Yoga and Meditation Retreat
in Emmental, Switzerland - August 2004
A Yoga Treat
Report by Betsy Boland
Six weeks ago I moved with my husband and two young boys from Hawaii to Switzerland. With a few weeks free before beginning my job, I began planning a little journey. My new colleagues suggested tours of the sights and cities of Europe; I was thrilled to now have these at my backdoor, but I was also sure they would be waiting a few more centuries for me to view. No, it was clear to me what my whole being was craving: yoga. At the Sanskrit root of the word yoga is the concept “to join” or “to yoke”. The many forms of yoga - meditation, movement, breathing and more - can help serve as a way to yoke our ever struggling ego-centered self to the one eternally blissful Self, and, on a more practical level, can really relieve tons of stress, clear the mind and tone the whole body. I was ready to do some shoulder stands to remind myself of the blessings of this yoke as I began my life in Switzerland. I entered “yoga retreats + Switzerland” and effortlessly selected the first site that came up; the dates and location were perfect for my schedule and a brief review of the web pages suggested the themes (based on Advaita Vedanta) and setting (a farmhouse in the countryside near Burgdorf) would be most appealing to me.
Indeed the retreat in Emmental, led by Swami Atma and our hostess Maria Steiner, turned out to be most refreshing, not only to my travel weary body, as I knew it would be, but also to my travel distracted mind and somewhat scattered spirit. In the course of a brief weekend I fed myself a generous helping of all the offerings there: guidance on silent meditation, open discussions of Advaita Vedanta philosophy, asana and pranayama practice, and multiple opportunities to chant and learn about the Sanskrit mantras. I also ate delicious vegetarian entrees, enjoyed the fine company of some wonderful new friends, laughed what seemed like continuously, and sampled an array of heavenly Swiss cheeses.
At some point in the weekend I called home and spoke to my 3-year-old son:
“ Mommy where are you?”
“ Doing yoga, honey.”
“ Oh yeah, you’re having a yoga treat!”
“ That’s right love!”
The Swami and the Sisters
Our group, comprised entirely of young women in their twenties and thirties plus one brave man, melded quickly into a dynamic bunch with an eager but not overly serious beginner’s enthusiasm. Maria, who organized the entire event at her grandfather’s farmhouse, was completely lovely at all moments, lighthearted, and sincere in every interaction I had with her from my first phone call to register. She is an accomplished yoga instructor who speaks many languages effortlessly, prepares wonderful vegetarian food, and laughs freely throughout the day.
Amidst this 98% female gathering, Swami Atma set a mood of simultaneous lightheartedness and spiritual reverence. He both grounded our active group with his focused, static presence, and charged our lulled consciousnesses with his presentation of Vedanta Advaita yoga practices. The first Swami I have met, he has now set the mould for my expectations of a Swami. He made himself available to discuss all of our questions in an open, approachable way, never creating an intimidating or condescending atmosphere. He lives a devoted life as a student and teacher of the many forms of yoga and offers retreats internationally. In addition, he speaks flawless English with that aspect of language ability that distinguishes the truly fluent: the ability to tell jokes. He interspersed plenty of hilarious one-liners into his lectures on very serious topics giving my mind a reference point for the deep, often troubling concepts of Advaita. His ability to help me establish such reference points has been central to my post-retreat grasp of numerous seemingly paradoxical, polar, or dualistic realities as actually coexisting, unified, singular truths. In asana practice too, I was reminded by Maria how we tense all our muscles in order to have a reference point for relaxation. At the retreat in Emmental I tensed my entire being with meditation, asanas and long mantra chants then relaxed it with laughter, light conversation and scrumptious food.
Liberty, hilarity, and just a little more cheese
The weekend I attended the workshop coincided with Swiss National Day, the proud celebration of Swiss solidarity against invasion. Switzerland may be the ultimate example of the earthly experience of the separate Other and the one Self since, as my guide book describes, it is “divided by Alpine giants and united by neither language nor religion” yet there is no mistaking that there is a distinct Switzerland with a unique identity. I was ever aware of this human theme of sovereignty and interdependence, autonomy and unity throughout the weekend, but especially at mealtimes when conversations to my immediate right were taking place in Swiss German, to my left in French, across from me in English, with echoes of Portuguese and Spanish here and there. This was like a little private symphony for me as a language teacher. The reality that we had met as strangers of specific nationalities less than 24 hours prior was inconsequential to the experience that we were one harmonious group, pursuing yogic bliss, enjoying our delicious vegetarian meals, and chatting easily between languages, whether about cheese, politics, or non-dualism.
Laughter, of course, is the same in all languages, and by all means that sense of humor that I had seemed to stash away in the last months was liberated in Emmental. In addition to the easy laughter at meals and other down times, our serious practices and discussions were a fair arena for humor and I found this to be very helpful in the digestion of both food and philosophy. At one point during meditation, repeating “I am the Atman” (the One Eternal Self), I lapsed into a silly, fortunately silent, Beatles verse, humming “I am the ape man”. This nonsense, in some way, has sealed the Atman notion into my meditation, and I attribute it to the cheerful spirit of the retreat.
Also liberated that weekend were the dairy products! After early morning satsang in the farmhouse living room and asanas on the terrace, we would all gather for brunch at the big outdoor table. I know dairy is scary to some in the world of hyper health, but the fresh cheese, butter, yogurt and milk at brunch were simply divine. Like most people I didn’t go to a yoga retreat for the food, but at this retreat the muscles, the mind, the spirit and the stomach were all treated to a bit of bliss.
Reunion or retreat?
In many ways the weekend felt as much like a family reunion as a yoga retreat. During my stay Maria’s mother arrived and participated in the yoga and meals. Maria’s sisters, brother in law and nephew also made cameo appearances and contributed cheerful and significant energy to this feeling of family. Maria’s mother brought us fine Swiss breads with Swiss flags in them for the National Day brunch, and Maria’s Nephew treated us to an expert fireworks display at night, with as many explosions of laughter and applause as of firecrackers. In fact when Maria’s family went to leave it took me several moments and a serious reality check to register that they were not actually my relatives and I wouldn’t likely see them the next weekend or any time soon. I thank them for their lasting contribution to my immensely enjoyable impression of Swiss National Day and of celebration in general.
Déja vu
Some yoga retreats are memorable for their mood of silence, stillness and serenity, and there were plenty of these aspects to be savored at the Emmental retreat. The view from the farmhouse terrace is out over rolling fields that rise into the foothills and behind them into the monumental Alps, which have been called by some the great cathedrals of the earth. My fellow aspiring yogis and I worshipped in our own quiet ways before this altar each dawn, and now, back at my new home in the Alps southwest of Emmental, I relive this peaceful setting every time I look outside. In some way, holding this lingering serene image is like having an ongoing experience of déja vu; of remembering, rather than seeing for the first time, something fond and true and known all along.
While in Emmental Swami Atma, Maria and my yogi peers helped me to remember many basic recipes for earthly bliss: to hold my poses not my breath, to love the dawn despite the yawn, to move my body and mind in order to make them still, to acknowledge pain and misery as a reference point to pure consciousness and joy, to chant to the gods to come to me in order for me to travel closer them, to be deeply present in all my moments on Earth in order to transcend them.
Whether I’ve known the people, the setting, and the joys of yoga experienced in Emmental all along, or whether this was the first and last time I’ll ever be there, I am as certain now as I was before I went to the retreat that it was just what I wanted and needed; a true yoga treat.
