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The
Sun Centre (TSC) Newsletter : June 2002.
Namaste,
Summer
is here and we are certainly surrounded by growth here in Prades. Not
only are the grass and flowers (and weeds) growing at a rate of knots,
but so is Sharon's tummy (no. 2 due November).
This
newsletter is mostly to let you know what's on at TSC this summer. There
is also a short article by myself (Alex) on Ayurveda
& Nutrition — something to wet the tastebuds for those
of you who are coming along to our 'A Flavour of Yoga & Ayurveda'
retreat in August (or indeed any of our other retreats, as I will be
catering Ayurvedic-style).
Hope
the summer brings warmth to you all (metaphorically, if not literally).
Love
& Light, Alex & Sharon.
Retreat
Programs : Summer 2002
JUNE
Soundarya - Ayurvedic Beauty & Well-being Cure - with Martine
Levha
24 - 30 June
In
Ayurveda, beauty is viewed as the 'radiance of the soul, a mirror of
the balanced 5 Pranas that underlie all our bodily functions, tissues,
organs and zest for life. Skin and hair are the two main reflections
of this balance...'
Read
more...
JULY
Stage
de Tai Chi Chuan (French-speaking only)
3 - 10 July
Art
de combat, danse symbolique, méditation du corps. En Cévennes,
dans un cadre naturel et sauvage, conjugez la pratique du Tai Chi Chuan
avec baignades et promenades en pleine nature.
Read more...
Qi
Gong & Massage - with Nochenka
Welsh
10 - 17 July
Awaken your vital energy with Qi Gong and the '3 M's': Movement,
Meditation and Massage. Every morning, a gentle Qi Gong session outdoors,
including freestyle movement and guided meditations, will lead you to
a state of heightened energy consciousness and total presence. From
this point, you will start exchanging your 'Qi' through simple massages:
feet & hands, face & head, arms & legs, back and tummy,
for a completely regenerative and healing experience. This retreat is
ideal for beginners or those who have already embarked on a journey
exploring energy consciousness.
Read
more...
AUGUST
A
flavour of Yoga & Ayurveda - with Alex
Duncan & Frances
Yates
7 - 14 August & 14 - 21 August
Experience Alex's gentle blend of Yoga &
Ayurveda in a small group of like-minded people. Learn how to weave
these ancient disciplines into everyday life during this week-long retreat.
The program involves a daily guided yoga practice, a series of talks
on practical Ayurveda, and group activities of cooking (using Ayurvedic
principles), gardening etc, plus plenty of free time to relax in the
gardens & grounds, go for walks and picnics, or swim in the river.
There will also be regular evening gatherings to share chanting, drumming,
star gazing, discussions etc.
Read more...
Love
Yourself, Achieve your Dreams - with Sharon
Black
28 August - 4 Sept
Based
on the teachings of Louise Hay, this course will teach you how to identify
the obstacles holding you back from turning your dreams into reality.
You will also learn and practise a variety of techniques to help you
overcome these blocks, thereby releasing you from their hold and setting
you free to achieve whatever you want in life! Afternoons and evenings
are free time to relax, sunbathe, enjoy the natural beauty of our environment,
walk, swim, or take part in group activities.
Read
more...
Panchakarma
- with Martine
Levha
14 - 28 August
Against
the background of the many crises faced by today's society - in the
hectic race for economic profit - we suffer from poor breathing, poor
sleeping, overeating and eating the wrong foods. As a result, we digest
foods inefficiently and have lost contact with the Self. Who is the
'I' who speaks, and what has become of its Temple (body)? We are all
born with our own personality, temperament, and range of potential imbalances.
To anticipate these imbalances, to overcome the problems
that occur when our inner nature becomes either excessive (nervous problems:
depression, insomnia, memory loss etc; repetitive infections or inflammations;
congestion, cysts) or deficient (loss of strength, weight loss, tissue
deficiency), and to sever at its root the processes that could
go on to become long-term illness... this is what an Ayurvedic cure
(Panchakarma) proposes to do.
Read more...
SEPTEMBER
Yoga
in Prades - with Fiona
Morton
4 - 11 Sept
This
residential week offers you a chance to focus on yoga and enjoy healthy
eating while surrounded by nature and the warmth of France's sunniest
region. Two sessions of yoga each day, plenty of time to relax, join
in the running of the centre, share life with others or for peaceful
reflection in the silence of the countryside. No deadlines, musts or
enforced hugs!
Read
more...
Mantra
& Mysticism - with Muz
Murray (Ramana Baba)
25 Sept - 2 Oct
An
opportunity to spend time with mystic master Muz Murray (Ramana Baba)
for a relaxing week of Mantra and Mysticism at the Sun Centre.
Read
more...
OCTOBER
Open
Retreats
Oct - Dec 2002
Retreat,
relax & work this autumn/winter at The Sun Centre. We offer a yoga
class (every alternate day) and occasional Qi Gong and Mantra sessions,
plus the opportunity to book on-site massage, reflexology, or an Ayurvedic
nutrition consultation. Accommodation (single rooms) with self-catering
facilities are provided. To account for the reduced cost of these retreats,
we ask that you give 4 hours (or so) of your time each day to help out
with the various projects
underway at The Sun Centre. During your stay, you will be able to make
use of the various workspaces
and gardens
& grounds.
Read more...
Our
Ethos
The
Sun Centre is a vision in progress that we have been nurturing since
summer 1998, when we decided to follow our hearts and develop a small
retreat to offer people the chance to learn and practise holistic self-development
surrounded by nature. Our interest and integration of various holistic
traditions and methods into our family life, is the basis of the experience
we share with our visitors.
Read more...
Newsletter
Every
3 months or so, we plan to send out a short newsletter (by email) explaining
what's new at The Sun Centre. There will also be some content covering
current issues in the field of Mind Body Spirit. If you would like to
receive these newsletters, please send a blank email to: join@thesuncentre.net
Feel
free to pass this email on to anyone who you think might be interested.
Ayurveda
& Nutrition - A short article by Alex Duncan
It is clear
that Ayurveda is becoming increasingly popular in the complementary
health field in the west. Articles are cropping up in yoga magazines,
even mainstream newspapers. There is a plethora of books available offering
modern insight into this ancient life-wisdom. Many authors of Ayurvedic
texts, such as Deepak Chopra, are winning acclaim from mainstream society.
Having
been interested in Ayurveda for several years now, and having exprienced
its positive effects in my own life, it gives me pleasure to know that
it is reaching more and more people.
Ayurveda
offers a holistic approach to nutrition. It recognises that each of
us has a unique 'constitution', and that our quality of health is determined
by our response to everything we receive - both consciously and unconsciously
- and everything we do in daily life. Everything from the food we eat
to the weather we experience, the company we keep to our outlook on
life, what we do for a living to how we exercise... all these things
contribute to our state of health.
It should
come as no surprise, therefore, that Ayurveda teaches us to become responsible
for our own well-being. It does this by offering a universal model by
which to understand our own nature and the nature of the environment
which we inhabit, and it explains how to balance the energies of both
to bring about well-being. This knowledge allows us to adopt supportive
habits to enable us to get back into balance and achieve our maximum
potential in terms of a healthy mind, body and spirit.
An important
principle of Ayurveda is that the majority of common diseases, especially
chronic illnesses and auto-immune conditions, are caused by poor nutrition
and these are considered to originate, physically at least, in the digestive
system. Therefore to neglect digestive complaints - even persistent
minor ones - is to ignore the body's own warning mechanism that problems
are afoot.
In order
to achieve good health, we must consider all our experiences as 'food',
which in turn must be transformed (digested) into substances that nourish
us on all levels. It is our capacity for this transformation that is
key: if we fail to properly transform what we receive - be it food,
our response to a crowded environment, a criticism, a gesture of love
- then this will form undigested matter, toxic residues, emotional blocks,
etc.
This transformational
principle, called 'Agni', is central to the Ayurvedic system. On a metabolic
level, Agni refers to the enzymatic function that plays a pivotal role
in the assimilation of foods we eat. No matter what our own particular
condition, we must focus on repairing and maintaining a balanced enzymatic
function through the proper use of diet, lifestyle, etc.
Dietary
advice generally revolves around the following key principles: know
your constitution and capacity for food (this in turn dictates what
foods are best for you and in what amounts), when they should be eaten
and in what order they should be eaten; know how your food should be
prepared, including the appropriate spices to antidote foods which would
normally present problems for your constitution; respect the act of
eating; develop a healthy mental attitude towards food; only eat when
you are hungry and don't eat more than you need; adopt lifestyle habits
that support your constitution.
In most
cases, a gradual transition from your current habits to new habits is
most effective. Sudden changes, radical diet plans etc, are likely to
fail as we are rarely able to change a lifetime's worth of 'bad' habits
overnight.
In Ayurveda,
nutritional principles tie in with the fundamental principles of creation,
which pervade the whole of reality. Ultimately, by realising that everything
- the entire manifest universe - is the result of a complex interplay
of these energies, we must treat the individual as being influenced
by the whole universe, as well as influencing the whole universe.
The word
'Ayurveda' is Sanskrit and means 'science of life' or 'life wisdom'.
In practical terms, Ayurveda enables us live our life to the maximum
of our potential happiness in terms of physical, mental and emotional
health. For many of us, this alone may seem like a good enough reason
to develop an interest in Ayurveda! However, the ultimate purpose of
Ayurveda is to show us the best possible place from which to explore
our internal reality - Consciousness. It is really not possible to separate
Ayurveda from Yoga in this respect, as both are ultimately concerned
with the same end, namely to be 'at one' with our true nature: Consciousness.
In my own
life, Ayurveda has given me a framework by which to understand and relate
all of my experiences - everything from physical and mental health to
relationships and metaphysical contemplation. This framework rings true
and feels instinctively right. Having been exploring and practising
Ayurveda for 3 years now, I am healthier and happier than I have ever
been.
For more
information, I recommend the following books (available here via amazon.com):
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