October and autumn are always a time for me to find my way going inwards. Routine, quieter days, shifting focus, more spaciousness. Along with the change in sensory perception. My nervous system becomes more regulated, and I become more balanced. I love summer, the heat and all the activities, and yet sometimes I feel ungrounded, overstimulated, and frankly tired from the long days of sunlight!!
With the return of slower, cooler days, I find myself redirecting my attention to learning and co-creating. Nourishing body and spirit.
This autumn started with a wonderful intention in that direction, an alumni program called Living Wisdom Collective, which opened with a Yoga of Meditation silent day. The focus is on connection with nature and creating a supportive community for living yoga and wisdom teachings.
We also started our annual Yoga training program in September with 12 radiant Yogis, which brings the entire centre into alignment, one chakra at a time. Autumn is a wonderful time to cultivate the riverbanks and bring attention to a one-pointed focus, all aspects of Yoga as Medicine.
This past weekend, we experienced a beautiful retreat of Yoga and meditation with Padma, exploring themes of the human condition, separation, and the nature of mind, as well as how to be in the world empowered and enlightened, cultivating clarity, inner peace, self-awareness, and authentic joy.
So we are keeping the momentum going with meditation and inward focus. We’re excited for the next offering this month, October 16–18, with Tibetan Lama Geshe Yong Dong, where we will find ourselves immersed in mantra and sacred sound practices, meditation, teaching, and practice.
Geshe-la will share a traditional method of working with sound for healing and spiritual development. The weekend will offer a balance of lecture, experiential practice, and informal conversation, creating space not only to learn these teachings, but to experience them.
I really feel immersed in the Autumn retreat, this beautiful invitation to slow down, listen more deeply, and turn our attention inward.