Miami Weekend with Synergy Yoga Castle Beach

It's been two months (September 29th, 2012)  since I performed a funky and healing house music from our album Yoga on the Dance Floor and Sanskrit Mantras (Glide Recordings) at Synergy Yoga Miami's new center housed in the massive Castle Beach on Collins Avenue. Aside from the usual report back on show attendance (good), level of engagement (great), level of enthusiasm (fantastic!), devotion (thanks Victoria!)  there were added layers to the entire weekend that were sweet, healing, mystical, cooperative, delicious. The wonderful thing about going on tour is the chance  to steep myself in the locality and the culture of the people. By nature it is short thus intense and for that reason more memorable. My four day jaunt to Miami and SoBe has been on my mind ever since I got back to Brooklyn so why has it taken me so long to write about it?  It is in part because I feel like I am still there savoring every moment. The above photo is of the view to the ocean behind the Castle Beach condos. A throw back to the days of 1950's idea of luxury it is large, massive and eccentric even with the valet parking.

  Healing Moonlight Meditation with Arjan Kaur

One of my new friends Arjan Kaur, a teacher at Synergy Yoga Miami was about to set up for a Moonlight Meditation. We rode up together and my usual reservations about participating dissolved.

Arjan on left & Ekayani

This was going to be my first one and it was outdoors on the beach. The weather was perfect. 86F with a slight breeze a huge yellow moon that looked more mystical than usual due to it's being draped with clouds floated above the water. In fact the entire time I was following along doing "kriyas" or movements with Arjan and the gang I couldn't help but feel I was getting a glimpse into one of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's past times, the enormous personality of paramount mercy who is compared to a Golden Moon. He was in fact the reason why I was in Miami. Singing about paha dui jana had gained me entry so witnessing this golden moon suspended above the ocean seemed to me to be non different from Sri Caitanya.

Caitanya Mahaprabhu in an ecstatic mood mistaking the ocean for the Yamuna river

As I had had a very late night Saturday with the concert and the (hilarious) drive home, my body was feeling the stiffness from extended travel and little sleep. I bowed to Arjan whose Greek wedding style shoulder movements had helped loosen my spine and made my way inside the Russian Turkish Baths the Floridian counterpart of New York's East Village bath house. Outlandish as it is with Roman statues, red glass chandeliers and labyrinthian corridors leading to various hot rooms, it proved  both relaxing and amusing. I was in good company with a show attendee who delivered a healing invocation that I had been hoping for regarding healing our waters. Read about that in Heart Technology here

Cranking Sound Collective Efforts Delicious Vegan Food Stuffs

Hire Chef Amanda Resto for your next groovy event. You'll be glad you did!

Being a non traditional performance venue the challenge in a yoga studio is getting a club worthy PA system.  Big thanks to Ray at 7th Circuit from the Moksha Family who donated a sound system that did the job . With  Len donating the club lights, Tato on set up, Serge who set up the projector we had a real disco! The joke was on Victoria Brunacci and myself who got to  the center at Castle Beach  ten minutes before the doors were set to open to a crowd waiting for the doors to open! So much for the general wisdom  that "everyone always comes late" in Miami. With the good graces of Vegan Chef Amanda Resto of Flameless Foods we had a feast that was out of this world! Sadhu (who posted the video below)  had purchased us a live pizza replete with black olives that I happily devoured along with her delicious apricot chia sweet balls reminiscent of laghlu's a specialiy from Jagganatah Puri. I enjoyed a walnut humus that was a welcome departure from the classic chickpea and Amanda's  delicious uncooked flax seed squares.
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Enjoy this clip from the party. Ekayani on the mic while Victoria does asanas to our track Third Eye.