The Teacher and Founder of Blue Lotus Yoga- Cheryl (Rusti') B. - CYI - 250

My journey with yoga began in 1981 in Honolulu, Hawaii. As a young Navy wife, I spent much time home alone. One day while switching channels, I found Lilias on PBS. I began practicing and enjoying the beauty of yoga. The poses came easily and I found a comfort in the practice. My black Labrador Retriever would get down in the floor beside me and stretch and move as I did. Together with Lilias, we weathered the lonely days and nights on Oahu while my husband was out at sea.

After leaving Honolulu, I unfortunately allowed life to take over, robbing me of my precious yoga practice and the next thing I knew I was swamped with corporate meetings, raising a child, caring for my grandmother and running too hard and too fast to slow down and do any yoga. I did practice on an occasional evening but it was not the norm.

In 1988, I again began a regular practice, complete with yoga, healthy eating, and herbal teas, and again I allowed life and complications to take over. Occasionally through the years I would get down on the carpet and do some poses. I have always remained limber so the poses would return easily. But still busy with work, raising more children, and studying for my bachelor’s degree, I did not keep up practice.

While attending college, I took yoga as a P.E. class. It was the first formal yoga class I had ever taken, and formal is exactly how I found it. A yoga class in a university gymnasium classroom situation is large, brightly lit, impersonal and crowded. It also fell between two academic classes and I found that shifting gears too quickly after yoga was not easy, nor was getting changed and racing across campus, so eventually I dropped the class. It was enough though to spark a flame that had always been burning deep within; the desire to practice yoga. I have since resumed a full and regular practice including most all of the eight limbs of yoga, studying some with a local yoga teacher, but mostly on my own, as I believe yoga is a very personal and intimate practice.

My practice has been influenced heavily by first Lilias, and secondly, but most importantly, Yolanda Pettinato of Victoria, Australia. I honor her for her teachings and sharing. I have completed my Yoga Teacher Training for my Teaching Certificate with Paul Jerard, Director of Yoga Teacher Training for the AURA Wellness Center in Attleboro, Massachusetts, and am a certified yoga instructor.  I am grateful for Paul's program and generous support.

Currently I am studying for my 500 hour advanced certification and will soon be able to share even more about the wonderful world of yoga!

The Studio

Blue Lotus Yoga was formed online so that I may introduce those new to yoga to the light within and to the many benefits that yoga offers including: improved health, well being, mental clarity, posture, flexibility, spiritual awareness and growth, and body-mind union. The legend of the Blue Lotus originates from India and tells us the story of the ancestor of the red-haired race in the West from which I am descended. I am proud to honor my ancestors with this symbol of rebirth as we pass the light to future generations, and to have found the connective link between my physical heritage and my love of the Indian peoples, cultures and religions.

At Blue Lotus Yoga you will find the physical focus on Hatha Yoga because I believe in practicing from the traditional teachings. Hatha yoga (the physical) is one of six branches of yoga; the others include Raja, Karma, Bhakti, Jnana, and Tantra yoga. Together we will study each of these six branches. You will also find focus on the eight limbs of yoga which are: Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi, as set forth by Pantanjali, known as Ashtanga or the Eightfold Path. A Sanskrit word which translates to “eight limbs,” Ashtanga is living yoga in every aspect of life. The mainstream style of Astanga being practiced today is not necessarily Ashtanga in the traditional sense, but more a power series focusing on movement, breath and detoxification of the body. Blue Lotus Yoga however will be focusing on Ashtanga in the traditional sense including all eight limbs of yoga, with Hatha Yoga as the method in asana practice.

Many commercial contemporary yoga programs and practices now available can appear difficult and physically demanding. Blue Lotus Yoga will ease you into yoga with comfort and awareness so that growth is a natural progression in your yogic evolution rather than anything that feels forced, over-demanding or unnatural, thus bringing forth a passion for yoga and a body-mind union that will bloom as naturally as the Blue Lotus itself. Namaste.