Seattle Yoga News is on a mission to find and highlight all of the hidden, and maybe not so hidden, gems in our yoga community and beyond. We want you to learn about their experiences and perspectives, but also a bit more about their personalities, so we have a few fun questions for them. This week’s spotlight is turned towards Greta Hill.
We asked Greta to share a word with our community and this is what she had to say:
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO BECOME A YOGA TEACHER?
I began teaching yoga nearly 20 years ago because I was (and still am) so passionate about sharing practices with others that can lead to the transformation and healing that I know is possible through yoga. Yoga saved me at a young age in the midst of major grief and crisis and gave me the tools to connect with my joy again. I long to share these teachings with others who are feeling lost or struggling or just needing a daily dose of inspiration.
WHAT KIND OF TRAINING HAVE YOU PURSUED?
Over the years I have done it all. My early yoga days were all dedicated to the Iyengar style. I studied Ashtanga yoga in Mysore, India and I have received advanced certifications in Vinyasa and Anusara Yoga. I have studied Meditation and Ayurveda deeply for many years…I am constantly searching for ways to deepen my own practice and path. I consider myself first and foremost a student of yoga. Lately I have been diving deeper into supplemental practices that are not yoga but complement the work I do. About a year ago I became certified in the Foundation Training with Dr. Eric Goodman (Functional Movement therapy) and now I am in an intensive Shadow Work mentorship with Robert Masters.
WHAT IS ONE PIECE OF ADVICE YOU ALWAYS GIVE YOUR STUDENTS?
Welcome the whole of yourself to your practice. Yoga is like a long, intimate conversation with the whole of who you are. If you deny, reject, shame, abandon pieces of yourself, you will never have a true experience of yoga – Yoga is connection. It is the integration of the light and the shadow. Don’t bypass the messiness to just push for the light or you will miss the opportunity to truly know yourself and grow yourself.
Also, your pace is perfect. There is nothing to prove or achieve in this practice. It is going to be uncomfortable at times and very confrontational. As it should be. That is where the real opportunity for growth happens. So play the edge, but skillfully and respectfully – with nothing to prove! Stay curious and open and connected to your heart’s true desire. Lead from that place. Practice from that place.
WHAT TYPE OF YOGA DO YOU LIKE TO PRACTICE AND WHY?
I practice Rasa Yoga! I am biased obviously since I am the Co-Director of the Rasa Yoga School! 🙂
Rasa is an invitation to the whole spectrum of human experience. It is a skillful weaving of tantra, asana, mantra, mudra, meditation, creativity, emotional fluency, earth guardianship, ritual, and serves the alchemy of yoga and the artistry of life. It is such a gift to my life and I love it because it brings the juicy totality of yoga into one beautiful practice!
WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE YOGA RELATED BOOK?
Oh goodness… There are so many! Ok a few off the top of my head: Wheels of LIfe by Anodea Judith, Awakening Shakti by Sally Kempton, Tantra Illuminated by Christopher Hareesh Wallis. My house is literally like a yoga library so it is hard to narrow it down! But these are a few classics I return to again and again.
WHAT IS ONE THING MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU?
Hmm…I don’t know. I am kind of an open book! How about that I met my brazilian husband at 5am on a rickshaw in India. I then lived in Brazil for 8 years and now speak fluent portuguese. Maybe also that I worked as a waitress in a fancy restaurant in LA while pursuing a career as an actress and waited on almost every recognizable celebrity you can name! 🙂 That was fun.
OUTSIDE OF THE WORLD OF YOGA, WHAT ARE YOU REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT?
I am passionate about the ocean, my two whippets, travel, theater…
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE YOGA SCENE WILL BE LIKE IN SEATTLE IN 15 YEARS?
Oh I don’t know! I really hope that we continue to mature as a community and really get more activated in the way of social justice and earth guardianship. I hope that yoga moves beyond the physical and people begin seeking the deeper teachings and practices for true transformation… I know it is possible, it has been that way before. But it feels like the pendulum needs to swing the other way again…
WHERE CAN ONE TAKE A YOGA CLASS WITH YOU?
I am primarily at Bala Yoga where I lead 200 + 300hr Teacher Trainings and Rasa Yoga Immersions. I also teach at Seattle Yoga Arts and Haute Yoga Queen Anne.
WHO IS THE YOGI WE SHOULD FEATURE NEXT?
Ashish Arora
Greta Hill’s Bio: Greta has been a yoga junkie for over 20 years! It all began in her late teens when she was feeling a little lost seeking something to soothe her soul and what she discovered was a passion for a practice that has been her source of healing, inspiration, grounding and connection ever since!
Greta has studied and mentored with some of the top names in the yoga and Ayurveda world and received certification in both Anusara and Vinyasa since she started teaching in 2000. She has had the opportunity to teach yoga extensively in Los Angeles, Bangkok, Brazil and New York before recently moving to Seattle. Greta leads yoga teacher trainings, retreats, online yoga lifestyle courses and she has served as a consultant for a variety of wellness magazines. She continues to study closely with and apprentice Sianna Sherman who is her biggest yoga influence. As a result of her passion for healthy living, she also graduated from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and went on to specialize in detoxification and Ayurveda with Dr. Alejandro Junger of the Clean Program and Cate Stillman of Yogahealer. Greta’s teaching is a bhakti fusion of form and flow and she is wildly devoted to helping students reclaim their beauty, awaken deep purpose, cultivate vibrant health through yoga and Ayurvedic lifestyle.
Connect with Greta: Website
