Winter & Vishudda’s Blood

On Sunday, or Sunnóndag as the Germanic peoples would call it, I went to do the ‘Winter’ workout. During a blizzard, with the visibility at around 50 metres, I found a clearing beside the Saint Lawrence river beside which I live and found a good stone, weighing 20kilos or so.

100 one legged thrusters (50 on left leg, 50 on right leg) This took a while, but I did all of them

100 military press in sitting position

30 Burpees I would like to know the origin of these

After this, the gales were coming in with full force, and the music I was listening went into a deep bass drum slow pounding. I was staring at the supple willow branches being blown like long hair to one side from the wind.

The day after was for yoga. Holding the headstand (Sirshasana), crow/crane pose, shoulder stand (Sarvangasana), and eka pada koundiyanasa for as long as possible. Time is generally irrelevant, but with yoga it is about instilling deep consciousness into the pose. If you are in it holistically, then this is as far as you can go. The yogi who does 5 minutes in Crow pose but never surrenders to the sensations internally, does not know yoga. But if you do it 10 seconds and feel a transformation in your conscious ability to use the spirit and the breath, then you are a true Kṣhatriya.

Tonight was the coldest night I have experienced, but it was by will. The temperature was -42C, equal to that of Armundsen-Scott in Antarctica right now, and far harsher than Northern Scandinavia. I put myself in the state of mind for a 4.4km distance of running 1000m/bear crawl 10m with sprint 100m before and after, and this leaves one very gratified, whether you hate it or not. The workout was called Bloody Nose, but for me it is Vishuddha’s Blood because it felt like blood was collecting at my throat chakra, which is Vishudda.

Part of the natural conditioning process and survival of the fittest is putting yourself out into the elements when they present themselves. The situations in which normally would make you cower with fear, cold, heat, snow, disorientation. Your fixated mind will obliterate any opportunity to get past those barriers and leave you dependable on modern ‘comforts’. It is also about the mental walls, and putting action to your words, and progress to your actions, a constant cleansing of nihilism, regret and shame…