With the upcoming Yoga Institute Yoga Teacher Training, I have been talking to a few yogis on the farm about what called them to the practice, and what about the farm container made their training so powerful.
Our super sweet rockstar brother Brannon (not pictured above, that’s just a really nice shot) is one of those yogis I spoke with. Once a stage musician head smashing to my favorite screamo bands, Brannon rocks a very different vibe these days (complete with purple dragonfly sunníes if you catch him on the right day). I was curious how someone I may have once elbowed in a mosh pit ended up choosing the yogic path, so we sat down and he explained his experience as a yogi-in-training here at the Mystical Yoga Farm.
“I knew yoga was important for me, but I wasn’t doing it at all. Then at one point I stopped traveling and found myself at home for 7 months and I began to really appreciate the practice. It became something I really wanted to do, to deepen my connection, but I didn’t feel fully ready. Then I saw the Yoga Teacher Training here at the farm and I just decided now is the time.
It brought me so many benefits. It’s made me so aware of my body, any stiffness I’m holding and what comes up emotionally when I push into that. It taught me to really listen to my body. I now notice where I tense up when I don’t do my daily practice and I can be curious. I’ll tear up sometimes during a stretch and I know it’s helping me to feel everything in my body and not bypass it. Instead of running away, the training taught me to work with my body to have more awareness in my whole life. To allow life to flow easier.
The container at the farm was special because it has a very shamanic approach: we learned about the four directions of the Mayan tradition and the animal spirits connected to them. I loved this bridging of two worlds, linking Yogic tradition to sacred animals and Mayan mythology. The farm is also a WiFi-free space, we’re remote, so we really had this opportunity to connect to ourselves deeply. This kind of deep personal growth is so much more powerful in a space that’s grounded and without distraction. You step out of class and jump in the lake, exploring this beautiful natural environment with a new awareness.
The instructors, Flavia and Mandy, were amazing at what they did and each had their own unique energy. They brought together different perspectives, being bright and cheery and also structured and peaceful. They worked together to hold the space in a balanced way, and were incredibly helpful and caring. There were only two men in the class this time, myself and another brother, and they included us and offered guidance and adaptations for male bodies specifically. It was really nice to have that level of care so we were feeling really included and able to adjust our practice.
If you feel called to connect more to your body or you feel called to expand into yourself in a deeper way, to uncover what you haven’t yet recognized in yourself, then I would come here and do the training. I know for myself it was a matter of knowing I am meant to do this, to learn my unique flow, to learn about my body and what it holds. So much came up and having the discipline combined with this safe container at the farm was so helpful. When you focus and take your time exploring in a quiet place like this, you start to really feel the bliss. More flow, more ease. It’s a training for exactly this: to help your body feel better in your experience of life, to have the patience to overcome your ego.