Rajesh David

Next Retreat 4 – 6 April 2025 @ Shepherds Dene Retreat House Riding Mill, Northumberland NE44 6AF Cost: £475 (single room) To book, contact maryewyvill@hotmail.com

‘To go through life with a closed heart is like taking an ocean voyage locked in the hold of the ship. The meaning, the adventure, the excitement and the glory of living are beyond one’s vision and reach.’             Alexander Lowen

In Conscious Body Open Heart we become attuned to the engrained habits which lead us to live life on autopilot. Without awareness, there is no possibility of change and transformation.

Through the Movement Intelligence practices of Bones for Life, Walk for Life and Mindful Eating, Marye will be looking at our habits of posture and movement – how we sit, stand up, walk, and even how we eat. How can we find greater ease and pleasure in everyday tasks?

Working with the Yogic concepts of Anahata Chakra, Bhakti, and the Koshas, Rajesh will be exploring the emotional habits that trap us in a subject/object operating system, and leading us through heart-opening practices designed to dissolve the barriers to perception of the Self.

Marye’s sessions will introduce the gentle, ingenious movement processes of Ruthy Alon’s Movement Intelligence programmes, including Bones for Life, Walk for Life and Mindful Eating:

• Mindful Eating – Becoming conscious of the mechanical actions of our eating can reveal the deeper counterproductive habits which they conceal. Transforming our physical gestures can help us to confront behaviour, adopted over a lifetime, that denies us true pleasure in eating.
• Freeing the Back – “What goes on in your back is evidence of the level of communication throughout your whole organism.” Ruthy Alon. Learn to heal the back through conscious awareness rather than confrontation. Cultivate proportional flexibility and restore ease in movement.
• Improving the Quality of Everyday Movement – movements we repeat many times a day, such as transitioning between sitting and standing, reaching and walking, either hasten or slow down deterioration. Learning to move as nature intended protects our bones, increases our flexibility, strength and stamina, and allows us to experience biological optimism!

Rajesh’s sessions will focus on the path and process of opening the heart centre, as a way of enriching our meditation practice. They will include:

• Exploring the symbolism and meaning of Anahata Chakra, through visualisation, mantra-chanting and colouring. 
• Understanding the emotional landscape through the lens of the Heart Chakra and Heart Intelligence.
• In search of the Self through Bhakti Yoga – lessons from the Bhagavad Gita. Bhakti Yoga awakens the heart centre, refining our perceptions and unveiling the true nature of reality. This is the Wisdom of the Heart, which transcends the limited egocentric intellect, opening up the possibility of Yoga union with the Absolute, Brahman.

The Tutors