Gotterdammerung in Tulum

Last night I had the students in my hip openers class for select youth from Arrowhead Regional Corrections say a few extra shantis for Tulum, Mexico.  We have a number of good friends down there whose lives and livelihoods have been threatened by storm Karl.  Karl marks the first time the yoga retreats of the Mayan region have been targeted since hurricane Friedrich engulfed them some years ago.

As the storm made landfall I happened to be talking with Mauricio Krishnamurti, who runs the food and beverage service for Maya Tulum.  He said a few guests had voluntarily evacuated, but that most thought this a once in a lifetime opportunity to commune with the capital forces of nature. 

As we chatted he described the developing scene.  A flock of students made for the beach and took up positions facing the storm.  They began a warrior sequence to open their chakras, moving from I to II and back as rain began to beat upon them.  Some stumbled in the growing wind, but most held steady.  Some crazy student then tried warrior III and the others, eager to avoid appearing lesser, followed suit.  Just then the wind changed direction and surged and they began to spin like tops.  One crashed into another and soon the sand was strewn with fallen bodies.  The wind surged again, nearing hurricane strength, and Mauricio commented on how bits of lycra were ripped from the wrecked assemblage.  He described how he felt as if he were in a ticker-tape parade.  When he finally caught a glimpse of the students through the aeolian fragments, he said juicily how it seemed to have turned into a tantra class.

And then the line went dead.  We fear for him.

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti Om Tulum,

Dallas