“From one creative Universal force, all of life emerges. Divine energy takes the form of everything manifest and unseen— expanding, contracting and radiating from this light of existence. YOGA provides the confidence and the joy to trust in this greater connection-- to recognize how deeply supported we are and to celebrate all that life has to offer.” ~ Sue Elkind

 

Our greatest source inspiration as hatha yoga teachers has been
John Friend and his eloquent system of Anusara® yoga. For all he has given us, we are deeply grateful. He has continually touched us with his profound mastery, dedication, loyalty and never-ending humor.

The word Anusara(a-nu-sar-a) means “to step into the flow”, “flow with Grace”, “to enter into the currents of your heart”. Anusara ®yoga incorporates Universal Principles of Alignment with a life-affirming Tantric-based philosophy. The practice of Anusara®yoga optimally aligns the body, mind and spirit and invites you to step more fully into your potential and with the flow of Life itself.

Anusara takes its name from a verse in the great text, the Kularnava Tantra:

"Shakti-nipata-anusarena sishyo'anugraham-arhati".

By entering the current of the Divine's Shakti's descent into the heart, the true disciple becomes capable of receiving grace.”

We begin each class chanting the invocation as a way to honor the Divine light within us all

 

Dr. Douglas Brooks has also been an amazing influence on our teaching and a dear friend in our lives. We have spent almost a decade studying the beautiful life-affirming teachings of Rajanaka yoga with him, and delight in knowing the conversation has just begun!

Dr. Douglas Brooks is among the world’s leading scholars of Hindu Tantrism and the esoteric traditions of the Goddess. After receiving a Masters degree from Harvard Divinity School, he continued his studies in the history of religions, Sanskrit, and Indian studies going on to receive a Masters and Doctorate from Harvard University's Center for the Study of World Religions. Douglas has held academic positions both in India and the United States and has lectured around the world. Currently, he is Professor of Religion at the University of Rochester in New York.

In addition to his formal Western education, Douglas lived for many years in India in the house of his Teacher according to the traditions of Guru Kulam in which the student is initiated into all facets of the Indian classical Sanskrit education, including philosophy, yoga, ritual, and worship. Douglas' Teacher, Gopala Iyer Sundarmoorthy was not only an eminent scholar of Hinduism, but a Master of the Tantric Goddess tradition known as Auspicious Wisdom, or Shri Vidya.

“ As human beings, we all have a seat to take in the world. We all belong here and we are worthy of our seat. Taking our own seat means being able to give others their seat also. The heart is like the expanding universe, it is capable of making more room to support the presence of others by simply growing itself. It costs us nothing to grow in this way. And yet, it creates only more openings for grace to flow. For grace to flow, we offer others our respect, our honor, and support their efforts to establish their own seats.” ~ Dr Douglas Brooks