Yoga For Change

A mere six months free from student loans, I was drifting. I kept telling people, "I'm happy to be un-employed. With things as they are, if I had a job, I'd just be afraid to lose it." People laughed. My parents chuckled, then asked sternly how long I was planning to visit.

Backed by a small bit of savings, my options were limitless; the problem with infinite options is having to actually choose one. Be a ski bum and bartend? Okay, fun, but come spring I'm back where I started. Travel the world? Sounds expensive, and of course, wherever you go, there you are. Every path was just a chance for me to be my same old self in a different situation, and so when I really thought about it, each of the obvious options eventually seemed dull, a dead-end, or merely a delay of the inevitable.

Until one day I learned about work-study program at something called a 'yoga farm' in Northern California. I applied for—and was accepted to—a 4-month stint to live as a yogi.

The daily schedule begins with the wake-up bell at 5:30 in the morning. Satsang starts at 6; this consists of silent meditation, call-and-response chanting, and a reading or discussion of some relevant subject. At 8 am, there is a two-hour asana class – a combination of breathing exercises and gentle yoga postures that build and balance the body's energy.

Brunch is at 10, and consists of buffet-style vegetarian cuisine. I had never followed a vegetarian diet before, so this was a point of concern prior to arriving. As it turns out, the food is amazing. I've found myself eating more than I usually would because all the fresh, organic food is so delicious. Also, it seems that by not carrying dead animal flesh around inside me, it is far easier to tune into the divine vibrations.

Karma yoga starts after lunch. This is the yoga of selfless service. Ashram guests are asked to do one hour, generally helping to clean the kitchen, and four hours is expected of work-study students. These jobs range from splitting firewood to working in the office, housekeeping to cooking or clearing blackberry brambles from the riverbed. Whatever the work is, it is done in the spirit of communal service, with the understanding that everyone contributes what they can to keep the ashram running smoothly.

Quite often there is a workshop in the afternoon, and all work-studiers are encouraged to attend as many of these as possible. Since I've been here, there have been special guests presenting on topics including Ayurvedic science, Vedic astrology, the life of Gandhi, dream interpretation/cultivation, compassionate communication, as well as many different aspects of the yoga tradition and lifestyle.

I have been here almost 6 weeks now, and what I've found (or am starting to find), is that sense of purpose I was aching for. I am not in a holding pattern, waiting tables and saving money for some vague future. Instead, I feel as if I'm being purified, learning and living this holistic lifestyle. I feel light. I feel as if, when my time here ends I will return to the world with fresh eyes. Already, I know that my stay at the ashram has led me onto a path from which I will never retreat: a path of self-inquiry and realization, of peace and understanding, and of inexhaustible joy.

That said, I wholeheartedly encourage any reader who feels the need for retreat, or even the slightest pull toward a higher purpose, to give a call or visit for more information. I remember hesitating to apply because of something like intimidation, but we're yogis—of course we're friendly! So if everything seems to be speeding up and breaking loose, the yoga farm is a place where you will find a very steady pace, where we teach the internal tools needed for more conscious, joyful living. Hari Om Tat Sat.

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