Yoga + Chill Retreat

Yoga + Chill Retreat with ShivaKali Yoga: June 11th-June 17th, 2023

Take time away this summer to explore your inner landscape and the outer beauty of sun, sand, surf, and waterfalls.

You’ll have the space to enjoy the privacy of our retreat center and time for a surf lesson, a catamaran ride, waterfall chasing, or mingling at bars and cafes.

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Organic Vegetarian Cusine

Yoga Twice a Day with Ocean Views

Private Pool & Retreat Center- Short walk to the beach

Sacred Jungle, Fresh Fruits, Ocean Views, and Fitness Center

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WHAT’S INCLUDED:

Shared Lodging

Breakfast, Lunch + Dinner

2 Yoga Sessions Daily

Dharma, Meditation, Mantra, Music + Exploration Sessions

Group Surf Lesson

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ADD-ONs (at an extra cost)

Shuttle to/from Retreat Center

Taxi or ATV rentals

Massage + Wellness Sessions

SUP Adventure in the Jungle

Catamaran Ride

Horseback Riding

Local Tours

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Hosted by Gloria Baraquio with special guest Serge Bandura

Gloria Bio: 

Gloria Marie Baraquio is a yogi and educator from Hawaii, and is currently a resident retreat leader at Ratna Ling Buddhist Retreat Center in Sonoma County, CA.   She grew up the youngest of 10 children on the island of Oahu, praying and singing in the Catholic Church.  Intrigued with other spiritual traditions from a young age, Gloria explored a multitude of philosophies and religions, connecting deeply with the teachings of Baha'i, Tibetan Buddhism, Kundalini Yoga, and Krishna Consciousness.  She has practiced at temples, ashrams, churches, and healing centers around the world, and lived off-grid in the Hawaiian Jungle to experience simple living and high thinking.  

Gloria discovered yoga in 2003 after experiencing anxiety and depression, and realized that the breath, body awareness, and mindfulness could relieve so much of human suffering, disease, and disorder.  After years of dedicated self-study and independent practice, she completed her formal Yoga Teacher Training at Yoga Hawaii with master teachers Rupali Embry and Tania Jo Ingrahm.   Gloria began teaching Vinyasa Yoga in 2006 at schools, colleges, gyms, and studios.  Since then she has taught thousands of classes in Vinyasa, Ashtanga, Iyengar, Aerial Yoga, Kids Yoga, and Meditation to various populations all over the country.

Gloria received her 300-Hour Advanced Teacher Training certification from Raghunath Cappo and Radhanath Swami in India, at the Govardhan Eco Village.  On this sustainable farm she immersed herself in daily chanting, analyzed Vedic scriptures, and listened to the pastimes of Krishna.  She further spent time on pilgrimage in Vrndavan, India, meeting other swamis, gurus, sages, and monks, and doing parikrama (a meditative walk/circumambulation) around Govardhan Hill.  In this holy land said to be the birthplace of Krishna, Gloria experienced a deep inner awakening.  She considers herself a bhakti yogi living a life of devotion to the Highest through song, sangha, and service.

In addition to her extensive Yogic training  in Hawaii & India, Gloria spent nearly a year at Naropa University, studying and learning to teach Contemporary Performance and Meditation.  There in Boulder she was able to meet and learn from close disciples of the great Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.  Gloria has practiced Kundalini Yoga intensively in Los Angeles with Tej Kaur Khalsa and Gurmukh, where she tapped into the technology of Kriya and Naad yoga.  She has also spent time studying and chanting regularly at the LA Bhakti House with Shastrakrit and Kumari Gopi, and continued her studies with Tukaram Prabhu at the Long Beach Temple.  In 2014, Gloria helped to open The Springs in Downtown LA, an urban oasis with a vegan restaurant, yoga studio, and a wellness center.  There she founded and directed the Yoga/Wellness Program and launched a Meditation Program as well.  Gloria has completed advanced sequencing training with Annie Carpenter, taught at festivals such as Lightning in a Bottle and Symbiosis, and while not traveling  the world sharing Yoga on devotional retreats & trainings, she serves as a lead staff member at the Ratna Ling Buddhist Retreat center in Northern California.

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Serge Bio: 

Serge Bandura has been practicing the Yogic arts of India & Tibet since his youth, and teaching Yoga since 2001. His approach evolves out of a deep transmission from younger years living in Kula (yogic community), engaging in lengthy daily practice before the hours of dawn, and undergoing rigorous study with his teachers. In classes, Serge blends his knowledge of traditional Yogic practice & philosophy with 1000's of hours of training in Vinyasa Yoga, Ashtanga, Yin Yoga, Rudra Yoga, Kundalini, Ayurveda and Tibetan Buddhism. He holds a BA in Religious Studies with an emphasis on South-Asian traditions, a certificate in Yoga Philosophy, a diploma in the study of Yoga & Ayurveda, many teacher training certifications from diverse lineages of practice, an E-RYT 500 designation from the Yoga Alliance, he reads/writes Sanskrit, and is currently enrolled in a Ngakpa (Tibetan Yoga) Seminary program.

Serge entered residential training in a tantric yoga school as a homeless 19-year-old, completing a 1000-hour yoga teacher training program in traditional lineage-based Hatha Yoga. There he further studied, practiced, and completed intensive retreats in Kundalini Yoga, Taoist Yoga, Tibetan Yoga, and Sufism. During this time, Serge began managing the school's local yoga center, teaching countless yoga classes each week and organizing retreats. Upon completing his training and being initiated as a teacher, Serge moved on to complete over 20 retreats with Pema Khandro Rinpoche, wisdom holder & Lama in the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. He further took refuge with and continues to honor/attend teachings with Lama Acharya Dawa Chhodak Rinpoche, and spent years studying and practicing Kundalini Tantra intensively with Umaa (Uma Inder), master kundalini tantrika & dedicated practitioner of Ayurvedic medicine.

While continuing to practice with his heart-teachers, Serge refined his studies in Sanskrit mantra with Vedic priest and pujari Shri Shiva Kumar. He deepened his knowledge of sacred texts studying with Srivatsa Ramaswami, longest-standing disciple of Sri T. Krisnamacharya (outside the guru's family). Serge studied Yin Yoga with Paul Grilley, and completed residential training with Yogiraj Ganga White, founder of the original Center for Yoga in Los Angeles in 1967. He has undertaken studies with (Yogarupa) Rod Stryker, received certification in Vedic Yoga from Mas Vidal at Dancing Shiva Yoga & Ayurveda, completed multiple residential trainings in Atma Yoga with Saul David Raye, and studied advanced vinyasa architecture with Chad Dennis & Jenn Perry of Wanderlust/Roam LA. In India, Serge was certified to teach traditional Tantric Asana practices by Shri Kali Ashram, and studied the system of Sri Vidya extensively in a remote complex of Goddess Temples. He has stayed in many Ashrams, received meditation instruction from many Swamis, learned classical Hatha Yoga directly from Nath and Kanpatha Yogis in the North, and received Puja & Homa instruction from a wide variety of priests, sadhus and tantric adepts throughout the Indian sub-continent.

Academically Serge studied Samkhya, the Yoga Sutras, the Upanishads and many other sacred texts/philosophies under Dr. Christopher K. Chapple, founder and director of the Yoga Studies program at Loyola Marymount University. He further completed a wealth of coursework and large body of papers under the advisory of Dr. David White. Perhaps the greatest living historian of Hindu Tantra, Dr. White is known for publishing encyclopedic works such as Kiss of the Yogini, Tantra in Practice, and The Alchemical Body: Siddha Traditions in Medieval India.

When not teaching, you can find Serge DJing, producing /creating music, and searching for rare records under the moniker Earthtones (earthtones-music.com).

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More Information:

Link: http://www.shivakaliyoga.com/costaricaretreat