Pranayama Session at Matagiri, USA

 This post needs to begin with my impressions of Matagiri.
 Matagiri is a spiritual center dedicated to Sri Aurobindo and the Mother’s vision. It located in Wittenberg, Mt. Tremper, NY very close to the picturesque Woodstock, where more than half a million people came together - united in a message of peace, openness and cultural expression.  Seeing the alignment with Human Unity, I was excited going there.  The drive was very picturesque and enjoyable. The scenery kept getting better and better as we approached Matagiri. Matagiri itself is something indescribable.  So sylvan,  so simple,  so rustic and down to earth,  so naturally beautiful and serene. I felt a kind of peace and tranquility here that I have rarely experienced.

 Julian welcomed us very warmly and introduced Wendy and Eric. Eric is the co-founder of Matagiri along with Sam and what a privilege it is to meet the founder of such a place! He shared some of the history leading to setting up of Matagiri and Mother’s direct blessing and guidance right from the inception. I think being blessed is the source of the serenity.  Wendy gave us a delicious lunch and it was a pleasant surprise that she gave us such tasty dal (lentils cooked Indian style) and rice. After lunch, Julian took us around showed us around. The highlight is the mediation centre which appeared to me as the epicenter of peace and serenity.
Now something about how the event happened. Julian  attended the Pranayama workshop in February. We had breakfast together and my planned trip to NJ in April came up in the conversation. Julian is one of the Trustees of Matagiri  and invited me to Matagiri and I was more than eager to offer a workshop! What a blessing it is to offer a workshop at a Sri Aurobindo Center in USA! He suggested 22nd April as Matagiri was celebrating Darshan. However, 22nd did not work for us because we booked an early morning flight form NY to Seattle on 23rd. So, it was 21st April.

The event itself was wonderful and the small hall was filled up so much that Julian had to squeeze himself into a corner. This was the first time I did a Pranayama session within short time after lunch and adapted to it by making the exercises shorter duration with less intensity. Julian has been practicing ever since he did the workshop in February and Wendy also joined him in the practice. The event is a kickoff for Julian and Wendy to offer the sessions on a regular basis at Matagiri and I was given the privilege to conduct it.  The event went well and I am fulfilled to learn that the participants liked it and the regular sessions are being offered by Wendy and Julian. This is the message I take form this event: for wider manifestation for good health and wellbeing, we need more Julians and Wendys  to offer follow up sessions.  I seek Her guidance to lead me in finding more Julians and Wendys .
For me one of the unforgettable moments was the very short drizzle of Grace just as we completed the workshop and were moving out. Matagiri looked even more beautiful and Divine.


I am grateful to Julian, Wendy, Eric, Sam and The Mother for the opportunity of experiencing a place like Matagiri.


When we  were leaving, I told Julian that, in future, I will talk to him before arranging my travel plans so that I have the opportunity to be more in this blessed place.

Wellbeing (Pranayama) Workshop at Auroville

This Wellbeing (Pranayama) Workshop at Savitri Bhavan is my 50th Pranayama Workshop. The more I do this workshop and say the instructions and share the benefits, the more the words of The Mother are sinking into me –
“Good health is an outer expression of inner harmony”
 “It is in good health that the path to transformation is found”
I started understanding that take care of our health and being mindful and responsible about our wellbeing is a basic step and integral to all spiritual growth. This is a new perspective for me. When I began offering the workshops in 2008, I did not have this insight.
 I am particularly happy that Mr. Mohan Kurivilla and Mrs Elizabeth came over from Bangalore to   participate in this event!
 During March, my good friend Varadharajan gave me an opportunity to conduct a session on transcending the inner duality as part of a larger event.
I feel grateful and satisfied to be in Auroville,  finding  the purpose of my life and the opportunity to express it.

Stress Management and Good Health & Wellbeing Workshops at IIM, Indore

 I had the opportunity to conduct two workshops (Stress Management and Good Health & Wellbeing) in the 4th trimester of PGP course. IIM Indore now has a batch size of 450 students in the PGP course and I was given the opportunity to repeat the workshops in the 6th trimester. These were scheduled at the very end of the course. In fact, all other subjects were completed and all students left to their homes except those who opted for the workshops. I said to myself “Wow! This is great! These students are really interested and they can give lot of time and attention. It is wonderful”.  It did not turn out to be so. In fact, I was more satisfied with the 4th trimester workshops. May be the workshops can be made more intensive and I need to plan and adopt to this better. Finally, there were some participants who were pulling the workshops to themselves and were doing great. I need to focus on them and not be distracted by other issues. Even if one person is benefited, my mission is being accomplished and that person becomes a seed for propagation of health, happiness and harmony.

Wellbeing (Pranayama) Workshop at Savitribhavan

 The Pranayama workshop in Auroville during the last week of February has special significance for me, being soon after Darshan Day and actually held during the birthday of Auroville (28 Feb). I especially look forward to this time as there is festive atmosphere in Auroville, with so much goodwill and high spirits. I think that this is the Yuletide time of Auroville. The Pranayama (wellbeing) workshop is the foundation of my work and when offered during this week, I feel very happy, grateful and privileged. This year, the venue is Savitri Bhavan and that made it even more wonderful for me. For those of you who don’t know about  Savitri Bhavan, it  is the center dedicated to fostering a living sense of Human Unity through spiritual education based on the vision and teachings of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother . For more details, please see http://www.auroville.org/education/edu_centres/savitribhavan_main.htm
The participation is also normally high during this period because a large number of friends of Auroville visit during this period. This workshop was made even more special for me with the presence and participation of Julian. Julian is a member of the International Advisory Committee of Auroville and I felt very encouraged and happy that he found time to be part of this workshop. It is also great that Ben, an intern from Nantes, France also was part of this workshop because Ben and I started working together on a Knowledge Management Project for Savitri Bhavan.
This is my 49th Pranayama workshop and the next one would be 50th!  Time flies and I feel happier  counting workshops rather than years.
In gratitude to the Mother and Spirit of Auroville,

Stress Management Workshop for GPCL, Chennai

When I agreed to do this workshop in a Power Factory, I was expecting a lot of noise and not an exemplary campus. What I saw was stunning. The campus was just beautiful and given that it is the second largest diesel power plant in the world, the noise was surprisingly low. In fact, when all the doors of the generator room are closed, you hear the water flow form cooling tower. The plant does not consume any water - it purifies sewage water and use it for cooling. The sight of the engines was awesome - biggest engines I ever saw.
The vent was fantastic. The participation was great! The measurable result at the end of the workshop is a stunning 98.8%. Most of the participants have done the Isha Foundation workshop and may be the foundation was very good.
In the excitement , I forgot to take the pictures of this extraordinary event.

Wellbeing workshop

This was a very strange event for me. There was no one , yes no one for the first session. No one.

I felt a huge disappointment  and then let it go. There was some debate about this amongst my friends in Auroville and the general opinion is that people were still grappling with the aftermath of the cyclone.  You can see the picture of my room, the same morning I started the workshop.

Well, the next day a couple of my friends showed up and slowly more people joined. In the end, I enjoyed the event as much as any other event.

It was a good learning experience for me. One of those practical lessons to learn that "It is not over till it is over"

Heal yourself workshop

This is another get together that I had the fortune to attend; with in one month of my college GT. This time it is my Navy Technical Officers Batch of 1970. I have lost touch with most of my class mates but the Navy is a very small and close knit world. And the batch mates are one of the most precious and enduring gifts that I got from the Navy.  We all joined the Navy in July 1970 and went through the trials and tribulations of ragging, adjusting to the service life, wearing uniforms and a vast amount of training - before we could really start breathing as Naval Officers. So, a bond formed more than 40 years ago and the bond became stronger as we worked together, played together, partied together and laughed together. Then, we started getting married and thanks to the wonderful traditions of the Navy, the ladies strengthened the bond and even created new bonds and network connections. So, it is like a strong, well-knit family.
I had the good luck ( and some sense) to suggest a  GT on the occasion of our 40th commissioning anniversary and it was an instant success; thanks to the bonds and the joy of reunion. The annual GT was born out of that unforgettable event and we now recreate such opportunity every year to meet and regale in the joy of getting together with such dear friends.

 This is along introduction to a short workshop that my dear friends asked me to conduct. The venue was the beautiful Vishranti Guest House on top of the hill called Dolphin's Nose, in Vizag. The  view form the hill is just magnificent and you could get lost just looking at the pristine , cobalt blue Bay of Bengal in the glorious sun shine, breathing the ozone charged sea air with which I connected at the biological level of the memory in the cells. The pictures say it all and more.

 So, I was thrilled that my friends gave me this opportunity  to share with them. The opportunity also carried a responsibility with it as Intended to create value for them. After considerable thinking, I chose the topic of self - healing as it could be very beneficial to all my friends who already celebrated their 60th birthday and the ladies are about to so so ( I wont say when, in the best traditions of the Navy).
 This is such a simple, but powerful and magical process that could be beneficial to any one but could be very valuable to people who are above 60 in dealing with  the aches and pains that become part of growing beyond 60.

So, we had this extraordinary event (at least for me) and what a joy it is to share it with my extended family. Not just a joy, it was privilege and moments like this give make me feel so grateful for the opportunity of being the one who shared this with people who are so dear to me.

I look forward to the bigger gift of my friends practicing it and getting benefited.