Action. Love. Wisdom.
We have curated a collective of instructors with vast and varied training in multiple fields related to the mind-body connection as well as equity and social justice fields, and these rich experiences greatly inform the yoga we teach. Among the highly skilled teachers that call this place home we have teachers with Masters Degrees in Acupuncture, Licensed Massage Therapists, a Masters Degree in Ayurveda, a Registered Nurse, several teachers with Advanced Degrees in Counseling and Mental Health, two Trauma-Informed yoga specialists, a Physical Therapist, a certified Yoga Therapist and Franklin Method teacher, a Naturopathic Physician, a book artist, a Social Worker, two visual and performance Artists, a Nutrition Therapist, a former Montessori teacher, a classically trained actor, an outdoor educator, and more. All of our paths leading up to this moment are varied and rich—we are most fortunate to get to call many wise and inspiring people our own teachers. We all hope to bring to you the very same integrity and teachings that were shared with us, and provide an environment where you are welcomed, encouraged to study and learn and ask questions..
The community, business and teachers of The Bhakti Yoga Movement Center (formerly The Bhaktishop) are deeply invested in staff training, meaningful self-education, and building the knowledge, skill and human resource necessary to invest in a more equitable business model. We're creating conversations about race, inclusion, fat-phobia, ableism, trauma-informed practices, and equity on a daily basis here, and aim to make use of these skills in a broader capacity in the yoga community. Our center and classes/events are mobility-device accessible, and while not all of our teachers are trained yet in deep accessibility for folks with disabilities, we are working toward this potential.
We have not always worked in these arenas, and even still, are making mistakes as we learn and try. We are open to your comments and suggestions by emailing weloveyou@thebhaktishop.com, and are also willing to be held accountable in public for the ways that we have failed or caused harm. We are actively mentoring and training new teachers, while working to hire teachers of color and teachers from groups on the margins that have less representation in the yoga space. Relationships matter deeply to us here, and so we build those relationships first, which often takes time. Trust is important to earn, and to make changes in this realm takes time. We also acknowledge that all of the work that we have been doing on this may not be visible yet.
