Excuse me, while I kiss the sky...

Here be our host of teachers for the Summer of Love. Have a look at the teachers and the descriptions of their offerings in their own words. Please get in touch with us if you have any questions or to register.

email peace@shantihouse.ca or phone 250-335-9141

Tomas Hicks

Week 1, August 2 - 6

Tomas was trained in Classical Ashtanga Yoga at Langara College and in Rishikesh India, as well as in Restorative Yoga in Vancouver with Evelyn Neaman. He is an experienced Vipassana Meditator and Mantra Singer. In the Spring of 2009 he founded UrbanAshram.ca to develop sacred spaces within the urban setting in Vancouver. 

Yoga is about falling in love, here and now, not in 2012 or some other fabled future date. As Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., stated, "Peace is not merely a distant goal we wish to achieve, it is a means of achieving that goal." So it is with Love. If we wish Love now, we must Love now, as it is, not as we wish it to be. Love is unconditional. MLK called Love, "creative, redemptive good will for all," and it must be cultivated from within during the Yoga practice for it to flow freely and joyfully from us to all beings.

In Yoga we cultivate Love by practicing Ahimsa, non-violence, and Satya, truthfulness for our bodies and minds; these were the two main tenants of Gandhi’s liberation of India and the first and essential steps in Classical Yoga. If Gandhi can free an entire nation from external rule, so to can we liberate ourselves. Ahimsa, according to Baba Hari Dass, is "the broadest and most profound practice of Yoga."

Our body is the vehicle for our lives. How we treat our sacred vehicle is a reflection of our practice of Ahimsa and Satya. We will use Asana practice as our training ground for love. Can you Love yourself in each pose that you do? Breathing deeply and fully? Experiencing Satya clearly and lovingly? This is our Yoga Practice!

In addition we will use various meditative techniques, Restorative Yoga and devotional practices such as Kirtan Mantra singing; with particular attention to the Gayatri Mantra, which urges us to light our own lights and radiate out that Love like the Sun and its Rays.

Lets fall in Love at Shanti House this Summer!

This week is suitable for all levels of practitioner. We will have a strong focus on anatomy and alignment for proper asana and meditation practice, and will learn to release tension from the body using different asanas and pranayams.
 

Laura Busheikin

week 2, August 9 - 13

Laura has been practicing yoga for almost 20 years with major influences coming from Iyengar Yoga and the teachings of Sandra Sammartino, mixed in with Tantric philosophy and meditation from Sally Kempton, with bits and pieces from Kripalu, Anusara, Viniyoga, Swami Radha, Vanda Scaravelli, power yoga, dance,  and earth-based spiritual traditions thrown in for good measure.

YOGA MEANS UNION

What did the yogi say to the hot dog vendor?
"Make me one with everything!"

Yoga means union– union of spirit and matter, especially as manifested in our bodies; union with the earth and her many qualities; union with other beings, and, ultimately, union with the all-loving divine awareness that permeates existence.

Wow – what could be better?

During this retreat we will use the techniques of yoga to create a felt experience of union. Our asana practice will focus on balancing the dualities that tend to show up in a physical practice: effort and surrender, strength and softness, intention and being-in-the-now, turning in and turning out. How can our asana practice activate our sense of union? How can our sense of union activate our asana practice?

As well, we will practice daily meditation and pranayama to take us to our still centre and beyond; we will have inquiries and challenges to take out of the studio into your day; and we’ll have wonderful discussions about yoga philosophy (referencing especially Kashmiri Tantra).

We’ll practice in a spirit of reverence, curiosity and wonder as we contemplate the literally mind-blowing reality that we are "one with everything" – and that "everything" is permeated with love.

All experience levels, all body types, all yogic inclinations are welcome.
 

Holly Blazina

week 3, August 16 - 20

Holly completed the 600-hour teacher-training program through the Yoga Centre of Calgary in 2003. The material she teaches is a synthesis of her studies and her ongoing quest for mastery over the creative and physical challenges of composing and performing flamenco guitar. Her philosophy of teaching is to empower practitioners by guiding them to gain awareness of their body-mind and connect to their own deep wisdom.

Yoga and Creativity

Creative people know what it means to be "in the zone" - it's that Happy Place we find in the midst of our chosen creative medium. In the Yoga system this Happy Place is known as "bliss," and it's one of the steps on the path to enlightenment. The Yoga teachings are designed to help us cultivate and maintain a blissful state of mind. The ancient Yogis said that it's hard to sustain a blissful experience if the body, mind and breath are not balanced. By using Yogic techniques to relax and balance these three areas, we gain access our deeper mind and the bliss state with increasing ease.
 
In this week of the Summer of Love, Holly will incorporate asana, breath, mantras, chanting, meditation, Ayurvedic principles and Yoga philosophy. Participants will: 

* Discover where balance is needed
* Learn rebalancing tools
* Experience what the Zone feels like
* Learn the principles behind getting into and staying in the Zone
* Learn simple tools for accessing the Zone quickly and effectively 
 

Sophie A. Duphresne

week 4, August 23 - 27

Sophie AD says....
On my mat, it's all about me... in the present moment, reflecting back to the world my past, preparing for my future. Off my mat, it's still all about me... but with a deep appreciation of those around me... all connected to a larger, universal vibration. That's how I teach... I go inside. I find my beat. I feel it first. I practice, practice, practice, until I can bring it to life for my students. I feel lucky, blessed, privileged and grateful to be a Yoga Teacher. I take the gifts of my practice, find ways to turn them into real life... I look for ways to make my students' experiences just as tangible. I turned to Yoga to find myself - the one I am meant to be - and on the way, I found love, peace, strength, happiness, courage and the wisdom to pass it on.

Yoga Stories
Once upon a time, a matted-haired Yogi emerged from a dark mountainous cave, having spent a thousand years in deep meditation, and gave the world the gift of Yoga. Through the oral traditions of storytelling, Yoga has been thriving for generations. Come listen to some of my favourite tales, inspired by classical Hindu myth. Learn the story behind some of the most well-known yoga postures, and apply that historic link to your experience on the mat. We will share a daily asana practice, daily meditation and pranayama, as well as discussion about Ayurveda, yoga philosophy and history. Students will be invited to journal their thoughts as part of our time together and participate in group activities to unfold their own Yoga Stories.

Come play with me this summer on Denman Island – tell me your story… discover your truth… and fall in love with yourself.