The holidays are already upon us, meaning that the commencement of the 2013 True Nature Education retreat season is almost here.
As we begin the new year, our yoga retreats lead the way. Our second retreat, the 4th Annual Karma Yoga Experience, is co-hosted by Karina Mirsky along with TNE co-owners, Joshua Canter and Kristin Luna Ray. Karina is also co-hosting our third retreat, the Rainforest Vital Health Retreat, with Dr. Claudette Baker, practitioner of Chinese Oriental Medicine of 28 years.
Karina is an internationally celebrated yoga and meditation teacher, yoga educator, and transformational coach. She is the director of Sangha Yoga in Kalamazoo, MI, and is a teaching faculty member of the Himalayan Institute in Honesdale, PA. She is also an adjunct professor in Antioch University’s Yoga Studies program.
Karina has been teaching yoga since 1998. She was one of the first certified teachers of Rod Stryker’s ParaYoga®. Her work with both individuals and groups is informed by her experiences as a performance artist, therapist, and cancer survivor.
You can find Karina in several publications. She was recently interviewed by the Huffington Post for the Yoga, How We Serve series. She’s also a regular contributer to Yoga International and is the cover model of the current issue, Winter 2012. In the March 2008 issue of Yoga Journal Karina was honored as one of 21 teachers under the age of 40 who is shaping the future of yoga in America.
We’re excited to have Karina returning to host retreats with us again in her 4th season with us. We caught up with her to hear more about her thoughts on TNE and intentions for her upcoming retreats.
True Nature Education: Thanks for taking the time to chat with us, Karina. Tell us, what has been your experience working with True Nature Education?
Karina: I love working with True Nature Education. I have run retreats with them for four years, and I wouldn’t dream of working with any other organization. Participants can relax and trust that all they have to do is arrive at the San Jose airport. TNE takes care of everything else, including transport from the airport, meals, lodging, retreat activities, and excursions. The TNE staff is friendly, highly organized, and well-versed in the various regions of the country as well as in the Costa Rican language and culture. They make traveling to a foreign country an enjoyable and effortless experience.
TNE: With your first retreat with us coming up, what is the intention of the 4th Annual Karma Yoga Experience?
Karina: Each year Luna, Joshua, and I bring participants to a different location in Costa Rica to be immersed in the land and culture of that region [for the 4th Annual Karma Yoga Experience]. The intention is for participants to unplug from their day-to-day lives and connect with the earth and other seekers, but mostly their own core Self. During the retreat we will weave sacred music, meditation, yoga, dharma talks, and ritual into our daily activities. We eat delicious, healthy meals and spend quality time in nature. One of the highlights of the week is when we partner with CREER Service Organization to conduct a service project in the local community. This provides a very special cross-cultural experience for all involved. This retreat is truly one of the most holistic programs in my catalog. People leave feeling uplifted, inspired, and empowered. Past participants have described this retreat as a transformative, life-changing experience. Many return year-after-year and often bring their spouses and friends back with them. If you want to touch your heart and fill it with joy, then this retreat is for you!
TNE: And with your second retreat following, what is the intention of the Rainforest Vital Health Retreat?
Karina: With the pace of our lives and levels of stress and toxicity we face here in the US, Americans are seeing increasing numbers of cancer diagnoses. As a yoga and meditation teacher for over 15 years, and cancer survivor of 10 years, people often seek my guidance when they or a loved one is facing a cancer diagnosis. Yoga and meditation are wonderful tools to reduce stress, increase vital oxygen, and self awareness. I am overjoyed to be co-hosting the Rainforest Vital Health Retreat with Chinese Medicinal Oncologist, Dr. Claudette Baker. She is a cutting edge expert in the field of cancer prevention and holistic treatment. The jungles of Costa Rica are the perfect environment to heal and restore vital energy. This retreat is a rare opportunity to culture vibrant health in a sacred, peaceful, and oxygen-rich environment. This experience is also highly educational, making it a valuable learning opportunity for yoga teachers and other health care providers.
TNE: What else do you want people to know about your retreats with True Nature?
Karina: Know that you deserve a break from your daily life. Joining us for a retreat is the best kind of vacation; a true RESToration for your body mind and spirit. We have exhausted mothers, high-powered executives, people with disabilites, elders, college students, and newbies to yoga all join us and want to come back year after year. Come, you won’t regret it.
For more information contact us by email at info@truenatureeducation.com or by phone at
On our third day of the Asheville Community Yoga Costa Rica Yoga Experience, we visited the village of La Florida, the home for many years of Joshua Canter and Kristin Luna Ray, TNE Co-Founders. It was a sweet reunion with some dear old friends along with the special local Costa Rica community, which represented, in many ways, the foundation of True Nature Education.
At the La Florida school, there is an organic vegetable garden in which the students work and contribute to as part of their curriculum. In anticipation of the commencement of school again next week, we put in some love in the garden, helping to prepare the beds and tidy things up.
