After our second service day, the group decided to go on one of the Retreat events which was a Yoga Pilgrimmage to a Hidden Hindu Temple. It is Hidden because it is not on the Ankgor Temple map so it is not known to tourists. We took out yoga mats and some food and yet again headed out on some Tuk Tuks to the temple. We started with a water blessing from some Monks which was an experience to remember. We had an assigned seating position with one leg bent in and one out which was a relief to me as I was certainly tired of meditation seating so was happy I could bend my bad knee backwards for once! The monks then started chanting harmoniously, wishing us good luck, safe travel and a long life. The middle monk had a branch that he dipped in a bowl of water and would flick it at us during the chanting. We gave an offering to the monks in exchange for the blessing of which the content almost made me laugh during the moment. Luckily I held it in though I mean a bottle of water, $20,000 riel which amounts to $5 USD , and an energy drink. The energy drink I what got me as I would have thought they had meditated enough to have endless energy.
After the blessing, one monk kept chatting while the other two packed up and looked very ready to go. Through a translator and our yoga leader, we found out that the monks said they aren’t as young as us so they need the energy and the two were impatient to leave because lunch was coming up soon. Apparently they eat in the morning and then again at 11am and then not again for the rest of the day. The chatty one always makes the others wait to talk more and they always just want to eat before fasting.
Token Google monk shot since I have no pics
The hidden temple was a very old Hindu Temple, older than Angkor Wat and definitely in shambles. Some of the etchings could still be seen and considering the age of it (think 11th century), that was impressive.
We did a short yoga class out in the woods and then did a meditation laying down (woohoo – this kind I can totally get into!). The trees were unbelievable, just crazy tall trees with so much green throughout. We were supposed to have our eyes closed during the meditation but I couldn’t do it. The wind was blowing lightly and it was just so beautiful lying underneath them to not be watching.
Another piece of the day was an eye gazing exercise which I didn’t understand what that meant at first. Needless to say it was another one of my nightmare experiences. Essentially we spent 20 min and you would find a partner and stare at them until you “feel that the moment is complete” (total yogi speak there). I am not sure when it started but I have never been comfortable with direct eye contact for long periods of time so enter a fear I didn’t know I had. Ironically I have almost 0 physical fears but give me a group of people where I have to stare at them and I want to run barefoot back to the retreat center. I guess I feel like if I look at someone too long, they will figure out the real me and not like what they see. Overall this was a great exercise for me to do and something I can continue to work on throughout my life both work and personal. Thanks to Topi, Dan, Cara, Catherine, Jen, Jill, Saye, Molka and anyone else I looked at during this super awkward time for me and holding me to task.
After these moments were over and we had lunch along with the first dessert of the week (gluten free and vegan donuts which were SURPRISINGLY delicious) we had some time to take pictures and wander the temple before heading back to the center for the afternoon.
Part of the afternoon for me was spent doing Yoga Nidra or Restorative Yoga which was another piece I could totally get behind. Wikipedia describes it as "a state of consciousness between waking and sleeping, like the "going-to-sleep" stage. It is a state in which the body is completely relaxed. This state of consciousness (yoga nidra) is different from meditation in which concentration on a single focus is required. In yoga nidra the practitioner remains in a state of light pratyahara with four of her senses internalised, that is, withdrawn, and only the hearing still connects to the instructions. The yogic goal of both paths, deep relaxation (yoga nidra) and meditation are the same, a state called samadhi." I called it sleeping yoga or teaching us how to nap which was again, something I could totally get behind.
