Week 1 of 200hr Yoga Teacher Training - Self love, morning rituals, sincerity
I just completed the first week out of a three week 200-hour yoga teacher training at Mar de Jade in Mexico. This one week feels like months as I have been growing and getting stronger in ways that I’ve never imagined.
During the last seven days, as my body is getting used to this structure, I’ve been noticing some major shifts in myself. Here are three highlights that have emerged from week one that I’d like to share.
First, accepting and loving myself. We had a new moon intention-setting cacao ceremony on day three, Wednesday, January 13, 2021. As I was refining my intentions for the new moon, I noticed this theme that’s been consistently coming up the past few months which is, “I am already, always perfect.” This does not come from pompousness; it rather comes from being deeply grounded in who I am, knowing both my gifts and shortcomings and accepting all of them as they are. Because I accept myself, I love myself. The internal efforting or fight has minimized noticeably.
Second, building the morning ritual that sustains me. One cool thing about being at a retreat is that because it creates a collective container with clear instruction and structure, it is so much easier to build new habits. The intention of having this morning ritual is to cleanse and honor my body so I can drop in deeper, be healthier, and have more clarity of mind. With that, this is the new ritual that I’ve been doing and I am appreciating it so much that I intend to carry this out after the training:
A couple of other habits that have been wonderful include limiting my technology use (including picture taking) only to an hour a day and walking on the beach after dinner to unwind and get nurtured by Mother Earth. Both helped me create space so I connect with others, nature, and the teachings.
Third, bringing my utmost sincerity no matter what. Every day we have one hour of self-study. I use this time to familiarize myself with Sanskrit.
So perhaps the best way to end my reflection on week one is by sharing a mantra that I learned that touched me deeply: