A new Australian online “yoga” course How to Reconnect the Disconnection with Wayapa has launched, merging 80,000 year old Aboriginal wisdom with digital technology. offering a world first wellness practice focussed on taking care of the Earth as the starting point for healing.
The online course offers a wellness practice focused on healing both the Earth and the body using wellness practice Wayapa Wuurrk, the only known indigenous-based wellness discipline that is certified by the International Institute for Complementary Therapists. Forty-eight licensed practitioners now deliver Wayapa workshops and training sessions across Australia as the demand grows for Australian based wellness practices, similar to the popularity of Eastern-based practices like yoga and tai chi. With thousands of people accessing the benefits of Wayapa’s earth mindfulness, narrative meditation and movement across schools, government and prisons, Wayapa founders have a good understanding of the reason the practice is exploding in popularity.
Director and Co-founder of Wayapa Jamie Thomas says connecting with the environment is key to this practice. “So many people, both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal, feel disconnected, which manifests itself into binge watching TV shows, drinking and eating too much and other addictions,” said Jamie. “We’re noticing individuals feeling helpless and out of control and often choosing self-destructive behaviour because at least it numbs them for a little while. Wayapa is about creating a lifestyle to keep you connected and well, it’s not just a practice that is done 25 minutes a day. It’s about connecting our wellbeing with that of our environment…living in harmony, just like it was done for 80,000 years by our ancestors. Indigenous people refer to the planet as Mother Earth for the very important reason that she sustains us, providing us with every possible thing that we need to live.”
“When we stop having a relationship with the planet, we cut ourselves off from the Connection that sustains us,” Jamie concludes. Each movement, visualisation or meditation is based on 14 elements which include sun and moon, tree and wind.
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