ZEN MEDITATION AND IYENGAR YOGA RETREAT

Zen Teacher Shinkohas has been practicing Zen Buddism for 17 years.

For ten years he lived at the Zen Mountain Center in Southern California, receiving full ordination as a Zen priest and granted permission to teach independently by his teacher Tenshin Fletcher, Sensei.

During his early life, Shinko had many questions about life, the universe and everthin, including "Is this all there is?" Having been raised Catholic, moving onto the wisdom tradition of Zen, came as a natural unfolding of this search for meaning. Zen provided a direct method for dealing with the pain of this uncertainty and outlined a clear path to putting his doubts and fears to rest.

Having traveled down this path and spent many years guiding others, Shinko is still in awe of how the simple practice of paying attention-to what is right in front of us, can bring about the deepest sense of peace and fulfillment. But perhaps beyond that, practicing with heart and courage, we find that this journey is indeed the very goal itself. When we engage our profound desire for our own and others wellbeing, we do indeed find that "this is all there is". More

Paul started awakening to the limitations of life as a stiff and mentally untrained (and information overloaded) New Zealand male.

He found increasing flexibility and sustained mental concentration produced more energy and a direct experience of what was happening in any moment. Modem psychology may term this moving from a "dependent materialist" mind(rational mind emphasis) for the root source of meaning to a more and more an integrated mind heart experience. After Paul spent 3 years serving in the second poorest country in the world ( Vietnam) and seeing the heart state there amid the poverty he destined to live more the heart state rather than becoming totally lost in a material view and focus.

Having spent a passionate 27 years practising and studying Iyengar Yoga Paul strives to create a concentration of attention for students so a deeper meaning and sense of vibrant life can be touched.
Using poses and sequencing with deep relaxation the sense of a worthless present moment rushing towards death can be transformed into deepest meaning. The practice can even lead you to touch your toes, and to be your self with your conditioning and not just your conditioning.