Yoga comes in many shapes and forms; astanga, kundalini, hatha, pre natal, yoga for children….. I thought I had seen it all, but then I stumbled across ‘Yoga for village elders’ in a small community in the hills near Ubud. Yoga is yet to really catch on here in Bali, so to find a group of elderly Balinese practicing is surprising, but the results are not surprising at all. Not only are the senior citizens of Nyuh Kuning happier, healthier and more agile, they have an increased sense of self worth and purpose, and, as their teacher Deborah tells me, “Nobody needs to look after them anymore.”
A unique set of circumstances led to the classes. I Made Wena was the former Bendesa (leader of temple ceremonies) in the village of Nyuh Kuning, and a respected and inspired leader in the community, who wanted to give something back. He wanted to see the elders healthy and stress free in the last stages of their life so he started organizing regular walks through the rainforest and rice paddys. When he had the idea of yoga classes, his old friend Deborah Koehn, an internationally renowned yoga teacher and medicine woman with long standing ties to the community was keen to get involved. Therese Poulson founder of the Breath of Hope Yoga Foundation offered the yoga pavilion in the lush grounds of their ashram, Satyagraha for the classes.
Oddly enough it was while I was visiting Satyagraha to write about their yoga programs for kids that I stumbled upon the class for village elders. Just minutes from the hustle and bustle of Ubud, Satyagraha is an oasis of peace and serenity with organic vegetable gardens, a tea plantation, dense banana groves and a magnificent sprawling wantilan house that is available for rent. Classes take place in a spacious open air pavilion surrounded by tropical foliage and stone statues. I visit late one afternoon, one by one the elderly Balinese trickle in, dressed in tee shirts and tracksuit pants. Some arrive on foot, others have ridden by bicycle from surrounding villages and their ages range from around 60 to 95. It is clearly quite a social gathering and the pavilion is soon ringing with the sound of laughter. Deborah arrives, a tall blonde American with a huge smile and everyone becomes silent as she leads them through a series of asanas. She is considerate, patient and gentle and I am impressed with the agility and strength of the group as they twist and stretch. Towards the end of the class she divides them into partners where they face each other, hold hands and plant the soles of their feet together then attempt to straighten their legs. Laughter erupts as some of the topple over, although quite a few of them manage to hold the position admirably. When the class is over everyone sprawls around the floor chatting and giggling. A man with a wizened face and a cheeky grin gets up to dance, he is a former temple dancer, and he still has the moves. He pulls up one of the ladies and tries to get her to dance with him, she feigns embarrassment and he plants a kiss on her cheek much to her consternation, and the amusement of everyone else. There is a great sense of fun and camaraderie and joining the class has been such a positive and happy experience that my jaw aches from grinning so much. After the class everyone huddles around Deborah to say thank you, it is obvious how much they like and respect her, and she them. Made has told everyone that I am writing a story and they also come to me with their big smiles to say thank you.
Afterwards I join Made and Deborah for tea in a local warung. Made is a calm, gently spoken man, from a family of wood carvers. He tells me that it made him sad to see the elders just sitting at home with nothing to do, and explains that many of them had started to suffer from degenerative illnesses. He wanted to do something “from the heart,” to say thank you to them. As well as yoga classes there are also regular walks, tai chi classes and beach trips to Sanur. He tells me that the “Beach excursions are particularly popular and the elders splash around in the water and play on the beach like children.” Last year, he arranged a field trip to Besakih for a highly auspicious full moon ceremony. For most of the group it was their first trip to the mother temple, so it was an occasion of great excitement. “It was like they went to paradise,” he tells me with a big smile. He is now planning a trip to the Botanical Gardens.
Deborah tells me how wonderful it is to see the elders turn up week after week with, “Great gratitude and enthusiasm,” they tell her stories of being able to eat rice again with their hands, of feeling stronger, more balanced, happier, and more open in their hips and shoulders. Made adds that, “Deborah is a great teacher because she is really considerate and special.” Deborah and her husband have been involved with the village for over twenty years and also run Yoga Adventure programs which incorporate ‘Yoga for the Village People’ on their trips to Peru and Bali. She tells me that, “Every time we have had the opportunity to share yoga with someone who had no access to yoga in remote villages, the benefits were profound and the word would spread. When we would return to the villages there would be more people who wanted to share with us their sore backs, knees, necks and shoulders and ask questions about diet, sleep, exercise, health and spirituality.”
She adds that the “Sessions can be hilarious and profound, their faces have such focus and their bodies are so grateful and willing to participate. Where else in the world can we teach 87 elders the tree pose and every single one of them is able to keep their balance with their arms up over their head?”
The classes also provide a time for the elders to get together and support one another to be healthy and strong, and eases the burden for families who are able to focus their energy on day to day functions because they don’t need to attend to weak and infirm parents. Deborah says, “These people have taught me so much about keeping ritual in my life and it is a blessing to share the ritual of yoga with them. When we walk through the village we always meet with people who have stories of pain that has disappeared, more restful sleep, stronger bodies, easier breath and more ease in day to day life.”
A few weeks later I meet with everyone again at the Bali Spirit Festival where Deborah is leading a workshop entitled ‘Yoga for the village people,’ and 100 of the senior citizens turn up. Afterwards many join the Kundalini class led by the inspirational Rebecca Pflaum. At first they just watch, but are soon joining in, putting many of us much younger practitioners to shame with their agility. Mid-class Rebecca calls out “Its time to dance,” and cranks out some hip hop and the elders are the first on their feet to throw some funky moves. It’s a wonderful moment and one that really captures the essence of Bali Spirit. Afterwards I spot some of the elders playing Djembe in the West African percussion class and a few of the more adventurous have a go at hula hooping. Deborah tells me later that they all had a great day and no one wanted to go home.
At present activities for the group are sponsored by Swasti Cottages, and Bumi Sehat foundation which has a clinic in Nyuh Kuning offering midwifery and general health services, they also conduct regular medical check ups for the group. Made hopes to set up a foundation that will be named ‘Forever Young’ to sustain the program. He and Deborah are keen to raise money so they can create their own yoga space in the village that will be big enough to accommodate all 100 elders. They would also like to raise funds to train more local teachers who could then start similar programs in other villages. If you would like to help sponsor the classes and other activities you can email Made at wenamde@yahoo.com.
