~Teacher Profile of the Month~

Amber Abramson

Amber teaches Dharma II on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5:30 – 6:30 PM.

1.    Describe yourself in three words.

AA: Curious, inquisitive, imaginative.

2.  If you were a fruit, what would you be, and why?

AA: Well my father and brother always tell me I’m a prickly pear, because I can seem really serious with this intense look on my face when I’m doing something… But I’m really a big, mushy, sweet piece of fruit once you get beyond my appearance. I love to laugh and have fun; I’m not as serious as I look.

3.  What is your favorite story you heard from Sri Dharma?

AA: Dharma once told the story about how when he was younger and first started to learn with his Guru, he loved Lord Shiva. He loved what Shiva stood for and he loved His image. One day, Dharma said he was really sad because he realized that there was no Shiva. The true Shiva was within. And so that is what Sri Dharma teaches – that the real Guru, the real divinity, is within all of us.

4.  Three things you always have in your fridge?

AA: Chia seeds, coconut milk, and oranges of all kinds.

5.  What is one practice you must do every single day?

AA: I have to connect to my breath and be quiet every single day. It keeps me grounded and centered amidst all of the beautiful chaos life has to offer.

You might say Amber was born to be a yoga teacher – her first experience with yoga was at the tender age of three! Her father is a yoga teacher, so the practice has been an influential part of her life for a long time. She loved assisting her father’s classes, and as she began to teach classes of her own, she realized that she discovered even more about the practices in the process of sharing them with others.

She loves Dharma Yoga because of its completeness & authenticity. Of course, she says, every form of yoga is about going inside and uniting the mind, body, and spirit; but she loves that Sri Dharma Mittra’s classes are about so much more than asana – you go beyond the poses and learn to be a “well-rounded yogi” through practices in all eight limbs. From her perspective, the goal is to realize that everything is already within each of us (as Sri Dharma frequently reminds us).

For her, practicing yoga is a means to reintegrate & expand the whole Self; to become aware of discomfort & congestion in the physical & subtle bodies; and to make space & breathe into any feelings that arise. She hopes to help guide her students further within, to allow them the chance to truly be themselves in the present moment.  

Amber will also be teaching a program at Kripalu this coming July (“Boot Camp for Goddesses”)!

Author/interviewer: Danielle Gray, Online Media Manager at DYNYC