Yoga Sadhana herent - Herent

Ashutosh Kinikar

When I first decided to go for an introductory yoga session with Hana, I was not expecting much. I thought, maybe I’ll learn some basic asanas and break a sweat. But it turned out to be so much more! To me, Hana has now become more of a spiritual guide than just a yoga teacher.

Our sessions start with a basic conversation about what I want to gain out of our practice that day. She asks probing questions, about my stresses, worries from the week, past traumas (only if I wish to share) etc to make sense of my needs. It is almost like talking to an experienced therapist! We then discuss a bit of yoga theory and it’s origins, followed by some asanas which she teaches patiently. She keeps a keen eye on what your body needs physically, where the weak points in my body are (the hamstrings for me!). Throughout the practice the focus is always on the meditative aspect along with the physical, which I liked a lot because that is really what yoga has always been about, and is often neglected in modern day yoga classes. After the asanas we end with a guided meditation session which always puts me in a tranquil trance like state! She modifies the sessions based on my needs, which makes me a very active participant in my practice. It shows that she has learned the yogic and meditative arts from the original places like Rishikesh (India),

As a Phd student, that too in the hard sciences, my life generally gets quite stressful. Even with just a few sessions I feel the positive effects of my yoga practice. Every Saturday I feel like I’ve received a jolt of positive energy from Hana which stays with me throughout the week, and helps me keep a cool head even when life goes wrong, which it a Phd almost always does!

If you are curious about what yoga really is about (not the westernised “workout” version), are open to having deep intellectual conversations with someone trained in both psychotherapy and the yogic and meditative methods of the east, I would highly recommend you to try out Hanakoyoga! Also, thankyou Hana for being my spiritual guru. Hoping to have many more sessions and learn a lot from you, and maybe one day become as peaceful as you are! ?