To all our students of Yoga or Freediving in Bali…

Hi All,

We’re coming up to three years that we started the whole apneista project in Bali and the last year and a half has been really intense. . with lots of new stuff.. starting at what I reckon is probably one of the coolest…

Dark moon freediving…

That’s it, freediving at night..We have now started using the latest in glow in the dark rope ‘technology’. two glowing lines, the liquid darkness and clouds of bio-luminescence. It is an intensely beautiful and surreal experience, something difficult to describe or photograph, like the Northern lights…We have established a whole new protocol for this activity and it is open only to students who have shared some training with us (for obvious safety considerations.)

Freedive trips to nusa penida to Freedive with mantas,

We’re organising group trips to freedive with Mantas and other pelagics on the amazing reefs of Nusa penida, starting in May.

Freediving trips to Komodo and Raja Empat,

We are teaming up with Graham Abbot, one of the most respected specialist dive guides in this incredible area to offer something really special, freediving, yoga and Scuba trips to the Eastern Dive Jewels of Indonesia.

Fly and dive intensive.

From the 7th to the 12th and from the 15th to the 22nd of September Acroyoga and freediving intensives…with the amazing Bex Tyrer, Bali’s queen of acroyoga. This practice is a beautiful hybrid of acrobatics, yoga and Thai massage with one person ‘flying the other’ with another acting as a spotter.. It is the perfect complement to freediving in every way, we are pretty excited about this.

SSI certification.

Another bit of news is that we are now offering SSI certification alongside our own Apneista training system. We will continue to do what we do best, adapting training to suit the individual and expanding our curriculum, but now for those interested in Global certification we now offer SSI training as well. For those who want to get signed off for SSI,we will be running one day SSI assessments during May.

New training space, yoga sala, cafe, equipment shop and more training lines.

On the beautiful bay of Jemeluk we are finally finished with the unending refurbishment and we now have what we firmly believe is the sweetest freediving shop in all of Asia. Chill out area, yoga sala, equipment shop and now a wonderful cafe, right on the beach. We have also set more lines at various depths and are now initiating some reef and beach clean ups, so that Bali’s best freediving spot becomes even better. Please roam the webpage for more details and pics.We are still processing a resource page with interesting research and training material relating to the breath,freediving and yoga, coming soon…

P.S. anyone with 5 minutes to spare and with great things to say about us here’s a link to tripadvisor, your help is sincerely appreciated.

Best in Bali freediving and yoga education…guest teachers and skill swaps…

Freediving in bali

The last while has been plenty of fun with really great students and interesting visitors sharing knowledge of their different fields.

Thanks to the wonderful Lucy of Middle Path Yoga  amongst other things for her excellent class in partner yoga, to the lovely  Ai Futaki who shot great footage and shared her vision with us, (see her Guiness record and her great talk on TED Tokyo about free-diving )  We also had lessons in trance and self hypnosis from Dr Helena. Sharing knowledge and skills keeps life interesting and makes everyone richer. Thanks to everyone for the good times.

For city yogis, practicing Yoga in a beach- side sala to the sound of waves is a sweet luxury. But being able drop into the water right after and swim over deep coral walls is a free-diver’s idea of paradise.

That is Jemaluk bay, in Amed, Bali. We don’t have the extreme depths of Dahab but nor do we have the egos. We have depths to 50 metres to suit beginners and intermediate free-divers and a chilled out atmosphere that is hard to beat.

Here we offer training in most aspects free-diving and yoga education and we are interested in hearing from people who have talents to share such as creative genius with word-press, deep experience in mind/body sciences and experience in setting up a restaurant.

 

Yoga, Pranayama and meditation on the beach in Amed, Bali.

Our new training space is sitting right on the beach in Jemaluk Bay, Amed. Due to it’s deep walls, warm water and lack of currents, not to mention stunning natural beauty, this bay is fast becoming recognised as the best place in Bali for recreational free-diving. But free-diving is only half of what we do here.  In our beach-side Yoga sala we also offer daily classes of Asana  and regular classes of Pranayama and Meditation. Here are some pics taken over the last few days by the wonderful Mr Caine Delacy.

Melasti, in preparation for silence.

In the modern world silence is a luxury, more precious than gold. More than that, it is an experience that for many people is so alien that they even seem to fear it, filling every moment with chatter, TV, facebook and any one of the million media we now have to fill the space between conversations. That is why I love the Balinese holy-day of Nyepi so much.

Nyepi is the day of silence, a day when  the whole island takes a big breath and becomes quiet. Observed from 6 a.m. until 6 a.m. the next morning, Nyepi is a day reserved for self- reflection and meditation, anything that might interfere with that purpose is restricted. The whole island closes down. Even the international airport closes, on an island whose lifeblood is tourism…There are no lighting fires, no working; no entertainment or pleasure; no travelling; and for some, no talking or eating at all.

Even tourists must observe Nyepi; although free to do as they wish inside their hotels, no one is allowed onto the beaches or streets. The only exceptions granted are for emergency vehicles carrying those with life-threatening conditions and women about to give birth. Even Kuta with it’s carnival of touts and taxis becomes an oasis of calm.

The Nyepi day is only one part of a lovely series of rituals that culminates the day after Nyepi in the Balinese New Year, a day when people get together and forgive each other any insults or injuries from the previous year.

 

Lord of Land and Ocean

Today is Melasti. Later, instead of free-diving, we will be joining a 1000 plus people in the village to walk to the beach, in a glorious procession of music and colour to make offerings to Sany yang widi, the supreme deity, Lord of Land and Ocean. This is part of the Balinese path of Yoga, using ritual to achieve union and balance with forces of Nature, in this case, appropriately enough,
this takes place on the beach. Holy water will be taken from the sea and used to bless ceremonial objects. As free-divers, how could we miss it?

 

Timetable for Oceanic Yoga and the breath at Villa Boreh

This special retreat is for people with an interest in the trans-formative power of Yoga and the healing energy of water. It is aimed at people of all levels of physical and yoga ability, including those who are not aquatically inclined.

For both complete beginners and more advanced students alike, the retreat will be a fascinating exploration of the mind and body.

This very special retreat is a journey of self discovery through two related elements, water and air. It’s a journey during which we will re-discover our aquatic heritage and transform our relationship to water, deepening our awareness of our own minds and bodies and the invisible bridge between them, the breath.

The tools for this adventure in self-understanding are the ancient insights of yoga and meditation supplemented by the modern techniques of elite free-divers.

We will practise yoga asana, pranayama and meditation to come into the subtler aspects of the breath and we’ll use the techniques of elite free-divers to harness our aquatic potential. We will focus on developing aquatic comfort, using water as a healing medium. This is not a competitive free-diving course, the free-diving aspect of the retreat is entirely optional.

Asana

Our Asana practice will focus on exploring the qualities of stillness and motion, opening up the channels of the body to move in a more fluid way. In held poses we’ll find the subtle movement even in supposedly static asana. In flowing vinyasa we will explore the inner stillness that comes with breath awareness and Bhandas(psycho-muscular locks .)

Breath

The breath is the bridge between mind and body, the conscious and the unconscious. To develop control over the mind and body first we must understand and control the breath.

Using the know-how of elite free-divers we will also learn how to access the breath in new ways. We will learn about the physiology of the breath and learn how use that to influence the mind and body, along the way transforming our relationship with water.

After tuning into the physical breath we shall explore subtler aspects of the breath, with the use of Asana and meditation we’ll tune into the breath as energy and move towards the healing power of Pranayama, the vast science of Pranic energy cultivation .

Water

We’ll take our fresh understanding of the breath into the healing medium of water. All terrestrial life was born in the ocean, just as we are born in the waters of our mother’s womb. When we understand our latent aquatic ability and learn to be in water it’s with a sense of home-coming or reunion.  It is this sense of inner union that is the essence of yoga. Essentially what we will be practising is a form of oceanic yoga.

The training offered will include;

Daily Asana practice with a focus on fostering a personal practice through self understanding.

Aquatic Meditation in the pools and ocean and dry meditation in the wonderful yoga sala of Villa Boreh

Breath-work; focusing on developing understanding of the respiratory process and using the breath optimally, using it to influence both the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.

Yoga Nidra; this wonderful technique of guided meditation is a very effective way of communicating with the deep unconscious. We will be using it to effect deep emotional release and create inner states of peace.

Mantra meditation; exploration of the deep power of Mantra over the mind and body and in removing emotional blocks.

Theory of Tantra and Chakra system; An exploration of the Chakra system with focus on the second Chakras relationship to water.

Bhandas; we will train in the three principle psycho-energetic locks of Yoga to develop more conscious control over both the muscular and energy patterns of the body.

Pranayama; we will explore the ancient  yogic art of energy cultivation through the breath. This is one very powerful path into subtle awareness, meditation and the art of healing with Prana.

Instruction in Basic Free-diving; an exploration some of the techniques used by Elite free-divers to develop control of the autonomic system and become more fluid and comfortable in the aquatic element.

There is also the option of 2 days extra training to do some more advanced Free-diving with an excursion to free-dive at the glorious ‘USS Liberty’

In Villa Boleh we have a special place to embark on this adventure, a wonderful Spa resort with three different pools, including a therapeutic Watsu pool. Just in front of our sanctuary we have our oceanic playground. Little current, rich waters and good visibility make this the perfect place for to enjoy newly re-discovered aquatic heritage.

Also on hand will be the well-respected and highly experienced Thai massage teacher and healer Felicity Keebaugh. She will be offering health assessments and therapeutic treatments in various healing forms including Thai massage and Ki nei san, a very powerful Taoist healing art.

Dates October 15 to 22 Villa Boreh, North Bali.

Time-table

The structure of the retreat will be a in two parts, so that people can sign up for three days or seven days, with an optional two days extra, for deeper free-diving training and a trip to ‘USS Liberty’ shipwreck. In this way those who are stuck for time or unsure if it’s quite for them will be able to do the three days without commiting to the whole retreat.

The first three days will be on exploring the link between the breath, yoga asana and energy, with some waterwork focusing mostly on coming into the breath and relaxation. We will use many tools of the incredible existential toolbox that is Yoga, developing fluidity in our mind and body and will then bring that fluidity into the water.

All sessions are entirely optional, the combined benefits of all the training will be fantastic but the retreat is aimed all levels and physical abilities. As the timetable is very full, it is understandable that some people will not come to all classes. After all it is a holiday.

On site and assisting on some sessions will be the very experienced Healer and Thai massage teacher Felicity Keebaugh. Our training can be combined with a holistic diagnosis and a course of bodywork treatments to optimise the benefits of your practice. Felicity is a gifted and intuitive body-worker whose experience spans decades. For more details see Villa Boreh October

Day one

7 Yoga Asana, tuning vinyasa(movement)to the breath and adapting type of breath to asana(held posture)

8.45 Breakfast

10.30 Breath training; Opening the lungs and understanding respiration

Aquatic meditation in pool, using water for muscular and emotional release.

12.00  Lunch

15.00 Yoga Nidra; Yoga of the dream state, Use of creative visualisation and Deep Relaxation to access  the subconcious and deep unconscious.

16.30 Oceanic meditation. Practicing aquatic mindfulness in the beautiful Bali sea.

17.30 Yoga asana; exploring the qualities of Bramhana(energising) and Langhana(releasing) breath in held asana.

Class in Mantra chanting as a tool for coming into the body and calming the mind.

19.00 Dinner beside sea.

Day 2

7 Yoga asana; learning Uddiyanna Bhanda(abdominal lock) and Moola Bhanda(root lock)

 8.45  Breakfast

10.30  Discussion of chakra system and relationship of 2nd chakra to Water.

Prana vidya meditation (healing use of prana)

12.00 lunch

15.00 Yoga Nidra

16.30 Aquatic mindfulness meditation

17.30 Yoga asana, use of Bhanda(psycho-muscular locks) in asana

Prana Vidya

19.00 Dinner.

Day three

7 Yoga asana; exploration of the character and energy of different  Asanas, holding for a bit longer and finding the subtle movement in stillness.

8.45 Breakfast

10.30 Pranayama(Yogic science of energy cultivation through breath control) theory and practice of Prana Vidya(healing with pranic energy)

12.00 lunch

15.00 Yoga Nidra with guided visualisation into the deep.

16.30 Ocean time, snorkelling using breathing techniques of free-Divers to enter into meditative state.

18.00 Short Asana practice and Prana Vidya

The first three days are an gentle exploration of some of the many life tools that yoga and free-diving have to offer the modern seeker. Day four to seven will follow a similar schedule adapting training to suit the individual and group energy levels. On all levels we will go a that bit deeper, adapting our yogic tools to suit individual needs and interests.

The focus of our asana practice will be on fostering self understanding to create a personal practice for the student. We will explore the various benefits of different asanas and their energetic character so that asana can become a powerful tool for self balancing and the breaking down of physical or energetic blocks.

We will the explore in greater depth the powerful science of Yoga Nidra and use it release deep blocks on the unconscious and subconscious levels.

We will also study a little deeper physiology of the breath and techniques of elite free-divers to stimulate the para-sympathetic nervous system and minimise O2 consumption. For anyone who is interested will take our training into the ocean and practice apnea, with an aim towards fostering deep relaxation and aquatic comfort.

For those particularly interested in the aquatic side of our practice there is the option of taking an two days training, with the focus mainly on free-diving and then taking a trip to dive the incredible ‘USS Liberty’ ship wreck.

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