april / may 2017
20T DIRECTOR : ANUJA BAGADE, PHOTO CREDIT : RAYCHEL KAYE, GRACE LEE, ULRIKEREINHOLD PHOTOGRAPHYy
the essence of the festival, the more I felt the
need to free my mind and tune in to my inner
self—a constant challenge for me.I began to step out of my comfort zone and
attended an “embodied dance” class by Daniel
“Sonic” Rojas. Daniel first led us to move our
bodies, muscle by muscle. It was here that I
got a glimpse of the beauty of breakdancing!
He then asked us to explore feelings through
movement and to dance to different elements
of nature (earth, water, fire, air and space).
Rolling on the floor, standing, sitting, jumping,
and touching ourselves were all part of the
equation. This powerful practice combines
yoga, conditioning, breakdancing and martial
art techniques. You really need to be willing
to let your hair down and break all barriers
to dive into the rhythm of music and connect
with your mind and body. I have to admit that
I am still seeking spirituality and don’t have
much hair to let down, metaphorically and
physically. My academic training had always
been very binary and black and white (I was
a computer specialist before I became a yoga
instructor). However, for the brief moment
that I managed to break free, I could honestly
appreciate the power of “embodied dance”
and how it could take one through a dynamicjyg gBy now, I was beginning to get some insight
into my questions around why this was a spirit
festival, and not just a yoga conference.Earthshaking and Healing
I was staying at a resort called Honeymoon
Guesthouse, a Balinese style bungalow in Ubud
owned by an Australian lady, Janet DeNeefe,
an author and also the director of the Ubud
Writers & Readers Festival, and her Balinese
husband. The couple also owned the Casa
Luna Bali resort down the street, some cafes
and restaurants, as well as a popular cooking
school.My unit was simple, yet tastefully done. It
opened directly into a courtyard decorated
with guardian statues and a small fountain.
There were carvings and statues of Gods and
Goddesses everywhere—along the windows,
on the doors and on the porch outside my unit.
It felt like a sacred and quiet temple.At 7am on the third day, an earthquake of 6.4
magnitude shook and rattled the guesthouse.
Fear gripped me at first as I thought it was the
spirits doing a number on me, but then I heard
the other residents walk out and realized thatgg y
there were no damages reported. My local taxi
driver assured me later that Bali’s safety was
synonymous with sanctity, and the city was
blessed and protected because of the daily
prayers and offerings by the locals.Meanwhile, at the festival I dedicated one
whole day to learning about healing since
there were all sorts of healing presenters
at the festival—Ayurveda, sound healing,
energy healing, reiki, you name it. The one
that I found most fascinating was related to
aboriginal ceremonial traditions; and their
indigenous dance, instruments and songs
seemed to have some magical powers. Jose
Calarco, a ceremonial leader from Australia,
and his partner, Ana Forrest, a well-known
yoga teacher from the US, put their hands
over the affected area of a person, transmitting
energies, while the participant was told
to breathe in and “let go”. Another healer
then used a 2-meter long cylindrical wind
instrument, the Didgeridoo, to blow into the
affected area. Jose and Ana claim that they
have cured cancer and other diseases through
this healing. From what I understood, vibration
therapy is based on the idea that all illness in
our body is a result of blockages, and sound
g vibrations help to break up these blockages.tions help to break up thkupthhese blockages. RTAsame. But the more I immersed myself into journeyof lightness and emotional healing. theground was shakingfor a reason. Luckily,ESCAPE
li ll
Hugs and healing, a common sight
The author, Grace, tries to meditateGrace with Laura Burkhart
Dancing can be
so liberating