Dearest Friends,
Feathered Pipe Board member Clint Willis recently interviewed Nat Kendall, who will be leading his second retreat, Big Sky Bhakti Bliss, at Feathered Pipe Ranch this summer from June 16 to June 22. Nat grew up in Bozeman, Montana, and now lives in San Francisco. He surfs, makes music and teaches vinyasa classes informed by his practice of Bhakti yoga, with its emphasis on devotion.
CW: Tell me a little about your childhood in Montana.
Nat: I grew up in Montana in the ‘80s. Our family wasn’t particularly religious, but the household was deeply spiritual, with a deep reverence for the natural world. We lived off the land some, hunting and fishing as well as gathering and growing food. I have really vivid memories of early morning excursions with my Dad. We’d pull up at a spot before dawn, with the stars still hanging on, and Dad would look up and talk about how amazing it is to be
part of this world, a tiny part of this infinite vastness.
CW: How did you come to yoga?
Nat: When I moved to San Francisco ten years ago, I felt like I’d been pulled out of my element. I was missing that connection to the natural world. That’s when I started surfing. I found that natural flow state, and dove really deeply into it. At one point there were no waves, and so I went to a yoga studio on my own for the first time, without a girlfriend dragging me. I woke up in savasana, and realized that I was having the same sense of connection I get
when I surf, or when I’m up in the mountains of Montana. That feeling of connection was my gateway to yoga.
CW: How did you discover Bhakti yoga?
 Nat: I’d been practicing yoga for about five years, and everyone kept telling me I should go see a Bhakti teacher in the San Francisco area named Rusty Wells, so I went to one of his classes. There were more than 100 people in the studio, and there was
this vibrant energy, with people chanting and Rusty playing his drums. I’ve always been very into music, which for me is a way of letting something move through me, pure spontaneous creation. That day in Rusty’s studio, I could see how my love of music could merge with my yoga practice, which was already cracking me wide open. I didn’t yet know what Bhakti was, but I could feel the reverence, and the devotion, and the connection to spirit. It was hot and sweaty, and it flowed,
and it was all fused with devotion and chanting and mantras. I was hooked.
CW: You bring a strong element of Bhakti to your teaching. How would you describe the practice?
Nat: All of these practices that fall under the big umbrella of yoga are teaching us that we’re part of something bigger than ourselves. These techniques and practices help break through the illusion of separation, and find a sense of okayness, a sense that everything’s cool for the moment. There are many ways to open up and get a glimpse of that truth, and Bhakti takes a very direct approach. The idea is that as long as we’re trying to connect to
spirit, we might as well go straight to the source.
CW: How do you go to the source?
Nat: Through reverence, worship and praise of the divine. Bhakti is defined by devotion. Chanting is a big part of it, calling out to some archetype or expression of what some may call god— but no one tells you what god should look or feel like, it’s your own unique relationship. You might find a deity or representation of god that resonates, and that becomes your focus, your drishti, the subject of your reverence and devotion. Other forms of Bhakti include
creating poetry and art in praise of various forms and figureheads of god or divinity or grace or spirit, however you call it. Really, the idea is to just keep the mind so focused on this divine quality that it becomes infused in every breath, every pose and every moment.
CW: How does Bhakti color your daily life?
 Nat: Bhakti seems to infuse everything now. I’m devoted to trying to see the miracle that is in front of me at every moment: other beings, plants, the sun, ocean waves...all of it. I'm always trying to see beyond my preferences and stories, to see
life as a miracle, even with all its challenges and ups and downs. It's not easy, but the more I practice it, the easier it becomes to stay in a state of gratitude and awe, constantly saying "Thank you. I'm still here. Thank you."
The practice is very personal. There are as many forms of Bhakti as there are living people. If you’re alive, you’re connected. The more you do it, the more that connection shows up everywhere. Even in conversation, I am trying to see the other person beyond their masks and filters, seeing them as a beautiful expression of all of this underlying reality.
CW: How does that feel?
Nat: It feels exquisite. In moments like that, I’ve stepped down from the illusion that I’m separate. I see you, and maybe I feel like you’re seeing me for a moment: there is god in that. The stories and dramas fall away; and there’s a deep sense of peace and calm and okayness.
CW: What does your daily practice look like?
Nat: I start the morning with a 20-minute seated meditation. Then I may do a round of japa mantra on my malas, or I chant for a while with the harmonium or the drum. Everyday, I sing the Hanuman Chalisa, a 40-verse devotional poem. And I stay very consistent in my asana practice, even if it’s just moving through Surya Namaskar A and B. Some days I find the most devotion in the movement, where every pose and breath can become an offering.
CW: How can we integrate Bhakti with other versions of yoga?
Nat: Ideally Bhakti is at the core of every expression or flavor of yoga. The term yoga itself meaning union between us and spirit. Consciously connecting with the totality of life in its full expression. Devotion can exist in the physical form of the practice, every asana and every breath becoming an offering and conversation, a chance to maybe become absorbed in something bigger and set down a few stories that have been holding us back. And when the body is at its
edge, you can turn back to devotion to find strength to carry through and move beyond what you thought was a limitation. When we cultivate reverence and devotion, we can find moments within a pose to receive grace and offer it back. In my classes, this is a focal point... we let it flow through us at every moment.
CW: What does a day at your Feathered Pipe retreat look like?
 Nat: We start the mornings in a quiet meditation, gathering in the practice space to sit in the silence that is so deep there at the ranch. Then we’ll usually do one round of mantra on a mala. People can join in or just listen. Then we begin to
slowly awaken the body and transition into our morning flow class.
Following the morning flow, guests are free until the afternoon class. People can head off into the hills for hiking, or read by the lake, or sit around and chat, or paddle around the lake. At 4:30 we have our afternoon practice and the feeling is a little more playful, starting with some kirtan. These are also typically stronger flows in the afternoon. We might break down some poses, or we might do some partner work, there’s always an element of spontaneity on retreat. There will
be some restorative practices mixed in and a couple other surprises. Then dinner. The evenings are fee to enjoy sunsets on the lake and soak up the beauty of it all.
We’ll also make time for an excursion or two, the river float was a big hit last year. My goal is to make the days spacious enough to enjoy the land while still diving deep into the practice.
CW: Can you talk about the feeling of being at a Bhakti retreat at Feathered Pipe? Is it different from other retreats?
Nat: There's something about Montana... maybe it's the mountain air, or the big, open sky. It's powerful and I want people to experience this. I want people to feel welcome in my home state and feel like we’re all part of it. And that happens. By the end of the week, we start to feel like one big family. People are out on the lawn by the lake, singing and chanting and filling the hills with bhakti. Something happens on retreat, and people start to let
down their guard a bit. I start seeing so many smiles and hearing laughter everywhere. When people who are new to it see this, it’s almost irresistible. You see this authentic state of joy, and it’s hard to not want to just dive in. And it’s even more powerful up at the ranch, being able to open up under the big sky and vastness of Montana.
We invite you to join us at the Feathered Pipe Ranch this summer, June 16 - 22, for Big Sky Bhakti Bliss: A Montana Yoga Retreat with Nat Kendall.
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Freedom Yoga: Freedom Love – Jennifer Willis
Do you remember the first time Erich put on the music and suggested that you just “wait until the inner feeling says go, and then go.”? I do, I was terrified. Now, 15 years later, that’s the heart of my practice and my teaching, and I can’t imagine doing it any other way—for the practice teaches that our truest teacher resides within each of us, and ultimately the human teacher’s job is to help us to
birth that insight.
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Lord, I Know I’ve Been Changed – Carie Garrett
If I want to be changed, to grow, to feel my inseparable unity with Spirit, and truly live a guided from within life, flowing along on the river of Divine Creativity, then I’ve got to be willing to embrace uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure. In short, I’ve got to let myself be seen.
That’s scary as hell. This means that I have to be willing to let go of my white-knuckle death grip of control and let the never-before-seen newness in. It means that I must be brave enough to let go of comparison and what other people think so that I can speak my truth, speak my worth, and tell my story with a wide open heart.
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Contact Us |
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Feathered Pipe Foundation
P.O. Box 1682
Helena, MT 59624
(406) 442-8196
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