Tara Mandala & Telluride Yoga Fest: Blossom, Easton teach intensives

The event is a workshop on the subject of “Shadow Yoga and Buddhist Meditation: the Pranic Pathway to Stillness.” The individuals leading the two intensives are the husband and wife team of Scott Blossom and Chandra Easton, joined by one of their teachers, Lama Tsultrim Allione.

The workshop at Tara Mandala, a 700-acre retreat center near Pagosa Springs, Colorado, founded by Lama Tsultrim Allione and her husband David Petit, occurs first and unfolds over six days, June 30 – July 7. The retreat targets those interested in learning a set of practices for circulating and preparing the vital energies (prana) for meditation.

Hatha yoga is designed to purify and prepare the body, prana and mind for meditative quiescence and insight. Scott Blossom, a traditional Chinese medical practitioner and Shadow Yoga Teacher will teach Shadow Yoga, a Hatha Yoga system that consists of spiraling, circular, and linear movements – sun salutation forms, warrior stances and traditional seated postures.

Once the body, mind and prana are prepared, Chandra Easton, a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and yoga teacher, will give instruction on Shamatha (Calm abiding) meditation, which includes ‘Mindfulness of the Breath’ as taught by the Buddha and ‘Settling the Mind in Its Natural State’ as taught by the 8th century Indian Buddhist sage, Padmasambhava.

Lama Tsultrim, the first American woman to be ordained in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition and a world renowned teacher, will introduce the practice of “Feeding Your Demons,” a process based on the Tibetan practice of Chod, through which we learn to feed rather fight our so-called demons as a means of liberating our physical, energetic and emotional blockages.

Just one day after the close of the Tara Mandala retreat, Scott, Chandra and Lama Tsultrim will join other yoga teachers at the third annual Telluride Yoga Festival, July 8 – July 11, where they will teach various courses on Yoga and meditation.

To make the retreat more accessible, Tara Mandala is now offering a 50% discount (between $775 and $390 off the original price, depending on choice of lodging) to yoga studio owners, and a 25% discount ($300 – $150 off) to any students they bring with them. Anyone attending the Telluride Yoga Festival and Shadow Yoga at Tara Mandala qualifies for a 25% discount as well.

If you are unable to attend the Tara Mandala retreat or the opening day intensive  at the Telluride Yoga festival, all three teachers are scheduled on related but different subjects and disciplines throughout the  Festival weekend.

To learn more, click the “play” button and listen to Scott and Chandra’s podcast