Q&A: Sunday Service at Ahana Yoga with Dawn Feinberg

Dawn Feinberg

Dawn Feinberg

WRE: How did you first get into yoga?

Dawn Feinberg: I was introduced to yoga through a dear friend in NYC. At the time I was dancing professionally and tore my achilles tendon, meaning I couldn’t perform for 6 months. My friend dragged me to Jivamukti Yoga in NYC. I will never forget my first class with Kelly Morris; she was gorgeous, the room was packed, the music was thumping and I was hooked.

Dawn Feinberg

Dawn Feinberg

 Yoga has saved my life, not just impacted it. I was an addict – confusing the experience of loss of control with the idea of freedom.

Dawn Feinberg

Dawn Feinberg

Dawn Feinberg

WRE: How has yoga impacted your life?

DF: Yoga has saved my life, not just impacted it. I was an addict – confusing the experience of loss of control with the idea of freedom. I am an anxious person and when I was high that went away; I felt free. But it also caused so much destruction with rough landings that left me in a worse place than where I had started. In yoga, there is a concept called Mukti, which means liberation or freedom. You find Mukti by learning to control the fluctuations of the mind through yoga, meditation, chanting, breathwork and other yogic tools. I have been on this path for over 20 years and I have experienced huge shifts. These shifts have come with hours and hours of work; it’s playing the long game – but one that feels victorious and is sustaining.

Dawn Feinberg

Dawn Feinberg

WRE: How would you describe yoga to someone who has never practiced?

DF: Yoga at Ahana is powerful, sweaty, fun, meditative movement. It is alive , vibrant and spiritual. A strong community exists with shared motivation for self growth and awareness. The classes are full and bumping with an energy that is electric.

WRE: What was your inspiration behind starting Ahana?

DF: My inspiration for starting Ahana was to create an environment that was spiritually hip: where digging deep was cool, where you could chant mantras, hear philosophy and still practice to hip-hop. I love a strong practice and a good kirtan (chanting). I am turned on when teachers know the backstory of yoga, when teachers know sanskrit (the names of the poses in the classical language in which yoga originated). I am lit up by knowledge and I wanted to provide that place for people in Miami. Craig Robbins, visionary behind the Miami Design District, believed in me and my vision and helped me to make Ahana possible.

Dawn Feinberg & Nicole Rodriguez

Dawn Feinberg

Ahana is a community where we strive to support each other.

Dawn Feinberg

Joris Coulomb & Dawn Feinberg

Joris Coulomb, Dawn Feinberg, & Nicole Rodriguez

WRE: What makes Ahana different than other yoga studios?

DF: Ahana is unique because we embrace everyone. We are dedicated to yoga and see it as a helpful tool to ease the suffering that we all feel as human beings. We hold space for all people, regardless of their story or experience. Ahana is a community where we strive to support each other.

Yoga at Ahana is powerful, sweaty, fun, meditative movement. It is alive , vibrant and spiritual. A strong community exists with shared motivation for self growth and awareness.

Dawn Feinberg

WRE: What is the future of Ahana, any other expansion plans?

DF:  In terms of expansion we have an amazing clothing line that we launched last year, we just launched our yoga mats a few months ago, we have an online platform where you can find live and on-demand classes, and we have local and international teacher trainings. We are excited about the future of Ahana.