No. It wasn’t obvious. There were no hammocks, trendy boho decor and a billion Buddha and Shiva statutes. The teachers weren’t dressed in latest „yoga fashion“. The studio wasn’t like what you see on your friend’s Instagram from Bali.
It was humble. And full with spirit. You could feel it in your bones; the smell from the incense burning by the door, the hustle from the busy streets below, the dimmed lights and the wait. That wait! I was nervous, I don’t know why. Actually I do know why: I was about to do yoga. In Nepal!
A tall man came in the shala and directed one of the two fans that were keeping the hot monsoon air tolerable to fan OUT of the window. „Exhale,“ he said.
Of course.
My first yoga class in Nepal had started. In 90 minutes we did it all; breath work, micro exercises, Surya namaskar, stretching, standing asanas, balancing, and lots and lots of laughing.
I never felt so supported in a yoga class. This teacher’s compassion, gentleness and enthusiasm to gift us with yoga was enormous. I wasn’t DOING the asanas, I was embodying them, I was living them and studying them.
For the first time I could actually do and hold a headstand, Sirsasana, with him next to me. „Fifty more counts,“ he said before he moved on to help another student. Hell yes I did it. It was magical.
His name was Dipendra and years later, he still walks in the room with the same charge. Genuine, loving and madly high-vibe.
The next day I met a Nepali goddess, the owner and lead teacher of Mandala Studio – Kriti. Her smile is as wide as her yoga knowledge and she will awe you with both 🙂 She has a gift for teaching and bringing the absolute best in you. She will warm you up and loosen you until you feel like jelly. Then she’ll keep bringing harder and harder variations of asanas – until you just do them all!
„Free your body, free your mind,“ that’s her mantra, that’s what she will help you with. I never knew how flexible my body could be and how open and loving I could feel.
The mornings I got to practice with Kriti are those #neverforget moments of my life. I remember once during her yama niyama meditation, I had to blink my eyes open to see if I was still in the room – she just took my soul elsewhere for some deep healing.
I came back to Mandala Studio for Yoga almost every day during the years I worked in Nepal and even after I quit, I went back for the Yoga Teacher Training.
If you are reading this and deciding where to go or whether to invest in a yoga teacher training abroad, let this be a sign. You know, there are things you can learn from a book or YouTube – and then there are things you can only learn from a teacher. How lucky are we that we can fly over to Nepal TODAY and let that teacher be Kriti or Dipendra! Don’t miss your chance 🙂
Om Shanti!
Andrea from Prague
