If you ever practised yoga outdoor, you will know that it can be a fantastic experience. Being able to practice yoga amongst trees, so close to the grass, soil and breathe connect us – or re-connects us - with Mother Nature.
For the Summer Solstice and International Yoga Day, I thought of doing something special this year. So I put a call out for all keen yogis to come to practice yoga outdoor. As the weather in the UK is unpredictable, you can imagine that I spent days watching the weather forecast, before confirming. As the risk for precipitation on the day looked smaller, I confirmed 24 hours before we were due to meet up.
On the day, the weather was hot and sunny, very close. However, clouds gathered in the afternoon. I was still keeping my fingers crossed. When I arrived at the designated spot, there was no one around. I scouted the area, to ensure that it was free of twigs, any plastic or glass and then I set my mat out. Sitting down on my mat, I wondered if I had given enough instructions – will they find me? Will anyone turn up? And then, one by one, the yogis started to arrive. We waited for a couple of more people and then started seated, first settling the breathing followed by a pranayama practice.
There was a strong breeze, the ancient and majestic trees around us, full of foliage, were swooshing – more clouds were gathering - some of a very dark grey - and the sun was playing ‘hide and seek’ behind the clouds. Our practice consisted of rounds of Sun Salutations (Surya Namaskar), Warrior I (Virabhadrasana I), Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II) Tree pose (Vrksasana), twists… Sharing our practice with nature felt re-invigorating and the breeze swirling around us seemed to energize our practice even more. The soil was uneven under the mat, so our bodies needed to adjust to a natural environment where we had little control.
Alas, about 40 minutes from the start, the rain came - typical English weather!
At first it looked just a few drops and then, the rain got heavier. Eventually, we relocated our mats under a couple of big oak trees and continued for a while, until the skies opened and we had to wrap up our practice and seek cover.
It was a shame, however I was glad that we got the chance to share an outdoor yoga practice, something that anyone practicing yoga regularly should do at least once in their life. Despite the rain, we managed to get a picture and smile!
I hope that all yogis who came had a good experience and that more keen yogis will join us at our next outing, and who knows …. perhaps we can have a picnic in the park!?
If you are interested in joining us, next time, why not drop me an email at ross.merakiyoga@btinternet.com
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