Austrian yoga teacher in Finland

Nicola Moberg's story really blew us away, such strong experiences, such positive air about it. Nicola's love and passion for yoga shines through very tangibly! (We get goose bumps while listening to her)

 

A while in to the interview though, we are a bit surprised when we hear that for many years Nicola was "just an easy going party girl, travelling around the world" as she puts it herself. Nicola is originally from Austria, but she has been living in several countries over more than a decade, and as of now she is situated in Helsinki. For years, she did not find anything that really interested her, at least not enough for her to settle down at any specific place...

Nicola Moberg

 

Yoga was the first thing that really caught her, something that klicked immediately. And it has stuck with her since. As of now Nicola works as a yoga teacher with an expertise in prenatal yoga, helping pregnant women to prepare their bodies, and minds, for birth.

 

But it is when she starts talking about Purna yoga that she really comes alive, it is obvious that Purna yoga has had a profound impact on almost every aspect of Nicola's life. That being said, a life touched by yoga seems to fit very well together with a normal family life including two daughters and a Finnish husband.

See Nicola at:
www.yogala.fi

See more about Purna yoga and the studio Nicola works at:
www.purnayoga.fi

Tiina & Sofia
 

Yoga to increase happiness

In our second interview we met Timo Kurvi - a professional actor, singer, dancer and now also yoga teacher. Once again we were greatly inspired by Timo sharing his personal yoga story!

Today Timo has recently opened up his own yoga practice in Acro and Iyengar yoga, but in the beginning he came into yoga seeking help for a medical condition that had become quite severe. We were fascinated to hear that Timo gives yoga all the credit for him being able to live a normal life, no longer restrained by his genetically inhereted condition.

"Yoga started out as a purely physical exercise for me, but then turned out to be so much more", Timo says. Today Timo's philosophy regarding yoga can be captured in one sentence: Reducing suffering and increasing happiness.

See more at
www.timokurviyoga.com

For Timo it was important to find a yoga practice that would help him to balance his body, which he found in Iyengar yoga. Later he ventured into Acro yoga which seems to appeal to the performance artist in Timo. Listening to Timo's story, we realise that finding the right kind of yoga, one that suits you personally, can make a very big difference to your experience...

Tiina & Sofia 
 



Yoga on higher levels

 

We are both happy and honoured to announce that our first interview brought us to talk to ashtanga yogi and visual artist Asta Caplan! Asta is one of, if not the furthest advanced yogi within ashtanga yoga in Finland.

 

We were invited to the cozy yoga studio Moola in central Helsinki where Asta practices yoga together with her husband Daniel who is also a yoga teacher. Asta greets us with a warm and bubbly smile at 8:15 after her everyday morning yoga session. The atmosphere is relaxed and we quickly notice that Asta has much much to tell about the wonders of yoga.

Asta Caplan

See more about Asta
www.astacaplan.com

See more about Moola
www.moola.fi
 

Asta is one of a maybe a handful of yogis in Finland who have advanced to practice the fourth series ashtanga yoga. "Nowadays one of the challenges for me within yoga is to find a teacher to teach me something new", says Asta.

 

Still, she does not in any way come off as feeling superior to any one else. On the contrary, she insists on the fact that anyone can practice yoga and that it is not the number of asanas (poses) you master that make you a better yogi or person, but the fact that you are willing to work with yourself, and learn to know your true self.

 

And as we learn during the morning, yoga has helped Asta in a number of ways; both with her physique - as she was suffering from serious injury that made her quit her career as a ballet dancer, as well as with her mind - most of the challenges in our lives are actually only in our mind.

 

Listening to Asta excitedly telling us about her most memorable yoga experiences is mesmerizing  and we leave her yoga studio full of inspiration for the book!

 

Tiina&Sofia

 

 

These stories begin here

‘A Million Ways To Love Yoga’ is a research project that two people started out of unconditional love for yoga. Our aim from the start was to unite passionate yogis and present their fascinating true yoga paths. These real, ordinary people tell their unique stories and we listen carefully.


Simply put, the project and book ‘A Million Ways To Love Yoga’ is about the miracles of yoga that so many people have already experienced and that we believe to be accessible for everyone! So in the end, it does not matter whether you are a beginner or whether you have lived half of your life on the yoga mat, we want to inspire you by reporting different perceptions and experiences of yoga which are simply based on the fact that people are different. The book will shed light on the contrasts of various genres of yoga, however reminding the reader (with the interviewees own words) what yoga is really all about; the things modern apps or a Nintendo Wii game will not teach you, an analysis on what yoga truly entails.

Many of the things that we feel on our yoga mat can be very hard to explain. Yet, our goal is to capture also those deepest emotions that yoga is able to evoke in us. The core of this book is about yoga-inspired living and our unique experiences on the yoga mat.  Ultimately we believe that we can show the reader that yoga is really something for everyone, and that as we are unique as individuals, so should our yoga practice be.

***

The project kicked-off in October 2013 when we decided to write down our own yoga paths. While writing and reading our stories to each other we noticed the multifaceted perceptions that we had of yoga! This is where we got seriously excited! We became hungry for more and started contacting other yogis. Soon it became clear that there are such fascinating stories to be told about yoga that we could not even have dreamt about!  


Right from the start, the passion for yoga we both share has been like a strong wind under our wings. It also seems like the people we meet take notice of this passion and want to take part in this inspiring project.


So whether you have already discovered the joys of yoga or still need some persuasion and guidance in finding your path, the book and the blog of ‘A Million Ways To Love Yoga’ is for you.


The holy grail of yoga is soon at your fingertips... ;) However, remember that the journey is the goal SO STAY TUNED!
 
Kindly,
Tiina & Sofia