Week 3 in Sivananda Ashram in India

Three weeks in an Indian Ashram, a mild vegetarian diet of two meals, 4 hours of yoga a day, six hours of sitting on the floor cross-legged trying to meditate and absorb what yoga is about, and keeping up with 20- and 30-somethings feels good. One more week, and I might be certified to teach, on paper anyway. It takes years of training, and there's still more to learn. It's kind of like sailing in that respect. There is so much more to yoga than most people realize. It's a deep spiritual practice, and here in southwestern India we're learning about Hinduism and the Bhagavad Gita. I don't know what's real or unreal anymore. I do know that I've got a lot to learn, and study to be a better person and figure out my purpose in this world. There are about 300 people in the ashram, and 250 are taking the teacher training program. I bet we have about 15 languages here. It's worldwide. Just in my small section of the dorm we have people from Mexico, Scotland, Sri Lanka, India, Japan and England. There are more than 70 from Japan. Many translators.

We all are told to relax, but the schedule is grueling. 6am morning meditation, 8am yoga class, 10am brunch, noon Bhagavad Gita class, 2pm main lecture, 4pm yoga class, 6pm dinner, 8pm mediation. Somewhere along the line we have to do homework, laundry, and sleep. I'm into the routine now, so as long as my brain still works, I'll do fine. We're to rid ourselves of our physical desires, but I sure wish I had my yoga attire. We were told not to wear any tight fitting clothes, and we must cover our shoulders, so were given "uniforms" to wear. A yellow tee shirt and white pants. They are loose pants, but they do get in the way when doing 40 sun salutations. Did I mention it's hot here? We're supposed to blank out our mind when we meditate, but thinking about a cool underwater environment, i.e. the Maldives, is probably going to interfere with my meditation for the last few days here. Until then, it's study, study, study so I pass my written exam.