Biography

I received my first in-depth experience with yoga in the mountain highs of South Lake Tahoe. While attending Lake Tahoe Community College in 1999, I began studying "Power Yoga" with Amrito Cross, who now teaches at Mountain Yoga Studio. While sweating my way through flowing sequences of postures, I heard the teachings my soul had been longing for. Yoga gave me the courage to develop a positive, nurturing relationship with myself and deepened my capacity for love. As a ritual for connecting with the divine, it has become the touchstone of my spirituality.

My yogic education progressed when I came to Santa Cruz under the guidance of the wonderful teachers at the Ashtanga Yoga Institute, most notably Kelly Blaser and Samantha Shakti Matthews. In 2002, I completed a hatha yoga teacher training in Venice, CA with Erich Schiffman. In August of 2006, I participated in the Mark Stephens vinyasa yoga teacher training here in Santa Cruz. More recently I have become a very inspired student of Sarah Powers, who teaches buddhist philosophy and yin yoga.

Other significant influences that shine through in my teaching include studies in yoga philosophy, pranayama, meditation, asana and Sanskrit under the guidance of Baba Hari Dass-ji and teachers at the Mount Madonna Center and studies in classical Ashtanga, Vedic chanting, Sanskrit, and the chakra system with Phoenix Artemesia. Additionally, I have practiced Tibetan Buddhist meditation and philosophy through FPMT in Kathmandu, Nepal, "Bhakti Urban Flow" yoga with Rusty Wells, heart meditation with Sally Kempton, and studied subtle and physical anatomy of the torso with Jill Miller. My teaching is also influenced by the writings of Buddhist teachers Thich Nhat Hahn, Sogyal Rinpoche, and Pema Chodron. I am eternally grateful for the love and guidance of all my teachers. Bless you. Thank you.

In my early life, I lived in Texas where I participated in competitive cheerleading and dance (I feel that my first yoga instructor was actually Becky Brown, my beloved cheerleading coach, who taught us how to focus with one-pointed concentration, to breathe, and to be internally aware of the alignment of our bodies when we were performing). Since those days, I have learned to snowboard, surf, play djembe and guitar, and enjoy singing, dancing, hiking, and attending spiritual and environmental music festivals. I am an environmentalist and nature lover, holding a B.A. from UC Santa Cruz in Environmental Studies. I have a passion for world travel and have marched for peace in the streets of Santa Cruz, San Francisco, and Washington DC. I'm also honored to be the Santa Cruz director of Yoga for Peace, an international response to the events of 9/11, bringing peace, unity, and love into the world through yoga.

Asana Gallery

Adho Mukha Svanasana, Seacliff State Beach Photo by Sam Nilsson	Urdvahastasana, Red Rock Canyon, NV Photo by Sam Nilsson	Ashtavakrasana, San Francisco Photo by Fredel Thompson
Vasisthasana, Zipolite, Oaxaca, Mexico Photo by Sam Nilsson	Urdva Danurasana, Jofi Gallery, Santa Cruz Photo by Sam Nilsson	Virabhadrasana III, Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico Photo by Sam Nilsson
Eka Pada Adho Mukha Svanasana, Big Sur, CA Photo by Kristin Ray	Parivritta Parsvakonasana, Aptos Photo by Sam Nilsson	Sirshasana variation, Jofi Gallery, Santa Cruz Photo by Sam Nilsson

Biography | Asana Gallery | Student Testimonials

Student Testimonials

If you would like to testify, please send an email to delana AT servingpeace DOT com.

"As an elite level masters athlete with a comprehensive training agenda, I often find it difficult to master the balance necessary for a san(er) life. I feel as though I spend all week trying to be one with the bike, but in doing so, lose a little of the synergy in being one with myself. My yoga class with Delana on Mondays helps me to restore that personal balance- a sort of metaphysical reset button- that allows me to gain the most of my demanding training and racing schedule. I notice this the most when I have an exceptionally difficult week of heavy training. My next several training sessions are definitely bolstered with an increase of flexibility and suppleness, so required when competing at a high level.

"My favorite parts of Delana's practice are when she recites the Yoga Sutras, and chants in the ancient dialect. This takes the practice to a higher level, so rarely achieved in your typical yoga session. I highly recommend Delana's personal style and attention to detail to anyone looking to take their yoga to a new, thought-full level."
- Mark Howland, Team Director, Black Market Racing, Santa Cruz, CA

"Delana is my favorite yoga teacher. She is offering and teaching yoga that is clearly a spiritual practice that includes asana and in which asana is the vehicle for the practice, the means to an end, but not the end in and of itself.

"I feel spiritually nourished as well as physically open, stronger and relaxed after Delana's class. She encourages us to find our authentic way to relate to our practice. I feel safe to modify as much as my inner guru guides me too...with no shame apology or regret. And she encourages us to push gently beyond our seeming edges. My connection to Spirit and my yoga practice are stronger for it.

"I have been inspired to share Delana's unique teaching style and class vibe with my loved ones. She is a blessing to Santa Cruz's Yoga community. She continues to offer classes, events and gatherings that nurture our connection to the Divine and to each other. God Bless Delana! I love her!"
- Beth Freewomon, Whole Foods Personal Chef and Bookkeeper, Santa Cruz, CA

"I have been studying yoga off and on since 1992 in Los Angeles, Mill Valley and here in Santa Cruz. I have practiced the asanas with many good teachers, but with Delana I have been able to find a much deeper center while doing my practice. My schedule only allows sporadic attendance but without fail Delana guides me through a class saying exactly what I need to reflect on and asanas that feel like they were specifically perscribed for my body on that paticular day. Delana is an amazing person and a very gifted teacher."
- Kelli Rosenbloom, Birth Doula and Office Manager, Aptos, CA

"I am moved by Delana's devotion, wisdom and way of articulating the great mysteries of yoga. She appears to me as a direct channel, in line with the great light way. I see bursts of light around her when she sits and teaches in great meditation. The order of asana that she puts together always strikes me. It allows my body to flow into knowing and learning at the same time. It awakens me to my own power as a direct reflection of that which is around me. Delana's practice stands as an example for all of us near and far, making it easier to find the peaceful way of yoga."
- Michelle Abodeely, Mental Health Therapist, Santa Cruz, CA

Biography | Asana Gallery | Student Testimonials