Gillian St. Clair
Nomadic from birth, being raised by traveling ministers. Seriously, with my older siblings, two cats, and a dove, we traveled all over Europe and the US listening to my mother teach (I would say preach but she didn’t, she taught). It’s funny how “traveling, sitting, and listening” has become such a huge part of my adult life. The “sitting and listening” part took me a long time to come to terms with.
I started my asana practice in 1999. I had come from a life of dancing (ballet & contemporary) and I didn’t know how much I relied on the physical to take care of my emotional state until the day I quit dance. I had no knowledge of where I was storing all my feelings (my life) until that moment. So when I took my first Ashtanga yoga class I felt completely clear again, it was magic! I felt whole.
For a long time that is where I stayed, heavy in the physical form and I thought that way worked for everyone until I came back from India. I tried to teach what I had learned and was sorely mistaken on how yoga works for everybody. Lesson learned, re-learned, and continuously defined and refined on how I can be of service to others, myself, and my family through the practice of yoga.
I opened Steadfast and True Yoga in Nashville TN in August 2010. I wanted to create a studio and space that holds tightly to values of right action, less distraction to create healthy reactions. I wanted to create an extended family. I succeeded. Steadfast is constantly growing and evolving, but it has been and will continue to be an amazing journey for me.
I am very passionate about truth and integrity and ask for that in my yoga classes. I ask the yogi to seek the knowledge of breath and asana before the fluidity and vinyasa. Having said that, I teach very strong alignment based Ashtanga, Vinyasa and Hatha classes. When you come to my class know that you are safe and supported in the journey we take together. It’s important to understand that everything in yoga is attainable although its process that needs to explored.
I ask the students to focus on what their true needs are and let go of wants. That way they (we) can stop being so needy and stop wanting what isn’t ours.
“Contentment before bliss, peace is in the middle.”