I am a better teacher, a better person

Let’s make it known to your readers, I am 60. Last year Xian taught me how to fix what yoga had done to me. I now love yoga again….I am a better teacher, a better person…..such a memorable, educational experience.

I teach every class with your wisdom. I praise your teachings and wished you had been my original teacher…Today after giving a massage, I showed and explained, that horrible thing we do to our lower backs…. What you showed me and made me love “Yoga” once again.

Looking through your site, you are continuing a great path.. Never stop.

Anyone wanting to teach yoga, START HERE…this is the right way….

Your doing amazing at what you know and how I learned from you. I want to come back…..I will……. Mahalo Nui Loa…..Teri

For the first time in my life I feel like I’m finally finding my path!

Love you so much Xian! What you have created is a beautiful space to heal and grow, to Transform! You’ve changed my life in so many ways and I’m not going to lie it wasn’t easy, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. My gratitude goes beyond words my friend! For the first time in my life I feel like I’m finally finding my path! Stepping outside my comfort zone, it was all trust in the unknown. In short, you are amazing. An amazing soul, teacher, mother, friend, mentor, the list goes on. Thank you so much! You will always have my endless support!!!

I was looking all over for a genuine yoga experience

One that focused on the philosophy and history of the practice. I found Xian to be a very knowledgeable and lovable person. She taught me everything that I need to know to start my yogic path. With my experience here, I now know it is a path that I want to follow.

The workshops allowed all of us to share our knowledge with everyone else, which has taught me the merit of trading knowledge with everyone that I meet.

I was incredibly fortunate to find this little paradise,and I know many more people will find their way here for the knowledge that they long for.

My mind changed deeply at this place, that now 1 year later I can say that it changed my life…

I had the chance to stay at this wonderful ashram in the jungle one year ago and considering seriously to go back there soon. Never had the feeling I could learn so much in my 3 weeks I was there. Xian is a wonderful teacher, with a catching energy allowing each student to break out of there comfort zone – she really inspired me! My mind changed deeply at this place, that now 1 year later I can say that it changed my life… ! I am so grateful for universe bringing me to this place, Xian bringing me on my path and all the yogis who were around which really made me feel home.

Xian is a beautiful soul and she teaches “real” yoga

We had a beautiful experience here with Xian. She is a beautiful soul and she teaches “real” yoga, and I was grateful for the daily classes and meditation and the afternoon workshops. Xian is very generous with her home and knowledge and wisdom. This is a fantastic experience for those wishing to engage in meaningful community. A great chance to deepen a spiritual practice.

I would strongly recommend this Retreat

no matter if you have been doing yoga for a long time or if you just started. It was an amazing experience that I will never forget. Xian, has great knowledge about yoga and how to do the postures properly. When I felt pain in any posture, she could see in a second what I did wrong and taught me how to do it correctly. The location is fantastic – quiet and peaceful in the beautiful nature just outside a small village with the kindest people. I am very grateful to lovely Xian and her son for making us feel like home and for all the knowledge she shared.

It will definitely change my life forever!

During my 6 weeks here I’ve learnt incredibly much, both about yoga, spirituality and myself but also about living in a community in a third world country, long term traveling, nature, gardening, cooking/nutrition, babies/motherhood, building, painting/art etc. we have learnt by reading, listening, singing, feeling, discussing, paying attention, be aware, mindfulness, silence, breathing and much more…it feels like this places is a continues learning space, you can never get too much! I definitely see the world and myself in a completely different way already and if I can incorporate only a couple of all things I learned in my everyday life it will definitely change my life forever! If you have the opportunity to visit – do it!! I would super-recommend this place and think everyone would benefit from staying here 🙂 A lot of love Anna

It has COMPLETELY transformed my whole body

Such an incredible opportunity. If you’re AT ALL interested in yoga, then this will be the best yoga retreat to do!! Redefining what yoga is as a practice, it has COMPLETELY transformed my whole body so that I no longer have back pain, and yoga as a whole. And learning SO much more, Xian is a fountain of knowledge.

Amazing Ahimsa experience

This 21 day retreat was so amazing that it has changed my life so much for the better. The yoga was amazing and I learnt so much. The meditation was new to me but has now become an important part of my daily life. Xian also gave life experience lessons in the afternoon which really opened my eyes with her powerful energy and an amazing way to look at your personal problems and how to overcome them. I also really enjoyed mixing with like-minded students who have become really good friends.

I thought I would not like the lack of wifi but once you get used to it we found that we talked more to each other and shared life stories.

Xian’s place is priceless

if you want to learn much more about yoga than you ever will in ordinary classes! We learned so much about alignment and safe, protective ways to enter postures! The first lesson is just about how to stand properly, the second how to sit, the third how to walk and so on and so forth! I would recommend this place to everyone! Thank you Xian for blowing my mind!

This place is amazing !!

I was a beginner in yoga and I learned so much ! Everything is so well explain by the teacher. It was 21 days surrounding by amazing nature and river. Also the food is absolutely delicious. I have really enjoyed every second of it and I recommend this retreat to anyone. Nicaragua is such a beautiful country ♡ Everything was perfect

Wonderful and magical transformation retreat

The time that we got to spend with Xian in her magical place was wonderful and peaceful. We learnt about our own bodies, their capacities and alignment as well as about different yoga philosophies, vegan cooking, DIY products, awareness, consciousness and a sustainable life style. Xian has created a healing and positive place with unconditional love, she has an open ear for everyone and is truly honest about her own experience. Thank you so much Xian for everything! I can highly recommend this ashram and can’t wait to go back and learn more from Xian and her beautiful community.

Nearly a year later, I can honestly say that I think back to this experience and what I learned nearly every single day.

I catch a quick glimpse of it each time I meditate. Sometimes it pops into my heart and mind when I make peanut butter or slice up a papaya. Other times, my body and my mind jump back to what I learned when I hop on the yoga mat for the first time in a while or take a deep breath and realize it’s the first conscious breath I’ve taken that day.

This experience equipped me with new language, ideas, and concepts to explore and offered me a supportive, natural environment in which to heighten my awareness of self, others, and the world around me by actually being and living in the moment. For the first time in years, it felt as though time passed the way it should, meaning I was truly present. Leaving this experience I felt as though I was at peace in the world. And you better believe I still oftentimes wander around barefoot.

I can’t thank enough for sharing your wisdom, experience, and energy. I very much look forward to the day we see each other again.

I loved it

I really did enjoy this retreat. It’s in the middle of a jungle, a beautiful river is running through the property and the atmosphere is just amazing. Xian’s style of yoga was just the style I was looking for and you begin at the very beginning. By following Xian’s suggestions I was able to do all the yoga postures without any back pain, hurting knees or hurting wrists and could simply enjoy the beauty of yoga with unrestricted breath. The workshop style she used, to teach us so many different things about meditation,  philosophy and awareness made it easy for me to learn and also built a nice community where I felt at home. Thank you Xian for sharing your knowledge.

It completely changed my yoga practice

I had an amazing time here! I learned so so so much, it completely changed my yoga practice. I would highly recommend going!

You’re on the right path at Ahimsa 🙂

I highly recommend Ahimsa if you’re looking for a safe and peaceful place to connect with yourself on a deeper level 🙂  21 days is the perfect amount of time to create some new healthy habits, and Ahimsa Ashram is the most beautiful place to do so!! I absorbed so much knowledge during my stay, and my yoga practice has benefited greatly! Xian’s alignment classes and diverse lecture topics in the early mornings are insightful and well-informed, followed by time to review in the study group after breakfast. Afternoons combine fun and creative skill sharing workshops run by both participants and Xian herself, plus time to explore the magical waterfall, peaceful river, amazing library, and comfortable huts for lodging. The food is delicious.

My experience at the Yoga Ashram was all that I expected it to be and more!

I wish I could have stayed here longer. Every day I learned something new that enriched my body, mind, and spirit. Xian is one of the wisest, kindest, and most authentic human beings I know and she is truly a blessing to have been able to live with and learn from. The Ashram was a life changing experience for me, bringing more mindfulness and conscious awareness to my daily life and yoga practice. I felt very connected to the nature and other students that were with me during this three week stay. The time here flew by quickly, I made some close friends and many beautiful memories. I would recommend this experience to anyone with an open and conscious mind. Thank you so much, Xian! You are truly one of a kind and are making a difference in this world! Namaste <3 🙂

I stayed there as a student for three weeks in December 2017, came back the next month as a volunteer and ended up doing Xian’s incredible 2 month teacher training

I felt welcome and home on the first day. Every day was different and exciting and I learned so much from Xian and all the other people there. Xian is a great teacher and teaches the best style of yoga I’ve seen yet. Doing yoga to jungle sounds and enjoying a beautiful night sky full of stars. Thank you Xian for learning about yoga, consciousness and people. Every day I do the 5 Tibetans you are on my mind. Love Andi

At first it was quite hard for me to fully open my self

I just had to stay way longer than I planned. At first it was quite hard for me to fully open myself and take advices without judging, but as more as I understood that I just had to follow everything Xian was providing for us, had to be vulnerable and just trust her I got more of the message she wanted to convey. It still took me a while but now after more than one year I practice yoga every day and in every session I am grateful from deep in my heart that I was able to be part of her teaching. I just thank u Xian.

I still don’t have words to describe this amazing experience. It really changed my whole perspective on everything to be there !

Xian is an amazing teacher & person. The yoga she teaches goes way beyond your regular yoga class. The life she built is remarkable. It really changed my whole perspective on everything to be there! I now practice yoga & meditation every day and also still carry the good life habits. The location is absolutely STUNNING with the 3 waterfalls & the energy is magic! Thank you again for everything ! I will never forget this Xxx

Xian, I miss you soooo much

I would like to come back one day for sure, another retreat or a teacher taining. Since I was back from your retreat, I feel that a loooot of things changed in my mind. The way I speak, the way I walk, the way I live. It’s magic.

Knowledge that helps guide me daily

Within the retreat I learned so much about the philosophy and practice of yoga. It is knowledge that helps guide me daily in meditation and yoga practice. Xian is a wonderful human that genuinely wants to see you reach new levels and expand yourself.

For me this is the #1 address, if you have the opportunity and are interested in yoga

Are you familiar with yoga? Then be ready to reconsider your yoga exercises. If you have no idea about yoga (that was my starting point), then you are also in the right place. She attaches great importance to healthy attitudes. I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to spend 3 weeks in their Ashram and to have learned a lot about Yoga, Ayurveda, non-violent communication and much more. For me this is the # 1 address, if you have the opportunity and are interested in yoga. Be ready for an awesome and intense time.

We can hardly believe what we’ve learned in such a short period of time

Not only shared Xian her knowledge about yoga and meditation but also about how to live your life consciously, in order to become happy, content, open-minded, self-loving and aware. We are really grateful for the time we had and we really do know that it is our choice to live a happy life or not.

Perfect occasion to open your mind and explore spirituality

For myself and a lot of other people of our group it was a life changing experience and i would highly recommend everyone who has the chance to study there. Xian is definitely one of the most inspiring persons I’ve met so far and has so much to teach and share. I would say that I learnt even more from just seeing her life style and life experience, way of educating her son and treating other people than from the workshops and courses. But of course I’ve learnt a lot about yoga, too, in a way I haven’t been taught before.

 

My entire yoga practice has definitively changed a lot for the better. Xian really wants to make you understand WHY you do the things the way you do them and feel the difference between before and after doing them, rather than following a yoga fitness class. Xian’s programs are more about understanding the postures and talking about their impact than giving you a workout. She created a wonderful learning atmosphere and you can definitely take more out of it than just some yoga practice.

A challenging yet rewarding experience, interesting and healing, meet yourself and your ego head on

Since I came here in September – there was certainly magical things happening but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was so I came back for a second retreat, and then it became more apparent to me. Xian has created a place where you can totally disconnect from the outside world and meet yourself and your ego head on. It was a very interesting and healing experience where you go back to basics and live in bungalows with the river at your doorstep, no wifi and learn new techniques with nutritious, locally sourced food, connect with other like-minded travellers, be in nature and discover things about yourself you hadn’t thought about before. I have definitely picked up a lot of skills and knowledge which I will take with me for my yoga practice, teachings and for myself.

If you are feeling called to this opportunity FOLLOW IT

It has taken me nearly three weeks to digest all of the amazing wisdom, peace and prosperity that this magical experience gifted me. The accommodations are beautiful, right next to this small river and surrounded by the sounds of the jungle. Waking up here every morning nearly gave me goosebumps. The nature feels powerful, un-touched and ancient. It was incredibly humbling to spend every day under its canopy. Xian is an incredible goddess human being. Her perspective of life is grounded while her world views reach large. The yoga and the teachings that you are able to soak up and participate in are incredibly rich and inspiring. I feel so grateful to have started my traveling off with this as the foundation. If you are feeling called to this opportunity FOLLOW IT.

It not just opens up your body, but also your mind!

The Ashram is a beautiful place, which welcomes you with a open heart from the very first beginning. The three weeks were intense. It not just opens up your body, but also your mind! It is a pleasure to gain from Xian’s experience in Yoga, spiritual matters and daily life! She created an environment, where you feel being part of her family beside her lovely son, the dogs and the cats and lots of good fresh food

Staying with Xian was the experience I didn’t know that I needed

You do a lot of yoga and really get into every single posture, but you also learn about yogi philosophy, Ayurvedic cooking, how to make natural beauty products and so much more. The surroundings are gorgeous and create a magical atmosphere that calms you and only gives to this beautiful learning environment. Xian has truly created a gem in San Rafael and I can only recommend coming here.

I had a great experience of self development

and I have to thank all the group of volunteers and guests that made my stay go to the next level. Thank you Xian for allowing this experience to happen :pray: much love to you and your son!

Definitely there were moments that challenged me in ways that I need to grow

Wow, I begin to look back on the time I spent with Xian, her beautiful son and the community we formed. It was amazing to say the least. Definitely there were moments that challenged me in ways that I need to grow. Taking responsability for one self and our own views of others and the mirrors we project on them. I loved the moments walking around bare foots, making me take the time to look around; see the beauty of the plants and animals. Playing with the boy was a treat to everyday. Xian creates an atmosphere of knowledge sharing where you can bring your gifts to others and recieve gifts from other. As well a safe place for you to bring up all that you are to look at and choose what you want to let go of and what you would like to nourish. Thank you so much Xian for sharing you space and your life work with me. So much love to you and your little one Dev

Incredible experience!

I loved staying in that amazing natural environment. Such a nice place. You feel part of the community. Xian is amazing and really knowledgeable. And so is all her teaching. Its not only about yoga, but about life and I really liked it. Is so wide and inspiring. The life community style is great, you get to be with everyone and bond well. Even the food was a whole other “class” to learn, and it was delicious. Thank you very much for this amazing experience, I would love to come back !:)

We spent an amazing, mind expanding, life changing month at this magical little place

Xian has created. I’ve dreamed of being able to experience life in an intentional community like this one. We learned so much about the yogic principles, meditation, and esoteric goodness.

Absolutely wonderful experience

From the moment I arrived at Xian’s home I felt comfortable and welcome. I ended up staying longer than my planned three weeks, and am already planning to return in the fall! Thank you so much for opening your home and your heart with me Xian. I look forward to keeping in touch with you.

Xian’s wealth of knowledge is second to none

Wow, I’ve left the ashram only a few days and already sincerely miss it. What an incredible space. I loved everything about it…. the yoga, the various workshops, the natural buildings, hanging out with the baby and the community feel that Xian has created. Xian’s wealth of knowledge is second to none.

We had a fabulous time and were sad to leave this magical place

Thank you so much Xian!

It was truly an unforgettable experience

Xian possesses a great deal of wisdom through her knowledge of yoga and experiences traveling all around the planet, if you are open to learning new things and expanding your knowledge, experience deep peace, this is the place to go. Thank you Xian for all of your knowledge, it was truly an unforgettable experience.

We don’t know how to begin…

Xian is just an amazing girl, who lives in an amazing place ! We spend 3 weeks there, which were awesome good time to learn Yoga with amazing talking around spirituality and life in general. Xian is really trying to get you as much comfortable as possible. We can’t say enough thank you for this good time! See you soon Xian, take care… With a lots of love, where mind goes, the energy goes!

I am very grateful for all the things I learned

I could only stay 2 weeks here and learned a lot from Xian! She has a huge knowledge about Yoga, spirituality, nutrition and all kinds of other stuff which she happily shares with the volunteers. I am very grateful for all the things I learned.

Building energy by conscious thought and meditation

Xian came to be an excellent teacher, I learnt many things in quick procession. I was taught about many different yoga practices including alignment issues, building energy by conscious thought and meditation, and balance exercises. Saying grace and an opportunity to express gratefulness before every meal kept me in a good mood and happy thought for every moment.

Thank you Xian for spreading yoga wisdom with your heart and mind also with your body!

Thank you very much for this precious experience!

Well I don’t know what to say now. This place was really amazing for me! I stayed here for 6 weeks. Even though I was not into Yoga at all before I came here, I feel like I was able to learn A LOT and really get into using Yoga as a way of treating my body and mind – because of the really good classes I received here and all the knowledge and experience of Xian. You really made me feel at home for a while and I already miss your place! I love all the experiences that I’ve had with you and all the things I learned from living with you for a while. I’m very thankful that I was able to live with such amazing and interesting people and I’m proud to call you my friends and family. I wish all the best for you guys and I hope all your Ideas and Projects will work out well and will help to make your place grow in the way you want it. I see a lot of potential in this place!

Thank you very much for this precious experience!

I highly recommend taking some time to be a part of this community!

This place is amazing! I was only able to stay here for a week, but I learned a life time of knowledge in that time. I wish I had more time to spend here. Xian is an awesome person and knows about so many different topics. The yoga classes in the morning teach you so much! She makes amazing food and her afternoon workshops are extremely informative. I highly recommend taking some time to be a part of this community!

Having started a new chapter in my life, it was the experience I needed to begin my new journey

as a solo world traveler. I am extremely grateful for all the experiences I’ve had here, which also included many spiritual lessons, activities, and yoga practices that I still use and rely on to this day. Xian is a very kind, compassionate, intelligent, and loving woman.

 

The rules at the ashram can seem strict and nonsensical at times, however, the logic behind it and the type of community she is creating requires these things in order to be successful. Her heart is pure and her life experiences are worldly. She generously shares her knowledge, insights, and experiences through her teachings and yoga practices

Xian, thank you for everything! You are a beautiful person–inside and out!