Christmas and New Year's Yoga Retreat

Enjoy the festive season at our new center

December 20-27, 2008 & December 27 - January 3, 2009

with Paul Dallaghan and Neil Barker

About the Retreat

After many years of practice and teaching, and the last few years of designing and building, we are very happy to welcome you to our new center. Having learned from past experience, we fully understand what makes a good yoga retreat center, and we have developed our new place with this in mind. The new Samahita Retreat was designed to facilitate the experience of yoga and healthy living.

Paul, Neil, and assistants will share in the task of teaching and guiding. Our expanded yoga shala space allows us to handle all students in different classes, as necessary. The retreat will offer a mix of Asana and Pranayama practice, along with practical workshops on philosophy and integrating yoga into daily life. Our intention is for you to feel uplifted and clear in what to practice by the time you end the retreat.

There will be a special ceremony on New Year's Eve to acknowledge 2008 and welcome in 2009. The event will help you close and heal the past year, setting the energy and intention for the year coming with an impetus to follow through on it. The rest of your time will be a nice break from all the crazy holiday happenings and commercial onslaught. Come and really enjoy the break.

About the Teachers

Paul

Paul is a senior teacher of Pranayama, Asana and the meditative art and science of Yoga. He has been a dedicated student for over a decade of both Sri O.P.Tiwari, one of the few remaining classical yogis and masters of Pranayama, and the late Sri K. Pattabhi Jois in ashtanga vinyasa. Both of these great teachers have personally certified Paul in these practices, a unique position as the only one to receive this double honor. Paul continues with Mantra practice from the yoga lineage and meditative approaches, influenced by the Thai Forest tradition. This combination of practice and study through dedication and devotion has helped him gain some understanding of practice and to apply this appropriately in Asana, Pranayama, Mantra recitation and Meditation for the different level of students he has the privilege to share the teaching with. He continues his studies in health, digestion, anatomy and physiology. One of his main gifts is to be able to relate the teachings in a very down-to-earth way for the modern seeker. He does not take life or yoga too seriously and as a result the discussions and philosophical sessions are lively and humorous, helping to explain the meaning behind the practices and philosophy.

Paul grew up in Dublin, Ireland and completed formal university studies at Trinity College. He lived in New York for seven years where his life in yoga practice and teaching began. From 2001 to 2007 he focused six months a year on advanced yoga studies in India and various pilgrimage spots in Tibet, Thailand and India. With his wife, Jutima, they opened Samahita Retreat and are both the happy parents of two lovely boys, Sean and Dylan. He knows firsthand about raising a family and keeping a sincere connection with practice and internal development. This practical experience and love of the subject matter he shares with joy, intelligence and humour.

For more please see his full bio.

Neil

Neil is a creative, lively, and gifted teacher with a unique ability to share learning in a way that students immediately "get" even difficult lessons. He is a senior teacher at Samahita Retreat and the training director for Centered Yoga Institute. He has been teaching with Paul since 2004. He is also a dedicated student of Sri O.P. Tiwari and is authorized to teach the Ashtanga practice by the master Sri K. Pattabhi Jois.

Neil has a solid background in the healing arts, having studied and practiced as a chiropractor/spine specialist, acupuncturist, and Chinese medical practitioner. Neil spent a number of years living in Beijing, where he opened the first modern-day yoga center. For more about Neil, see his full bio.

The Daily Schedule

The program begins at 5pm on the first day of the retreat with a group welcome and departure is at 12pm on the last day.
The schedule is subject to change at the discretion of the teacher.

7:00 am	Morning herbal tea
7:30 am	Intention and Day Opening Breathwork-Pranayama and Meditation
8:15 am	Asana Practice: detailed guidance in the Asanas, develop and grow a self-practice from the Ashtanga Yoga series going through in led detail and mysore style
10 - 11:30 am	Brunch buffet
4:00 pm	Special workshop covering both Asanas and Pranayama as well as the selected philosophical or anatomical topic. There will be some discussion and Q&A and some time working on the breath, poses and restorative yoga
6:00 pm	Dinner buffet
6 - 9:00 pm	Steam room available
7:30 pm	Evening program - video, satsang, meditation

* Special group excursion during the week to some of the natural wonders of Koh Samui or its neighboring islands.

Our guestrooms are set back just over 50 meters from the water to provide you with a private community and greater security. Most of our rooms open up to a spectacular seaview looking direct to the beach and the coconut trees.

The rate is inclusive of: