Yoga Mandala » Instructor Profiles

Jessica Ezra Patri

kamesvari — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:50:58 +0000

How did you get into this line of work?
I was introduced to yoga by my parents. I remember going to their classes and hearing the OM chanting when I was really small. I took a kid’s yoga class when I was about 7 years old and then got back into it again when I was a teenager and dealing with a lot of back pain. It was the only thing that helped. I continued through my years of dance training and sort of fell naturally into teaching.

What do you enjoy the most about working at Yoga Mandala?
I feel so honored to be part of the Yoga Mandala community. I love the dedication of the studio and the students to yogic practices and the sense of community that that brings.

When you’re not practicing yoga, what are you most likely found doing?
These days, adoring my new son, Jai, who was born on January 28th. I love to spend time with my husband, and i love to cook and enjoy delicious food.

Skanda (Thomas) Murphy

kamesvari — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:43:51 +0000

Skanda is the god of war, and known by many other names including Kartikeya and Murugan. Skanda is the brother of Ganesha, and the second son of Siva and Parvati. He was created from a burst of six sparks of light from Siva’s third eye – a focused, spontaneous emanation.

Above all else, Skanda is a warrior – young, brave and ready to lead his army when and as needed. Skanda’s power is in his ability to lead and in his divine focus – both of which are also represented by his Vel, or spear, the instrument of choice when it comes to cutting to the core of a matter and of getting to the point.

Skanda is also most often depicted with his mode of transportation, the Peacock, which is said to represent transformation itself for its ability to effectively eat and digest poisonous snakes. The Peacock is also associated with the ego, which metaphorically Skanda is able to effectively manage and control, instead of having it manage and control him.

Needless to say, I have a lot to work with when it comes to the iconography and substance of my namesake and I am so grateful for having been given the opportunity to do so by my teacher, Dharmanidhi!

Kameshvari Thorp

kamesvari — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:38:53 +0000

How did you get into this line of work?
In the first Yoga class I ever attended, I felt like I had actually arrived in my body for the very first time. I knew right away that this practice was my primary life pursuit. At that time, I wasn’t exactly sure how to make Yoga a “full-time” thing. I was about to start college so I made a deal with myself – finish college successfully (and fulfill my commitment to my parents on that front) and then dedicate myself to spending as much time as possible pursuing Yoga. While attending school in New York City I had the opportunity to meet many different Yoga teachers, and study many styles. As soon as I graduated, I returned to my hometown near Detroit and enrolled in an instructor training program with my first teacher. I taught for the first time almost nine years ago, and I can remember so clearly how nervous I was! There have been many changes for me between then and now, but one constant has been the gratitude and awe I feel each time I have the opportunity to instruct.

What do you enjoy the most about working at Yoga Mandala?
This question is a little funny for me because Yoga Mandala is so much more than a workplace for me. This is my dream job. I have the privilege of instructing classes and managing the studio. I am also a co-owner. And of course, I am always a student here too. One of my favorite aspects of my work as an instructor is teaching the Foundation Course and other workshops – I really love having the opportunity to work with students at a more in-depth level. One of my favorite aspects of managing the studio is working with such a dedicated group of practitioners everyday – both on our staff and in our student body.

When you’re not practicing yoga, what are you most likely found doing?
I’ve recently taken up the habit of actually leaving Yoga Mandala a couple of days a week! If I’m not at the studio I’m most likely found working in my garden growing food, in the kitchen preparing food, out at the farmer’s market buying food, or sitting with friends and enjoying food. Whenever possible, I enjoy a walk with my husband and our little dog.

Ekabhumi Ellik

kamesvari — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:28:42 +0000

How did you get into this line of work?
During my very first Yoga class, in spite of immense discomfort, I watched the instructor and thought, “I could do this!” Sounds corny, but true. I’ve studied dance, martial arts, competed in sports, but never felt any urge to teach. There was something very profound happening during that class, and I recognized a brilliant logic in the asana. After class, I went up to the instructor and asked questions she could not answer; she’d been trained simply to recite a script-like series of instructions.

I went on an intense search for knowledgeable teachers that lead to Yoga Mandala and Dharmanidhi.

What do you enjoy the most about working at Yoga Mandala?
The physical space is simply a joy to be in. I also word in gyms and community centers. The difference between teaching in a temple and a fitness center is profound. Students relax into a meditative state more easily here. Even on a day where hail is falling and no students show up, I feel honored to be here doing my own prac tice. Time alone in either of our rooms with the incense, the hardwood floors, surrounded by original art, it’s just a pleasure.

On a more practical level, I enjoy working in a studio culture that is committed to the practice as an art and not simply exercise. There is no way I could have developed the Youth Yoga program, for example, in a studio where commercial concerns come first. It took years to forge our unique program, and it isn’t for parents who are squeamish about their kids chanting in Sanskrit. I was instructed to “Prepare children for a lifetime of spiritual practice.” It’s not cuddly all the time. Like life.

I’m honored many of the parents are Yoga instructors and grade school teachers, themselves. Practices can be presented in a more authentic way in a studio that is equally committed to the art.

Lily Dwyer

kamesvari — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:21:29 +0000

How did you get into this line of work?
I have been practicing yoga since I was sixteen years old, and before that I have childhood memories of watching my mom do simhasana (lions breath) and surya namaskara on our living room carpet even before yoga became so popular in the USA.

All my life I have studied dance, and this passion naturally instills in me an understanding of the body that I take into every class I teach. Two years after graduating from college, I was dancing professionally when I tore a ligament in my knee for the first time. I was devastated. I had to get surgery if I ever wanted to continue dancing, and after surgery was eight months of mandatory physical therapy and rest from dancing. So I stopped dancing for a season and a half with LEVYdance; had a pause to look deeper inward, and eventually found myself in the jungle on the Nosara Peninsula, in one of the most wild, biodiverse, prana-saturated places I had ever been, immersed in a yoga teacher training led by Don (Brahmanand) and Amba Stapleton. I fell in love with the approach of Self Awakening Yoga that we learned at Nosara and returned inspired and committed to my path as a yoga teacher. The rest is history. My work each day is a labor of love.

What do you enjoy the most about working at Yoga Mandala?
The common thread that connects all the aspects of Yoga Mandala that I appreciate is the highly intentional, thorough, professional, compassionate and thoughtful way that all service and study is approached at this studio.

When you’re not practicing yoga, what are you most likely found doing?
I am likely to be found in rehearsal with LEVYdance. We are a very tight-knit dance company. There are only six of us, so it’s very much like a famil y, and the rehearsal process is much more than just learning choreography. It is highly collaborative; each dancer contributes movement and self-expression to the creative process in a way that involves significant personal investment and risk. I suppose you could say that we bring our personal lives to work every day, but in a good way!

Lately, I have also been falling in love with ballet technique class all over again. Approached with a lighthearted mindset and a curious nature it can be really joyful and empowering. I have also been studying Feldenkrais with Augusta Moore as much as I can.

In my downtime, I enjoy vegetarian cooking, reading and enjoying the cafe culture around Berkeley and San Francisco, and spending time with my wonderful boyfriend, Aaron. I also can’t pass by any opportunity to find a place to breathe in the freshest air I can find: sitting by the ocean or losing myself in a redwood forest work nicely.

Sri Lalita Crute

kamesvari — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:07:02 +0000

How did you get into this line of work?
I happily stumbled upon yoga when I was 17 in college. I practiced throughout school, finally ditching obtuse, dusty graduate work to follow my love of yoga and take a yoga teacher training. At the time, I was not as interested in actually teaching as I was in simply immersing myself in practice and learning the details of the postures for home practice. Later, I learned about classical yoga and it’s sister science, Ayurveda. It only felt natural to deepen my studies of both.

What do you enjoy the most about working at Yoga Mandala?
I love Yoga Mandala because it is hOMe. Yoga Mandala attracted me with its traditional approach to yoga, but really impressed me as an overall educational center, massage and healing clinic, and as a general safe-haven for non-dual practice and study.

I am so pleased to have not only found such a tradition, but to be able to participate in a community centered around it. I enjoy teaching and practicing Ayurveda in a community of like-minded practitioners. Co-workers and students alike are family to me. It is unique to be a part of a tight-knit—and yet open and embracing—village within a metropolis.

When you’re not practicing yoga, what are you most likely found doing?
When I’m not practicing, I am enjoying chasing around my beautiful son.

Rachel Shaw

kamesvari — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:06:05 +0000

This summer we were very excited to add veteran Yoga instructor Rachel Shaw to our YM family. Learn a little more about Rachel below and try one of her classes.

How did you get into this line of work?

I took my first yoga class in 1992 at the original Jivamukti studio in NYC. I was enthralled from the start and 1 year later I enrolled in the teacher training program at the Sivananda Ashram in the Bahamas.

What do you enjoy the most about working at Yoga Mandala?

Teaching at Yoga Mandala is unique for me because the studio space is actually a consecrated temple and place of worship. There is a palpable energy that informs our practice very deeply.

When you’re not practicing Yoga, what are you most likely found doing?

I also love ecstatic dance on wednesday nights, cooking, and spending time with my 4 year old son Jai and husband Bill.