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Location : Lazi, Siquijor Island, Philippines
Juggling Yoga
Intention:
Keep the momentum going. I already feel my body slowly getting back into shape.
Somehow, I'm on a new paradigm that works. Before, I would think of all the things I have to do and end up feeling overwhelmed and paralyzed by it and I end up not doing anything. Now, I think of what I can do at the present moment - and not think about anything else until I finish doing it. It's as simple as brushing my teeth (I don't think about the updates I have to do, or the yoga practice). This also keeps me in the here and now and I actually get to do everything I have to do.
Personal practice
6 am / bed/roof deck (2.5 hours!)
Asana + Pranayama:
Stretching on the bed upon waking up (Setu bandhasana, gluts, hamstring, groin, seated forward bend), Headstand, ABS, Big3M, Wim Hof, Setu bandhasana. Nauli after the 1L water therapy.
Meditation:
Trataka, right eye tear
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Nada V85-93
Intention:
I'm on a roll with newfound stretches on the bed upon waking up.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
I finished Chapter 4. I'll go back to the Asana chapter and complete the missing verses. Then I'll review the entire book summary. Then I'll start Autobiography of a Yogi.
Hemi-Sync
Focus 23, for those who just left the physical realm
Personal practice
6 am / bed, upon waking up
Asana:
stretching (this is a lot and should be explored more for a full session before rising up! ): setu bandhasana, superman, bow facing down, clasped hands behind and pulling it (lower back bend), shoulder, seated forward bend, gluts, hamstrings, Upavistha konasana (seated, straight legs as wide apart), hard happy baby, badda konasana (butterfly). Nauli after the 1L water therapy.
Meditation:
Trataka, 22 mins, no tears
Intention:
I'm on a roll with the continuity of my practice. This paradigm of "think of one task at a time and do it" really works for me. I'm not inundated by a multitude of tasks that paralyze me at times.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
'tweaked' the format of earlier entries, then developed the missing Asanas. Hopefully, it's all done today and I can begin the final review/practice tomorrow of the entire book.
Hemi-Sync
Wave 7 Track 5, reception center...but I fell asleep
Personal practice
8:10-10:30 am (2 hrs, 20 mins) / roofdeck, terrace
Shat Kriya:
Nauli after the 1L water therapy.
Asana + Pranayama:
This was a great workout day for me - 2 hrs, 20 mins of only the essentials. This also means I need a min of 2 hrs, 20 mins to finish just to finish my essentials without adding any more of what's out there.
Stretching, Core (front, side planks, Setu Bandhasana), Headstand, Push ups, Big3M, Mandukasana, Wim Hof
Meditation:
Trataka, 45 mins, no tears | Sambhavi, 8 mins. The Trataka was done with OM chanting which paves way for any kind of subsequent meditation.
Intention:
I'm still on a roll in optimizing my daily workout. The paradigm works - doing the most urgent thing and not thinking about anything else until it's done.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Finished all the tweaks and development of chapters 1 and 2. This took all day and ate up on my practice. Next, full and total review of HYP before reading the next book. This may take a week more. Then start "An Autobiography of a Yogi"
Hemi-Sync
Wave 3 Track 5, rolling like a log, passing through the top of the head, moving back, lifting up. No OBE but good relaxation to start the day.
Personal practice
6 am / bed
Asana:
eye exercises upon waking up - eye rolls, left/right, up/down
Meditation:
Trataka, 25 mins, no tears
Intention:
Wasn't able to do yoga yesterday, so today is make-up day. Also, HYP should be finalized soon. Next? Before going on to a new book, I would like to do visit some books I've reviewed - Arahatta Pala, Tibetan Inner Heat.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
I did the final tweaks and recoding and started reviewing and doing the asanas as my practice for the day. I will finish the Asana practice tomorrow.
Hemi-Sync
Wave 3 Track 5, rolling like a log, passing through the top of the head, moving back, lifting up. No OBE but good relaxation to start the day. I'll stick to this Track until I develop.
Personal practice
6 am / bed/terrace
Asana:
eye exercises - eye roll, trombone, left/right, up/down, blinking
Nauli after 1L water
Asana practice from Chapter 1 of HYP:
Swastikasana (5 mins): Auspicious Pose
Gomukhasana (3 mins each): Cow's Face
Koormasana (3 mins): Tortoise Pose
xxxx not done xxxxxxxx
Veerasana (21): Hero's Pose
Kukkutasana (23): Cockerel Pose (Pindasana substitute)
Uttan Koormasana (24): Stretching Tortoise Pose
Dhanurasana (25): Bow's Pose
Matsyendrasana (26-27): Spinal Twist's Pose
Paschimottanasana (28-29): Back Stretching Pose
Mayurasana (30-31): Peacock's Pose
7 pm / social hall, Lazi
Asana:
Yoga class by Catherine
Hemi-Sync
11 pm / bed
Wave 3 Track 5, rolling like a log, passing through the top of the head, moving back, lifting up. No OBE but good relaxation to start the day. I'll stick to this Track until I develop.
Intention:
In the last 2 days, I'd been feeling tremors and vibration even while not practicing. This is a good thing and I'd been milking it.
Hemi-Sync
Wave 3 Track 5, rolling like a log, passing through the top of the head, moving back, lifting up. No OBE but good relaxation to start the day. I will be defaulting to this as this is the start of the 'separation' exercises. I followed this up with binaural beats from a different provider.
Personal practice
6-7:15 pm / roofdeck
Asana + Pranayama:
Stretches, HIIT, Headstand, Big3M, Push Ups, ABS, Mandukasana, Wim Hof. After a long break from it, it was good doing cardio again. Maybe I can do a five 3-min routine of rope skipping next time.
Meditation:
Sambhavi
Intention:
Even though I didn't do any Asana today, the practice was still full, doing Kumbhaka on the 1-min laptop break and reading up HYP.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Reviewed the rest of Chapter 1 (Asana), and finished Chapter 2 (Shat kriya and Pranayama). Tomorrow, Chapter 3/4 and that concludes HYP
Hemi-Sync
Wave 3 Track 5 (twice today), rolling like a log, passing through the top of the head, moving back, lifting up. No OBE but good relaxation to start the day. I will try other Tracks from hereon as I don't seem to progress.
Shat Kriya
Every day, I do Neti (nasal cleansing with saline water) and Jihwamula Dhauti (tongue scraping). But in the last 3 days, I clean my eyes (aside from Trataka) by going to Bolo Bolo spring, and open my eyes on the gushing water. I noticed that when I look at my laptop, the small letters are clearer and my eyes don't sting anymore. I'll do this daily and see how this helps further. I'll call this BBC (Bolo Bolo Cleansing).
Personal practice
3 pm / home
Pranayama:
Nadi shodan, 10 mins with 3 Bandhas, "2" setting on metronome, 1 click includes breathing and holding.
Intention:
I'm still on track, almost spending the entire day on HYP
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Chapter 3 turns out needing a recode to add the 'blockquote' so that ate up time. But I reviewed Chap 3 until Khechari V54. For tomorrow, I'll finish from Bandha (55-60) to Guru and Inner Guru (129-130)
Personal practice
8-10 am / roofdeck
I didn't really feel like doing yoga, but in compliance to my new mandate of simply getting dressed for it and being on the mat, I did. From there, new energy always develops that seem to guide me through the practice. Before I knew it, 2 hours have passed.
Asana + Pranayama:
L-Sit, Headstand, Push up, Handstand, interspersed with Wim Hof breathing and Mandukasana
Meditation:
OM chanting, 5 mins
5:30 pm / Bolo Bolo
Meditation:
I went to Bolo Bolo at 5:30pm to get my eye-bath...a different version of Trataka. I can now open my eyes longer under water. But I didn't notice any visual clarity when I got back to my laptop.
Personal practice
My yoga yesterday was long and a little intense from the L-Sit, push up, etc. I'll take it easy today, perhaps more pranayama, trataka and HS.
6 am / home seawall
Meditation:
Early morning, Trataka with visiion-care glasses and facemask over. This way, I can't focus my eyes on anything because it's all black, but I can still open my eyes. I'm not sure it worked because my eyes must have been adjusting its focus depending on what my mind was thinking, so it didn't feel too much of a meditation. But I'll try again. Maybe I just need to acclimatize.
Intention:
No yoga yesterday, so today is make up day
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Finished Chapter 4 from Bandha (55-60) to Guru and Inner Guru (129-130).
Personal practice
7 am / roofdeck
I felt lazy as usual, but true to my newfound tenet of "just being on the mat" and something else will happen, I went up the roofdeck, and after some stretches, I felt like rope skipping.
Asana:
Rope skipping, 4 rounds of 3 mins | calf raises | Headstand, Push ups, Big3M, Leg raise, 1 min Wim Hof interspersion with asana, body self-massage with oil
Bike to Bolo Bolo in the pm
Meditation:
Trataka, 10 mins only and right tear. The trick is to always focus on the eyes at all times, visualizing the tearing | Sambhavi. In pm, Bolo Bolo for eye bath...the water wasn't clear due to heavy rains.
Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Today, Hatha Yoga Pradipika is finished.
Hemi-Sync
Wave 3 Track 5, moving forward, back, up.
Personal practice
7 am / terrace
Asana:
eye calisthenics (roll, up/down, side2side, trombone, near/far, blink, massage)
Isometric holds:
Arahattamagga Arahattaphala
Read my review and summary. I just finished Hatha Yoga Pradipika, and before reading a new book, I'd like to go back into my other reviews and refresh myself.
Autobiography of a Yogi
Began reading and summarizing. What struck me in my reading is that spiritual devotees who meditate long hours for years make very slow progress, but when initiated by a guru, they transition immediately into Samadhi. My conclusion is that since I don't have a guru and left on my own to deepen my practice, it will take a very long time to make progress into altered states of consciousness.
Personal practice
4:30 am / bed
Meditation:
Vipassana (full)
5 pm / Bolo Bolo
Asana:
bike to Bolo Bolo and back
7 pm / Social Hall, Lazi
Asana:
\
group yoga with Catherine
Intention:
Continue with the balance of the calisthenics program
Autobiography of a Yogi
Read and summarized from start to Chapter 8 - PY having this insatiable desire to meet his guru in the Himalayas and him meeting magnificent lives in Calcutta.
Personal practice
8:30 - 10:15 am / terrace
Asana + Pranayama:
A good hack today was doing Wim Hof on Padmasana and transitioning immediately to Maha vedha.
Intention:
I'd been going to Bolo Bolo on my bike almost daily. I can feel my stamina getting back.
Autobiography of a Yogi
Finished Chap 9-12, PY and his time with Bhaduri Mahasaya, the levitating saint, staying in Varanasi where he met his real guru, Sri Yukteswar Giri, how he won in his wager with his brother about 'surviving' Brindaraban and having his older brother as his disciple, moving to his guru's ashram in Serampore and being under his tutelage.
Hemi-Sync
Wave 3 Track 5, moving up, back and rolling. I continued this with another non-Monroe audio file on guided astral projection.
Personal practice
6 am / home seawall
Asana:
bike to Bolo Bolo and back
Meditation:
Eye bath at Bolo Bolo (Trataka alternative)
11 pm / bed
Pranayana:
20 mins, Nadi Shodhana, Wim Hof style, no bandha, no kumbhaka
Intention:
No yoga yesterday so I have to catch up
Autobiography of a Yogi
Finished Chapter 13-15, meeting the sleepless saint, Ram Gopal Babu, experiencing Samadhi, communication by mental transmission of messages.
Personal practice
6 pm / home
Asana:
As a continuation of my Isometric Hold series:????
Intention:
No yoga, Sunday market, lunch eats at Marlon's neighbor for being a cop, sleep over Fundador effect. But I made grounds with Autobiography of a Yogi.
Autobiography of a Yogi
Covered Chap 17-26, Sasi, the fakir, bi-location, visit to Kashmir, reforming the brother in law, graduating university, becoming a swami, Ananta/Nalini, Kriya Yoga
Intention:
I haven't done a full asana session in a long while so I planned on Bryan Kest. But the energies took me on another flow. Then continue with Yogi book, maybe group yoga in the pm
Autobiography of a Yogi
Covered Chap 26-30, Kriya Yoga, Founding A Yoga School At Ranchi, Kashi, Rabindranath Tagore, Law Of Miracles. On hard-to-read chapters, I asked GPT4 for plain English translation - it's uncanny how much I would have missed if I didn't.
Hemi-Sync
Wave 3 Track 5, moving up, back, etc.
Personal practice
8-10:30 am (2.5 hours) / roofdeck
Asana + Pranayama:
Stretching, Asana interspersed with Wim Hof/Mandukasana: Push up, Leg raise,
This has been a very productive day. I wish all days were like this - 2.5 hours of morning yoga, hearty avocado breakfast (lately, I'd been having fruit breakfast and then one full meal in a day), immersion into the book Autobigraphy of a Yogi, trip to beach for my one-man picnic, trip to Bolo Bolo for my dip and meeting people (John and a group whom I intimated about going abroad), group yoga with Catherine and Vipassana meditation before going to bed. Whoa!
Intention:
I hope I can sustain the momentum from yesterday. I think it's key that I go out and just refresh myself - beach, scenic view. I come back rejuvenated to continue the work.
Autobiography of a Yogi
I'd been covering a lot of ground with my reading and summary. This is a much easier project than HYP because there is no call-to-action that I have to codiy into my practice. So far, the biggest realization for me here is that having a guru is essential. PY could not have accomplished everything he did without his guru - Samadhi experience, anointment into the Swami Order, healing, requests, etc. What I came away with however, is that if everything is consciousness, including the divine and the universe, then what PY asked his guru, I can also ask the universe as though the universe is my guru. I actually did by asking it to allow me to experience the all-encompassing nature of the universe - transcending time, space and dimension. Essentially, I asked it to let me experience Samadhi. Now, after reading HYP and AY (Autobiography of a Yogi), I have a firmer understanding of Samadhi and how pale the human experience compares to it. Along the same line of inter-connectness, foster an inner dialogue now with my different body parts. E.g. instead of just doing a headstand to make my hair black again, I also meditate and establish a connection with my body to restore my youth and make my hair black. Hair is just the tip of the iceberg. I ask many things now, coupled with meditation, asana and visualization.
Personal practice
3 am / awaken during sleep
Meditation:
Vipassana. It's effective more me to meditate when I'm awaken. Instead of trying hard to fall back to sleep, I just meditate and that takes me to a sleepy mode after. Also, my meditation focus lately has been spot on. I could make a quality full body scan with minimal mental drift.
7 am / roofdeck
Meditation:
Trataka, but after 42 minutes, my eyes were still bone dry.
From a giddy start, the day turned out to be one of complete rest from yoga. It seems like the body needed rest from a full yoga day yesterday. The body simply didn't want to react to yoga - I would have dragged my feet. I tried meditator sporadically but nothing long or deep.
Intention:
I hope this day is a comeback to yoga.
Autobiography of a Yogi
Covered Chapters 31-35: An Interview With The Sacred Mother, Rama Is Raised From The Dead, Babaji, The Yogi-Christ Of Modern India, Materializing A Palace In The Himalayas, The Christlike Life Of Lahiri Mahasaya
Personal practice
7-8 pm / Lazi social hall by myself
Headstand (1-2-3 mins w/ Wim Hof 3 mins), Big3M,
10 pm / bed
Meditation:
Vipassana with Antara kumbhaka. This was very effective in maintaining my focus but violates "breath as is".
12 pm / bed
Pranayama:
Nadi Shodhana 10 mins? since I couldn't go back to sleep
Vipassana with Antara kumbhaka was a new and effective hack - I got to do Pranayama and body scan at the same time. Not sure how effective it is in meeting the objective of Vipassana since I was regulating the breath. However, as far as mental focus on body scanning went, it was dialed-in. The underlying principle I applied is that when the breath is held (Kumbhaka), Prana flows in Sushumna and no longer along Ida / Pingala. When the breath is held, Prana is made steady and consequently the mind is also made still.
Intention:
After 3 days in Dumaguete, I'm back to resume my practice.
Autobiography of a Yogi
Covered 41: An Idyl In South India, 42: Last Days With My Guru
Personal practice
2 am / bed, awakened
Meditation:
Vipassana, 30 mins. Next time, one full hour.
Intention:
I got an Aha Moment to finally codify the Forever Young yoga sequence - that's my project for the day
Forever Young yoga sequence
filtered every instance of the words #aging, young, ageing, degeneration, youthful, old age, wrinkles, grey hair - on Hatha Yoga Pradipika and Yoga Makaranda. I codified all that's been said into a yoga sequence designed to delay or reverse the aging process
Personal practice
Asana + Pranayama: Forver Young
As I was codifying Forever Young, I was concurrently doing the practice to ensure it's viable and sound, incorporating Sirsasana, Manduka / Nabho Mudra, Moola bandha, Uddiyana bandha, Jalandhara bandha, Maha bandha, Maha mudra, Maha vedha, Nauli, Surya bhedan, Kapalbhati, Neti pot, Jihwamula dhauti. All of these asanas/kriya are already part of my ongoing practice, but not together as a unified kriya to delay aging.
Meditation:
Trataka, which should be part of the Forever Young, but I couldn't focus on Trataka today.
Finally codifying Forever Young means I can teach this unified sequence in a class. Many older people will benefit from this. For me, I can do my own private yoga just with this sequence. Not only is this designed to retard aging, but the kriya represents the most powerful asana, pranayama, kumbhaka, bandha and mudra in Hatha Yoga.
Autobiography of a Yogi
Finished the entire book covering for today, 45: Ananda Moyi Ma: The Bengali "Joy-Permeated" Mother, 46: Giri Bala: The Woman Yogi Who Never Eats, 48: Self-Realization Fellowship: At Encinitas In California
Personal practice
on laptop break
Asana + Pranayama:
Maha vedha, Headstand, Maha mudra, ABS
11 pm / home seawall
Meditation:
Vipassana (head to foot, untimed)
My actual yoga practice was dismal, but at least I finished Autobiography of a Yogi. Still not sure what to read next. I'd like to read Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, but no free PDF so far. Maybe I settle for Yoga Yajnavalkia.
Intention:
Review Autobiography of a Yogi before moving on to another book - Yoga Sutras? Yoga Makaranda (I'd been dipping on this book for the longest time, but not an immersion), Yoga Yajnavalkya? Yoga Upanishad?
I would also like to resume my cardio. I could be strong and young, but if there is no heart, I still have nothing.
Autobiography of a Yogi
Reviewed the entire summary
Intention:
To start on a new book
Yoga Yajnavalkya
Began doing the framework
Personal practice
7 am / roof deck
Asana:
stretching, headstand, push up, setu bandhasana, Maha vedha, Maha bandha (15 mins), HIIT, rope skipping
Pranayama:
Wim Hof + Mandukasana
Meditation:
Trataka, 15 mins, tears
Just glad that I finally did cardio HIIT.
Ending Thoughts (for July)
July is a mixed bag. I could have done more on the actual practice. But I finished Hatha Yoga Pradipika (HYP) and Hemi-Sync (HS). I learned a lot from HYP, but I didn't really come close to an OBE on the HS. I also started attending yoga classes by Catherine. I was hoping to interact with the community, but they were mostly housewives who had to return back home to their families - not much of a community there. Something new was eye cleansing on Bolo Bolo's crystal clear waters.
--- Gigit (TheLoneRider)
YOGA by Gigit
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Next story:
August Yoga Journal Entry:
Yoga Yajnavalkya
(Aug 1 - Sep 18, 2023) Yoga Yajnavalkya is one of the earliest known text on yoga between husband and wife, yogi Yajnavalkya and his wife Gargi discussing yoga...more »»
More on Lazi:
More on Siquijor Island:
Jeeps - there are only 2 routes for jeeps within Siquijor Island - and they are rare. Most people have their own motorcycle transport.
Food - these were suggested by a local to me
En route to Cebu City, the ferries usually make a stop-over to Tagbilaran (Bohol) to pick-up more passengers or unload.
There is only one bus plying this route - Sugbo Urban. Tourist class coach, a/c, comfortable, Sun-Fri (these dates keep changing). P420 for bus, P275 for ferry to Liloan. Larena Port around 5 am, makes a clockwise roundtrip around Siquijor Island - Larena, Enrique Villanueva, Maria, Lazi (stops at Lazi market for breakfast and leaves 6:50 am), San Juan, Siquijor (arrives 8am, P50 from Lazi to Siquijor Poblacion) and catches the 1pm ferry at Larena Port (Sundays at 3 pm) for Liloan, Cebu and resumes its land route. Arrives Cebu City (South Bus Terminal) 10 pm.
Sugbo Urban is the cheapest and most convenient way because it goes around the island (clockwise) along the circumferential road, passing through - Enrique Villanueva, Maria, Lazi, San Juan, Siquijor...and back to Larena where it takes the ferry at 1 pm. This saves you the hassle and high transport cost of a tricycle. Besides, it's a long trip from the other side of the island to be taking by tricycle.
These are the nearest popular destinations from Siquijor by boat
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