Shining A Light on Traditional Yoga: World Yoga Festival 2018
After having had a wonderful time at World Yoga Festival when I visited for the first time in 2017 (see review), I was excited to be back this summer for the third edition of the festival, which took place from 19-22 July 2018. The traditional yoga event focusing on a holistic approach to yoga was again held at Beale Park, near Reading, easily accessible by car or train and taxi (plus a festival shuttle at peak times).
Since last attending I’ve somewhat fallen off the yoga wagon and am still struggling with making regular meditation part of my life. So I got on the train to World Yoga Festival with somewhat mixed feelings last Thursday, even though I knew at the back of my mind that I’ll probably return home more motivated after a weekend of immersion into yoga philosophy and practice, just like I did last year. A few days away from our normal routines is often just what is needed to get a new perspective on life and World Yoga Festival has it all: a fabulous location, wonderful teachers, a health-conscious but relaxed atmosphere (alcohol and smoke-free plus lots of delicious vegetarian and vegan food) and, maybe most importantly and unlike many other festivals, it exists in order to promote the ancient wisdom associated with yoga philosophy in the UK and the world and is (as of this year) completely run as a charity, the Arsha Kula Foundation.
When festival founder Ram Banerjee made his opening remarks during the Welcome Ceremony, the first thing he said was: ‘Welcome back, welcome home!’ This was the perfect blessing for another weekend of yogic inspiration and another impressive array of teaching, talks and concerts from Thursday evening until Sunday night. As we were also celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of BKS Iyengar, one of the highlights for many attendees was no doubt the return of Zubin Zarthoshtimanesh from Mumbai, who tought a series of six two-hour masterclasses.
There were also several opportunities for a gong bath with sound healer Nikki Slade in the Space tent as well as kirtan and other chanting sessions. This year I gave a Sivananda yoga workshop with Laura Creswell a try, which incorporated both meditation and asanas and was a good introduction to this type of yoga. The Fire tent in particular, the smallest of the open-sided venues, was once more the hub for spiritual and philosophical talks on Understanding Reality (Ram Banerjee), Sanskrit and the Yoga Sutras (Lucy Crisfield) and many other inspiring sessions. The classes in the Air tent (see pic below), e.g. Vijay Gopala’s Yogic Science of Sun Salutations and Pt. Radheshyam Mishra offering a meditation for Emotional Balance, were also very popular often attracting more attendees than fitted into the tent.
The evening concerts, which were scheduled every night from around 8pm until 10pm, were another highlight and, as far as I’m concerned, are much more than merely entertainment. The music especially selected for the festival included many facets of Indian and some world music, including Jyotsna Srikanth (Southin Indian Carnatic violinist) and the Odissi dance of Pracheeti Dange, Prabhat Rao and band (Hindustani Classical musicians), Shammi Pithia and band (classical Indian music with modern touches) as well as New Zealand-based Sika Deer (tribal music; who also did an experiential sound journey session one afternoon).
In between the classes I kept returning to the Chai tent at the bottom of which was one of the coffee and juicing stalls run by nutritionist Trish Tucker, who also gave a useful talk with many practical tips on health and wellbeing. Like all the festival tents, the grassy ground was covered in coloured carpet, a different shade each symbolising the four elements. This tent (see pic below) overlooking the lake and furnished with low tables and sitting cushions was the perfect base to recharge after a more vigorous class, read a book, write in your journal or simply enjoy the first coffee of the day or a cup of tea at sunset.
In addition, the healing village offered complimentary therapy options, such as massage, reiki and energy healing in a serene lake side setting and there were also hot tubs for weary festival bodies. The Gotra family yoga area with many classes, games and crafty fun for the little yogis seemed even more lively and popular this year and it was lovely to see so many tiny humans run wild and free across the festival site with big smiles on their faces.
The food options this year included again South Indian food from Lalita’s, such as mandala dosa (pancakes with curry and sauces), Beleaf from Bristol providing healthy salads (see pic above) and breakfast options, two coffee and smoothie stalls, a new pizza and pasta truck plus Taste Tibet, which offered yummy vegan curries and very moreish Tibetan momos (veggie-filled dumplings, pictured below).
The botanical cocktail bar (see pic below), which got moved closer to the main tent this year, was also popular again, mixing a range of plant-based cocktails for festival goers to enjoy.
Here are a few things I learned or re-learned at the festival this year: expanding our comfort zone can be scary but is ultimately worth it, self care is not an indulgence but a healthy part of life and it’s never too late to change unhealthy habits, appreciating what we have is important and life is not a competition, when we face life’s challenges we need to become better rather than bitter, a single step doesn’t form a path, but continuous practice does in order to slowly transform your personality for the better, focusing on self-expression and going beyond rituals is more helpful than being action-oriented, if we hurt nature or others, we hurt ourselves, without failure we would never know what we’re really capable of, unexpected insights can happen anytime.
Given its success so far, World Yoga Festival certainly has the potential to become a permanent fixture, but having been mostly privately financed until now, it will need the support of many individuals to continue on its path. You can help the event grow and prosper by attending a future festival and also find out more about it and the Arsha Kula Foundation as well as potential sponsorship opportunities.
