The Yogi Bassist

04/24/2024

Hello community!

I have big news to share. I recently started working as a yoga therapist position at a substance use recovery center and no longer teach public classes EXCEPT for a monthly guided meditation, Yoga Teacher Trainings (YTTs) and Continuing Education Trainings (CETs)for yoga teachers. In preparation of launching my individual yoga therapy service this page will be changing names to "Bhava Yoga Therapy."

Starting in September I'll open my schedule to private individual yoga therapy sessions on a limited bi-monthly basis on Fridays and Saturdays, and offer seasonal special events, but for now I'm not accepting any new or returning clients while I finish my last trimester of grad school and settle into my new full-time position.

Thank you all for your support these past 7 years. I wouldn't be here reaching toward my highest potential if I didn't have a supportive and encouraging community 💗🙏🏽✨

02/16/2024

Reflecting on --
Embracing faith (in whatever it means for you) is a personal journey that can be challenging. I think it's absolutely good & even necessary to question your faith with discernment. Blind indoctrinated faith can easily succumb to ignorance thus distorted into a tool for fear & violence. While my faith is rooted in my Ishta Devata (my personal connection to God), my faith is also firmly rooted in belief in myself as an expression of the Divine. The philosophies & principles of yoga have taught me Faith isn't externalized; You can have faith in your own inner resources. Having faith takes a bit of safely surrendering to belief in something greater than your limited perceptions/ experiences alone. Having faith also takes a bit of courage to believe in your SELF.
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This is but a tiny share of my own story on how my faith developed & matured.
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When I first landed on my mat 14 years ago for a hot yoga practice I was certainly not looking for faith in anything. That changed when my mother died in 2017. I felt broken & orphaned. I desperately wanted to feel whole in my life & knew yoga could support me on this challenging journey; I put faith in the wisdom teachings of yoga.
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In the principles of the 8 limbs of yoga, there are what's called yama & niyama--the ethical foundations of yoga. The 5th is often translated as . To practice this act of surrender, there has to be a sense of faith in what you're surrendering to. But, not a blind faith--a discerning & intelligent faith in what you are surrendering to is perhaps greater than your capacities alone or even beyond your limited comprehension, but it is not actually separate or removed from you. Surrendering takes an act of faith that you will be safe & held. That you can be brave & steadfast. That you can recognize if someone is trying to exploit your faith & surrender for their own gain.
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I am safe to have faith in the courage of my surrender.  I am safe to have faith in the awe of God.
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Om Namah Shivaya

02/14/2024

Celebrating the joy of intentional rest!
I'm emailing out a free 25 minute recorded yoga nidra to support you in cultivate joyful meaning in your everyday life🤍🌱🦋🌞🌜😌
At 7pmCST tonight I'll be emailing everyone on my mailing list a downloadable audio track that you can keep on as many devices as you want--it's free for you to use as often as you like.
If you're not in my email list but would like to receive this free gift, please visit the link listed on my bio to sign up or visit my website www.theyogibassist.com to do so.
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PS, I'm working on launching my new yoga therapy website www. BhavaYogaTherapy .com
At that point, "the yogi bassist" will be officially retired. Stayed tuned for that announcement in the upcoming months🙏🏾❤️

02/13/2024

Reflections on svadhyaya: self-inquiry/ self-study
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For the last 8-ish months I've been meditating on the mantra "koham."
This mantra is a question: who am I?..
Some years back in a training with she introduced us to this inquiry, plus another inquiry: the practice of "atma tattva avalokanam" meaning to witness the substance of Self.
So I went about my practice for years focusing on witnessing the substance of self. I know who I am, so let's get to witnessing what I'm made of.
I thought I was doing it & I thought I was getting "results" from doing this.
Until one day, June of last year, walking my dog & feeling anxious & unraveled by the chronic stress of all that was happening & has happened & has yet to happen, I heard a voice from somewhere in some corner of my mind proclaim to me in a clear, definitive & unprovoked manner "I'm not that."..wait... what?
Not what?? Not that? Well... what the hell is that!? I don't know what "that" is!! I thought myself into a momentary spiral as I looked for some answer--some solution--to this unprovoked inner declaration
Then, something hit me... Like a flash of light for an instant of clarity..
Okay, then if I'm not "that" then maybe the question isn't "what" am I... maybe I should ask... "who" am I?..
💣🤯
Not that I was doing it all wrong, but I had to start all over. If I'm not that, then who am I?
कोहं
Koham
I remembered this mantra... I remember how Indu shared her own story about how she asked herself this for years as a young woman early in her yoga practice. ..
So, I started over... All these years you think you "know" who you are, until one day you get some strange confirmation of "not that"..
So
Koham
Who am I?
I may rationalize that I know who I am
And, yes, I know who I am
But, beyond this outer layer of "me" & my identity
I think I'm in a safe enough place to inquire within
And just ask, and just be... Maybe one day I'll get an answer..
PS, I'm absolutely still teaching at
I'm just scaling back my schedule to make more space for me to just be in the morning.
Catch me for 10am restorative yoga on Mondays & 6pm guided meditation on the 1st Friday of every month

02/12/2024

Cease fire! This is not war this is gen0c1de. The nation of is Is-rael is killing innocent people. Millions of people have no where to go. There is no safety for these people as they are corned into the last place they can be...
Posted • The Israeli military is bombing Rafah, the most densely populated area in the world, while Americans watch the Super Bowl. This is intentional. This is genocide.

The timing of these atrocities is calculated. While over 100 million viewers tuned in for the game’s kick-off, the Israeli military began dropping nearly 1 bomb a minute on Palestinians in Gaza. So far the bombardment destroyed at least 10 residential buildings and 3 mosques, all sheltering displaced Palestinians. At least 60 people have been killed.

While U.S. viewers watch the superbowl, they will see the multimillion dollar propaganda ad sponsored by the Israeli government. At the very same time, the Israeli government is bombarding the over 1.3 million trapped and displaced Palestinians they forced into Rafah with no escape. The harrowing reality these Palestinians are facing stands in stark contradiction to the Israeli military’s designation of Rafah as a “safe zone.”

The Israeli government is able to carry out these war crimes with the full backing and participation of the United States. This is what complicity in genocide looks like.

The Israeli government is relying on the masses to be too distracted to witness the horrors they’re carrying out in Gaza, but we refuse to look away. All eyes on Rafah.

02/09/2024

Inner Listening: Restorative Yoga ✨🧚🏾‍♀️🪷 at this Sunday 02/11 at 11am
Everyone deserves rest. We all need time to slow down and process our journeys.
This class is just that: time to slow down into stillness.
Time to listen deeply to the wisdom of inner silence.
🕊️🧘🏾‍♀️
It is there, hidden in that still & silent space, is limitless potential for growth, just like the desolation of winter❄️ nourishes the vitality of spring🌱
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This is a small group experience of 8 participants max.
You can register at https://app.acuityscheduling.com/schedule.php?owner=26709785&appointmentType=54500177 but please DM me via IG if you have questions!
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02/09/2024

02/09/2024

Everyone wants less stress in their lives, and for good reason: psychological stress can be insidious such as chronic daily micro-aggressions or immediate such as the grief of a major loss.

However, stress is a double-edge sword: we all need a certain amount of stress in our lives to keep our minds & bodies flexible & resilient, but too much stress can take a toll on the health of every system & function of your being.

Want to learn how to transform your relationship to stress? Would you like to develop healthier coping skills when dealing with life's challenges?

If you're ready to make positive changes in the way you manage your stress, join me for this 4-part small group yoga therapy workshop "Empowering Adaptive Stress Management through Yoga Therapy."

This will be an intimate group of minimum 4/ maximum 6 participants. Each 90-minute session is educational, experiential and transformational:
🧠🤔Discover how stress affects the body from yoga's biopsychosocial-spiritual framework (called the "Panchamaya Koshas")
🧘🏽‍♀️🤸🏽🏄🏼‍♂️Practice specific yogic tools to help you ride the wave of your stress response without getting caught up in its tide
👩🏾‍🤝‍🧑🏽👨🏻‍🤝‍👩🏾Connect with a brave community learning to both self-regulate and co-regulate together

All participants will receive an individual intake assessment with me prior to the series starting plus continued individual support between sessions.
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Date/ time:
Every Tuesday in March 4:30-6pm
(03/05, 03/12, 03/19, 03/26) The series is cumulative and builds on each session so please plan to attend all 4
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Registration fee:
Pay-what-you-can sliding scale of $120-$200 for the whole series. If cost is a barrier to accessing this series please email me at [email protected] for additional options.
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Location:
in-person at the
900 Ramsey St
Nashville, TN, 37206
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Sign Up link is in my bio
Have questions? DM me on IG or email me at [email protected]

02/08/2024

Ready to transform how you handle life’s challenges?
Group yoga therapy series to upgrade the way you manage stress
Starting in March!

Everyone wants less stress in their lives, and for good reason: psychological stress can be insidious and constant such as chronic daily micro-aggressions or acute and immediate such as the grief of a major loss. However, stress is a double-edge sword: we all need a certain amount of stress in our l...

02/05/2024

It's just me popping up on your feed to say hi👋🏾
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May all beings everywhere be happy and free
And may my thoughts and actions
Contribute to the freedom & happiness of others❤️🙏🏾
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What are some tangible ways you can take this prayer off the mat and into the world with you?
What are some of the things you do to reduce collective harm and increase intercommunity peace?
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I'd love to read about what you're doing--big or small--to live your yoga so drop a comment 🙌🏾

02/01/2024

Join me at this Sunday ✨
02/04 11am Inner Listening: Restorative Yoga 🤍
This class is an exploration into the play of silence & sound to guide an inner journey of resonance & stillness... renewal & rest🧘🏾‍♀️
Give yourself time to be held in the loving-kindness of the communal space that is SOUND and bathed in healing vibrations within and all around.
This is a very intimate group experience of 8 participants max.
You can find the registration link in my bio but please DM me if you have questions!
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