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Indian Head Shake……yes or no?
The classic Indian Head Shake or wobble has been the way many Indians communicated for centuries if not millenniums but it is certainly something that has baffled foreigners forever.
We were about 7 hours into our flight to Kochi (via Abu Dhabi), though it felt like 15, cabin lights were dimmed and a stewardess was pushing a food service trolley down the aisle when she came across an elderly Indian man seated across from me a row ahead. His tray table was down and on it was a package unwrapped with some half eaten food on it. She stopped as he looked up at her blankly. She turned to him and said “would you like me to clear that for you, sir?”
He gave her that all too famous Indian Head Shake (IHS) which she did not quite conceive as a yes or no. She obviously has flown this route many times and is only to familiar with the IHS but seemed quite confused by this one. So, she asked again, this time with a different choice of words “Sir, are you done with your food?” No words from our stoic frequent flyer but only another IHS. I have to admit that I could not read this shake myself. I’ll humbly say that I’m a fairly good reader of the IHS but this must be a dialect from a remote region in India. One that obviously me and the stewardess were not familiar with.
In her third attempt to understand she points at the food and ever so patiently says “Shall I take it away?” He now throws her a third IHS plus waves his hand over the food. She smiles at him silently so as to say “I have no idea what the heck you are trying to tell me!” She then releases the brake of the food trolley proceeds to walk away.
He reaches out now and taps her on the shoulder, throws her a fourth IHS and waves his other hand over the food all at the same time. She slams on the brakes, reaches down and clears his tray table. Once everything has been picked up, his stoic expression is now replaced with a wide smile – a silent thank you from our body language expert.
Now who says we have to speak in order to communicate.
Read MoreOff to India….again!
The last time I was off to India was in January this year and I made a little video of my first few days. My friend, Mike, joined me on that journey as well. We went a few days early before the rest of the group joined up with us to and collectively we began…
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CEOs gather for yogic insights
The Entreprenuers’ Orgranization invited me to conduct an all day workshop for them in Perth, Western Australia on August 18th. The topic I chose for this workshop was “Understanding the Mind”. The venue was the beautiful Matilda Bay conference room which overlooked the bay and ...
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Yoga, meditation & relationships in Eagle, Colorado
Over the weekend of September 11th, Yoga off Broadway saw its beautiful studio filled with eager yogis keen on studying more about meditation, relationships, the yamas and niyamas, and the basic laws of transmutation. Friday night was a guided meditation class. I gave a brief overview of the work...
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Hot cup of coffee in chilly Eagle
It was a chilly morning here in Eagle, Colorado with temperatures around the mid 30’s (F). Yeti’s Grind in Eagle town is a lovely cafe if you’d like a cup of coffee to start your day. This open brick walls, wood floor cafe with lots of comfy couches, laid-back vibe and wifi is a...
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Guided Meditation Class
28 people packed into Yoga off Broadway’s lovely studio yesterday evening for a guided meditation class. It was a wonderful group that was eager to learn about the art of meditation. I started the class by sharing some of Gurudeva’s insights on the mind, namely understanding the diffe...
Read MoreWorkshop on Yamas, Niyamas & the Basic Laws of Transmutation
Yamas, Niyamas & the Basic Laws of Transmutation Join our workshop at the beautiful Yoga off Broadway studio in Eagle, Colorado on Sunday, 12th Sept (10am to 12:30pm). Yamas & Niyamas: The first two steps on the yogic path, the Yamas (restraints) and Niyamas (Observances) must be part o...
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