Why Yoga in Harvard Square?

• Central location in the heart of Harvard Square;
• individualized guidance through the poses;
• quiet setting, lit by candlelight on winter evenings and rainy days;
• full wall panel of windows in a state of the art studio, labyrinth included;
• fully air-conditioned;
• non-competitive, introspective, flowing experience;
• respect for alignment and safe travel through the poses;
• balance of physical, emotional, and spiritual elements;
• instructor has 14 years of teaching experience supported by a lifetime of involvement with the principles and practices of yoga within American society.

Yoga in Harvard Square's approach to teaching Yoga poses and breathing exercises is basic. It is accessible to a wide range of fitness levels, gentle yet challenging. It brings healing to the nervous system through a meditative, breath-synchronized-with-movement approach. The body is warmed and prepared for holding the pose at the apex of a posture sequence. Specific breathing exercises are practiced during sessions. Sessions end with a deep relaxation accompanied by a guided visualization to further refresh and renew body and mind.

Yoga Flows a Middle Path through the Heart of Harvard Square

Do you want to find a yoga class that is in the middle range, something that is neither hot and sweaty nor too easy? Then Yoga in Harvard Square may be your golden mean.

Lifelong yogi Portia Brockway's teaching style is flowing and moderate in intensity, synchronizing breath with movement to de-stress her students'daily lives. Portia, who founded Yoga in Harvard Square in 1993, takes the position that yoga improves and maintains the vitality of body and mind toward the end of good health and high spirits. She works with beginners as well as experienced students.

What is a class at Yoga in Harvard Square like? According to Portia, who began practicing yoga at age three under her father's guidance, "We always begin class with a brief focus on breath and sensation. Often we practice specific yogic breathing exercises, called pranayama, that calm and clear the mind. I usually have some simple music on the tape deck at the beginning, some traditional Native American flute songs, or Hildegard von Bingen or Tibetan chanting, something that does not distract but rather focuses the student. We move first through what is called vinyasa, flowing movement in and out of the pose proper. Then, when the body is warm and ready, we hold the pose. I walk around the room and give physical assists, directing students individually on how to move through breath and body deeper into the integrity offered by the pose. In a non-intrusive way, I encourage the six to sixteen people in the room into states of alignment that they would not know how to find on their own. After a series of 10 - 20 poses, depending on the pace of that class, I take the group down into a state of deep relaxation for five to ten minutes. Here their bodies and minds absorb the benefits of the yoga session."

When asked how students' lives may transform through yoga practice, Portia responds by saying, The changes that enter the life of a regular yoga practitioner are basic, and profound. For example, one of my students tells me that her husband encourages her to attend class regularly because she doesn't yell at him afterward. Yoga develops a sense of inner peace that is hard to define yet easy to live with.

Does this mean that regular yoga practitioners have no emotional response? Portia observes "No, in fact, when we begin to get a clear perspective on our life situation, we may find ourselves angry or sad about its injustices. We discover that we can and must change our lives, continuously. We begin to strike a balance."

Yoga in Harvard Square classes are held in the spacious Alumni/ae Room at the newly-renovated University Lutheran Church at 66 Winthrop Street, just down from Berk's Shoe Store, off JFK Street. There is a full wall panel of windows for the pleasure of daytime attendees. Evening classes are held by candlelight. You may try a class at Yoga in Harvard Square for $16. You may then choose to drop in and pay $18 a class. Or you may sign up for a class series, which consists of six consecutive weeks of yoga, attending one class per week for $96; it is pro-rated if you join during the series. You may begin at any time. Portia teaches regular and prenatal yoga.

You always knew it had to be here, a middle path, flowing through the heart of Harvard Square.