. That I was just pretending to be here. One woman pushing my back down. The other woman whispering urgently, relax your arm and stretch it out this way. Saraswati saying, “leg wants go here!” My leg had never taken directions before. It never wanted anything before. I was praying at the time, “just let the fingers from my left hand clasp the fingers from my right hand behind me so they could leave.”
5. Yoga vision. Today I was waiting outside for Claudia to finish her class. Today was my “rest day”. The advanced class was waiting to go in so there were about 40 advanced level students and me waiting outside. They all looked at me when I showed up. I was the special guest. Yoga supposedly makes your eyes shine brighter. This is what Claudia tells me. All of the advanced students looked at me with their x-ray vision. Their heat vision. I melted into the dust.
6. Sanskrit. At breakfast at a local restaurant there were no Indians. Only yoga students, still glistening from the sweat of their practice. Everyone was comparing notes on their class. “I had trouble with the full stretch on Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana”. “I finally got past Ardha Baddha Padma Paschimottanasana”. It seemed like everyone was fluent in some sort of yoga-ized Sanskrit. They all ordered things like granola. I had two orders of pancakes with bananas inside. Mmmm. It was good.
7. Chanting. At the beginning of class there’s a chant. It starts off with a big “Ommmm”. I can handle that. But then it goes into something else that I can’t understand. Everyone else is doing the chant. For some reason I blush and I try to hum along with it but then blush more because why am I even humming?
8. Earnestness. People say things like, “its good its crowded here. More people in the world are doing yoga.” They are earnest about it and everyone is agreeing. I’m not sure how to respond. Maybe, “I feel like world peace might be right around the corner.” Or, “If only everyone had a fully developed tibia muscle less people might get divorced.”
9. Coconuts. After practice on the first day I was sweating so much I thought I would have no more water left in my body. “Drink coconut juice,” Claudia said to me and there was a guy cutting coconuts right outside the class. “It will give you electrolytes.” All of the other students were outside drinking coconut juice already. They knew the drill. We’re monkeys from a million generations ago and we need our coconuts so we can mate and have children. But I don’t like coconut juice so we leave the other students there, all filling up with electrolytes so they can laugh and flirt once again.
(Claudia)
10. Cold Shower. After the first class I went home to take a shower. But I’m not quite used to the smell of the water here yet. I am saying this very politely. And I couldn't figure out how to get hot water. So I took a freezing cold shower and couldn't get the soap off my skin. So for the rest of the day, after the soap dried into my skin and mixed with the general grime and dust outside, I was scratching all over like a wild animal, leaving scratch marks everywhere.
Its day four and I’m loving every minute of my trip here. Tomorrow is my third class.
Related Posts by James Altucher:
Give and You Shall Receive
How to Live Forever
--
Picture credits from here (female yogi), and here (male yogi).
Dear James,
ReplyDeleteFirstly, there is no WORST in Ashtanga Yoga or Yoga period. Ever. You are going through what we all went through when we started. The beginning is hard. You will be sore, tired and often experience varying levels of frustration. Don't be so hard on yourself. This is not a sport, as i am sure you know by having observed your wife. Self competition is a surefire way to get hurt. AHIMSA the concept of non-violence applies to yourself as well. Treat yourself well. Just do your practice and all is coming as Guruji used to say. You are at the SOURCE and are being taught by one of the greatest teachers of this system alive, the mighty Saraswathi Rangaswamy. That is a great blessing. I will join you guys in a few days and make myself known. Until then, just BREATHE, relax and enjoy the ride
I am sitting here in Mysore and I roared with laughter at this post. It is brilliantly beautifully honest and I recognise myself in all of it. I think you are very courageous and I hope I get to meet you and Claudia soon. It will become easier and more familiar and some wonderful things will happen.
ReplyDelete{*}
Very funny and honest! I laughed very much! Yoga is a beautiful journey, even the frustration. I know, so earnest :) Namaste!
ReplyDeleteGood sense of humor and courage to step into yoga, I have no doubt you will learn to love it, and all it's diversities, even language.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, and for honesty, and humor, it all works for the good.
Laughing and laughing! Such a great post James, so funny! I stumbled upon Mysore 3.5 years ago during a side trip to India where my intention was to spend a year hiking various mountains of the world. I was armed with my hiking boots, head to toe Gortex clothing, a heavy duty back pack, and an aerodynamic hiking staff.... yoga mat and Lululemon? Not so much. In a twist of fate, I ended up spending my entire 12 months in India, 6 of which were spent in Mysore alone! I had never done Ashtanga before, let alone been to India, so my introduction was very similar to yours... awkward, humbling, embarrassing, enlightening, painful... and filled with constant hilarity! Relieved that you have the knowledgeable and trustworthy Claudia to gently guide you through the land of utter confusion. Would love to read more of your 'guest posts' and rediscover the initial Mysore and Ashtanga journey through your eyes. Fantastic! Enjoy!
ReplyDelete~ Susan Browne
Loved this. I've been both 'worst' in class and also 'best' (as in, most bendy). Both I continue to find pretty horrible, but I suppose that the experience of having once been 'best', in a room full of absolute first-timers, does help me deal with being 'worst'. Helps me see it as a learning opportunity.
ReplyDeleteI also thought I'd find the chanting embarrassing, but now love it. Total classical conditioning - the opening chant has me primed for that drawing in and focusing on the movement and the breath, the closing chant closes off everything that's happened on the mat, and helps me let go. (Word verification - mychent. Just one letter out!)
My favourite line:
“If only everyone had a fully developed tibia muscle less people might get divorced.”
James I'll just echo what everyone else says in that I LOVED this post. I started with ashtanga on a retreat in Goa 2 years ago, signing up for what I *thought* was the style of yoga I took once a week at my gym class. I was totally wrong and had no idea what I was letting myself in for, and struggled and stressed my way through that first two weeks surrounded by "experts" - in all honesty, if I'd have known more about it, I would never have gone. But practicing ashtanga daily (as I do now) has triggered a series of amazing changes in my life, my body and my health, not all of which are visible to the outsider, and every day I am grateful that I spontaeously booked that trip!
ReplyDeleteI can reassure you that even if you think everyone else in that room is blissfully floating through their practice they are definitely not, and may be having some seriously negative mental chatter going on about what an embrassment they are to themselves, or how they are the worst in the room. I don't know how long you are there for but I promise you will feel so different by the time you head home - and please keep us posted! :)
p.s. Just take off your shirt :) Guruji apparently used to say that men should practice without one so that they are humble before god. Even if this doesn't resonate with you, chances are you'll feel less uncomfortable without it on!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your honest and totally hilarious account, James. Hang in there! Nothing is permanent; everything is always changing (read: You won't be the "worst in class" forever... not that it really matters, but I thought you might be interested to know, anyway).
ReplyDeleteHey, at least you're in Mysore. I'm still trying to get my ass there :-)
p.s. That superman vision thing is really cool. Is that a siddhi one gets at some advanced point in the practice? :-)
p.p.s. Yes, do take off your shirt. You will feel (and smell) a million times better.
Well I for one want more more more of you and your experiences and your fabulous funny writing! And I've lost my status as worst in the class and sometimes feel wistful, so enjoy being number one! And I sometimes feel jealous of the people who get to stop way before me, yearning for my old short practice. Please keep telling us like it is...
ReplyDeleteInteresting post - This is the common beginning for most men in yoga and is the reason a lot continue the practice. Yoga isn't about judging yourself against the rest - it's about judging yourself against your best. Are you there? When you fall out of a balance pose, do you try to get back in it or do you let it defeat you? After this really gets internalized you begin to apply it to your life too - it's all an exercise in patience and persistence.
ReplyDeleteAlso, try keeping a diary week to week. It's a great feeling to look back at what you struggled with last week and are now able to do with ease. Thats what keeps me going.
Wonderful post James, hope Claudia lets you guest more often.
ReplyDeleteI have some pictures and videos of when I first started, huffing and puffing, sweating bathloads and only able to reach my knees in forward bend. First time I went to a shala (only been twice) I lost 2kilo in sweat, 2kilo!
But as everyone has beens saying, your THERE, not so bad being the smallest fish in that particular pond, some serious Kudos when you walk into a shala back home. Besides, from what I understand everyone is keeping an eye on where Sharath is rather than looking at anyone else.
I agree, lose the shirt.
hope you continue to love every minute of it'.
Love too that you hate coconut water
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete@Grimmly, thanks for the support on the coconut water. And Claudia actually has shown me some of your earlier videos and they were very encouraging!
ReplyDelete@critter, I hope you are right about the "persistence". Being here (the heat of everyone practicing around me) allows me to be more flexible than when I practice at home. But the flipside also happens: I get nervous and so some poses I thought were trivial for me turn out to be harder than ever. To be honest, I almost lost it in that second set of sun salutations today. I had my first mysore-style class with Saraswati today. I thought I was going to fall and take her down with me when I had to do that pose where you hold one leg up and nonchalantly put your hand on your hip.
@Loo, you do bring up a good point. Claudia started her practice today at 8:15 and I started mine (sauntering in as the last student of the day) at 9:30. I actually finished a few minutes before her (around 10:20). So it was nice to have a shorter practice.
ReplyDeleteAlthough, she was a little upset at me because she said I was "shaking" (my hands were a little) and so it meant I didn't spend enough time in "shavasana" resting my nervous system. Sharath actually said last night "people who do crazy things become crazy" and so I have to be careful.
@Nobel, You just gave me an idea. First there was Ashtanga Yoga, then there were wierd offshoots like Bikram Yoga or Power Yoga, etc. Maybe its time for KRYPTON YOGA! The ultimate power yoga that bestows on you the powers that natives of Krypton get when in our solar system. Hmmm! Btw, Nobel, the good thing about Mysore is that its dirt cheap. The plane ride is expensive but once you are here, its nothing. I think we are spending $6 / night on room. I just bought Claudia 13 beautiful dresses (yes, 13! She was insatiable) for about $140 in TOTAL.
@Ragdoll, Claudia and I are going to try a chanting class within the next few days. I'm intrigued by it. I'm intrigued. I think language has power and with a "chant" there's 4000 years of thought into the tones, the words, the philosophy behind those chants. But there's also something a bit more primal I think - the idea of giving up everything you hold dear (a suburban Jew from New Jersey who suddenly finds himself chanting Sanskrit in southern India at the age of 43) and saying, "to hell with it, let the good times roll" which is my way of summarizing what I think the chanting will do for me.
ReplyDelete@daydreamingmel, yesterday I kept finding myself asking people "so what position does your practice end", "and how long does your practice take?", "how long have you been doing ashtanga?", etc almost as if I wanted to build a set of data points in my head so I could benchmark where I was in my practice versus everyone else. Reminds me of when i was buying a house about 12 years ago and I kept asking the owner of the building how much money everyone else in the building had. He sort of thought it was funny (he would say whatever it took to get me to buy his apartment right next to (unfortunately) the World Trade Center) but it was definitely a diseased question I was asking. I have to make sure yoga doesn't give me a new outlet for this benchmarking addiction. I like how you focus on the benefits it provided you, regardless of where you stood in the class.
@Susan, thanks for sharing your experience. It seems like such a massive decision, to change from hiking to 6 months of yoga here. I bet a lot was going on in your life and there's a story to tell. When Claudia and I first began dating almost 2 years ago she kept saying to me, "so tomorrow you start yoga?" and I was like, "well, maybe I'm going to life weights for awhile" and she was like "ok, and next year we'll go to India?" and I was like, "well, How about we just go for Indian food!"
ReplyDeleteAnd now what the hell happened to me? Claudia, did you cast a spell on me??
@the wild magnolia, I think you are right that it all works for the good. i write a lot about finance, stocks, etc. Many people think that if they know whether or not they should buy stock in Apple then their life will be better and they will be happy. Connecting that sincere desire for happiness with something more real and lasting (as much as anything can be lasting) I think will help me better convey a strong message to my "regular" readers.
@Lola, this morning I was sweating so much it was like my glasses were underwater. Claudia said to me later two things: A) why were you wearing glasses? and B) your face looked like it had a huge amount of tension in it when you were bending forward in the (XYZ) position. She said: "release the tension in your face".
I'm still waiting for her to say: "you looked beautiful doing that asana".
@loulou and @Nick, please find us and say hi! Look forward to meeting you. And I definitely feel grateful in my life to be here.
ReplyDeleteOh wow, Claudia and James, this is the best Mysore post I've EVER read!!!!! First of all, James, I don't like the coconut water either. If you go to the other coconut stand on the corner, many times he has limes to squeeze into the coconut and that makes ALL the difference. Second of all, I've been practicing for almost five years and I'm the first one stopped during led class too. Shrug, don't sweat it. And be grateful that you don't have to do Navasana with everyone else!!!! :)
ReplyDeleteJames, thank you for sharing your experiences with all of us, I certainly enjoyed reading and having you guest post, I am kind of fearing for my own ownership of the blog now...
ReplyDeleteYou do look beautiful in asana
And about the dresses... I think I will talk to you privately
James..this was the BEST POST EVER!!! Watch out Claudia. Like the way you both categorize and number things.I do that too...
ReplyDelete-I found Mysore to be a Mindblowing experience. Be open to it, you are so-so fortunate. Yoga will break you right open if you allow it. The biggest gift..just be open and surrender to the experience.
-My next door neighbors (in Gokulam) would make these noises @ like 4:30am. Like stuff coming out of their bodies from their toes up, very intense..a daily ritual. I got used to it.
-I was self conscious of my "gutter" smell, but it is a cleansing practise. Especially the twisting asanas will literally wring out organs and purge stuff...all good!
-About midway Primary - I heard the dreaded: YOU STOP! fr Sharath...looking around me bewildered, I wasn't sure the "shoutout" was directed at me. He repeated it..giving me that stare...So there I sat - totally self conscious..noticing the "thin flexi" girls..I wanted to disappear. Within a week or so - I did get a new pose...I eased into it all...
Many yr ago - my first gym Ashtanga teacher must have noticed my desperate attempt @ the chant. One day he brought me a small card with the Opening + Closing chant. So sweet.I recited it @ least 20 times daily. In a few days, I knew the chants and felt so good being able to confidently chant @ the beginning and end of class...but humming along is fine too...
The water...I once lived in Africa for a couple of months...1st day I open the shower..and brown water, the color of coca-cola comes out. I started crying hysterically and just wanted to leave. Then the power cuts..just as I start to blow dry my hair. After 4 - 5 days...I relaxed, I had a houseboy who cleaned up after me daily, laundry - the house etc..how lucky was I? So brown water - power cuts..what the heck - there was other stuff that made up for it.I had a blast!!!
The coconuts are so amazing, I can't believe that there are actually people who do not LOVE them...
More posts on this adventure PLS..what a
FORTUNATE guy you are........
Love to you guys, J
Thanks, James, for sharing your ashtanga baby steps.
ReplyDeleteWe've all been there. You're being exposed to the best teachers.
Cheers,
Arturo
There are so many beautiful stories of people literally stumbling into Ashtanga yoga, almost accidentally finding healing for their broken bodies and beat-up minds. So why not the same for you, James? :)
ReplyDeleteSeriously, I wish you and Claudia a transformative experience while in Mysore. And thanks for sharing the first portion of it with us!
"I feel like world peace might be right around the corner"
ReplyDeletehahahahahhaha
ooh man, that made my day! Best of luck, I'm sure you'll progress beautifully! Keep your wonderful sense of humor ;)
@J thank you, and I know, he was the writer... he is funny isn't he? and thank you for sharing your story
ReplyDelete@Arturo :-) yes we have all been there!
@Mike, exactly! that is what I have been telling him for a while, now he finally is into it hee hee
@Kerstin, ha ha ha, totally, yes that one and the one about the "Tibia" being a muscle had me cracking up too
I'm glad that you were there, James; had you not been, then I'd have been "worst;" although, I think it's one of those paradoxical things: as long as you think you're the worst, you're not. (Shades of Socrates being the wisest man in Athens since he alone knew he wasn't wise.)
ReplyDeleteHa, dashap, I've seen you there. You are FAR from "worst".
ReplyDeleteJames, thanks for sharing this. It's awesome! Thanks for make me laughing! Good luck in your practice.
ReplyDeleteTatiana
hilarious and awesome post. So glad you shared this- my husband is reading it as we speak. His favourite part- the superman.... :D
ReplyDeleteHA HA HA, yes the superman thing is a funny thing, I do not quite get it but men seem to resonate... who knew? I do hope you keep blogging about the adventures of your husband, or that he guest posts sometime! :-)
ReplyDeleteFantastic post James! Take heart! If you collapse Claudia will drag you home by an ankle and fetch you a coconut :)
ReplyDelete@Boodiba, true, very true! hee hee :-)
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely inspiring--I can't stop laughing! One day I hope to make it to Mysore, but can't find the courage. You are a brave, brave beautiful soul for just being present on your mat. I love your recount of the events, and look forward to reading more. THANK YOU so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment ShySiren, I would agree he was very brave to come along for the ride! he cracks me up too, and I , too, totally see myself in his words, all the time
ReplyDeleteDear James, there is so much to learn from your humility and humour. Ganesh and I laughed all the way reading this post. There is something I would like to share with you and all those who would care to know about the morning vomitting (ha ha ha - your commentary on it is very funny - loved it!). It is a kind of an Indian personal hygiene which is performed almost as a ritual by many men and women. The intention is to clear and clean up the oral and nasal passage as well as the stomach after the hours of a good night's rest. If you observe well, we clear our throats, swallow saliva and the nasal discharges at all times during the day and night. The tongue is already coated and the mouth, teeth and tongue are all we can see as we open the mouth to brush our teeth. And the smell before brushing and honestly, even after brushing the teeth can be nasty. The smell comes from the stomach. So the technique of freshening up your breath completely (without the aid of mouth washes, etc) is to clean the tongue and the stomach by rhetching. Thats easily done. Gargle and put a couple of fingers on your tongue and scrub your tongue with it, pushing the fingers gently towards the inner throat until it induces the vomiting sensation. Repeat until the stomach juices in the stomach and saliva/flegm caught up in the chest cavity throw up. It is like an exercise and the reward after you clean your insides is worth the trouble. Do not worry about what the neighbours might say - ha ha - they all do it in India. You will experience that your breath is fresher than ever. Ah yes! get yourself a tongue cleaner from a petty shop. Its a great way to scrape your tongue to clean it every morning. Good luck with Ashtanga!
ReplyDeleteAnu
Anu,
ReplyDeleteJames and I read your comment and were very happy to hear the full explanation, that explains everything! I guess next time we come over we can give it a go... :-)
We enjoyed having dinner at your place and I am forever remembering the smoothies, hope to see you guys soon.
this was just the first laugh into the article,
ReplyDelete"practicing yoga in India becomes a story of humiliation, weakness, disappointment, and frustration for me. And I’m only on my second class"
this was a hoot, i've never been anywhere near india, or this type of yoga, and i still can fully relate ;-)
see? i knew yoga was universal ;-)
Adn, you are quite right :-) you knew it
ReplyDeleteThat is hillarious! I am now sending it to my husband - he will be inspired and understand he is not alone...
ReplyDeleteMy Name is Lee Kima, From United Kingdom. I wish to share my testimonies with the general public about what this man called Dr.USMAN KERIM has just done for me , this man has just brought back my lost Ex husband to me with his great spell, I was married to this man called Steven we were together for a long time and we loved our self’s but when I was unable to give him a child for 2 years he left me and told me he can’t continue anymore then I was now looking for ways to get him back until a friend of mine told me about this man and gave his contact email(dr_usman.spiritualist@outlook.com then you won't believe this when I contacted this man on my problems he prepared this spell cast and bring my lost husband back, and after a month I miss my month and go for a test and the result stated am pregnant am happy today am a mother of a baby girl, thank you once again the great Dr.USMAN KERIM for what you have done for me, if you are out there passing through any of this problems listed below:
ReplyDelete1) If you want your ex back.
(2) if you always have bad dreams.
(3) You want to be promoted in your office.
(4) You want women/men to run after you.
(5) If you want a child.
(6) You want to be rich.
(7) You want to tie your husband/wife to be
yours forever.
(8) If you need financial assistance.
(9) How you been scammed and you want to recover you lost money.
(10)Stop Divorce
Mobile number...+2348057756157
Email...dr_usman.spiritualist@outlook.com
i want to say a very big thanks and appreciation to chief priest Great solutionfor bringing back my husband who left i and the kids for almost three months within the space of five days after following all instruction given to me. i am very much grateful for restoring peace in my marital home’ i pray God almighty give you the strength and wisdom to help more people having similar problem like mine. for help you can CONTACT HIM on this email solutionwhitmagicspell@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteThank you thank you DR solution for what you have just done, for helping me geting my husband who left me with two kids april last year to me i thank you so much the great DR solution of solutionwhitmagicspell@gmail.com for bringing back my family i am greatfull and will always be if you also need his help his email . solutionwhitmagicspell@gmail.com or his website, spiritualistic.webs.com
ReplyDeleteplease help me thank this man DR solution of solutionwhitmagicspell@gmail.com for helping me brink back husband who left me for year and? stay in Russia with another lady but today he is back to me and our kids with the help of this great spell caster please help me in thanking he for what he has done
My mouth is full of testimonies, my husband left the home for two years to south Africa for a tourist, where he meant this prostitute and he was bewitch by the girl my husband refuse to come back home again, i cry day and night looking for who to help me, i read a news paper about a powerful spell caster called Dr solution and i contacted the spell caster to help me get my lover back to me and he ask me not to worry about it that the gods we fight for me.. he told me by mid-night when all the spirit is at rest he will cast a spell to reunite my lover back to me. and he did in less than 3 days my husband came back to me and started crying that i should for forgive him, i,m so happy for what this spell caster did for me and my husband.. Dr solution of solutionwhitmagicspell@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteTHE MIGHTY SPELL CASTER THAT HELPED ME SOLVED MY CRITICAL PROBLEM.
ReplyDeleteI dont know how to really thank Dr Raypower for what he did for me. My Name is Precious from USA, i was dating this man who i loved very much for over six years now without any problem in our relationship. so at a point he changed so suddenly after returning from the office and started behaving so strangely. it even got to the extent that he told me it was over and i should never call him again. This was a person that loved me with everything that he had. When i told my friend jenny what happened, she introduced me to a great spell caster called DR RAYPOWER. At first sight this man told me all my problems that it was his secretary that used a charm on him. Dr Raypower told me not to worry that he will help me solve the problem. The following day, i was in the house in a sober mood when i first received a message from my boyfriend that he was very sorry and before i dropped the phone, he called me again to say he is on his way home and that he was truly sorry for everything. To my greatest surprise, one week later he engaged me and we got married. All Thanks to Dr raypower. You can email him at raypowersolutionhome@gmail.com for any problem that you have. once again his email address is raypowersolutionhome@gmail.com
So trustworthy spell caster are still online?i never believed until i saw some post about DR.OLOKUN on how he has helped lots of people on the internet.I told him i have had about him on internet and before i told him my problem,He has already told me what i came for and said people had scammed me off my money and added pain to my pain i was so shocked,He just told me that everything will be okay within 48hours,i told him this was what does fake spell caster also told me,He said i should give him a try which i did.Truly am just short of words and over excited for what DR.OLOKUN has done for me exactly when the 48hours was completed the call i got was from my lover that left me with pain for over 4year,He said on phone Heidi,Can we talk in a sad and shy tone,i was like yes then he came to my house and apologized to me that he was sorry and proposed to me that same day and asked if i would marry him and i said yes,And our wedding will be on july 20 friends you are coordinately invited am so happy,Thanks to DR.OLOKUN you can contact him on priestolokun@hotmail.com tel.+37067060228 for your solution his truly a man you can trust and confide in.
ReplyDeleteIt's awesome and amazing. My name is Jerry Mike from
ReplyDeletethe United States. Getting my wife back was what i least expected and
could ever imagine. I and my wife have been married for five years and
we have been living happily but all of a sudden she changed completely
and turned away from me but i never knew what was going on, and i tried
to ask her but she refused to tell me what the problem is, and as time
went on she sought for a divorce. I was so worried and confused. During
my search for a way out, a
friend of mine who had similar problem told me about a great spell
caster called Great Ovoko who helped him with his situation. I never use
to believe in spell casting in my entire life so i tried to give this
man a chance because i never thought it will work for me but to my
greatest surprise it got me a positive result and i was able to get my
wife
back. Even after the spell caster did his work, i discovered my wife
fell so much in love with me unlike before. This spell casting isn't
brain washing but he opened up her eyes to see how much i love and
needed her. Now i am a happy man again
and do not know what to do for him and so i am using this opportunity to
tell anyone having similar problem to visit Ovokolovespell@gmail. com
he will help you because he is so real and his spells is so powerful.
Once again thank you Great Ovoko and may your gods reward you for your
good deeds.....
It's awesome and amazing. My name is Jerry Mike from
ReplyDeletethe United States. Getting my wife back is what i least expected and
could never imagine. I and my wife have been married for five years and
we have been living happily but all of a sudden she changed completely
and turned away from me but i never knew what was going on, and i tried
to ask her but she refused to tell me what the problem is, and as time
went on she sought for a divorce. I was so worried and confused. During
my search for a way out, a
friend of mine who had similar problem told me about a great spell
caster called Great Ovoko who helped him with his situation. I never use
to believe in spell casting in my entire life because i never thought
it will work but i tried to give this
man a chance and to my
greatest surprise it got me a positive result and i was able to get my
wife
back. Even after the spell caster did his work, i discovered that my
wife
fell so much in love with me unlike before. This spell casting isn't
brain washing but he opened up her eyes to see how much i love and
needed her. Now i am a happy man again
and do not know what to do for him and so i am using this opportunity to
tell anyone having similar problem to visit him on Ovokolovespell@gmail. com
and just tell him your problems and he will help you because he is so
real and his spells is so powerful. Once again thank you Great Ovoko and
may your gods reward you for your good deeds.
IF YOU NEED A REAL SPELL CASTER PLEASE CONTACT DR EKUKU HE IS A GREAT MAN
ReplyDeleteHe brought back my ex within 24 hrs when others failed just using this post as a testimony and to tell people that there are still Real spell caster out there .
if you need his help in any way be it LOVE SPELL ...SPELL REMOVAL........GOOD LUCK......do contact him directly on
E-mail ekukutempleofsolution@gmail.com or Tel :+2348111957679.
Thank you all.
Name:Jeanne Clémence
Location: France
Falling in love with derrick was the sweetest thing to ever happen to me i meet him when i was 23 and we had been together for 5 years so when he left me it was like me whole life was ending i looked for solution every but could not find one i even almost killed my self when i found out that he already started seeing someone else.
ReplyDeleteI confronted this particular lady on one occasion and told her derrick is mine and i will do anything to have him back even offered her money but she refused funny enough she is 10 years older than derrick so i suspected a foul play and cant just imagine myself loosing the love of my life to an older woman so i continue the search for solution.
It was about 8 month since derrick stopped talking to me and one day a saw a post online about a spell caster (dr igodo) had no option i had to try and see if i would work which i did behold at after 48hour my man showed up at my house with flower and wanted to start apologizing i just told him to forget and told him i am happy to have him back because dr igodo already told me he was under a spell.
I am happy to say my man has been with me now for 6 month and we have been living happily and am also 3 months pregnant now.
Once again thank you sir for making me happy and also here are is contact because i know there are many people like me especially women who need help fixing their relationship docigodo@yahoo.com and phone: +2348169138446.
Thank you all.
MONICA
ONTARIO CANADA
this golden oppourtunity and medium to appreciate a great spell caster
ReplyDeletenamed Dr. Arigbo who helped me to get my ex lover back to me after he had
turned back on me for a year and three months.
One faithful day as i was coming back from shopping i over heard some
group of people discussing about this Big thanks the great Dr. Arigbo who helped me in timesof sorrow and
difficulties.
My name is Miss Stella John from canada,i am 23 years old. I want to use great spell caster,saying all the
wonderful things he had done for them but naturally i don't believe on
spell but because of this i decided to go for a try and i contacted him
surprising as i reached him he told me everything about me and this made me
to be surprised.
So he decided to and he will come back to me but i thought he was joking and i agreed to him.
surprising on that day i heard someone banging on my door and when i
went out i saw my ex kneeling in front of me begging for his return at
first i was surprised but later i told him to get to his feet and i embrace
him.That's how i got my ex back.
interested viewers should peacefully contact him on this email address
(Arigbospelltemple@gmail.com). Come and see the end to your problem.
He is a man of powers.........
signed: Miss Stella John help me out and immediately he perform the spell
service and he told me to wait for just three days before it take effects
My name is Jessica Ruiz from Florida I have to give this miraculous testimony, which is so unbelievable until now. I had a problem with my Ex husband 2years ago, which lead to our break up. when he broke up with me, I was not my self again, i felt so empty inside me, my love and financial situation became worst, until a close friend of mine Lucy told me about a spell caster who helped her in the same problem too his name is Dr Shiva at hinduspelltemple@yahoo .com . I email Dr Shiva the spell caster and i told him my problem and i did what he asked of me, to cut the long story short. Before i knew what was happening my husband gave me a call and told me that he was coming back to me in just 2days and was so happy to have him back to me. We have two kids together and we are happy with ourselves. Thanks to Dr Shiva hinduspelltemple@yahoo .com for saving my relationship and for also saving others own too. continue your good work, If you are interested to contact him and testify this blessings like me, the great spell caster email address is hinduspelltemple@yahoo .com you are the best among all the spell caster online I hope you see my testimonies and also pray for my family tooo.
ReplyDeleteTHE GREAT POWERFUL DR JACKAMA SPELL CASTER THAT CAN CASTER ALL PROBLEM, BRING BACK MY BOYFRIEND: if you are in need in spell caster, that can help
ReplyDeleteme bring my EX LOVER BACK Email:jackamaspelltemple@gmail.com
My Name is VIVIAN BILL FORM UK, I will love to share my
testimony to all the people in the forum cos i never thought i will have my
boyfriend back and he means so much to me..The boy i want to get marry to left
me 4 weeks to our wedding for another girl..,When i called him he never picked
my calls,he deleted me on his Facebook and he changed his Facebook status from
married to Single…when i went to his place of work he told his boss he never
want to see me..I lost my job as a result of this cos i cant get myself
anymore,my life was upside down and everything did not go smooth with my
life…I tried all i could do to have him back to all did not work out until i
met a Man when i Travel to Africa to execute some business have been developing
some years back..I told him my problem and all have passed through in getting
him back and how i lost my job…he told me he gonna help me…i don’t believe
that in the first place.but he swore he will help me out and he told me the
reason why my boyfriend left me and also told me some hidden secrets.i was
amazed when i heard that from him..he said he will cast a spell for me and i
will see the results in the next couple of days..then i travel back to UK the
following day and i called him when i got home and he said he’s busy casting
those spells and he has bought all the materials needed for the spells,he said
am gonna see positive results in the next 2 days that is Thursday…My boyfriend
called me at exactly 1:35pm on Thursday and apologies for all he had done ..he
said,he never knew what he’s doing and his sudden behavior was not intentional
and he promised not to do that again.it was like am dreaming when i heard that
from him and when we ended the call,i called the man and told him my husband
called and he said i haven’t seen anything yet… he said i will also get my job
back in 3 days time..and when its Sunday,they called me at my place of work that
i should resume working on Monday and they gonna compensate me for the time
limit have spent at home without working..My life is back into shape,i have my
boyfriend back and we are happily married now with kids and i have my job back
too.This man is really powerful..if we have up to 20 people like him in the
world,the world would have been a better place..he has also helped many of my
friends to solve many problems and they are all happy now..Am posting this to
the forum for anybody that is interested in meeting the man for help.you can
mail him at, jackamaspelltemple@gmail.com, I cant give out his number cos he told me he don’t want to be disturbed by many people across the world..he said his email is okay and he’ will replied to any emails asap..hope he helped u out too..good luck:
ONCE AGAIN HIS EMAIL ADDRESS IS: jackamaspelltemple@gmail.com