Yoga article from one of our clients

Last year a doctor from New Zealand was staying with us on a yoga retreat, she wrote this for a magazine and it is about to be published. I hope you enjoy her article. The Yoga Retreat There are two ghosts at Chateau La Peroterrie- Brother Oliver, (B.O. for short!)- an 11th century monk who is morose and smells of tobacco, and a Protestant lady who is buried out in the back yard. An agreement has been reached whereby the lady will keep Brother Oliver under control, in exchange for her privileged burial spot. These days the ghosts are quiet and well-behaved, according to John Lamb, the chateau’s owner. “They don’t bother the guests, nor do they interfere with the chateau’s healing atmosphere.” All the same I notice several tiny plaster cherubs nestling in the rafters, and a benign statue of the Buddha in an alcove, as if to ward off unwelcome appearances. If ever there was a perfect place for a week of yoga- this is it. The beautifully restored chateau is in the region of Lot&Garonne, about 35 Kms south west of Bergerac, in the province of Aquitaine, south west France. British-based Marc Woolford, master of the Scaravelli yoga tradition, comes here once a year to teach this gentle form of the ancient practice. We spend a lot of time preparing ourselves for working towards the postures. There is no stretching or forcing. We feel our way into our bones, supported by the earth and by our breath, and we extend gently towards the sky. When our spines are released we grow taller and lighter, better able to enjoy life to the full. There is no place here for self-deprivation or asceticism. Suits me! Vanda Scaravelli was a student of B.K.S. Iyengar. In her later years she developed her own approach of which she said “You will be amazed to discover that, if you are kind to your body, it will respond in an incredible way.” A great example of the benefits of yoga, Italian born artist and musician Scaravelli taught yoga for more than twenty-five years until her death at the age of ninety-one. The course has been facilitated here for the last four years by Laraine Bridges, herself a yoga teacher in nearby Casteljaloux. Laraine loves the Scaravelli approach and looks forward to the annual retreats which attract people from a wide range of backgrounds and yoga abilities. All are welcome. John’s wife Karen provides gourmet meals and offers relaxing massages while Laraine’s husband Robert teaches Art and French in the afternoon breaks. The chateau is surrounded by fields and forests, and is within easy walking distance of the medieval village of Duras. My sister Jo and I are spending a week at La Peroterrie along with ten other yoga enthusiasts. We’re celebrating Jo’s 60th and our enjoyment of yoga in spite of the ravaging forces of time and gravity. We’re in the heart of wine-producing country and wine-tasting is one of the optional activities along with swimming in the chateau pool and telling ghost stories round the camp fire with owls hooting eerily in the forest. Over the week we learn that the body is primarily a breathing organ, and that we have a spare set of lungs in our buttocks (metaphorically speaking). We sink into the earth and learn to trust our weight to it, while our spines release and lengthen. It feels good. The charismatic Marc helps adjust us so that we can experience some different physical possibilities and the effects are dramatic. We are encouraged to relax, tune in and understand ourselves better. Marc speaks of “cracking open the heart” and enabling a healing transformation in the body’s cells. We observe each other’s faces softening and glowing with a sense of well-being. Marc’s constant companion is Skeleton Man, a plastic model of the skull and spine, who helps illustrate the nuances of various movements and postures. Talking of skeletons, at the end of the retreat, the icing on our cake is a trip to The Valley of Man in the nearby Dordogne region where we visit the 17,000 year old cave paintings and engravings at Lascaux and Ruffingac, attributed to Cro-Magnon Man. It’s eerie in the Ruffingac cave, and because the paintings are so far underground a small railway line has been built to get the tour groups down there. Our Ancestors were sophisticated and determined artists with a keen knowledge of their animal subjects. They would have worked by the light of small tallow lamps in these dark caves and tunnels- a feat even by modern standards. Our week of bliss passes all too quickly and it’s time to return to the ‘real’ world. Fortunately or unfortunately the ghosts of La Peroterrie do not put in an appearance for us, but we are haunted by the memories of good company, great yoga and delicious food in a fabulous setting. You can find out more about the yoga retreats atwww.theyogaretreatinfrance.com Dr. Marion A. Taylor, Medical Director, Hospice Wanganui Yoga Retreat in France www.theyogaretreatinfrance.com Join us for a week of yoga at the beautiful Chateau La Perroterie, France with Marc Woolford, one of... View Post on Facebook · Edit Email Settings · Reply to this email to add a comment.