While we know what relaxation is, do we know how to achieve it?

During this experiential retreat, we will explore:

• Why do we experience fatigue?  Is it from lack of an actual lack of energy?  
• Does our energy come only from the food we eat, the vitamins we take, or the kale we put in our smoothies?
• What is the difference between doing something with strained willpower or calm willingness? 
• Does being non-attached mean we are not committed or interested in life?  
• Is the goal of life to be easy or for us to have calm energy to meet and rise above what life brings? 
• We will experience a variety of techniques that you can do on your own at home to learn to relax at will, such as working with the breath, the simple tensing-and-relaxing of different body parts, visualizations, affirmations, a simple, but powerful meditation routine, and a few more gems!  All participants will receive a mini e-book with the techniques and teachings of the class.
• This retreat is held at Ananda Washington’s Heart Song Retreat in the Lake Stevens area.  It’s close enough to make the drive quite easy, but is tucked away on 5-picturesque acres so you feel you are miles away from the cacophony of noises and frenetic energy of the world.  The Hermitage is an oasis of peace and lends itself beautifully to add to our experience of relaxation which translates to peace, calmness, and joy.

From the Art & Science of Raja Yoga, by Swami Kriyananda, “Awareness is the necessary precursor of relaxation. There are many parts of the body that are tense without our conscious knowledge. How are we to become aware of them?  The answer is by increasing tension throughout the body.  Often it happens on a psychological level that we only overcome our faults when they have become exaggerated as to be obvious to us.  The best way to induce preliminary relaxation in the body is first to inhale, tense the whole body (equalizing the flow of tension throughout the body), then throw the breath out and relax the entire body at once.”

This class is based on a course that Paramhansa Yogananda taught in 1930 by the same title.  Yogananda came to the US from India in the 1920’s and was the first yogi from the east to make a permanent home in the West.  Though Yogananda walked the earth a hundred years ago, the teachings he shared are timeless and universal, and deeply relevant today.  As Yogananda shared, we can be in this world and learn to be “calmly active and actively calm.”

*After the retreat, participants will receive a free e-booklet, “The Art of Super Relaxation.”

This retreat is led by Ananda meditation and yoga teachers, Sita Tocco and Bhakti Breckenridge.