Camp Diary

The routine at the yoga camp is gruelling. I wake up at an unearthly 4.30 am and have a hot water bath. The water is heated using solar power. Next I have Asanas and Om Meditation. Meditation is particularly tough, but I am gaining new ground in the Asanas classes. My body has become flexible in the three weeks I have been here. I have also lost weight, which I am putting back on. Well, almost. But most people who are gonna see me after the camp are going to notice the difference. We have Gita chanting and lecture classes next. Through the day, we have cyclic meditation, pranayama, special techinques - asanas meant to focus on the individual rather than a group, and a hundred different things. We also do kriyas - cleansing techniques - though not in a big way.

I bought a few books at the store today. Among them is a diary by a pilgrim who went on a trip to Mount Kailash. Looks promising....

This place is teeming with people from the North East. I have made friends with people from different countries. A girl from Kenya. Another from SA and Holland. But most are kannadigas, who seem more amiable than even Tamils. On Thursday, we are staging a skit. It is to be based on miscommunication through the use of too many languages, an apt topic for a camp like this.

A bitch - the animal kind - in the camp has given birth to six pups. It's fun to watch them. They were sleeping till last week, but have become active now and often play with each other.

There is a tower on the one end of the camp from where we can see the sunset and sunrise. On the other end, there is a huge statue of Vivekananda, the patron saint of the camp. There is a hour called in camp parlance as 'tuning to nature'. I spend most of my time in the two ends of the camp. I hate the classes anyway. I love the serenity though.

There is no spell check on the program I am using to type this blog. So if there are any spelling errors, don't blame me.