Silent Day

As part of our yoga teacher training at Sampoorna – Yoga Teacher Training School in India, my group was offered the chance to have a Silent Day as part of the course. Initially, led by an apparent lack of study time, the answer from the group was riddled with panicky ‘no’s. But a few of us were thinking, ‘I bet this is going to be one of the most profound experiences of the whole thing’ and backed the plan. In the end we agreed to go for it and I’m so, so glad we did.

One of the five ‘Niyamas’ or personal practices, in Sage Patanjali’s eight limbs of yoga established 3,000 years ago (ashtanga means eight limbs) is Tapas. It refers to the practice of removing yourself from your comfort zone so you can understand and harness your desires. Fasting, silence, giving up your smart phone – these are all part of the same practice.

We were to have a day where we could not speak to each other, we could not even look at each other, and were not allowed to read anything, listen to music or look at our phones. The wifi would be switched off. The only thing we would be allowed to do is journal the experience. We were free to absorb the nature around us and to reflect internally on ourselves. Continue Reading →

Lisa Edwards is 52 years old and originally from North Wales, where she taught ballet. She is a publisher, writer and now a newly graduated yoga teacher, living in north-west London. You can connect with more stories about her life of solo travel, hiking and yoga (and lots of dogs) on her blog: www.becauseicanblog.com, Facebook page becauseican40, on Instagram @redwoods1, on Twitter @Redwoods1 and LinkedIn lisa-edwards-34991115

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