About the Retreat:

The Retreat is focused on the use of the Great Yoga Wall, but basically Iyengar Yoga is getting taught. Iyengar Yoga is best known for its emphasis on the correct alignment. Like this you will practice in the safest possible way, but ultimately the aim is to develop with this much attention on detail more awareness for the body and ultimately more awareness for your everyday life and mind. In Iyengar Yoga also a wide variety of props gets used which will help to bring our awareness to certain parts of the body or they can enable us to understand actions or Asanas which would be other while out of reach for many practitioners. The Yoga Wall is a great prop to teach proper alignment and as such have access to parts of body and mind difficult to achieve otherwise. It helps to practice with ease and stability, which will allow the mind to relax and to be more open to receive the benefits of yoga.

In Part One of this workshop, you will gain a comprehensive understanding of The Great Yoga Wall. This method is based on the work with wall ropes developed by B.K.S. Iyengar and strictly follows his alignment-focused teachings. You will learn how to use the Yoga Wall, as well as the specially designed props. Both the wall and the props will enable you to gain deeper understanding in your asana practice. You will attain a surprisingly wide range of movements in the supine and prone postures, as well as in the seated, standing, and inverted asanas. This exploration will give you a thorough overview of the versatility and flexibility that comes when practicing an asana using the Yoga Wall. Whether you are an eager student, an experienced yoga teacher, or completely new to Yoga Wall or Iyengar Yoga, this workshop offers plenty of inspiration for your self-practice, as well as insight into your teaching, whether in the classroom or one-on-one.

Part Two expands upon the knowledge gained in Part One. Whether for personal practice or for teaching, you will learn exciting, easy ways of using the Yoga Wall to more quickly progress your yoga understanding. Most classes will start with a special Vinyasa-style sequence. This will help you learn to use props, such as the Yoga Wall, without breaking your flow. A special section of the workshop will be devoted to the logistics and use of the Yoga Wall. You will develop different sequences without changing the set-up of the Yoga Wall and practice integrating the principles you learn from working with the Yoga Wall into your asana practice without using the Wall itself. You will also learn safe, therapeutic approaches to many of the asanas. The knowledge gained in this workshop will greatly benefit your regular practice, even if there are no props are available!

Part Three will include a review of Parts One and Two, which will refamiliarize you with how to successfully use the wall ropes and specially designed props. During this time, you will have the opportunity to ask any questions that might have arisen after having had time to practice and teach what you learned in Parts One and Two. In this way, Part Three builds upon the base provided by Parts One and Two. You will learn many new and interesting variations in Part Three. However, it will not be technically more difficult than Parts One and Two. By now, your body will have gained enough sensitivity to the wall ropes and props that it will be highly receptive to the new variations presented in Part Three. Remember the practice of yoga is a process of going from the gross to the subtle, from the outer to the inner. Due to the precision provided by the Yoga Wall, you will begin to achieve a stronger sense of alignment and stability, which will enable you to feel the transformation taking place. This increased awareness will positively affect both your regular practice and teaching.

About the teacher: Working since his early 20s as a Physiotherapist, he discovered soon Iyengaryoga as he searched for a method to help others on a deeper level. Realising that it needs a lot of study and selfpractice to develop a deeper understanding of B.K.S. Iyengars wisdom he left his Therapy center in Germany 2004 behind in order to study full time Iyengaryoga in India. He spent more than 6 years traveling and teaching in India and other Asian countries. The most time he studied with Usha Devi in Rishikesh/India a senior teacher of Iyengar and in the maincentre of B.K.S. Iyengar in Pune/Southindia, where he got also his Certificate from B.K.S. Iyengar personally. He is now the founder of the yoga school relax & move in Amberg, Germany, and continues to strengthen his practice by participating in advanced trainings. He still travels every year at least once to India to further deepen his knowledge. When Martin is not teaching at his Iyengar Yoga Center he teaches for around 100 days a year a wide variety of workshops all over Europe and Asia and is now the head coach in Europe for trainings with the Great Yoga Wall.

Location and Accomodation:

Centro Santillan Yoga and Wellness Centre is an authentic Andalusian farmhouse with gardens overlooking the sea. Set in a secluded location, Santillan is an Andalusian paradise. A farm of 50,000 sq, metres, it is located in the peace of the Spanish countryside, and yet is conveniently only 20 minutes from Malaga airport. You can immerse yourself in the silence of nature in its lovely gardens and surrounding hills. It is the perfect setting for this yoga retreat. Centro Santillan was mentioned in The Times as one of Europe’s best yoga and wellness centres. We are proud to have a newly built, beautiful state of the art and fully equipped yoga studio, complete with Yoga Wall, designed with guidance from leading yoga teacher Simon Low. You can relax in the extensive gardens or round the saltwater pool, and at night can enjoy star-gazing under the dark night sky.

Santillan has 20 rooms, each individually styled, paying special attention to color, harmony and balance with the environment. All rooms have en-suite bathrooms with magnifying mirror, hair dryer and welcome products, air-conditioning, heating and each comes with a private outdoor space, either verandah or terrace, with lovely views of the gardens, surrounding hills or down the valley to the sea. http://centrosantillan.com/accommodation

Cuisine: Our Mediterranean, vegetarian and vegan meals are based on organic produce grown under the Spanish sun, from our gardens, local farmers, our chicken coop, fruit trees and herb garden. We offer breakfast, lunch and dinner. Meals are usually served buffet style. The cooks at Molino de Santillan enjoy sharing their popular Spanish-influenced healthy Mediterranean cuisine, yet are also able to cater for vegetarian, vegan and raw diets and for genuine food allergies and intolerances, such as gluten-free and dairy-free. We keep free-range chickens, so fresh eggs are available to your guests daily. http://centrosantillan.com/cuisine

How much does it cost:

Prices include: - the room direct on site at www.centrosantillan.com based on a double room occupancy. A Single room costs 30 Euro extra per night and can be arranged by contacting Santillan directly under info@centrosantillan.com or under (00 34) 952 40 09 49 - all food - all Yoga teachings in English language

Part 1: (26-28.10.19). 420 Euro

Part 1 and 2: (26-31.10.19). 830 Euro

Part 1,2 and 3: (26.10-3.11.19). 1190 Euro

You can book also direct under info@centrosantillan.com Other arrangements can be made as well, like joining only Part 3. But to join any part you need to make the previous part first. For any questions you can contact as well the teacher, Martin Zilbauer under iyengaryoga@email.de