Spiritual yoga tourism is now becoming a world trend. Why? Some say that by practising yoga one can relieve stress. While, some also believe that yoga is managed of delivering spiritual bliss. And others believe if they come up with essential values in this life happiness will come having been deeply involved in yoga.
Whatever their reason is, Ann Barros, a US national, believes that yoga can heal the physical illness she suffers from. “Prior to learning yoga, I had an aspiration to become a US professional ballerina,” she said to Bali Travel News while adding that such aspiration failed when she knew that she suffered from scoliosis (abnormal lateral curvature of the spine).
Then in 1976, she learned yoga under guidance of BKS Iyengar. She first knew him from her younger sister that has learned yoga earlier than her from BKS Iyengar in India. She told her about spinal straitening through yoga. By the influence of yoga ‘asanas’ her scoliosis totally recovered. So did joint disorder and other illnesses. “It was a surprising finding,” she said.
Other than scoliosis and joint disorder, in accordance with her research, yoga also relieves stress. Stress is disturbance that can result in various illnesses and yoga is one of alternatives to resolve them. “I will mention respectively the illnesses often caused by stress, namely headache, insomnia, asthma, depression, digestive system and excretion disorder, apart from other illnesses,” she pointed out. During the menopause, stress can also causes a condition named “pstosis” (disorders on urethral vessel or uterus). By practising yoga in reversed or semi-reversed style, blood circulation will be reversed, hormonal balance occurs and muscles of urethral vessel will be tightly stretched. “For men that undergo constriction on foot muscles or prostatic disorders can also recover by this position,” she said.
There are so many benefits of yoga, then ‘Aunt Ann’, her familiar name in Bali, introduced Spiritual Yoga Tour to Bali. Probably, she was the first (US) expatriate that brought the Americans to Bali for practising yoga. At least, she offers three times tour program to Bali in a year. All her tour programs are sold on the Internet and it won extraordinary appreciation from the citizen of Uncle Sam. For 40 years of her spiritual yoga journey, she has handled 15-20 guests every time she comes to Bali. “I am very glad to transfer our yoga knowledge to whomever,” said the woman whose age now has been more than half-century. “During my stay in Bali, I am very delighted to be among the Balinese people who are very friendly.”
Ann Baros is not the only one expatriate who brings her colleagues to have yoga tour to Bali. There are tens foreigners that follow the footprint of Ann. One of them is Janet (JJ) Gormley, a US national. “I have such wonderful memories of my recent trip to Bali. My reason for being there was two-fold: to co-teach (with Barbara Benagh) a two-week-long yoga workshop and to absorb Balinese culture,” said Janet (JJ) Gormley on her article at the Internet about Yoga in Bali, recently.
As she came from USA, a halfway around the globe, a 12-hour time-zone change to go to Bali is no problem for her to teach Practicing Yoga. Each day, she teaches twice every morning and the other in the afternoon, for approximately 4 hours. The usual routine was yoga in the morning (7 to 9am before it got too hot), followed by a leisurely breakfast, and then a daytime excursion.
For afternoon yoga class was usually from 4 to 6pm followed by dinner and occasionally punctuated by an evening cultural experience – a Balinese dance or orchestra performance. Excursions were optional and we had lots of free time for shopping, swimming in a beautiful pool with a disappearing edge, reading or simply relaxing.
Learning and practising yoga in Bali is not only in Ubud and its vicinity. Almost all nooks and crannies of Bali Island are centre for spiritual tourism, starting from Sanur, Ubud, Seminyak, Nusa Dua, Pacung, Karangasem up to Munduk mountain ranges (Buleleng) and other region are ideal for spiritual tourism (Read also: Spiritual Tourism at Nusa Dua Tourist Resort and Spiritual Tourism in Buleleng).
In addition, some hotels like Melia Bali, Nusa Dua—also provides space for its guests to exercise yoga. It’s easy for us to find out that prepares cool room to practise yoga, either in Nusa Dua, Kuta, Sanur, Pacung, Sidemen (Karangasem) and so forth.It is the superiority of Bali as world tourist destination. Every inch of its territory is good for spiritual yoga tours. Precisely, things that should be given attention are the upgrade of local teacher’s competence. These days, it is more expatriates that teach yoga here in Bali.
Many Balinese itself, as a matter of fact, have capability of teaching yoga. However, they commonly teach yoga just for the sake of personal interest. “We are necessary to give exercise to the Balinese,” said Meghan, the operator of Bali Spirit in Ubud that also provides spiritual yoga tour. According to Meghan, the Balinese has known about yoga perfectly from time immemorial. Predominantly, they know yoga from the book that inherited through generations, especially in the surroundings of geria (house to high priests). They practised yoga just for their self-interest. “Therefore, I am going to open ‘Training the Trainer’ yoga course for the Balinese,” she said.
The trend of spiritual yoga tour has indeed been popular throughout the world. Westerners, American and European make yoga their daily part of sport and spiritual exercise. Those belong to this group that will visit Bali, considering this island retains unrivalled spiritual ‘taksu’ (divine inspiration) to other tourist destinations. Is Bali capable of competing to other tourist destination? Let’s wait the readiness of the Balinese themselves to enhance their knowledge, moreover, on the assistance of ‘foreigner’ that will open training for them. (BTN/para/015)
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Regard from Nusa Dua