Influenced by the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda, each month Maria will provide simple recipes, teas, remedies, and advice on daily routines for maintaining balance within each season. Recipes will be posted on the website and we’ll prepare them together in real time.

November 1 Menu (makes 2-4 servings)

Tomato Dal with Greens (kale, collards, chard or spinach)

Basmati Rice

Sweet Potato Flatbread

Participants will need to rinse and soak their dal at least one hour before class. Also, for the flatbread, we will need one large sweet potato steamed in its skin. This should be done about a half hour before class so that the sweet potato is still warm.

Ingredients

Tomato Dal ( makes 3 servings)

• 1/2 cup red lentils (or split mung)
• Fresh ginger 
• Garlic
• Turmeric powder 
• Dried or fresh chilies
• Ghee or coconut oil
• Mustard seed
• Cumin seed
• Curry leaf
• Hing
• Tomatoes
• Green of your choice
• Lemon

Basmati Rice

Sweet Potato Flatbread

• 1 large steamed-in-its-jacket sweet potato
• Flour (I like to mix half whole wheat and half white flour; you can experiment with spelt, einkorn, etc.)

Lesley Desaulniers has been studying yoga and meditation since 1996. In her early twenties, Lesley was a resident at Ananda Ashram in upstate New York, where she intensively studied Sanskrit, meditation, philosophy, yoga, and chanting. She was later certified by Sharon Gannon and David Life and went on to teach at the Jivamukti Yoga Center in downtown Manhattan. Lesley is deeply inspired by the brilliant teachers Kristin Leigh and Barbara Verrochi.

Ambika will be leading chanting to accompany the yoga class, as well as leading the class in call and response chanting after the Vinyasa portion of the practice.

Ambika has been a singer and musician for most of her life, playing in various bands in NYC until she discovered chanting with Krishna Das in 1995. Kirtan had a profound effect on her, and lead her to India where she met her teacher and Spiritual Mother, Shri Siddhi Ma. As Ambika deepened her connection to the practice of chanting, it became her home and refuge.

Register at www.anniepiper.com/retreats

Greece Yoga Retreat
With Annie, Barbara & Kristin
At Okreblue, Paros
July 10-17, 2022
All Levels Welcome

Accommodations
Double: $2030
Single: $2700
Please email info@theshala.com if you would like to join us.

$500 non-refundable deposit to hold your spot. 

Full payment is due 6 weeks prior to retreat, no refunds.

Includes

• Daily Yoga
  • Morning practice, pranayama, meditation & philosophy
  • Evening slow vinyasa, restorative, yin yoga, and kirtan
• Brunch & Dinner: a selection of organic, plant-based dishes, fusing exotic Indian flavors with the tastes and character of traditional Greek cuisine
• Accommodations

Other amenities and activities 

Explore the island of Paros best known for its endless beaches and traditional villages. Read, wander, sleep, and swim in the Aegean Sea. 

Reach out to us with any and all questions!  This will book up quickly, so if you’re considering it even a tiny bit, email us at info@theshala.com.back, and we’ll talk travel logistics, cost, accommodations etc etc.]

The idea of balance and the feeling of contentment and ease that it brings can be illusive in our lives especially since, according to Ayurveda and Yoga, balance is constantly being buffeted by changing conditions. Whether imbalance is related to the influence of time or changing circumstances in our lives or the changing of the seasons, Ayurveda provides a strategy for healthy adaptations to changing conditions.

This workshop explores Sirsasana (Headstand) with a focus on the core, arms, shoulders, and upper back/spine. We’ll consider where our tension, anxiety, and stress show up in this posture, and how we can work with these patterns compassionately and intuitively. Get out of your head and dive into the somatic realm for a distinctly embodied experience of Sirsasana.

Email mariagracecutrona@gmail.com to sign up and for more information.