The Joy of Nia

By Jill Steele

Yoga classes are in abundance here in Puna, but for years, I had been hoping to find a dance class.  About a year ago my friend Kim invited me to go to a Nia class.  “What is Nia,” I asked.

She said, “It’s kind of a dance class.  Just come, it’s fun”.  She picked me up along with a few other friends one Saturday morning and we drove to Hawaiian Sanctuary in Pahoa (also known as MM12 or mile marker 12),   a beautiful eco retreat and permaculture center created out of jungle. 

Nia, a combination of martial arts and modern dance movements, is an excellent cardio workout since you’re in constant movement for an hour, but it’s so much more than just a workout.

The music is exotic- world music with Indian, Middle Eastern, disco and European electronica influences.

Our teacher, Valusha, a young, Russian former gymnast, has long dreadlocks piled on top of her head and dresses in flowing clothing all cut on the bias and with swooping hems that swirl when she dances.   Her choreographies are challenging, designed by the Nia organization to improve brain function, with arm and leg movements competing with each other. 

We sway and step to the music, trying to follow her, each interpreting her movements in our own way. “Watching Valusha is a beautiful sight,” my friend Kim said.  

What I like about Nia is that there are no levels of expertise.  Anyone can do it and you don’t need prior dance experience.  There is no leaping or presenting across the floor as in traditional dance classes and there are no impossible to get into poses as in yoga.  

YET, there is a letting go of the exterior world aspect like yoga.  It is dreamy to dance continuously for an hour without conversation and I felt peaceful and happy even after my first Nia class.

Valusha Boyko

Nia instructors are certified through a teacher training program and Valusha cautions us as we begin each class about the importance of aligning our knees over our ankles.  She brings her own brand of spirituality to the practice, sometimes stating a theme for the class, such as a part of the body we should focus on as we dance or imagery as we do a movement.

One of my fellow dancers said, “It teaches me how to feel and sense in my body.  I love the movements. It challenges me to move in different ways.”

Another said, “I like the physicality of it and I like the mental challenge of losing my inhibitions.”

If you live in Puna and are looking to add something to your fitness and spiritual routine, I highly recommend Nia.  If you’re a tourist visiting Puna and already know about Nia, all the better!  You couldn’t find a more unique location in which to do it than at Hawaiian Sanctuary with Valusha.  

For additional information about Nia, check out the Nia Now website. Valusha teaches at Hawaiian Sanctuary on Fridays from 4-5 p.m and on Saturdays from 10:30 to 11:30. 

Jade's Gong Bath

This past Friday, the day after the fall equinox, I went to a Gong Bath.  What you ask is a gong bath?  The advertising flyer invited the public to “Come bliss out to gentle Kundalini yoga, with transformative meditations, a symphony of gong, singing bowls, didgeridoo and tuning forks”.  It was titled “The Mothership, An Epic Equinox Offering a Magical Journey into the Primordial Sound Current.”

Currently, I am in the throes of grieving for my mother and finding each day a challenge. I practice daily yoga but this type of class was beyond the realm of my comfort zone.   As I read the flier I formed a mental picture of how it would be and thought, YES,  this might help me to temporarily move beyond the physical world and without the aid of drugs and alcohol.  I hoped it could release some of my pain and that after I’d feel less of the heaviness that was now ever-present and feel more at peace with her passing. 

I invited a friend because I didn’t feel brave enough to attend something like this for the first time on my own.  We arrived early to suss out the crowd and find spaces.  Some of the attendees wore yoga clothing but the majority of the crowd wore loose, bohemian drawstring pants, sarongs with blouses and caftans.   Already I felt I had entered another world. The fragrance of sandalwood and patchouli were in the air.  One couple arrived with yoga mats and a large blanket for two and then set up in a corner as if camping.  When I saw them and the beatific smiles on their faces, I knew we were about to experience something special and also that they must be regulars.

Our leader, Jade Rajbir Kaur, was dressed in white with a “tree of life” emblazoned t-shirt. She wore a head wrap that made her look regal.  The musicians, also in white, sat on either side of her on the stage looking ethereal and pure, completing the tableau.   The lighting was low and the stage was rimmed with white rope lights. Fittingly, it was dusk and the effect was perfect- otherworldly.  

The event began-it seemed more “event” than yoga class, with kundalini breathing exercises while seated with our legs crossed in front of us.  We progressed repeating Sanskrit blessings and did visualization exercises to welcome the fall and attract happiness and positivity to our lives.  We connected as a group by chanting and singing in rounds and it brought the experience to another level.

For the next section we were invited to relax and listen, laying on our mats, ironically in corpse pose (shavasana).  I took in all of the sounds and vibrations of the back-round music and instruments, trying to feel peace and visualizing the happy spirit of my mother hopefully hovering somewhere nearby.

Yes, I did bliss out a bit and felt a release while doing the chanting, but I also found myself wishing for additional yoga asanas and less time in shavasana.  But that’s just me.  I’m not evolved enough yet to keep my mind free of thoughts for long and need the physical poses with which to focus upon.

I will challenge myself go to more events like this and I hope Jade will continue to inspire and enliven Puna with her presence.  You can find Jade Rajbir Kaur's future events listed on her website 

The Radiant Lotus 

Namaste