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WHO IS MANILA JIVA?
My name is Nancy Siy and I am Manila Jiva.
In early 2009, I started practicing yoga- albeit on and off- to calm my mind and deal with the external clutters of daily life. At that time, I was irritable, angry, empty, and I felt that there must be something more than the repetitive cycle of everyday life. Yoga paved the way for my healing and emotional growth, and it was because of these benefits that I was inclined to try the different styles of yoga and experience the different benefits that each one has to offer. In November 2009, I was awakened to the reality of animal suffering. It was through The Story of a Downed Cow, an article in PETA's Vegetarian Starter Kit, that I first thought of the animals whom I ate. Overnight, I changed my eating habits. In a span of one month, I became a committed vegan. I started to wonder about the connection between yoga and veganism, and that was how I first heard of Jivamukti Yoga. Jivamukti Yoga has a strong and explicit emphasis on ahimsa (nonharming) and compassion for all beings. It sounded like something that fit into my newfound beliefs, but there were no Jivamukti teachers based in Manila then. In February 2011, Cat Alip-Douglas from Jivamukti Yoga London held 2 weekend classes in Manila which I attended. Within the first 5 minutes of the class, I knew without a doubt that I have found home in Jivamukti. Drawn by the unique style of incorporating philosophy and ethics into asanas, I attended each Jivamukti workshop that came to Manila and became a Jivamukti groupie. No longer content by the sporadic appearance of Jivamukti in my life and in Manila, I completed my Jivamukti Yoga 300-Hour Teacher Training Certification in Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, New York, USA in May 2012 with Jivamukti co-founders Sharon Gannon and David Life, with the course facilitated by Jules Febre. I now know that this is what I am meant to use my life for- to share the teachings of Jivamukti in Manila. "I AM YOGA. I AM ACTIVISM. I AM JIVAMUKTI." |
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