SAMADHI YOGA — Seattle

Class Schedule

LOCATION

1205 East Pike Street, Seattle, WA 98122.
206-329-4070
Our beautiful, spacious yoga studio in Seattle is located on Capitol Hill at the corner of 12th Ave. and E. Pike St. The entrance is on E. Pike St. and we are on the first floor. We are on the #11 busline and if driving, be sure to come at least 10 minutes early.  Parking is a challenge with all the new construction in the area.

BOUTIQUE

Please come visit our beautiful, newly expanded boutique/bookstore.
Boutique & Bookstore Hours:
Monday - Friday 10AM-2pm and 4-6:30PM
Saturday-Sunday
9AM-6:30PM

the CENTER

At Samadhi Yoga our aim is to share the magic of yoga to help students attain the essential state of joy or Samadhi. Our center promotes the practice of yoga in a supportive environment with the ultimate goal of helping to build a world of peace and unity.

Samadhi literally translated means transcendental bliss. Yoga means yoke or union. (We yoke our individual mind to the Divine or higher mind.)

Samadhi is the 8th stage or branch on the "tree" of Ashtanga yoga first written down by Patanjali more than 2,000 years ago. Yama and Niyama are the rules and observances for living, Asana are the yogic postures, Pranayama are breathing practices, Pratyahara is withdrawing the senses to facilitate Dharana (concentration or focus) and Dhyana (meditation). By integrating these tools into our daily lives, we are likely to realize the great peace that lies within. Through yoga we may realize our timeless connection to Spirit and to each other, in community. One needn't subscribe to any particular beliefs to receive the immense benefits of yoga. It is a time-tested recipe for manifesting the highest state of being.

the PRACTICE

Samadhi Yoga combines vigorous, athletic yoga with slow, sustained stretches, refinement of alignment in held poses, as well as emphasis on the breath and focus of the mind. In short it is a practice of moving meditation. Samadhi yoga is a method evolved from Hunt's own research and experience in yoga and dance.

Just as metal can be reshaped by application of heat, the body can be transformed by blending the "fire of prana"-the vital life force in all living things with sequential asanas or yogic postures.

Classes include traditional yoga chanting in Sanskrit and deep meditation intended to carry us further in our journey towards Samadhi.

We are reminded to listen to our bodies and enjoy the evolution of becoming fully present in the here and now.

EVENTS

Introduction to Yoga

Now a regularly scheduled class meeting Monday & Wednesday evenings 7:40-8:40pm. This class will be working on the fundamental strength and flexibility needed for our level one classes. Start learning the correct alignment of poses and the general sequencing of Samadhi classes. If you sign up for the intro class card, each class is only $10, and the card has no expiration date. Otherwise, drop-in for $15. The class is also open to all students with a current membership. Get your class card below thru paypal, by phone 206.329.4070, or in person.

Intro

Winter Yoga and Ayurveda

Join Tami Hafzalla to boost your immune system and knowledge of self-healing thru the sister sciences of yoga and ayurveda. Saturday, Feb 11th, 2-4pm, $35 if registered before Feb 7th, $45 after. Winter is the Kapha season. Kapha dosha is governed by the earth & water elements. At this time of year it is common to feel fatigued, heavy & sluggish. Tami will share yoga practices, dietary recommendations, cleansing techniques, & daily routines that will build up immunity & decrease Kapha from the system. This workshop will be invigorating. The practice will be active & warming. You will leave feeling restored & fully re-vitalized. This course is open to all levels of experience in Yoga & Ayurveda. The intention is to create a nurturing environment for you to move deeply into new & familiar practices. Tami was first introduced to Ayurveda in 1999 and was deeply inspired to learn all that she could about this ancient system of health care. Over the years she has integrated much of the science into her daily life and has experienced profound benefits. In 2005 Tami took her first trip to India and felt fortunate to find a renowned Ayurvedic doctor to apprentice with. In 2009 she graduated the Kerala Ayurveda Academy Wellness Counselor Program. Tami has developed and teaches an “Ayurveda for Yogis” curriculum for Yoga teacher training programs and seasonal healing workshops. She weaves Ayurvedic philosophy into her yoga classes and can be seen for individual consultations. Visit www.bhakti-flow.com for more on Tami.
Winter Auyrveda

Sound Healing Sanctuary

Saturday February 11th, Doors open 8:30pm, ceremony starts 9pm, $15 donation, all ages, live music, DJ's, tea ceremony, and sacred art. You are cordially invited to a lovely evening of enchanting, soul warming, interconnecting vibrations. Be bathed in the love and positive energy that is the environment we create here. Sanctuary is a community gathering that is here for all of us who want to gather in an energetically uplifting space with high vibration ambient music and no alcohol. A place to just smile and share the wonderment that is this sacred joyful existence with other like minded souls.
Sanctuary

Gina Sala Kirtan Friday, Feb. 24th 8pm

An evening of sacred chants/mantra and songs from several traditions that allow the mind to rest and the heart to blossom! Come as you are, participate as you like: sing, dance, or sit back and soak in the loving bhakti vibrations. Remember your innocence. Gina has been chanting mantra and kirtan for 35 years, and is joined by Geoff Johns (tabla, mbira, vox), and other wonderful guests. Suggested donation $15-$20 www.GinaSala.com

PRICES & MEMBERSHIP

SINGLE CLASSES

• $15. Single Class
• $10. Lunch break yoga

FIRST TIME MEMBERS:

• one time only per customer
• 2 Months Unlimited Classes only $99
• 2 Months Unlimited Classes plus yoga mat - only $125

CLASS CARDS

• $70. Five Class Card (good for 6 months)
• $130. Ten Class Card (good for 1 year)

UNLIMITED MEMBERSHIPS

• $120. One Month Unlimited Membership
• $300 Three months Unlimited Membership (or $110 monthly auto-pay)
• $495 Six Month Unlimited Membership (or $95 monthly auto-pay)
• $925 Annual Membership (or $85 monthly auto-pay)

AcroYoga Classes

• $15. drop-in, $10 for unlimited members

YOGA TEACHER BIOGRAPHIES

Kathleen Hunt Kathleen Hunt danced her way through childhood; studying ballet from age four, performing and creating dance pieces throughout her formative years, such as performing the 'Clover Fairy Frolic' in Iowa cemeteries, among various other recitals and song/dance extravaganzas. Hunt trained extensively in body awareness and movement modalities, earning a BA in Dance at the University of Washington. She studied under Joan Skinner (Skinner Releasing method) and Peggy Hackney (Labanotation/Bartenieff fundamentals) as well as ballet with Ruthanna Boris and anatomy/physiology. Post college, she was involved in dance production - direction, choreography and performance - receiving numerous grants and commissions for her work in collaboration with musicians, visual and literary artists. Hunt studied yoga primarily with Marie Svoboda, Felicity Green (Iyengar), Dharma Mitra, Swami Shankarananda ('Sivananda'), Sri K. Patabhi Jois and Aadil Palkhivala. She taught dance and movement classes beginning in 1983 and began teaching yoga in 1986, teaching at the Jivamukti Yoga Center in NYC, for eleven years at Physical Culture and at the Downtown YMCA in Seattle. In 1995 she founded the 'Samadhi Yoginis', a yoga dance troupe that has performed in Seattle theatres, restaurants, nightclubs, senior centers, benefit productions such as Positive Yoga, elementary schools, weddings and in the NW Yoga Festival. In 1998 Hunt began the Samadhi Yoga Teacher Training program, which has run for twelve consecutive years, with over 150 graduates. Kathleen and her partner, Steve Davis, opened the current Samadhi Yoga Center in 1999. In 2006 Hunt and Davis teamed up with Patti Hammerle to lead the first 'Samadhi Yoga Pilgrimage to India'. Kathleens' extensive experience in dance, yoga and spiritual traditions have all helped to shape her innovative, vinyasa technique and teaching methods.

Steve Davis The path of yoga began to open for me shortly after resigning my commission as a US Naval Intelligence officer in 1990. Bitter and disenchanted with the US Global agenda under Regan and Bush, I began several years of travel, climbing expeditions, self inquiry, and fasting. Initial forays into meditation and asana were short lived until one fateful asana class with Kathleen Hunt in 1993. Suddenly, yoga became the focus of my life. It was as if I knew this was what I was supposed to do without knowing anything about it. The physical and mental changes I experienced over the next few years were profound and greatly impacted my work (design) and my relationships. I came to realize that everything I perceived was a reflection of my inner state, and that the most important thing I could do in this lifetime was to understand myself. My greatest inspiration has always been the brilliance and beauty of Mother Nature. Samadhi Yoga Center began as a gift to my guru, Sri K. P. Hunt, so that she could continue to teach the transformational science of yoga in a sacred space dedicated to spiritual awakening and self knowledge. My style incorporates vinyasa and Kundalini with an emphasis on pranayama and meditation. I continue to study yoga, physics, neuropsychology, and shamanism as a means for deepening my knowledge of the body, mind, and spirit realms.

Eiric Ovrid It took a bicycle accident and a severe blow to the head to bring me to my first yoga class in 1994. I knew in the first five minutes that I would be on this path the rest of my life. I was finally home. God works in mysterious ways! I began teaching in 1998, completing the teacher training program at Samadhi Yoga under the guidance of my first teacher, Kathleen Hunt, in 1999. I would like to give special recognition to the following teachers for their inspiration and guidance in my teaching style, Atha(NOW)Yoga*: Anna Forrest, Kittie Whittkower, Richard Schactel, Doug Swenson and Kathleen Hunt. *Atha Yoga - a Vinyasa/Iyengar style practice, infused with spirituality and an emphasis in being present in the moment, NOW!

Yvonne Croteau I began yoga on an August night in 2000 right here at Samadhi in one of Kathleen's incredible level II/III classes. I completed Samadhi's teaching training in 2002 and began teaching that same year. I offer precise, detailed instruction born of my study of the loops and spirals of Anusara yoga while inviting free and intense expressivity informed largely by my years of training and performance as a dancer. As a published poet, I draw on visceral, kinesthetic, natural world imagery in my teaching, and will often read aloud poetry or selections from writers on Buddhism, mystic, somatic psychology and etc. I emphasize breath-based movement from the inside, from the subtle body, through instruction in rooting, core integration and energetic expansion. Meditative, investigative stillness, and slow, steady and rhythmic vinyasa become challanging, vigorous holding and flow -- all this geared toward awakening our internal energy, our emotions and creativity, our destiny, our love, and our essential emptiness. My inspirations are lightning, sky and shooting stars, rivers, flames and waves, wind in the trees, wind through the plains, and --perhaps especially-- those furred, finned, feathered, shelled or scaly, totally on-the-level animals. I'm grateful for the way yoga and meditation awaken us to breath, body, the inherent web of love, and the gift that is this wild, beautiful world.

Veronica D'Orazio Veronica D'Orazio has practiced yoga since 1993 and has seen this practice continue to change both her own life and the lives of her students. She daily experiences and witnesses the subtle yet powerful benefits of yoga: increased vitality and mental clarity, physical flexibility, strength and balance, as well as a deepened respect and compassion for not only oneself, but for all beings everywhere. Her classes are varied: she teaches traditional hatha courses, vinyasa flow and restorative yoga, providing a quiet, safe and challenging space for her students to grow. Veronica has been teaching for over 7 years, having graduated from Samadhi's 2001 Teacher Training. She has studied with master teachers rooted in a variety of disciplines: Iyengar, Anusara, Sivananda and Ashtanga. She also works as a florist and writer, both of which nourish and require her abiding commitment to her yoga practice. She is grateful to be a part of the unique integrity and community of Samadhi yoga's teachers, staff and students.

Karen Lindenberg Decades after her mother first introduced her to yoga through Raquel Welch's video workout series, Karen continues to enjoy sharing with others the peace she finds through her practice. As a lifelong musician, Karen appreciates and enjoys sharing the physical and energetic potency of chanting and mantra as tools for meditation.  She completed the Samadhi Teacher Training program in 2003 and now teaches at various local studios throughout the Seattle area. She is also a co-owner and instructor for Phyzz Yoga -- a mobile yoga studio.  Karen holds a B.A. in Geological Sciences from Princeton University.

KT Shores "The body is a field, Arjuna; he who knows it is called the knower of the field." The deep truth of these words from the Bhagavad Gita resonated within me the first time I heard them. The ways we experience life reflects the state of this constantly changing field : the world around us, the body, and the ultimate field of forces - the mind (both our closest ally and greatest obstacle to enlightenment), can be trained to make concious use of all experiences to remove undesirable traits and habits. We are unburdened, and by practice and detachment repeat these illuminations until they, rather than ordinary conditioned awareness, become our constant state! The Buddha tells us a trained mind brings health and happiness, and lofty as unity may seem, it is this practice of yoga in each moment that helps us unfold into living as the fullest expression of our Self. Roots in dance and martial arts influence the focuses in class of energetic awareness of the body, mental alignment, and clarity of breath. With over a decade of teaching experience, my joy is to foster a personal healing energy infused with functional knowledge and compassionate awareness empowering you and your practice through all of life's movements. Elements of philosophy, Ayurveda, nutrition, anatomy and mythology are woven into fun informative classes that work with the needs of individual students - from powerful vinyasa flows to tailored restorative stretches the focus is on individual needs, safety and health. I have been lucky to travel the world for performance and study, recently on pilgrimage in India and give thanks in all of these opportunities to all of life's teachers - especially my family, Kathleen and all those at Samadhi as well as Lee Su-Feh, David McIntosh and sat guru. JAI!

Jennifer A. Isaacson Staying after dance class in 1997 was my first experience with yoga and the happiest accident of my life. I discovered the flow of Vinyasa with Kim King-Zamoff of Exhale Yoga, and received a teaching certificate in 2002. Sharing discoveries from my own practice with others had been a huge part of my life ever since. I continue my studies at Samadhi Yoga Center with Kathleen Hunt and earned the RYT 200 hour certification in 2006. I also practice with Shiva Rea; under her instruction, I'm working toward becoming a Registered Yoga Teacher at the 500 hour level. JAI!

Tami Hafzalla Tami has been practicing yoga since 1993. She has studied extensively with master teachers in India, Australia and the US. Her style is eclectic but she draws most from her classical training in Ashtanga Vinyasa, Iyengar, and Viniyoga. Tami is deeply influenced by spiritual teachings from around the world. She has spent the majority of the past decade traveling, exploring numerous cultures, their traditions, and her own soul. Her experiences have shaped who she is and are expressed through her teaching as she shares her truth and discoveries. She aims to empower her students, and with compassion, she challenges them to safely find their edge and expand themselves both physically and spiritually. She teaches group classes, private sessions, and local and international retreats. Tami can also be consulted for Thai Massage, and serves as a Birth Doula. Her passions include fine art, Ayurveda, the outdoors, and living an active, inspired, creative and adventurous life. "I honor the place in you in which the entire Universe dwells, I honor the place in you which is of Love, of Truth, of Light and of Peace, When you are in that place in you, and I am in that place in me, we are One."

Liz Valauri Liz came to yoga after many years of teaching, performing and studying dance. She has found yoga to be a wonderful guide for maintaining inner and outer balance and appreciation of the moment. Her classes are designed to help students find ease, strength, focus and integration in their practice. In Liz's classes you'll find variations in energy, with a high regard for breath support and refinement of alignment and movement patterns. Students often comment on how clearly Liz explains things to them. Liz is a graduate of the teacher training program at Samadhi Yoga Center. She is certified to teach Universal Yoga Level 1 by Andre Lappa and is a Certified Laban/Bartenieff Movement Analyst. She is also influenced by her study of Anusara Yoga and Aston Repatterning. Liz's goal is to find inroads from all her experiences to create a class that is nurturing to all her students.

Beattie Yoga was my first period class in 1995, (public school!!) it planted the seed and I have been exploring the world through movement and touch ever since. Yoga has shaped my life, leading me to massage therapy, Samadhi Yoga, Hellerwork structural integration and to whatever comes next.... To unlock and unwind the mind through the matter and the matter through the mind, and live in truth is the most awesome practice in the world. My goal is to facilitate connection to the self, with physical and emotional integrity, through heart centered teamwork, where I know I am as much a student as a teacher. OM SHANTI!

Laura Prudhomme Laura is inspired by the idea that creating space in the body opens the space of the heart and mind. She teaches a vinyasa-based class with attention to proper alignment and ease of breath. Laura addresses these principles by concentrating on the relationship of gravity and levity, base support and core strength, and the integration of breath and movement. Her goal is to engage students in a practice that invites curiosity, playfulness, and clear intention. She has recently joined forces with the beautiful and talented Erin Beattie to form Loving Fiercely, a teaching duo that combines the art of healing touch and adjustment with yoga asana. The structure of their classes allows for a hands on experience in a group class setting. Laura began her study of yoga while earning a BFA in Dance. She later moved to Seattle and deepened her commitment to the practice under the auspices of Kathleen Hunt and the fabulous teachers at Samadhi Yoga Center where she completed her 200-hour teacher training certification.

Stephanie Leon Stephanie (RYT, MA, LMHCA) is a certified yoga instructor through Samadhi Yoga in Seattle. She draws from many sources of wisdom and technique, primarily Hatha yoga, vinyasa flow, Ashtanga yoga, pranayama (breathing practice), poetry, literature and sacred texts. Stephanie has a gentle, attentive presence and endeavors with each class to create a safe, welcoming space for students to feel challenged, strengthened, and rejuvenated. You will leave her class having had a great workout, and an opportunity to spend some time in meditation and mindful presence. Stephanie is also a mental health counselor and believes in the integration of mind, body and soul for overall wellness and vitality.

Jenn Davis The healing properties of yoga drew Jenn into the practice, almost a decade ago. Coming from a dance background, she was recommended yoga for back problems. As her practice began to positively effect all aspects of her life, she knew that this would be a piece of her, forever. Fortunate to study primarily under amazing teachers, Tami Hafzalla and Kathleen Hunt, Jenn organically found herself in a community that fosters students and teachers alike. After doing her first Teacher Training program with Kathleen and Tami in 2008, Jenn began teaching. Jenn enjoys a holistic approach to yoga, working with all of the 8 limbs of Hatha yoga. Her classes are traditional with a rich influence from traditional and modern scripture and texts. She prides her classes on unique sequencing and nurturing her students. Her goal is to create a space where her students can let go of the past and make room for the present and future. Jenn continues to deepen both her awareness and her own practice, through intensives, workshops, and classes. She is always expanding her knowledge and finding ways to share this with others.

Peter Lynch Peter began practicing yoga after a New Year’s resolution in 2000. He had grown up in Boulder, CO, involved in various sports and activities, but lost touch with those things after going off to college. In 1995, he moved to Seattle to play music and after some time in the rainy dark winters found he was in need of exercise. He practiced Bikram ‘hot yoga’ for the first few years and found the intensity helped him make decisions in life, helped him navigate his own emotional terrain. This inspired his interest in other forms of yoga and he found a diverse range of styles and emphases housed at Samadhi Yoga where he eventually trained to be a teacher. Peter’s own teaching reflects his excitement for hatha, vinyasa and Anusara yoga. He tends to focus on alignment, breath and energetic expression, hoping to open channels between the heart, the mind and the larger world around us. He teaches regular classes in studios, workplaces and residences in the Seattle area.