WRAPPING UP OUR YEAR AT SOAS

We spent the last year studying at SOAS University of London. Just recently, we finished the last of our work for their MA program Traditions of Yoga and Meditation. What a year! First, we nearly didn't make it due to a total visa and passport debacle. But last September, a week late, we arrived in London and dove right in. It was fitting then, that this March we left a week early. This time in the beginnings of a global pandemic. It was a not a dull year, that's for sure. 

The program consisted of courses in Buddhism, Jainism, and what was called the Origins of Yoga & Meditation. We also chose to study Bengali to help us with our work in Kolkata. The language course was a nice break from the mountains of academic reading that the other courses entailed.

​One of the other perks of being in Europe was our ability to travel and teach in communities we hadn't been to before. On our weekends, we'd pack up our homework, get on a train or plane and head to a yoga studio. Then Sunday evening, we'd head back to London in time to start up with classes again on Monday. 

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This last year marked the end of the Hatha Yoga Project. This was another reason we wanted to study at SOAS. If you're not familiar with this, it's an immensely fascinating project led by some of the foremost scholars on hatha yoga. They are wrapping up the project now. Check out the video below for more.

The final part of the program was writing a dissertation. Scott wrote about the emergence and meaning of early samadhi. Ida wrote about yoga in twentieth century Bengal. The style of writing was different than anything we were used to. It was certainly a challenge.

And now we're done! It was a whirlwind for sure, made even more so by the events of the past year. Now our task is to integrate what we've learned and experienced. We are excited to share it as best as we can.