Santosha Yoga has a long history in Ottawa. Santosha was originally established as a Sivananda Yoga Vedanta affiliate by Marcia Solomon and Barry Gillespie, and firist existed inside their home at Rosebery Avenue. Today, Santosha is directed by David Jewitt and Basia Going, and has evolved to include the teachings of several styles of yoga. These include Ashtanga Vinyasa, Hatha (in many forms), Yin, Pre/Post-natal, and Mysore; complimentary disciplines such as Pilates and meditation are also practiced. In 2005, an additional studio location was opened, giving Santosha the opportunity to expand offerings and class times to suit the needs of more students.

A little more Santosha history:

In the late 1990s, as yoga became more widely known and diversified, Marcia and Barry began to study Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga with Richard Freeman of Boulder, Colorado. In 1999 Marcia completed her three-month long intensive teacher training in Boulder and Barry's training took place the next year. They added Ashtanga instruction to the on-going classes at Rosebery Avenue and brought Richard Freeman's popular weekend workshops to Ottawa on two occasions, in 2001 and 2003 (and just recently in May 2006). To accommodate the growing classes, a move to larger quarters on Catherine Street took place in 2000. At the same time the centre was re-named Santosha Yoga Centre to reflect the growth and development which took place. This diversification also brought about an end to affiliation with the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta organization which aims to pursue a unified approach to asana yoga teaching at all its Ashrams and Centres world wide.

Now as we near the end of 2006 there are more exciting changes as we continue to move forward and grow to offer "Yoga for Every Body" at two locations under one membership card. With the continual offering of specialty workshops and courses more students are reaping the benefits of new experiences! But without a doubt the success of Santosha throughout the years has to be credited to the quality and dedication of our teachers (Thank-you!). The planned Advanced Student and Teacher Training in January 2007 will be yet another opportunity for our teachers to share their experience and knowledge with our students.

Santosha means "Contentment" or "Non-attachment" and is one of the recommended attitudes that we hope to cultivate in our practice of yoga. It is really astounding to watch how this simple practice of working with our bodies and breath and mind starts to leave us feeling more and more content with other aspects of our lives. As we continue to grow and learn as a studio it is our sincere wish for all you to find time for yourselves and to continue your journey into Santosha - contentment, on and off your mat.

Namaste,
David, Basia and Katie