Benefits of Tibetan Yoga

Two Students Share Their Personal Experiences

The next Tibetan yoga (trul khor) retreat will take place Nov. 3 through 6, 2011, at Ligmincha Institute’s Serenity Ridge Retreat Center in Nelson County, Va. It is open to both beginners and experienced practitioners and will be led by Alejandro Chaoul-Reich, who has been teaching Tibetan yoga for many years. We asked a few students of Ale’s to share a little about their experiences with these practices.

I was a chronic pain sufferer for years. A-Tri Trul Khor helped bring the end of it at Chamma Ling Colorado with Ale in 2008. The short version of my first experience is as follows. As Ale was giving his introductory talk I was reading ahead in the handout. When I read about the last movement I thought "Hop on one foot! Are you nuts? I can't even stand on one of my feet." At that point, Ale came into my awareness and said "trust." And I said "okay." By the end of the retreat I was walking pain free and doing the movements. I was able to do prostrations when before I could not. I then went to the Zhang Zhung Nyam Gyud ngondro retreat with Tenzin Rinpoche. And since then I have gone to the ZZNG cycles of trul khor currently offered and this has been an infinite boon to my practice. Thank you Rinpoche for making these available and thank you Ale for teaching them!

— Gerry Heikes

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I first experienced trul khor during Winter Retreat three years ago. The movements made me feel really alive, and I noticed that the air sort of sparkled after I completed all the jumping and lying down on the tarp outside at Serenity Ridge. I knew I had to do these strange movements. Well, I have been practicing trul khor for two years now and have taken it as a daily practice. At first doing such vigorous movements had distracting effects, such as feeling very sensitive, sometimes over-energized, but overall I could feel my sensorium/energy flowing like I never had before. 

I spoke to Alejandro about this and he suggested that I do it at night so that I am not opening up and then dealing with the hectic quality of the day. This suggestion changed everything. I practice at night before I go to bed. I call it "brushing my chakras." All the energy, thoughts, vibes, etc., that I collect during the day I wash away with the movements at night. The result has been a more liminal state of sleep, restful; and sometimes I feel much more lucid, and tremendous, even energetic all the time. I have never had so much energy and I am 47 years old. The practice also really started to have an effect when I began doing the tsa lung exercises first, followed by one set of trul khor. I have found that over time the practice mellows and the sensitivities settle down. The entire set of practices can be done in 25 minutes.

One last note: I have found that doing this practice while sick really makes you aware of its power. You can feel your lungs clear of congestion when doing the torso exercise, which is kind of amazing! I feel so lucky to have encountered and learned this practice.

— Doreen Maloney

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For more information about the Nov. 3-6, 2011, Tibetan Yoga Retreat with Alejandro, or to register now, click here >