Today we’d like to introduce you to Narin Hassan.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Narin. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I grew up a child of diplomats, moving to different cities around the world every few years and being exposed to many cultures and languages. In high school I loved acting, but my parents weren’t thrilled about me pursuing it as a career. I became an English and Art History double major in college and then completed a Ph.D. in English in 2003. Pursuing a career as a literature professor was a way to live in the world of storytelling and narrative and immerse myself in analyzing the cultural issues I was passionate about.
I had been interested in dance and yoga for much of my life and began informally teaching yoga to friends as a graduate student as part of a dissertation writing group. Yoga supported me through the stress of graduate school, kept me healthy, and inspired me to write and think more deeply about issues related to gender and embodiment that now inform much of my work. Since 2003, I’ve been a faculty member in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication at Georgia Tech where I teach humanities courses in areas including Victorian literature, gender studies, postcolonial studies, and medical humanities. I published my first book in 2011 (on nineteenth-century women, travel, and medical culture in India and the Middle East) and continue to pursue research on gender, medicine, and empire—the book I am writing now analyzes the histories and cultures of yoga and alternative medicine within a global context.
I’ve been teaching yoga in Atlanta for fifteen years and developed Tend Yoga and Wellness in 2018. I joined forces with Lynn Brandli, of Yoga Poses Daily, to open a yoga studio soon after. We have a unique organizational structure as two businesses supporting each other in a shared space we call the Little Yoga Co-op. Our neighborhood yoga hub brings together diverse students and has a shared vision of collaboration and community. We are located in a historic building in Grant Park that has been a church, neighborhood center, and event space (our landlord is a friend and neighbor who carefully preserved and renovated the building). We focus upon yoga as a healing system and have a deep respect for the lineages, histories, and cultures from which it has emerged. Tend Yoga and Wellness offers alignment-based group and private yoga classes, wellness retreats, meditation, and seasonal cleanses.
The yoga studio is where I put my research into practice, connecting worlds of the mind with that of the body. Contemplation, creativity, and empathy are critical to work in the humanities, and a yoga practice enhances those areas and builds awareness and intuition. My yoga practice supports my productivity and well-being and the environment I create for students at GT. It helps me build relationships with neighbors in Atlanta and create more impact with my theoretical work as I integrate yogic principles and concepts of social justice into an evolving yoga space.
I’ve never limited myself to doing just one thing and bringing these worlds together allows me to grow creatively and amplify the various things I love. It’s exciting to do this in a moment when people are more open to recognizing how practices like meditation and yoga can support our health and help us become better versions of ourselves. My story feels like it is just beginning because there is so much more to know when it comes to studying and exploring the mind-body-spirit relationship and its potential to transform us and our surroundings.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Not exactly easy, but I’ve had some great opportunities come my way. There is a glut of both professors and yoga teachers, so pursuing these areas has taken some perseverance!
Academic jobs are increasingly rare and hard to come by and I am grateful to have landed a great one. The School of Literature, Media, and Communication at GT has been a fabulous place for me to produce interdisciplinary research and teach motivated, creative students who inspire me every day. The process of receiving an academic position took several tries, and going through the tenure process was stressful, especially soon after having a baby. But it was worth it to be in an innovative environment that supports my work in the various directions it takes.
The opportunity to open a studio fell in my lap at an ideal time, and while it meant juggling more responsibilities, the process of creating and shaping the space has been energizing and I love the community it holds. Sustaining the studio requires consistent commitment, motivation, organization, and energy, and many of the same skills I have to apply to my work as a faculty member. I used to keep my academic and yoga life separate because the image of “yoga teacher” doesn’t always align with “college professor,” but now I see many synergies between them.
While there are struggles in all fields and always competition out there, I’ve learned that focusing upon my vision and not worrying about what others are doing keeps me sane and productive. Aging helps with clarity and prioritizing—the older I get, the less time I have to worry about what others think or look back at failures. Instead, I focus upon being with people I trust and environments that support my various passions. I love building relationships and connecting communities, whether it is seeing students expand their ways of thinking in a classroom or observing them discover more about themselves within a yoga studio. The paths of academia and yoga instruction both provide the chance to collaborate creatively and meaningfully with others and create change in the world.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Tend Yoga and Wellness – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Tend Yoga and Wellness offers personalized classes within a supportive setting that encourages individuals and communities to thrive. The offerings allow you to experience yoga more deeply and cultivate awareness. I am trained as a Purna Yoga teacher—this is a holistic method that considers yoga as a complete practice of yoga asana, Heartfull™ Meditation, lifestyle, nutrition, and yoga philosophy. The lineage goes back directly to my South Asian roots and incorporates the alignment principles of BKS Iyengar and the philosophy of Sri Auribindo who claimed that yoga should be integrated into action in the world.
Tend Yoga and Wellness classes have a focus on careful, safe, intentional sequencing, and refining poses so that you can learn more about the depth of yoga and discover more about yourself and your potential in the process. The classes are meditative and reflective, and we use props to deepen postures and focus on yoga as a healing practice that supports the systems of the body. Along with a weekly group class schedule, we offer privates, pop-up classes, teen yoga workshops, and restorative mini-retreats.
My teacher, Aadil Palkhivala, co-founder of Purna Yoga and a master teacher with over fifty years of experience, notes that “true yoga is not about the shape of your body, but the shape of your life.” That concept of yoga as a living and evolving practice that supports our lives is critical to my teaching and our vision at the studio. We have hosted book launch parties, social justice workshops, the Lady MOB (My Own Boss) holiday market of local women artists and vendors, and much more as a way of extending the impact of what a yoga studio space can be.
Lynn Brandli and I have a mission to create a more sustainable, mindful, and embodied community and to provide high-quality yoga instruction in a personalized, community-based setting. We both live in Grant Park and have been active volunteers and organizers in the neighborhood for many years. Our space has an eclectic, old school vibe and we honor the diversity and energy it has held and continues to attract. We try to keep things simple for students–drop in for one class or purchase as many classes in a bundle as you like, with no expiration dates on purchases. There are several props to support the practice and we are one of the few studios in Atlanta with the Great Yoga Wall, an updated and adjustable version of the Iyengar rope wall system that allows you to traction the spine, create beneficial alignment, and deepen a variety of poses safely and therapeutically.
Instead of running several classes with multiple teachers, we have a smaller scale, “boutique” style model and focus upon giving experienced personal attention to ensure students learn poses correctly. We don’t just lead classes, but teach them, observing where students are and making sure they are practicing safely and effectively. We have students from a variety of age groups and work with absolute beginners as well as advanced students, whether they are in great health or in need of therapeutic support. My business name reflects the mission of intentionality, care, and the encouragement I offer to help students tend to their lives in a holistic and nurturing way.
Please tell us more about your career, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
The publication of my book and receiving tenure at Georgia Tech were two peak moments in my career along with the recent opening of our yoga studio space. Now that the studio has manifested, I’m excited about the potential to integrate the work I do there with my work as a scholar and teacher more fully. I’m looking forward to completing my book on yoga culture and history and also to integrating that research more fully into my teaching and service at Georgia Tech to promote a culture of well-being. One idea is to teach a course on global cultures of yoga and meditation that combines classroom learning with studio practice.
The studio is a constantly evolving space that generates and supports new ideas, so I’m looking forward to creating a few new workshops for 2020, including one for academics and writers/creatives, and one on the amazing Purna Yoga hip series. I’m offering some new classes, including a series on “Aligning and Aspiring for the New Year” and special restorative classes which include an Introduction to Heartfull™ Meditation. The schedule always includes some pop- up classes (with some specifically for teens), quarterly three hour mini-retreats (co-taught with Anneliese Singh), and opportunities to immerse yourself in longer weekend retreats. Finally, I’m looking forward to completing another training at Purna Yoga College in Bellevue, WA in spring 2020 and spending more time with family in this new decade–especially since my son will be off to college in four years!
Pricing:
- Single class drop in rate: $15; Class bundles for 4 classes or more (never expire) at a rate of $13 per class (eg. 4 classes for $52).
- Special Holiday Pricing until January 15: Buy 5 classes and get one free (6 classes for $65); buy 10 classes and get two free (12 classes for $130).
- Workshops and restorative mini-retreats: Ranging from $30-65
- Private sessions: begin at $85 for one-hour single session; discounts for bundled privates
- Corporate/group yoga: rates average $200 per group session
Contact Info:
- Address: Tend Yoga and Wellness
289 Little Street SE
Atlanta, GA 30315 - Website: www.tendyoga.com
Image Credit:
Erin Graf Brauer, Mark Leibert
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