Last October, Happy Dot Box sponsored a Free Yoga in the park event in West Hollywood, California. The purpose was to give our Featured non-profit of the month, The Keep A Breast Foundation, awareness for breast cancer. The event consisted of free smoothies, yoga, Keep A Breast info, and of course, free Happy Dot Boxes! Around that same time, I attended a yoga class with a friend of mine and she introduced me to Eben Oroz. He is a local yoga teacher that has amazing energy and is truly passionate about sharing his yoga practice. I asked him if he would like to help out for the event and he accepted without any hesitation. The event was lovely and everyone really enjoyed his class.
Several months later, Eben and I decided to get together to discuss life and some marketing ideas for our brands. He told me about his retreats that he had began organizing and asked me to attend. I have to admit that I’m usually one of those inconsistent yoga attendees. In an effort to be a good reciprocating friend, I accepted his invitation. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but was open to an adventure to support my friend.
Two weeks later, as I pulled up to the house in Topanga, there were several attendees organizing around the property. As I spoke to all of them, I realized that I was the only non-practicing yogi there. In fact, most of them consisted of yoga teachers or yoga companies. We all decided to immerse ourselves into the experience. We agreed to no use of WIFI or cell phone connection while at the retreat.
The three-day journey consisted of waking at the crack of dawn, meditation, breathing, yoga, and delicious meals consisting of plant-based food by our amazing chef, Taylor Smith. For each meal we sat around a huge communal table inside of the kitchen to enjoy our meals and conversation.
Here is the breakdown of what we received:
- 3 nights and 3 days of Sadhana (Practice)
- 7 hours of Asana (Physical Postures)
- 5 hours of Meditation 4 hours of Pranayama (Breath work)
- 3 Workshops
- Chanting (Devotion to Life)
- Prayer (Acts of Love)
- Ritual (Acts of Meaning)
- Yoga Nidra (The Science within Savasanna)
- Dream Yoga (Lucid Dreaming)
- and 3 delicious home cooked vegetarian meals daily
Although this practice was a new experience for me, I feel that I was able to learn quickly by mimicking what the others were doing. The beautiful practice and methodology to Eben’s sequences had an astounding effect on my body. Sitting quietly and stretching into poses made some of my deepest suppressed thoughts come to surface. I was very grateful that I had the experience of tapping into my emotions while at the retreat. As we left we were told we would experience some shifts while entering back to our fast paced world.
The next morning when I woke up at home all alone in my bed, I realized my ego had died. In the three days following my return, I remained in my bed while alone with my thoughts. My greatest realization was the best friend girl that lived inside of me (my ego) was a liar; Feeding me stories my entire life. I had a deep cry and went through loads of tissue. In hindsight, I realized that our egos create barriers to prevent us from feeling hurt.
I said I was open for a journey and boy I had no idea my third eye would be cracked open from a few days of yoga. I have spoken to many others about my awakening and have learned that my experience is very hard to achieve, even for professional yogis despite years of practice.
Who would have thought that my support of friendship would turn out to be one of my greatest gifts? I can now read the book “A New Earth” by Ekhart Tolle and understand the principal behind the true definition of the word ego. Thank you Eben Oroz!
On a side note, I firmly believe in old fashioned letters, open communication and expression of feelings. I decided to express my gratitude to Eben by writing a testimonial:
Eben,
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
I can not even begin to describe my gratitude towards you. The gift you have given me is absolutely priceless. Your guidance through the first two days of your retreat moved me into my true identity and I feel so much closer to my true authenticity. I have always been a healthy skeptic of meditation and yoga practice but you showed me living proof! Through breath work, meditations, and Asana yoga postures you have transformed my life and I will always be grateful for your gift.
Much Love,
Courtney
Slots are filling up quickly for his next retreat (December 7-10, 2017)! If your looking for an amazing spiritual awakening, visit his website here.
Not Convinced?
Here are 9 reasons to meditate:
- 1. It tunes you into your spiritual instinct
- 2. It's the missing link to hearing God in its language
- 3. It shatters the pre-set boundaries of your brain
- 4. Its the key to brain-body communication
- 5. It allows you to see behind the illusion of our crazy world
- 6. It leads to superior psychological development
- 7. It multiplies your ability to have new experiences
- 8. Its natural warning system
- 9. It leads one to be calm and happy