rasheedah hasan

My full name is Rasheedah Hasan and I've never been one for nicknames. My friends tried to give me one in high school "RaRa," and I politely declined. I just couldn't feel it. But, as you can imagine, my name is often mispronounced and I often get envelopes addressed to Mr. Rasheedah Hasan. I don't mind honest mistakes and I do understand. In case you're wondering, my name is pronounced Ra (just like the cheer) -- shee (just like She) -- dah (as in mama). Now, I wanted the name of my practice to be fairly simple and true to the nature of the benefits of contentment. And, in all honesty, I like my name. So, I thought, "If I could somehow get a practice name that would work with my name, it would be heavenly."

In my quest for names 'Raha' popped up.  In Swahili it means "Joy" and in Iranian-Persian it means "Free." I could not think of a better match to describe what peace and contentment feel like, and now I answer to a nickname "Raha." As you have probably noticed, it's a combination of my first and last name and in many ways it feels like my name. I am not solely a yoga teacher, but it is a love that I have and it brings me great joy to see people's faces when they accomplish the unthinkable or they tell me they are breathing better or they simply say "wow."  One of my ultimate goals as an instructor is to pass along what I know to someone else and help them become a teacher. This experience has been a great gift to my life and deserves to be shared.

Ironically, my official training is in a much more vigorous form of yoga - Power Vinyasa. Power Vinyasa is a more fluid and vigorous form of yoga, that connects the breath with continuous movements in an intense fashion. However, my primary students do not reach for power vinyasa. The main audience that gravitates to me are those seeking to learn the practice of yoga in it's truest and most patient sense. In 2007, I began to develop practices built around beginners, expecting mothers, the aging population, those seeking to develop a more advanced personal practice and organizations looking to establish a stress relief/yoga practice into their environment. It has been a wonderful part of my journey.

I continue to learn and work on my practice because it helps to keep me grounded, on and off the mat. As a teacher and student, I tumble, sometimes lose my balance, and sometimes have to admit a posture may never be for me. Those are also life lessons I take away with me when I step off my mat, but I'm thankful for the opportunity to at least have tried.

I am deeply appreciative of the friends who have allowed me to help them build a personal yoga practice. My wonderful teacher, Dolly Stavros, once told her students "yoga is not learned in inches, but millimeters."  That statement is so true and it applies to so many challenges we later accomplish in life.