Jeremy's Mysore Journey: The Days Begin to Blur

Yesterday was the full moon and today is Friday the 13th! Since it was the full moon yesterday, there was no practice. A group of us went to a nearby town called Bylakuppe. This town has been home to Tibetans since the early 1960s. It is the largest settlement of Tibetans in India outside Dharamshala where His Holiness the Dalai Lama resides and where the Tibetan government in exile maintains its headquarters. It is like a little Tibet in the middle of Karnataka. Bylakuppe is home to numerous Buddhist monasteries and nunneries, as well as temples and institution of higher learning. During our visit, unfortunately, Bylakuppe was prettu much a ghost town. The Dalai Lama is currently in Bodhgaya India for the 2017 Kalachakra convetion, and many of the inhabitants of Bylakuppe had traveled to Bodhgaya for the event. Everything was pristine and extremely colorful. Every surface of every building seemed to be painted with images of lamas, Buddha, dragons, dogs and other mythical beasts. Everywhere you look, your eye is washed with bright reds, greens, yellows, and golds. There is a special monastery/temple called the Namdroling Monastery or the Golden Temple. Inside the temple sit three golden Buddhas that are over 60 feet tall each one. The sight was extremely majestic. There was a smaller Tara temple nearby that was beautiful and serene. We also visited a nunnery with its own temple or worship hall. It was probably my favorite part of the visit. It was small and simple, but it was nonetheless beautiful and peaceful There were lots of friendly dogs at all of our stops. The Tibetans take very good care of these animals. There are lots of street dogs in Mysore as well, but even though they are not as well taken care of as those I saw at Bylakuppe, they all are in much better shape than I had imagined. People feed them and they treat them well. I am sure that there are other parts of Mysore where the street dogs lead much more difficult lives (I am in a fairly affluent part of the town and even the street dogs have it better here), but overall, they seem to be in okay shape. Indian governmental agencies have been proactive about implementing sterilization campaigns and there seem to be a decent number of animal rescues.

We stopped at some dive restaurant on the way to and from Bylakuppe. I was sure that if I were to eat there, I would be afflicted with some kind of horrible stomach bug. It looked like the kind of place that would make a truck stop diner in the middle of Wyoming look like a high-end restaurant. Nevertheless, the idlis and sambhar we ate in the morning were delectable, and we all agreed that the dosas we ate in the afternoon were the best we had eaten since arriving in Mysore.

This morning's yoga practice was fairly uneventful. When Sharath called "one more" and it was my turn to go in, I stood in the doorway looking for the empty spot. Sharath saw that I was somewhat bewildered by not being able to find the spot, and he said "right there." Indeed, the spot was right in front of me, second in from the doorway. He asked, "No coffee this morning?" and chuckled. The spot by the door to the entry hall almost felt like it was air-conditioned. I still was soaking wet by the end of practice, but it was definitely one of the coolest practice spots in the shala. People seem to love or to hate this cool spots. Ashtangis love to be warm and we hate air conditioning! God forbid we have air blowing on us during our practice. It is so funny to see all of us wrapped up in sweaters and scarves and hats even though it is 90 degrees outside. My practice was good this morning; I am trying to take my time and enjoy it. Sharath did my backbending. I was nervous! There was another teacher nearby, but Sharath indicated that he would take care of me. He took me very deep--at least up to my mid-calves. It was effortless with his assistance: he definitely knows what he is doing. Unfortunately, I could not get a good grip and my hands kept slipping down my legs. While helping me, Sharath kept telling me to relax my hands and my shoulders, and to bend my elbows. He said that if I were to bend my elbows, I would not slip. I am having a difficult time understanding how I could grab my ankles/calves without having my elbows bent. I need to pay more attention the next time.

There are quite a few people during my time doing second series. I was shocked to discover that Sharath moves people on from pasasana even if they cannot get their heels down. Those of you who know me well, understand that I would rather walk on my lips than say something critical or mean-spirited about someone. Maybe this is just ego and envy fueling my words, but I have observed some ugly second series practices in the shala these past few days. I have seen lots of struggle on the mats around me. I think that I have just been spoiled by the grace and elegance of our Atlanta ashtangazelles who are practicing second series with elegance and poise. At the same time, however, there are some people with devastatingly beautiful practices here--people for whom gravity seems to be just a mere afterthought. Aesthetics aside, I have fully come to believe in the inherent beauty and intelligence in the ashtanga practice. It just has such a poetic flow; it makes sense on some deeper level. I know that we are doing more on our mats than just contorting our bodies and sweating.