The Catbird Seat
SO TODAY WE ARE SITTING ON A HILL under a shady palm on a balmy day in Batuan village, in the midst of daytime activities at the BaliSpirit Fest. There are yoga pavillions in all four directions and we have a bird’s eye view into each of four simultaneous yoga and dance sessions… thought we would share the Catbird Seat with you.
Straight across, we are peering into the upper Byron Pavilion where Rebecca Pflaum is conducting her Chakra Ma Kundalini Yoga class. She’s playing a soul version of the Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’ to a standing-room-only crowd, while everyone is holding strong in the downward dog position. Next, they are switching into seated cross-legged spine twists, clapping with each breath–inhale, twist left, clap, exhale, twist right, clap–”whisper words of wisdom, let it be.”
To our right in the Yoga Barn Pavillion, Vinn Marti is exhorting everyone to try a new move and surprise themselves in what he is calling soul motion. The music is flowy, the crowd seems flirty and everyone is happy, Vinn insists on it.
To our left in the Lawn Pavilion Cristi Christensen, a yoga-assisted elite athlete and director of the Exhale Center for Sacred Movement, is calling out a series of stretches and bends to find strength, using breath with postures to seal any leaks in your center. Reach, breathe, stretch, breathe. . .
And directly in front of us, in the lower Byron Pavilion underneath the crowd in Rebecca’s Kundalini Yoga class, Erica Mather is leading a group in challenging slow yoga moves, creating spaciousness in the body.
The soundscape is a cacaphony of beats and commanding voices, it’s all yoga and motion in the Four Directions. You can do all four sessions at once if you have an ear for it. Aho!
photos by Cadenciaphotography.com
Written by : Jeremiah Abrams