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Our Teachers
The beautiful
souls that are the sunshine of our center.
Cindy Aikman
Cindy adores the joy of movement as well as the sweet place of stillness that
connects one to the flow of life. Throughout her many years of dancing in New
Zealand, and practicing and studying yoga in NY City, she is now lovingly
guiding, uplifting, and imbuing students with her unique understanding of the
human body, its sacredness, and its wisdom. Among the many modalities she
draws from are Naam Yoga, Naam Yoga Pre-Natal, Kundalini Yoga, Iyengar Yoga,
Klein Technique, Reflexology, the Harmonyum Healing System, & Contemporary
Dance. In addition to teaching Naam Yoga and practicing Harmonyum at
Universal Force Healing Center, Cindy also offers a very special class called
Perfect Balance, which imparts her unique knowledge of Klein Technique with
Naam Yoga Therapies. Cindy carries in her presence the deep healing
vibrations of her native land and is committed to helping students create a
space for spirit, allowing the inner and higher voice to be heard and honored
so that life may flow with ease and grace.
Leila Astarabadi
Leila Astarabadi's reverence for the Divine Spiritual Wisdom is truly a gift
to all her students that attend her class. Her love of yoga shines through in
both her style of teaching and the content of what she imparts. Her kindness
and warmth provide a truly nurturing class environment that allows each
student the freedom and capacity to open, feel and expand into the fullness
of each moment. It is Leila's supreme joy to spread the light of the Divine
Spiritual Wisdom so that people will begin to think with their hearts and
feel with their heads. She is grateful to her beloved teacher Gurunam for his
continued guidance and support and for sharing the vast and sacred teachings
of the Universal Kabbalah.
Leila is a California native whose teaching experience has spanned over 15
years. She has studied many diverse styles of yoga in both the U.S. and
abroad. She has also traveled to India and through Europe in the pursuit of
her yogic studies and received certifications in many disciplines of yoga.
Devoted to guiding and empowering her students, Leila strives to teach each
student to connect to their innate strengths and abilities.
Leila works privately with individuals in her SHAMSA Healing sessions and
personal yoga sessions. In addition to yoga, she has also trained and
received certificates in Medicinal Aromatherapy, Herbal Medicine, Harmonyum
Healing and Prenatal Naam Yoga. Leila is an artist, entrepreneur and
designer/owner of her own label, Conscious Cloth, a line of clothing borne
out of the love, beauty and grace of her yogic and mystical studies.
Francesca Caputo
Francesca has been studying yoga for the past 16 years. From her first
experiences in Kundalini Yoga and Universal Kabbalah, an instant and profound
connection was made. Her life altering experiences has led her to want to
share and teach this knowledge. She has received a KRI certification while
studying at the home of Yogi Bhajan in India and is proud to be one of the
first NAAM Yoga teachers while actively teaching and continuing her studies
at Universal Force Healing Center. (ERYT200 with Yoga Alliance).
Francesca feels immense gratitude for being a part of this ever expanding
community of light and especially to her teacher Gurunam for being such an
instrumental part of her evolution.
Her strongest desire is to share Divine Spiritual Wisdom, uplift and instill
love, faith and hope in others, as she has experienced in her self. Her
life's purpose is to work with everyone who crosses her path and help them
find their own personal creative expression through learning about themselves
through the laws of the universe.
Francesca holds a Fine Arts degree and continues to be immersed in the arts
while working as an Interior & Jewelry Designer and also a Harmonyum
Practitioner, she continuously studies yoga, health and healing.
She lives by her favorite motto: "Be the change you wish to see in the world"
-M. Ghandi
Janet Dailey
Janet Dailey is a certified Naam Yoga Therapist, Harmonyum practitioner, and
a certified Reflexologist with over 8 years experience in the healing arts.
She has a thriving practice in Manhattan and currently teaches Naam Yoga at
numerous locations throughout New York City.
Janet's love of music and finding the connection to our joyful self are what
attracted her to Naam. She is inspired daily by her students and is dedicated
to creating a self healing environment in which all students may unite. She
looks forward to continuing to bring her students to beautiful locations all
over the world with her Heal Yourself Retreat partner, Nadine Nussenbaum.
"Each day is a gift and I am blessed to be able to do what I love! I am
eternally grateful to Gurunam for his guidance, love and support."
Alyssa Gaustad
Alyssa teaches Naam Yoga and practices the healing technique born out of
Universal Kabbalah known as Harmonyum. Harmonyum assists in healing by
raising one's consciousness and addressing the root causes of sickness.
Alyssa also teaches Universal Kabbalah classes including New and Full Moon
Rituals to honor the laws of nature. She graduated cum laude with a B.A. in
Dance and has danced professionally in Seattle, Los Angeles and New York as
well as taught college dance courses at Western Washington University. Her
training in movement and healing also includes certifications and teaching
experience in the Gyrotonic Expansion System, Pilates Mat, Kundalini Yoga,
Naam Yoga Therapies Level I and II, and the Kabbalah of Birth. She has taught
Naam Yoga Therapies in hospitals, gyms, offices, homes and yoga studios, and
has presented at workshops and trainings throughout New York City and abroad.
Anna Hurtgen
Anna was born in Louisville, KY and has traveled the world but makes New York
her home. "To tell you the truth, I think the first physical yoga I did was
when I was 25 years old and decided to take a long, deep, conscious breath!
It felt so good I just kept going! As our beloved teacher says, "Yoga starts
when you get off the mat", and the first thing that I noticed from practicing
(and later teaching) Kundalini and Naam Yoga was that what we do here on the
mat carries into the real world. It makes us soft, patient, considerate, and
helpful. I was so awestruck by the sublime healing grandeur of these yogic
sciences that I just couldn't get enough, and after many years of working in
a fast-paced corporate reality, I can now thankfully and gratefully shout, 'I
am immersed and imbued with the Light of the Loving Beings at Universal Force
Healing Center!' This community continues to teach me the beauty of the human
heart and the infinite grace of the Human Spirit! What else could possibly
matter!
Chris Merrill
Chris Merrill has been teaching yoga & spirituality for more than 9 years,
with an additional decade of international work in the performing arts
previous to that. He is certified in Naam Yoga, in Kundalini Yoga, and has
also studied and taught Hatha and Anahata Yoga. Chris is an ERYT 200 with
Yoga Alliance, and is a member of the Naam Yoga Therapies Training Program
Team. Chris is also a Level 3 Certified Harmonyum Practioner, and has been
teaching Universal Kabbalah since 2002. He has taught Naam Yoga and Universal
Kabbalah in Denver, Oklahoma, Los Angeles, New England Area, New York City,
and the surrounding areas, and has been a team member for Naam Yoga Therapies
Training Programs in Germany, New York, Mexico, and California. As past
General Manager of Universal Force Healing Center, and currently Manager of
International Naam Yoga Programming with the Universal Force International
Naam Yoga Association, he has had the opportunity to test and verify the
value and efficacy of Universal Kabbalah, Naam Yoga and Harmonyum. Chris is
grateful to the Universe for giving him an opportunity to be a part of
bringing these amazing teachings to the world, to his students, and to his
teacher, Gurunam, for his unwavering support, love and wisdom.
Courtney Miller
In 1991, Courtney immersed herself in Iyengar yoga, practicing in an intense
apprentice format with Bekir Algan (averaging 23 hours weekly). She began
teaching in 1992 and has been teaching ever since! She is recognized by Yoga
Alliance as an ERYT-500 and teaches public classes in Universal Kabbalah,
Naam Yoga and Asana, an Iyengar inspired class, as well as teaching in the
Naam Yoga Teacher Trainings nationally and internationally.
Since moving to New York in 2001, Courtney has been a student of Gurunam's,
living and practicing Universal Kabbalah and Harmonyum, and has practiced
Naam Yoga since its inception. She currently coordinates Harmonyum Trainings
as the Manager of International Harmonyum programming in addition to her
teaching schedule. Courtney is known for her laughter and love as well as her
passion and fire, and the capacity to clearly share and articulate the depth
of knowledge that comes from decades of ongoing study (including Universal
Kabbalah as taught by Joseph Michael Levry, Naam yoga, Iyengar yoga,
Alexander Technique, Pilates, Tai Chi, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and
Kundalini as taught by Yogi Bhajan). A deep motivation to share the wisdom of
self-knowledge combined with her love for the Word infuses her classes, as
well as her lifelong love of music as a classical guitarist and professional
singer. A dedicated student of Divine Spiritual Wisdom, she knows healing and
positive change is possible; as a teacher she is committed to supporting this
possibility in her students.
Jane Ohmes Mirshak
Universal Force Healing Center Executive Director, Jane Ohmes Mirshak is an
ERYT 200 with Yoga Alliance, certified in Naam Yoga and Kundalini Yoga. She
is registered with both the Universal Force International Naam Yoga and
Harmonyum Associations, is a dedicated teacher of the Divine Spiritual Wisdom
(Universal Kabbalah), is a certified practitioner of Harmonyum and serves as
a Naam Yoga Therapies Training Program Team member responsible for the
training and certification of Naam Yoga teachers worldwide. Committed to
sharing this beautiful and vast sacred technology with as many people as
possible, her teaching has taken her across the US from Washington DC to
California as well as Germany, Switzerland, Spain, the Czech Republic,
Mexico, and Brazil. In addition, her professional classical singing career
has encompassed a variety of opportunities and engagements with opera
companies, orchestras, and summer music festivals worldwide. Her innate love
for the voice, for the Word, for music, for laughter and for the body's
innate capacity to heal itself while opening the heart infuses her every Naam
Yoga class. Jane is happily married to Dr. Robert Mirshak who also teaches at
Universal Force Healing Center.
Nadine Nussenbaum
Nadine Nussenbaum had been teaching yoga for 7 years and teaching children's
yoga for 3 years. She has joyfully taught children in NYC, Mexico, Israel,
and Nicaragua and feels so grateful for the opportunity to work with kids
from all over the world. The children continue to inspire her creativity and
connection to the Divine Light that connects all beings. Nadine is dedicated
to nurturing children with Love, Faith, and Hope through the tools of Naam
Yoga. She believes that every small student will use the lessons learned in
their yoga practice to support a healthy conscious life. Nadine is so
grateful to Gurunam for his endless generosity, guidance, love and support.
She also feels very blessed to teach with Primavera Salva who constantly
enlightens her path as a teacher.
Sonia Sequeira
PhD
(Guru
Dharshan Kaur)
Sonia has been teaching yoga since 1997. She is a certified ERYT200 teacher
in the Hatha, Kundalini and Naam Yoga traditions. Sonia is a neuroscientist
and cancer research professional, a science writer and author. Western
thought and Eastern yoga (culture of harmony) have been a permanent presence
throughout her life as two sides of the same coin; she is the founder of the
Naam biomedical society, a 501c3 organization for the study and advancement
of non-invasive, innate and effective yoga-based practices into the health
and educational systems as therapies and community building strategies.
Anastasia Williams
Anastasia (Dharmatma)
Anastasia Williams is an inspiring, intuitive and nurturing teacher with a
magnetic, heartfelt, and uplifting approach. She has practiced yoga for
seventeen years and been a certified teacher since 2003. Over the years her
journey has taken her from being a professional dancer, actress and pilates
instructor to a dedicated Yoga instructor. She has studied at the classic and
insightful schools of yoga: Iyengar, Ashtanga, Vinyasa and Kundalini, to the
present day with Naam Yoga. She has over ten years experience working with
the healing arts and has been a certified Harmonyum practitioner since 2005.
Anastasia's classes feature an unyielding spirit, guiding all towards an
organic unveiling of the blockages we accumulate through life. Moving beyond
old comfort zones with kindness and care toward the self, while cultivating
an acceptance and love for the beauty of who we are now. Anastasia's love for
the science and art of yoga and Universal Kabbalah enables her to bring every
student a very practical understanding and approach to spirituality in life.
Devoted to bringing yoga off the mat and into the world, Anastasia has been
living in New York for eleven years and she is very grateful for her beloved
teacher Gurunam, for his unlimited love and wisdom.
Dedra Wright
Dedra is certified in Naam Yoga and Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan.
She also received her certificate from Sun Yoga Kids Training
Programme(Developed by Dr. Jacqueline Koay, Ph.D, RYT). All above programs
are registered through Yoga Alliance.
Dedra Wright was
a new mom, hard at work on a Masters of Arts Administration degree from
Columbia University, when she encountered Naam Yoga/Universal Kabbalah.
Thinking she was heading towards a career in museum administration, the
teachings of Naam Yoga/Universal Kabbalah quickly shifted her focus and Dedra
realized her true passion was education. She was led to Waldorf Education,
both personally and professionally, and discovered that the Waldorf
philosophy is closely aligned with her authentic self and the teachings that
supported her on her journey.
Dedra’s training
allows her to work with all ages (young to aging adults) with various degrees
of physical fitness. Dedra believes that Naam yoga greatly increases one’s
health physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. These technologies
can be practically integrated into one’s daily life and greatly improve it.
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