Lauren | Guatemala 200hr YTT Testimonial

Studying yoga for 200 hours through the School Yoga Institute at the Mystical Yoga Farm was so much more than yoga teacher training. The experience brought connection, ceremony, and consciousness to my life. For example, for three weeks we weave Indian yogic philosophy with the Andean medicine wheel, which are both nature-based spirituality practices. It was so enlightening to discover how different cultures worship nature and the elements. Learning about the elements helps us to connect deeper with the environment, our bodies, and our practice, and helps to perceive how these entities are all just reflections of each other. Additionally, the Andean medicine wheel moves through four 4-day cycles corresponding to the different directions and animal spirits; the animal themes align with the energetic flow of the training. Again, this is connecting us deeper to nature and our embodiment of the non-human realm.

When we began the training, we learned about the serpent and innate symbolism associated with this animal like shedding/outgrowing/moving forward from thoughts or habits that hold you back from living up to your highest potential. Reflections began to arise about stagnant relationships, negative mental loops, and life-defining habitual choices. This cycle gave us space to release anything holding us back from embarking on our spiritual and devotional journey into yoga and wellness. In our second cycle, we embodied the jaguar animal spirit which was a very heavy cycle. We drew on the earth element and addressed mental barriers derived from ego and how we can liberate ourselves from our mind. Day three of jaguar fell on my 29th birthday, a day where as a group, we fasted and remained in silence until 3pm. This was one of the most ego-shattering experiences I have endured, but it was exactly in line with the lessons of the cycle. When awareness is brought into the human psyche, synchronicity sprouts.

I entered the hummingbird cycle after a day off spent exploring the towns of San Juan La Laguna and San Pedro La Laguna, with so many sweet treats on my bed side table I could not help but to give them away and share the sweetness and joy with others. I purchased a pair of beaded earrings at the farm made by a local woman and as I tried them on and gazed into the mirror, a hummingbird flew down beside me on a branch and remained there for a few seconds looking at me before flying away. Mystical Yoga Farm is unique in that it is an eco-conscious, low environmental imprint retreat center, where permaculture, waste management, and plant-based nutrition are all core values. The way of life on the farm strips away conveniences from urban civilization to create space for what is real and vital to a content existence. When we return to our home lives, we can appreciate the luxuries we may have previously taken for granted.

We also had the opportunity to experience various ceremonies, such as a traditional Mayan fire ceremony with a Mayan knowledge holder and bi-weekly sacred sauna. Our facilitators brought ceremonious structure into the learning environment, meal times, and our daily practice. This exposure brought awareness of how to cultivate more ceremony and ritual into my day to day life, from eating food to preparing for bed. Every day during the course was intentionally structured, with substantial meal breaks and time for personal introspection. We were given writing prompts related to spirituality and yoga that were due at the end of the course and these helped us learn more about yoga outside of class time. I loved the long breaks so that I could swim in the lake in the morning before breakfast and take my post-lunch walk into the forest or to the neighboring village, Chacaya.

Class time was always a sacred space, where personal needs and comfort were prioritized. Time together as a group was always opened and closed with a song, poem or game. Mystical Yoga Farm is a place of song sharing and mantra, which allowed me to discover my voice and unlock my hidden potential. Tuesday and Saturday evenings involved sacred sauna or Temazcal, where we could cleanse and purify our physical and spiritual bodies. In the Temazcal, members could chant or use a rattle to enhance a sort of deep meditative state. Every Friday evening, the farm community offered a fire and song circle with cacao that was open to the public, and so much love emanated from these containers.

On my final night, after our YYT graduation ceremony I shared a few songs around the fire and was praised with so much positivity. I now look forward to pursuing music and song without the limitations of self-imposed judgement. Our training overlapped with a 300 hour Tantric YTT, so we were introduced to the idea of furthering our yoga education with a specialization. Our facilitator Katie, is trained in yoga therapy and this approach to yoga was very resonant for me. I envision a future for myself curating personal 1:1 yoga therapy sessions where mantra, intuitive guided meditation, and obtaining personal physical goals, are all focal points.

Yoga has helped me in so many ways, such as calming the mind, opening the heart and releasing tension from closed energetic fields. I wish to share my love of yoga and natural gift for teaching with the world. The teaching component of our training entailed peer-teaching in a 1:1 setting. I received such positive feedback and praise from my recipients. I loved the slowness and meticulous nature of the hatha sequence, and the high energy free flow of vinyasa. We had the ability to add our own style and creative flair to our practice space and even had the chance to build our own playlist for the vinyasa flow.

The most transformative lesson that I am taking away from this training, is that yoga is so much more than asana. There are 8 limbs of yoga and asana is just one of them. Now that I am graduated and out in the world, I notice myself employing the 8 limbs of yoga into my life, like breathing deeply in intense situations, chanting to nature to invoke my personal power to the elements, acting in alignment with my values, and adopting a nourishing morning routine. I am living yoga off my mat. My deepest gratitude extends to SYI and MYF for holding space for such a beautiful experience of personal transformation and growth.