Niroga Institute - Integral Health Fellowships

I have been studying Yoga for a several years, but recently, I began training to be a certified Yoga instructor. It is amazing, and only possible because of the vision of an amazing program, Niroga Institute.

As a person of color, I am usually always the only, or one of two of the only folks of color in a Yoga class. That's cool, because it's all about the Self and finding union with your higher power, and when you go to that level everyone is the same, right?.....

Niroga is different, though. BK, the man envisioned this program, is a really hip, conscious, and enlightened teacher from India. My other two instructors are of the recent African Diaspora - Anthony who is from the U.S. and stretches us out to the flyest jazz tunes during class, and Sasi, who comes from Jamaica and is as cool as an island breeze.

My classmates are all African American. And that is beyond amazing. It is completely unlike anything I've ever experienced-- to be surrounded by positive, conscious, and about-something folks that look like me in a Yoga class! But we're by no means a homogenous group-- the diversity is out of this world. Every time I leave a class, I am literally BUZZING with self pride and a feeling that I cannot explain.

I'm sure that any person of color who has gone to 95% of the Yoga studios in the U.S. can probably imagine what that must be like -- you know what I'm saying, right?

Ok, and if that was not enough-- now brace yourself -- it's Free. All we have to do is commit to teach twice a week for a year following our two year process! And Yoga has, until now, been very cost prohibitive for me!

Here is an excerpt from the Niroga Institute newsletter by Bidyut K. Bose, aka BK, founder and director of Niroga Institute:

Yoga Joins Fight Against
Crime and Violence
Niroga Institute, in collaboration with the Bay Area Black
United Fund (BABUF) and the International Association
of Black Yoga Teachers (IABYT), is currently training African
American young adults to become Certified Yoga Teachers
to bring self-transformative life skills into their communities
in Oakland. Given the success of Niroga’s program at
Alameda County Juvenile Hall, BABUF is awarding Integral
Health fellowships to sixteen selected interns to begin
a two-year training program. Bobbie Norisse, President of
the Bay Area Chapter of IABYT, said of the program,
“This is simple, direct, and doable.”
Woody Carter, the Executive Director of BABUF, said “We
are very excited about partnering with Niroga. Yoga is the
cornerstone of our African American Health Initiative.”

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