What I would suggest is to take one week off every year for yourself, like you take your car for servicing. During that time, align yourself with nature, wake up with the sunrise, do some exercise, eat proper food, do some yoga, and some breathing exercises, and keeping silence, enjoying the creation.
Aligning ourselves with nature, our whole system gets recharged.
We feel so vibrant and enthusiastic!!
-His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
ACCOMODATIONS
The accommodations are simple and calming. The separate open-air casitas are spacious with a sitting area and distinctive private bathroom.
Each room has spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean or partial ocean and mountain views in a jungle setting designed to captivate your senses with relaxing pleasure.
The casitas have been hand-built into the jungle mountainsides; built in a vernacular style of the Pacific Coast of Mexico and they are of the finest tropical woods (parota).
All rooms provide a feeling of tranquility and comfort. Electricity is purposely absent in the cabanas to facilitate your inward journey. Candles and kerosene lamps provide soft lighting and unobstructed views of the stars at night.
CUISINE
Enjoy gourmet organic vegetarian ( some seafood ) meals daily, prepared under the artful direction of an internationally trained and Ayurvedic chef.
Ayurveda is the classical healing system of India, and cooking Ayurvedically is incorporating specific herbs and foods for healing and creating balance in your life.
These sumptuous dishes are made from organically grown foods that will cleanse, rejuvenate, nourish and heal your body and mind. All meals are served in the open-air restaurant overlooking the jungle and ocean.
The kitchen nourishes and reflects the inner and outer characteristics of our guests, fusing flavors of the world, and taking into account the texture of the elements that nature offers. Also, the drinking and cooking water is purified for your optimum health.
MASSAGE OFFERINGS BY THE OCEAN
As the perfect complement to your retreat you will have leisure time to completely indulge in a variety of beach side massages, which are cleansing, relaxing, and nourishing.
Each of the therapists has training in a variety of massage therapies. You will meet the staff at the orientation and learn more about the different styles from relaxing Swedish, Thai, and more firm acupressure or sport massage for relieving muscular tension, stimulating circulation, reducing stress, and pain. Massages are at your own expense, and may be scheduled during afternoon free time.
CLASSES
In an open-air palapa with 360 degree views of the ocean , volcanic highlands, and sacred mountains, you will enjoy daily classes in mindful meditation, hatha yoga, yoga for the chakras, pilates, somatic movement, qigong, breathing techniques, energy medicine, mindful fitness hiking, mindful eating, mindful stress reduction, and journaling. All classes are optional and suitable for all levels of fitness.
A Sample Day
This schedule is subject to change
Daily Energy Medicine Routine & Mindful Fitness Walking
6:15 am – 6:45 am
Mindful Meditation & Yoga Practice
6:45 am - 8:15 am
Breakfast
8:30 am - 9:45 am
Dance & Healing
12:00 noon - 1:00 pm
Lunch & Rest
1:15 pm - 5:00 pm
Snacks
3:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Journaling & Mindful Stress Reduction Lecture
5:00 pm 6:30 pm
Dinner
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Mindful Walking Meditation
8:30 pm - 8:45 pm
CLASS DESCRIPTIONS
MINDFUL MEDITATION
This form of meditation focuses on the breath and non-judging awareness, and allowing thoughts and feelings to come and go without getting entrapped in them. This peaceful, relaxed, spacious awareness keeps you in the present moment.
Benefits of Mindful Meditation:
HATHA YOGA
Hatha yoga is a system designed to transform negative habits of self limitation, to our highest creative potential of spirit. We will practice universal morality (yamas), personal observances (niyama), physical postures (asanas), breathing techniques (pranayama), withdrawing of the senses (pratyahara), concentration and cultivation of inner awareness (dharana), devotion and meditation on the divine (dhyana), and union with the divine (samadhi) to strengthen, open, and cleanse the body for the practice of higher consciousness. Hatha yoga is suitable for people of all ages and encourages students to feel balance within.
Benefits of Hatha Yoga:
• Awakens Body Awareness
• Alleviate Pain from Chronic Illness and Emotional Disorders
• Greater Endurance and Flexibility of the Back, Hip & Spine
• Develops Strength & Concentration
• Maintains your Natural Body Weight
• Rid Yourself of Toxins & Stress
• Strengthens & Balances all the Systems of the Body
• Energize Every Cell of the Body
YOGA for the CHAKRAS
Chakras are spiritual energy centers in the body. There are seven major chakras located in front of the spine. Each chakra receives, assimilates, and radiates the life force energy that is essential to the good health of specific organs, emotions, psychological and physiological areas of your life.
A chakra may become blocked or unbalanced and cause disorders in all areas of your life. It is important to keep this life force energy aligned and balanced. Specific yoga postures and meditation helps us to get these energies in balance, influencing our health and greater awareness of our spirituality.
Benefits of Yoga for the Chakras:
• Bringing the Body and Mind into Balance
• Grounding your Energies
• Balanced Sexual and Creative Energies
• Strong Digestive System
• Increase Depth & Health of your Relationships
• Confidence in the Ability to Express One’s Self
• Greater Vitality & Personal Growth
• Increased Self Awareness
• Ability to Realize One’s Full Potential
PILATES MAT WORKOUT
Pilates is one of the fastest growing exercise techniques in the world that uses controlled movements to improve strength, flexibility, posture and coordination.
Pilates exercises also teach awareness of breath and alignment of the spine, and strengthen the back and abdominal muscles, which are important to help alleviate and prevent back pain. It works great for people of all fitness levels and ages.
Benefits of Pilates:
• Gain Long Lean Muscles and Flexibility
• Develop a Strong Core (Abdominals and Back)
• Improve Circulation
• Develop Coordination, Increased Posture & Balance
• Achieve Positive Body Awareness
• Improve Lung Capacity with Deep Breathing
SOMATIC MOVEMENT
A movement awareness class using gentle movements to release the body of habitual reflex patterns that cause increased tension and pain.
As we age, our bodies become compromised from different stresses, injuries, and traumas which have caused us to become stiff, sore, or weak, thus hindering our capabilities to have normal functional movement. Learn core movement patterns to relax contracted muscles and improve your health and wellness.
Benefits of Somatic Movement:
• Conscious Control & Awareness of your Body
• Increased Range of Motion
• Feel More Integrated and Wholesome
• More Calm & Ease Within your Body
• Better Management of the Stresses & Strains of Daily Living
• Easy Flow of breath
QIGONG
Qigong is an ancient healing art form from China that uses graceful movements and breathing techniques to activate the life force energy (Qi) in your body. Increasing the flow of this energy helps us to achieve and maintain good health.
Benefits of Qigong:
• Stress Reduction & Tension
• Increase Your Health
• Prevention of Illness
• Integration of Mind – Body – Spirit
• Improves Posture, Balance, Strength, Stamina, & Flexibility
• Clear & Tranquil Mind
• Increase Your Energy
• Improved Metabolism
• Relieves Chronic Pain
• Optimistic & Joyous Attitude
ENERGY MEDICINE
Energy Medicine is a self healing and complementary healing system based on Traditional Chinese Medicine promoting healing throughout the body by restoring energies that have become weak, disturbed, or out of balance.
This disruption in the energetic system is the cause of dis-ease. Balance and harmony can be restored safely and effectively by massaging, thumping, tracing, or doing exercises that target specific areas of the body.
Benefits of Energy Medicine:
• Stimulate the Immune System
• Release Toxic Energies & Stress
• Relieve Pain & Illnesses
• Sharpen Your Mind & Memory
• Balance Energies Necessary for Coordination, Healing & Vitality
• Protect Yourself from Negative Energies
• Enhance your Ability to Learn
• Calm Inner Chaos
• Feel Confident & Positive About Yourself
MINDFUL FITNESS HIKING
Start each morning with a silent mindfulness hike of our sacred land, and pristine sandy beach as you open your senses to the delight of the earth beneath your feet.
We will walk in nature with complete awareness, full attention on each step in rhythm with our breath. This will facilitate a quite mind, and deepen connection to ourselves and our surroundings, bringing peace and healing.
Benefits of Mindful Fitness Hikes:
• Heightened Awareness of Each Step
• Refreshed & Rejuvenated
• Grounding your Energies
• Open to the Healing Power of Nature
• Acceptance & Letting Go
• Promotes Deep Listening
• Increased Fitness Performance
MINDFUL EATING
Mindful eating is savoring every mouthful, and being fully conscious of what you are eating, how you are eating, and expressing gratitude for the food. In our fast paced culture we tend to multi task while eating, whether watching T.V., driving or working.
This will help to build awareness so that we can enjoy the experience of eating. There have been several studies showing that eating without awareness can have negative effects on our health. So it’s important that we are fully tuned in to the moment of eating so that our digestive processes can work optimally.
Benefits of Eating Mindfully:
• Increased Awareness
• Less Gas & Bloating
• Less Overeating
• Healthy Digestive System
MINDFUL STRESS REDUCTION
Mindful stress reduction is a powerful practice with proven benefits of reducing stress and suffering. You will learn the most beneficial tools to effectively manage pain and stress, and increase energy, vitality and joy.
Everyone experiences stress, and trying to avoid or escape stress will create more suffering in the mind and body. Acknowledging things as the way they are is the first step to cultivating mindfulness and improving the quality of one’s life.
Benefits of Mindful Stress Reduction:
• Decrease in Stress & Tension
• Substantial Decrease in Anxiety & Depression
• Effective Coping Skills
• Increased Health & Vitality
• Improved Immune System
• Improved Concentration .
• Development of Gratitude for Every Moment
• Enjoy the World more Fully, Effectively & Peacefully
JOURNALING
Experience the use of journaling as a stress management tool for exploring thoughts and feelings in one’s life. You will also learn the importance of a gratitude journal; seeing the beauty in each day as you experience the day with full attention. Scientific research has shown these benefits from journaling.
Benefits of Journaling:
• Decrease in Serious Health Conditions
• Improves Cognitive Functioning
• Balances the Negative Effects of Stress
• Improves Mental & Emotional Health
• Vital Healing & Personal Growth
IMPORTANT NOTICE The explanations and benefits identified here are not intended in any way as a substitute for qualified medical advice. Please consult your physician prior to beginning these exercises and for any health problems or concerns.