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Dive into the heart and soul of the Ashtanga yoga practice under the inspiring guidance of Laruga Glaser and team of highly qualified assistants and teachers. It will be a month that will stretch all participants, not only physically, but more importantly mentally, energetically and spiritually. In terms of the spirit, we shy away from believe systems and get into the core of knowing through the process of stilling the mind and understanding what is true resides within. Active participation is always recommended especially in the workshops and philosophy discussions where a safe space is created and contrasting points of view are welcomed. In addition, we encourage a sharing of thoughts and ideas that facilitate uplifting and elevating the group. Through it all, it is our hope you leave the experience with real tools to utilize moving forward into day to day life as well as in your yoga practice.

The Retreat Theme:

O R E N D A
(n.) A supernatural, divine force within every human being.
Always omnipresent. It empowers people to change the world in a positive, loving way.
It is the energy that effects change in One’s own life.

The Experience

The one month course will be a complete and comprehensive program offering foundational grounding for new students as well as progressive techniques for experienced practitioners. Our goal is for beginner students as well as experienced practitioners to benefit from the retreat, ultimately guiding each practitioner into the heart of their potential. In this regard, the retreat program is designed to harness the full capacity of each participant no matter what level.

Each morning will be devoted to Mysore practice, except for Led class on designated days, beginning with seated meditation and silence. Beginner students will be well taken care of especially in the early stages of the retreat to garner greater confidence to be self led under the guidance of Laruga and the assistants. For experienced students, all will receive full support in helping strengthen and deepen their existing practice while working through challenging aspects of the sequences.

The majority of the afternoon workshops will be split into two groups to give more attention to the various experience levels. Level One will be for beginners up to Primary Series practitioners and Level Two will be for those who have started Intermediate Series and/or above.

We aspire to create an environment that feels supportive through every step of the way, garnering a greater sense of renewal, growth and expansion within the one month program and of course for those who participate for two weeks

Veda Recitation with Sophie French

This will be a new class added for this season we are excited about!

The Vedas are a vast collection of spiritual texts that originated in ancient India and contain prayers, hymns and mantras in the form of mystical poetry in Vedic Sanskrit.  These mantras are considered sacred without authorship as Ṛṣi-s or sages did not say that they composed them, but rather that they were ‘heard’ in deep states of meditation. The Vedas, meaning ‘knowledge,’ are considered the source texts for Yoga, Vedānta, the Bhagavad Gīta and several other important practices and philosophies from India. The Vedas have been preserved for millennia through oral tradition by teachers passing on knowledge to students through recitation. This process of learning by repeating after a teacher is called Adhyayanam.

Materials

  • Have a blank journal or notebook and writing utensil on hand (Journal prompts are given during the chanting, meditation and philosophy classes)
  • Please pack an all white outfit for the closing ceremony

Suggested Reading

Inside the Yoga Sutras
Jaganath Carrera

Beyond Illusion
Dr. David R. Hawkins, M.D., P.h.D

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
Chip Hartranft

The Mind Illuminated
John Yates, Ph.D.

The Art of Possibility
Rosamund Stone Zander & Benjamin Zander

Permission to Feel
Marc Brackett, Ph.D.

Program Schedule

Please Note: Some aspects to the schedule may be subject to change. However, that will be communicated ahead of time if adjustments are made. Also, if there are questions in terms of what group to be in, feel free to get feed back from Laruga or the other assistants. However, if we feel you are in the wrong group, depending on experience, we will make the change for you. Understand the set up is for everyone to have the best learning experience possible. You will not be missing out on anything when placed in a certain group as we will be covering extensive information conducive to each person both in the workshops and in the morning Mysore practices. Also, always feel free to ask questions at all times during our sessions to receive as much clarification as needed to absorb the material.

Timetable

  • Mysore Practice
    7:00     Experienced
    8:00 New Beginners
  • Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy Discourse
    10:45 (Monday – Friday)
  • Veda Recitation Class
    10:45     (Sunday)
  • Workshops – Single Workshop Days:
    15:30 (2.5 hours)
    Level One: For those practicing within Primary series
    Level Two: For those practicing Intermediate series and/or above.
  • Workshops – Split Days:
    15:00 Level One (1.5 hours)
    16:30 Level Two (1.5 hours)

Week One

Saturday 30 January
Check-in
Welcome Meeting

Sunday 31 January
Morning Practice: Led Primary (All Levels)
Veda Recitation Class
Workshop
• Ashtanga Yoga Illuminated: exploring the journey internally and how it transforms our experience to the outer world as well as an in-depth look at understanding and deepening the core components of the practice. (All Levels)

Monday 1 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Ashtanga Foundations
• Level Two: Ashtanga Refinement and Transitions

Tuesday 2 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy

Wednesday 3 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Primary Series in Depth (Part 1)

Thursday 4 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level Two: Intermediate Series in Depth (Part 1)

Friday 5 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)

Saturday 6 February
OFF (Take Rest)

Week Two

Sunday 7 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Veda Recitation Class
Workshop
• Level One: Primary Series in Depth (Part 2)
• Level Two: Intermediate Series in Depth (Part 2)

Monday 8 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Primary Series in Depth (Part 3)
• Level Two: Intermediate Series in Depth (Part 3)

Tuesday 9 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy

Wednesday 10 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Backhanding with Ease

Thursday 11 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level Two: Expanding into Backbending

Friday 12 February
Morning Practice: Led Primary (Levels)
*Mid-Month Ceremony*

Saturday 13 February
OFF (Take Rest)

Week Three

Sunday 14 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Veda Recitation Class
Workshop
• Yoga and Therapeutic Approaches: How to navigate and heal injury and rebuild from a place of sensitivity. As well as turning weak points into strengths so they avoid becoming greater issues later down the line. This will be an informative workshop. Be prepared to take notes. (All Levels)

Monday 15 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Awakening the Core: Breath, Bandhas & More
• Level Two: Core Integrity: Refining Core Connections for Transitions

Tuesday 16 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy

Wednesday 17 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Exploring Gateway Poses of Ashtanga

Thursday 18 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level Two: Core Poses of Intermediate & Advanced A

Friday 19 February
Morning Practice: Led Primary Series (All Levels)

Saturday 20 February
OFF (Take Rest)

Week Four

Sunday 21 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Veda Recitation Class
Workshop
• Level One: Arm Balance Awareness & Strength Building
• Level Two: Arm Balance Refinement & Technique

Monday 22 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Steps into Inversions
• Level Two: Inversion Progressions

Tuesday 23 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy

Wednesday 24 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level One: Strategies for Staying Motivated

Thursday 25 February
Morning Practice: Mysore Class (All Levels)
Chanting, Meditation & Philosophy
Workshop
• Level Two: Perspective & Practice

Friday 26 February
Morning Practice: Led Primary Series (All Levels)
*CLOSING CEREMONY*

Saturday 27 February
Goodbyes & Check-out

 

About The Teacher

Laruga Glaser has been practicing Ashtanga yoga continuously for over 30 years.  Starting at the beginning of her 20s, she was immediately drawn to the practice after working with other forms of yoga years prior.  After establishing a committed practice she then deepened her studies traveling to Mysore, India annually to practice at KPJAYI where the late Sri K. Pattabhi Jois taught and his grandson, R. Sharath Jois taught before his untimely passing in 2024.  Laruga has made more than 20 trips to Mysore and is on a mission to continue to learn and grow as a student as well as a teacher.  She is one of the few in the world who have been given the distinction of being certified to teach up to Advanced B, directly from R. Sharath Jois himself, which is not easily given and takes many years to earn.  In this regard, she honors where the source of the practice comes from, continuing to respect and give high regard to the lineage we are blessed to experience from this transformative method.  Through it all, Laruga teaches as an act of deep sharing and love for what yoga develops in each individual, facilitating space to open, challenge, and inspire those to realize their inherent potential, and has been personally invited all over the world to do so.

Booking Information

Please read the Terms & Conditions before booking a retreat.

Accommodation Options

Take a look at our accommodation options: