by Vicki Sidley
We had been practicing for months. Many had attended online courses in preparation.
Twenty-one candidates congregated in the Gönpa on July 1st, 2024, to undergo Yantra Yoga first level supervision for the first time since Rinpoche’s passing. We were to be supervised by Fabio and Laura. Many had come for Yeshi Namkhai’s teaching that had ended on June 27th. Following this and in the days preceding the supervision an informal Yantra practice group formed among those already in the area, practicing together in the Sala Mandala under the guidance of Marija Bajic Jov, who had recently passed her supervision in Dzamling Gar, and on certain days, Oana Marcu from Romania, and Marco Bassegio from Venice.
Pre supervision training group
Sitting in a circle around the Mandala, the candidates took turns introducing and presenting the various ‘modules’ of Yantra Yoga. After each presentation applause was given and then the feedback started. The candidate was being assessed by his or her peers. We shared our information fully, openly, and freely. It struck me how supportive we were to each other. We were all trying out our skills as teachers, and those who were less prepared gained knowledge, and those more prepared gained experience in teaching. The authorized teachers lending a hand listened patiently and clarified questions and offered valuable advice.
On the first day of the supervision Laura was present and so was Jan Dolensky (Honza), the third level Yantra Teacher from Prague, who had come to be of help. Then the news dropped. Fabio, we learned, was under the weather. How could Laura carry the burden of supervising all the students in ten days? But Laura assured us that Fabio would return as soon as he could.
Italian speaking yogis with Laura in Sala Mandala
I looked around the room. We had all been in together in Dzamling Gar in January for the Yantra Level 1 Teacher Training. These familiar faces had come from as far afield as Belarus and California, with the others from England, Spain, France, Switzerland, Croatia, Italy, Romania, and Lithuania. Then, after giving us some general pointers Laura started the supervison with Ante Samodol from Croatia, who was to return home early, and asking for two more volunteers.
The individual circumstances of each candidate came to life as they described so authentically their intention for wanting to teach. As each performed, Laura scrutinized their movements and their breathing, correcting where necessary, and conferring on individual matters with Jan.
English speaking group of yogis warming up with Fabio in the Gönpa
On the third day, to our delight, Fabio arrived, looking none the worse for wear. He proceeded to teach with gusto and humor. We continued for that day but on the fourth day the group was split into two groups; the Italian speaking group went with Laura to the Sala Mandala, while the non-Italian speaking group stayed with Fabio in the Gönpa. Even though only four of the ten in this group are native English speakers, now everyone would have to present in English, except for Tatiana Rusetskaya from Belarus, who fortunately had Inna Ossinkina, a Russian speaker, there to translate. Explaining Yantra Yoga is not easy (especially while doing it) and I applaud those who had to overcome the additional hurdle of a language not their own.
On the fifth day two more candidates, Angelica Siedlecki and Martina Bigazzi, previously supervised, joined the Italian group – now bringing the candidate total to twenty-three. We were also joined in the Gönpa by Fulvio Grosso from Rome who came to observe and share his knowledge.
Every day we were treated to a fine, colorful, mostly vegetarian-and-gluten-free luncheon up at the Yellow House by Chef Gianni, who greeted his daily applause with broad smiles and open arms exclaiming “Grazie Ragazzi!”
On the seventh day, during the long lunch break until three-o-clock, I learned that a group of candidates were meeting on the outside Mandala to dance The Song of the Vajra. On the walk down to the mandala, Zoe Lüthi from Switzerland gathered yellow flowers on the hillside to make an infusion for Fabio. Gina Bryne from Lithuania put her phone in the middle of the Mandala, and we danced, enjoying the beauty and softness of the movements in those spectacular surroundings. Walking back, someone commented that you would be unlikely to find a group of Vajra dancers who would practice Yantra Yoga during their lunch break.
Getting supervised
Laura and Fabio teaching
Supervisees doing the camel
One evening, Alberto Pellezzoni, a candidate, and a physicist, gave a talk on the fluctuations in the magnetic field of the sun, and its effects on our planet earth.
We were here to learn as much as we could about Yantra, treasuring every little detail of the teaching, advice, corrections and even the admonishments from our beloved teachers. On the last three days the two groups were reunited in the Gönpa, and the supervision continued. Everyone was seen and properly assessed. The support and warmth that I had first experienced in the practice group had infected the larger group and was present throughout the whole supervision. I have attended many yoga retreats, and I can say that none quite had this group feeling of sweetness, smiles, and sharing.
At the end of the tenth day, the diplomas were awarded one by one. The happiness was palpable. To top it off, candidate Alessandro Di Maio treated us to a performance in the Gönpa of what might be described as a soundscape, the interweaving of various abstract, experimental, transcendent sounds – a delicious auditory experience.
Alessandro Di Maio performing soundscape
Twenty-three candidates are now newly authorized as Yantra 1st Level Yoga teachers.
