Peace, tranquility and academic credit.
Taking a yoga class at the University can provide students with a healthy experience in a comfortable setting.
“Stretch your body gently, and touch your toes with your hands,” Hatha Yoga teacher Elayne Quirin said, her calm voice filling the air in the Esslinger Gym.
During the next 50 minutes, students are elevated to a mild, relaxed state of physical and mental awareness. Hatha Yoga deals with physical exercises, the purpose of which is to achieve well-being and to prepare the body for further spiritual awareness, Quirin said.
Holly Hammons, 23, one of Quirin’s students, said she enjoys the experience.
“This class is very educational and definitely worth the time,” Hammons said.
Quirin, who was born with her left leg shorter than her right, discovered yoga while searching for ways to relieve tension and pain her body experienced as she walked. She sought a remedy from a chiropractor, and afterward, Quirin’s chiropractor told her to do stretching exercises.
“Why am I seeing the chiropractor when I can do the same with yoga?” Quirin asked herself.
At age 26, Quirin traveled to Nepal and became even more interested in yoga. After studying in Nepal, Quirin returned to the United States and decided to teach, which she has been doing for 15 years total and six years at the University.
“Yoga is a science — the science of internal awareness, which is pretty much self-observation,” Quirin said. “When you bring awareness, you also bring energy to your body.”
“The only thing you can do wrong is compete, even with yourself.”
Lindsay Backman, 19, a student from the Hatha Yoga class, said she enjoys the complete workout.
“I feel relaxed, free from stress,” she said. “I like the teacher a lot; she knows yoga.”
As the class comes to an end, Quirin clutches her palms together and bows her head forward, saying, “Namaste,” which means, “The holy in me bows to the holy in you.”