Exploring Ahimsa and the Self

"The practice of yoga did for me what no substance, doctor, support group, family member, friend, or lifestyle change could do. Yoga introduced me to my inner self"
- Maya Breuer (Yoga Journal, March 2010)

We have all played in the realm of these negativities at some point in our lives; some of us for far too long. Like Maya Breuer I have experienced the healing energies of yoga and understand, in some depth, the power yoga can have on those who are traumatized, oppressed and hurting.

Challenges in the style and quality of one's life affect the individual and community on a profound level. Negative forces such as abuse, addiction, violence, death and disease can cause individuals and communities to shut down and deteriorate.

Yoga counters these negative forces we face in life; it heals, reunifies and sets the basis for authentic living - which at its core is knowing, accepting and loving one's inner self.

The idea is to create a balance, so that when the negativities do come pouring in, we can handle them with our inner-strength, self-awareness and self-confidence. Creating a balance though, does not mean continuing or enduring through the struggles - sometimes the biggest strength we can exhibit is in walking away.

In yoga we call this practice Ahimsa, which is translated as non-violence; not causing harm, injury or pain to any living creature – this includes one’s thoughts, words and actions. Most often we freely accept the idea of not causing others pain, but what about the pain in our own lives? How much do we repeatedly hurt ourselves or allow others to hurt us? The yogic philosophy is to teach through example and practice – when learning a difficult pose, we must take time and ease ourselves into it, building strength, flexibility and knowledge of ourselves - we must approach Ahimsa in the same way. Perhaps today is not the day you can walk away, but today is the day you can balance harm with healing.


Try the following poses to begin the process of healing, lay in each of these poses 5to 20 minutes, reflecting on yourself - what you feel, how you feel and why you feel.

Balasana/Child’s Pose This is a wonderful pose to do with a pillow or two between your thighs, supporting your torso and head


Viparita Karani/Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose Using a pillow to support the lower back feels really good in this pose. As an added benefit, it opens the heart a literal action for the figurative idea of loving one’s self


Uttanasana/Standing Forward Bend Forward bends are all about looking into the future, prep from your future by awakening your legs and relaxing your mind.

Personal Practice

For a long time my practice as a teacher and my practice as a yogi seemed very disconnected, school built my stress and anxiety, yoga released it.

Then I met my current yoga teacher Alie. As a yoga teacher she uses a lot of the same best practices that we do as teachers – such as differentiation, relationship-building, quiet power, humor, calmness and kindness

After seeing this connection, I thought to myself, ‘Hey, if she can motivate me to do things that I am terrified of and think I unable to do, then I can do the same in my classroom!’

Through my self-practice and reflection I was able to see the power in myself that I did not see before. It wasn’t a huge shift in what I did, but rather a shift in HOW I did it – teaching with deeper intention, devotion and perseverance, engaging my teaching practice in the same way as my yoga practice.

Alie taught me that my yoga mat is much like my life, facing challenges that I can overcome with practice and time, like the great Yogi Sri K Patthabi Jois said “Do your practice and all is coming”

With clear intention and practice I am able to meet the needs of my students and their learning styles much more holistically and with much more ease – it moves from being stressful and anxiety-ridden to a long-term practice, with many highs and lows. No matter how “great” of a teacher you are, you will always have more practice ahead of you and more learning, strength and flexibility to achieve.

Teaching, like yoga, is a fluid practice, one that is constantly changing with every new wave of students, each with different skills and different needs, each so beautiful and excellent in their own way. I impart these positive energies and emotions on my students in an attempt to influence them the way Alie has influenced me- we breathe together, learn together, practice together and achieve together.

Ode to the Teachers - On Intention and Reflection

So, I was recently honored by being nominated for a Golden Apple Award and for one of my application essays I was asked to write about a favorite teacher. For a few weeks I was lost in thoguht about WHO I should write about- sadly I have not had too many great teachers that I remember, which is in fact one of the many reasons I wanted to be a teacher, to give my students what I never felt I had. Then I found myself in yoga class on a cold Wednesday night and I realized - my favorite teachers have always been my yoga teachers! They give me confidence to take risks, try new things and never stop learning and growing - much like I do for my students...so thank you!