A yoga teacher who faced her fear of death during lockdown is calling on other like-minded individuals to join her in a “celebration of life” at an Aberdeen yoga festival.
Louisa Craig, 48, has been practising yoga since 1996 and has shared her passion for it ever since.
The founder of Aberdeen-based LKY Yoga School decided a meditative retreat was in the cards after the “recent challenges of lockdown”.
After a medical scare, where she waited to hear back if her biopsy would be positive for skin cancer, Louisa threw herself into her practice and passed on her teachings to other future instructors.
Now, the yoga festival will give other yogis the chance to reconnect following an uncertain and difficult period.
Facing fear of death during lockdown
Louisa was in the middle of running a 200-hour yoga course when the first lockdown happened.
In addition to the challenges posed by the pandemic, she was also working through a medical scare.
“I was told by my surgeon that he thought I had a serious melanoma.
“So I got a biopsy done and I had to wait a few weeks,” explained Louisa.
“I just went really deep into my own meditation and practice, and applied all the philosophy and teachings.”
Louisa said while everyone in lockdown was worrying about Covid, she was coming to terms with her own death.
“In one of the yogic philosophies, we have the obstacles to enlightenment called the kleshas.
“And the biggest one that you have, which everyone was focused on and they still are right now, is something called up Abhinivesha – which is fear of death,” she added.
However, following a personal call from her surgeon, Louisa was given the all-clear from any life-threatening conditions.
It became the catalyst for Louisa to adapt her yoga-teaching course to the online world.
“I said you know, part of the yogic teachings is we’ve got to be able to apply the yogic philosophy to the battlefield of life.”
People from all over the world trained with Louisa, and successfully graduated in July 2020.
Turn fear into something positive
Inspired during a walk around her neighbourhood in the West End of Aberdeen, Louisa looked up at the Atholl Hotel and decided a yoga festival would be an apt way to “celebrate life”.
She said: “There’s so much fear going on. I think we need to transmute that fear and use that energy in a really positive way.
“I felt like I’ve come to a stage where I feel so full of gratitude for the support.
“I’ve got been able to grow my yoga school, and I wouldn’t be able to do it without my graduates—with my students.”
She added: “This festival is dedicated to my wonderful graduates and teachers, and to give them the opportunity to share their talents.
“It is a chance to give back to those that have supported LKY, and to celebrate and connect with the local yoga community after the recent challenges of lockdown.
Instructors will share what yoga means to them in their own authentic style.
Around 50 participants are expected to turn up for the festival which will run over the weekend.
‘Yoga means something different to everybody’
She wanted to open up the festival beyond just yoga teachers, and include those she personally trained.
Louisa added: “I train them not to become genetic versions of myself, so it’s not going to be lots of people all like, clones of me.
“People come to yoga from different perspectives. Some people will come because of injuries, some will come because of insomnia, some will come because of stress. Some just like the idea of connection.
“Yoga means something different to everybody.”
On top of teaching her students the foundations and philosophy, Louisa dedicates her time to helping them find their expression and how they will go on to share yoga.
Louisa also encourages them to create their own authentic teaching styles.
An ex-dancer focuses on sequencing and movement and a nurse teaches pregnancy yoga and the importance of holding space for others.
The event will be a mixture of sessions such as energising yoga flow and breathwork, and yoga for runners.
For more information on the event visit the official website here.