“Sometimes I call myself the irreverent yogi. I’m not trying to be catchy or cute (well maybe I am, but it’s to get a point across). I like to cut through the fluff and get to the heart of what we are really doing here on our mats. The yoga world has been stereotyped in many ways and I recognize and fall into some of these. I want to rebel entirely and say that chanting is for the birds or the monks, but bhakti is real for me. Kirtan, cheesy as it sounds, lifts my spirit up. So does amazing cello playing, watching the sky, and breathing deep by the ocean. I live a practical life. I raise my kids, I feed my family, grocery shop, and shout at bad drivers from inside my car.
The truth, down and dirty, is that I am a yoga teacher and have been for 15 years. I am a massage therapist and have been for over 10 years. I am a mom, a wife, a friend, a traveler, a Baha’i, and so many more labels. All of this is my dharma, my path, my work. To make sense of every day, I use the tools I have learnt from my practice of yoga, meditation, and prayer. They are my practical guides in my life. Not something I do here and there to step out of my life.”
Nura Madjzoub