Anna

Anna Khazan began practicing yoga 16 years ago, when she took her first class at the local community school. Since then, she has been studying with many wonderful teachers. In 2002, she began her training in Yoga Synthesis with Raji Thron. Yoga Synthesis is a unique style created by Raji. It combines the best elements of different yoga traditions, such as Classical, Iyengar, Ashtanga, Anusara and Viniyoga, and gives people the freedom to use their own creativity and adopt their practice to their individual needs. Anna is a certified Yoga teacher (RYT), registered with Yoga Alliance.  Anna enjoys many physical activities such as walking in the park, weight training and kickboxing, but her true passion, besides yoga, is ballroom dancing. She used to successfully compete in a pro/am division with her teacher. Anna brings her love for dancing and a fascination for graceful movement of the human body into her teaching.  She believes that there is music within each soul and when you become still and quiet inside, you can hear this beautiful music and it will soften your heart and lift your spirit. She is grateful for the wonderful gift of Yoga, grateful for the inspiration and generosity from her teachers and grateful for all her students, who are also her teachers, for their trust, encouragement and friendship.

christy linson's June 28, 2006 interview with Anna

christy: How did you first start studying yoga, and what drew you to it?

Anna: My first exposure with yoga was in my teens or maybe my early twenties in Russia.  I went to see a movie and before it started they showed a documentary about yogis in India doing poses and nauli, which are belly exercises. It was so fascinating to me, that I began practicing this when I got home. It came quite naturally to me, and I started practicing almost every day.  After that, once in awhile, I would see yoga poses in a magazine and started doing them without understanding what it did or what was behind it.  I was not familiar with yoga philosophy or the yogic view on life.  Then, when I was in college, my roommate used to practice headstand every day. I thought it was great; it was so fascinating. So, she showed me how to do headstand, and I started doing headstand. I would say my first educated exposure to yoga was when I moved to NJ and took classes at Fairlawn Adult Community School with a wonderful teacher named Ruth Russell. She had started practicing yoga in India and I was drawn to her personality. When she left I was looking for a teacher and it was very difficult to find someone. When I was working in New York I started taking yoga classes there. I found a great teacher and my practice became a little bit deeper; I started reading books and getting interested in yoga philosophy.

christy: How long were you practicing before you decided that you wanted to teach?

Anna: Well, I didn’t decide that I wanted to teach actually. What happened was that there was an event in my life, September 11, which was probably for a lot of people a life-changing event.  I lost my job after that and was going through a period of time where I didn’t know what I wanted to do.  I was looking for a job and it was very difficult to find something.  By that time my practice was quite advanced, and I was practicing regularly.  One of the friends that I used to work with, said to think about something I liked to do and perhaps pursue that as a career.  I thought about it and decided that yes, I wanted to take a yoga teacher’s training.  Though, even when I was taking the teacher's training, I wasn’t sure if I would teach.

christy: Now, you actually walked out of the World Trade Center on September 11^th.  It was an event that completely changed the lives of many people, but experiencing it on that level must have been extremely altering.

Anna: It changed my outlook on life and on what is valuable in life.  I was thinking, you can have a great job, make good money, and leave the house one morning, the weather was so beautiful, everything was so great, and then in a matter of a few seconds your life can change completely.  Life can change in any moment or end in any moment, so you want to spend time in your life doing what you like, not necessarily what will earn you a lot of money, but something that you enjoy doing.

christy: I wonder if you would describe in your own words what students can expect when they take your class and what you try to bring in your class.

Anna: I have started studying the last few years with Anusara teachers.  I like the foundation and the alignment because it makes sense to follow the laws of biomechanics.  In my classes, I think that there is a lot of spontaneity.  I have an idea of what I would like to do in the class when I walk in, but I let it happen.  It depends on my own energy that day, on the energy of the class.  There is always emphasis on alignment.  I think it is very important especially for new students and for all of us.  I remember when I started taking Anusara classes how it changed the entire perspective of my yoga practice.  I also like to make my students feel that they are not restricted by those alignments, that they are just the tools to help them get deeper in their practice.  The real yoga, the real practice, should come from what they feel, from the inspiration within.  When you feel that inspiration, it will change your practice totally and completely.

christy: When I read about Anusara, they talk about an alignment coming internally from the heart rather than a harsh discipline that comes from the mind.  Would you describe it that way?

Anna: It is a great combination of heart and mind.  John Friend studied with Iyengar, so he learned strict regiment and strict alignment from Iyengar.   Anusara is different from the Iyengar style, because it combines spirituality with alignment.  You don’t have to just be thinking about your feet or legs in alignment; you can feel it from within eventually.  When you understand the alignment, you feel the alignment of yourself with something higher in the universe.  Anusara means, “in the flow of grace” and that is how it really feels.  That is what I like my students to feel.

christy: What kind of advice would you give to an aspiring yogi who wants to create a personal practice that can stand the test of time and be continuous?  I find that it is easy to be affected by external circumstances and difficult to be consistent.

Anna: It is not easy to practice in life what you experience in the class.  In the class, you are in a controlled situation.  You begin with meditation, often guided meditation, so the teacher is bringing you into that perfect space, helping you to unwind.  The more you practice in class, the more you get used to the feeling, and the awareness and understanding of what is happening within you.  My advice, to myself first, is that whenever you are in a difficult situation, remember that feeling of being aware.  It is not going to change the situation around you, but being aware that you are in a difficult situation, being aware of the emotions that arise helps you to deal with it.  So instead of getting carried away by those emotions, you stay back and observe yourself for a few moments.  Perhaps you can remember to breathe a little deeper. There is no guarantee that you will handle it perfectly but it helps a lot, I know it helps me.  If you fail, that’s okay, because we do, but the more you practice this, the easier gets.  When I feel anger or frustration arising, I stop and say, “Okay you are feeling angry, you have the right to feel angry, there is a situation that is making you feel angry, but how do you respond to it?  Do you respond with anger or do you just step back and think what am I going to do about it?  How can I change the situation it, or take myself out of it?"  I don’t think you completely pull out of it.  I think mind plays a big role in it, too.  Mind helps you to make the right decision when the emotions start taking over.  The mind is very clear and helps you make the right decision.  During 9/11, Giuliani said the more hectic it gets outside, the calmer you need to be inside.