Yoga Educators Conference 2011, Bali, Indonesia

By Dada Shankarsana’nanda

The 5th Yoga Educators Conference (YEC) of AMAYE (Ananda Marga Association of Yoga Educators) was successfully conducted in the beautiful mountain area of Kintamani in Bali, Indonesia. 85 participants from all over the world enjoyed a very inspiring and well-executed program.

The objectives of the YEC are to educate and upgrade Ananda Marga yoga teachers and create a platform to bring Rajadhiraja (RDR) Yoga to all.

The conference started off with a workshop on Yin Yoga by sister Chrys Soenaris from Singapore. Yin Yoga is a complementary yoga to RDR that prepares the body for long meditation sessions. To enjoy long meditation the body must be free from pains and discomforts and Yin Yoga helps in this regard.

On the second day Caroline Yip, a physiotherapist from Malaysia, conducted two sessions about anatomy of asana, core stability and alignment. A selection of basic asanas were analyzed from an anatomical point of view. This very practical and educative workshop was much appreciated by the participating yoga teachers.

Day three all belonged to Dada Dharmavedananda who taught practical aspects of naturopathy. The whys and hows of mudpack, steam bath, hipbath, spinal bath, sunbath and enema were explained and demonstrated. Again, a very practical and educative workshop.

On the last day two sessions related to naturopathy where conducted. The first one was by Dr. Marta Antunes from Portugal. Dr. Antunes is educated as an allopathic medical doctor and is known as a pioneer in Portugal in a practice that combines allopathy (conventional medical science) and medical yogic science. She called her lecture: “Yoga Therapy – Be your own doctor”, and explained the science of Yoga and Naturopathy supplemented with case studies. Dr. Antunes’ workshop became so popular that an extra session was arranged for her on the last day where she continued to present her case studies.

The conference ended with a workshop by Dada Mitrabuddhyananda on Ayurvedic remedies. Since his young days Dada had an interest in Ayurveda and how to use natural remedies. This ancient art is today much forgotten, but Dada’s workshop taught us how to use some common herbs and plants such as basil, turmeric, cumin seed, cinnamon, cardamom, aloe vera, neem, black pepper, lemon, mint and more. So simple and yet so effective!

The 5th YEC concluded in high spirits. The first global YEC outside Sweden was a great success. Next year’s conference will be back to the Sweden Training Center, and all yoga enthusiasts are encouraged to join these annual events. Hope to see you all for next year’s conference, July 18-22, 2012.