My story

I first read about yoga in the no-longer existent Soviet Union – an exotic read suggested to me as a foreign curiosity. At that time, in my home city of Novosibirsk, Siberia there were no yoga studios at all and I didn’t know anyone who practiced yoga. Apart from my solitary practice at home, I decided that yoga doesn’t exist in my Soviet reality and focused my life on real things.

As a result I completed my degree in Geography, got married, had children  and moved to stunningly beautiful Vancouver, Canada. Upon arrival, we breathed in the tasty air of British Columbia and, combining our passion for travel with meeting new people, opened a tour company (www.49parallel.ca). While developing our business we discovered many wonderful places that fed our enthusiasm for hiking, camping, cross-country skiing, fishing and other outdoor activities, immersing in the culture of healthy living that is so prevalent here.

At a certain point I became aware of the yoga buzz around me, listened to numerous stories of yoga providing miraculous solutions to people’s problems. Some lost weight, some healed their back pain, some let go of anxiety, and many just felt better in general. The promised bouquet of benefits was so needed at that point in my life, that I took my tentative first step into the yoga studio, and never left.

Since then I have always made time for yoga and meditation, and have kept up a consistent practice in a variety of styles, including Hatha, Yin, Power and Bikram yoga. Along my journey, I met many teachers who generously shared their deep understanding and love towards the magical world of Yoga and Tantric Philosophy. The more I practiced yoga, meditation and studied Tantric philosophy, the more I felt new meaning flow into my life.

The idea to teach yoga came to me during a 10-day- long Vipassana silent meditation retreat. In that moment, I was inspired to share the love and peace I was able to access through yoga and meditation with everyone who needs it.

My first step towards realizing this vision was completing the 500-hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training at VSOHA (Vancouver, Canada). Armed with the depth of knowledge I received from my gifted teachers, I reap immense satisfaction from helping the people maintain healthy balance in their lives through the transformative power of Yoga.

 

Elena Dubman

Founder of Yoga@49 Parallel