From Incurable to Incredible – True Story of Monika Jain

A–Desiflava talks to Monika Jain: A HK mum from India who faced head-on one of life’s biggest challenges;

Sharan Gill interviews Monika Jain, a cancer survivor who became the most popular yoga teacher in Hong Kong

[Q]Do tell us about your background?

I am a practicing yoga teacher living in Hong Kong since 2007 with my husband and two daughters. I have two kids who are 15 and 3 years old and exactly one Chinese Zodiac Rotation apart. While the elder one doesn’t leave her room, the younger one doesn’t leave mine:).

[Q]Were there any challenges adapting to life in HK?

Being a vegetarian, it was not very easy for me to adjust to local cuisines and especially craving desserts in the initial days. When my elder daughter started to go to school here in HK, I took a keen interest in preparing vegetarian but tempting food to ensure she got proper nutrition while remaining vegetarian.

Being born and brought up in a JAIN (strict vegetarian) family, it came naturally to me and subsequently to my daughters. In fact, I often tell my friends, especially in Hong Kong who wonder how someone can be vegetarian, especially in a place like HK, that we don’t know what is missing as we never had meat since our childhood. The challenge for me especially as a mother was to source enough nutrition from a vegetarian diet. Thanks to social media, and increased awareness in the society about health benefits of this diet, there is plenty of useful info on the internet on how to extract the right amount of protein in a diet. Most of my recipes include lots of tofu, paneer, avocado nuts, and leafy vegetables.

“So my advice to young parents is to be experimental with vegetarian choices and develop the taste while feeling great about your body and lifestyle.”

[Q]Can we ask you about the most difficult time in your life?

In 2011, I was detected with breast cancer and life literally stalled for us as a family. It was one of the darkest times in my life, and it took me almost a year to recover from this. I found solace in cooking and baking and it helped distract me from negative thoughts.  Over time I started my first venture in Hong Kong “M’s Oven”. Could you tell us more about M oven, my first venture in a way in Hong Kong bringing my passion of baking to friends and family then their friends, and finally to people looking for eggless cakes and cupcakes. I started enjoying baking and was gaining good traction from clients. Time went by,  I was very focused on getting fit and was very regular with working out and yoga practice. It was a time, we as a family started to think about having another child. Once I was certain that the chances of a recurrence of cancer is very low, yoga practice helped me get my periods to a normal cycle and after returning from a holiday in Japan in 2019, I  was pregnant with my second daughter. I attribute this largely to yoga and I decided to make it a part of my life forever. Over the past few years, I pursued various Yoga courses and spend lot of time teaching underprivileged kids and adults yoga in community centers.

Need more details about the timeline for yoga, did you already practice it before the cancer diagnosis, how did the practice change after the diagnosis, ie frequency, type of yoga .

Honestly speaking, despite knowing about the obvious benefits of yoga, I was never regular with this before my battle with cancer in 2011-12. Recommended by my doctor and my strong will to see my daughter grow up. I owe my second baby to my new body courtesy of YOGA.

“I took yoga and meditation very seriously, and in no time I started to see the benefits, more on mental well-being, and become an integral part of who `I am today’.”

[Q]There have been many yoga studios mushrooming around HK and a plethora of teachers, how important is it to get the right teacher for yoga?

Indeed, there are many and rapidly growing, a great platforms to introduce yourself to yoga and its benefits. However, as they say, many of such studios follow a ‘one size fits all’ approach unless you take private one on one lessons. As I see it as a way of life, the approach towards this has to be holistic and not only about the body. It’s a more like relationship between teacher and student where you understand their lifestyle, their mental health, their culture, their age, their body, and their soul. It’s about the connection and one has to listen to their own self about how they feel about the whole process. Does interacting with the yoga teacher bring clarity to your thoughts? Unfortunately, there is no right or wrong answer for that I am afraid.

Please also talk about Asanas followed by meditation, why is the sequence of asanas followed by meditation so important?

It is very important to do some basic warm-ups for joint movements before we practice meditation. The first priority in meditation is being comfortable to sit in any meditative posture. If our body is uncomfortable, then it will become a distraction. The second priority is having a neutral spine. This allows prana (the life force energy) to flow freely while we’re in a meditative state. By stretching, twisting & strengthening yoga asanas before meditation prepares our bodies for it. Asana helps clear and settle our minds. While all types of asanas will increase our comfort with meditation, there are a few asanas that will help in meditation by stretching the knees, hips & spine as well as strengthening the core.

Sequence:

1. Malasana (garland pose)
2. Cat and Cow pose
3. Supta Baddha Konasana(reclined butterfly pose)
4. Janu Sirsasana(hand to knee pose)
5. Dandasana(staff pose)
6. Setu Bandhasana(bridge pose)
7. Ardha Shalabhasana & Shalabhasana(half or full lotus pose)
8. Marichyasana
9. Supta Matsyendrasana(supine spine twist)

 [Q]How do you expand your practice of yoga, do you teach it to others?

Now-a-days, I take private and group classes mostly in and around Kowloon areas and thoroughly enjoying the new me. I advise a number of my friends and extended family back in India through zoom and take classes. I have just completed online Ayurvedic nutrition course from Arogyam Institute, India. The idea is to provide a holistic approach towards a healthy life for my family, friends and clients.

[Q]What advice can you give to young mothers newly arrived in Hong Kong?

Be brave with experimentation. Listen to your body and soul and charter a path for you. As much cliche it sounds HEALTH IS WEALTH, it’s true and I will go ahead and say that health is the only wealth and nobody can take charge of the same. Young kids are like raw bamboo and you can mold them in any direction. Setting the right example to them about nutrition, a balanced diet and a moderate level of exercise will go a long long way. Hong Kong is Home `Kong for me.

Interview & Article by:
Sharan Gill
Associate Editor
A-Desiflava

Sharan is a legally trained editor and
writer for several publications. She
has a special interest in human rights
issues, having worked for non-civil
rights organizations. She has two lovely
daughters she is incredibly proud of and
lives with her husband in Clearwater Bay

Photo credits:
Monika Jain & Sharan Gill