Poi

“Meditation heals, makes you whole: and to be whole is to be holy. Holiness has nothing to do with belonging to any religion…It simply means that inside you, you are entire, complete, nothing is missing, you are fulfilled. You are what existence wanted you to be. You have realized your potential.”
OSHO


It was great to arrive on Vamizi Island to find a yoga teacher living there, ready to take us through our paces.

Leela had just done her teacher training in Uganda and was looking forward to trying out her newly learnt skills on us.

Every morning we carried the yoga mats to a thatched sala looking out onto a bright sun rising over the beach. Each morning I felt more and more at peace as we headed back for breakfast followed by another swim in the clear, blue water.

Leela was also into Poi which she'd learnt in Goa.

Poi is a performance art employing two balls suspended from a length of flexible material held in the hand and swung in circular patterns. Poi actually originates from the Maori people of New Zealand and was performed primarily by women.

Leela was fantastic at Fire Poi and helped me with a few simple moves. It inspired me enough to take Poi lessons in the park at lunchtime, under the stern stare of Big Ben!

Osho championed active meditation in a quest to calm our busy 21st century minds. Each programme consisted of shaking, humming or dancing followed by a period of relaxation and stillness.

Maybe Poi followed by meditation would be a winning combination?

Leela was open, positive and feather light in her body.

She was an inspiration.