No cults, please

January 17, 2006 4:19 PM

Has anyone ever lived in an ashram? If so, please tell me a little about your experience, positive and negative. Details such as location, work involved, costs, etc., also appreciated.
posted by strangeleftydoublethink to Society & Culture (5 answers total)

All the Fishes Come Home to Roost is a memoir by a woman who spent much of her childhood and adolescence in a (cult-related) ashram.
posted by Jeanne at 4:51 PM on January 17, 2006

oh, I just posted about this the other day on a thread around here. I stayed on an ashram in upstate NY for two weeks about 5 years ago. It was a nice property, lake, weeping willow, grape vines, trails; vegetarian food thrice daily; yoga classes and meditation sessions included. I needed space to relax and recuperate, and it worked well for me, at $500 all inclusive.

However, the folks there were bonkers. I did a lot of smiling & nodding, and just enjoyed the yoga and meditating in my own way.
posted by mdn at 9:43 PM on January 17, 2006

A friend of mine raves about going and staying at Yogaville. She loved the people, the yoga, the meditation, the connection. She tries to go there at least every few years.
posted by willmize at 3:42 AM on January 18, 2006

If you hit up yogaville.com (instead of .org in willmize's post) you'll be redirected to a bunch of not-so-happy content regarding the place.

Note: I've never been, just passing the information.
posted by lowlife at 7:38 AM on January 18, 2006

For two consecutive summers I attended the teen program at an ashram located on Kootenay Lake in BC, Canada.

This ashram was involved in the creation of Ascent Magazine which I believe is the number one yoga magazine.

My experience as a teen was entirely positive, even with the daily exercise of Karma Yoga (work). It was very interesting to be surrounded by such spiritual people. Satsang (a type of prayer service) was held each evening and was probably what I enjoyed most. The temple it was held in had incredible acoustics and with every one chanting it was pretty far out.

There was also lots of practice of Hatha yoga (typical yoga postures), singing, and time to wander around the beautiful grounds and beach.
posted by futureproof at 2:32 PM on February 18, 2006