What is Community?

What is Community?

Over the last few years, I have wondered how Soul Fire Studios plays a role in our lives and the wider Sheffield community. When speaking to many of the yoga students, teachers, and others who bring their work here, it is stated regularly that this is a place of ‘community’ - but what does that mean? 

The dictionary meaning of the word community highlights how the experience of a “common,” “public spirit” (from the etymology) can be both local and regular, momentary, national, global, and even virtual these days. Community experiences range from a broad scope of socially inclusive (or exclusive) situations and locations where people come together to participate in shared activities, often close to the local area in which the members live, and are regenerated by the meeting place, values, cultural customs, and sense of identity developed and received through participation.

A community can be formed in many ways, and it is likely that these ‘social units’ both overlap and provide multiple sources of social connection for individuals who can associate with many different communities. If we imagine that each group that shares regular space here is itself a small community, it becomes apparent that these bubbles of social connection float in the studio space here, and can move, grow, or burst according to the conditions of the group itself, and the studio space becomes more of a ‘community hub’ - a place for community groups to gather.

Sometimes, when it feels that Soul Fire is becoming a bit too particulate, that each person’s class, event, session, or work hours meet in the same space, but the people themselves ‘pass like ships in the night,’ it becomes an opportunity to look into ways of bringing more cohesiveness to the members of this larger community.

I’ll admit, much of the time this is for personal reasons as much as it is for the benefit of all involved. Being the person who ‘holds the space’ and the responsibility for organising events for people to gather can be a lonely role. Thankfully, as my health and sense of self have returned, and for times I’ve been able to participate in other communities, it feels easier and more aligned to set up the gathering space once again to give and receive the community vibe.

One of my favourite ways to do this is to embrace the Canadian/American cultural tradition and celebrate Thanksgiving. This is a beautiful commemoration of what it can look and feel like to be part of a community. While we know that the reality of historical events mars the significance of most holidays, those who celebrate Thanksgiving will continue to call back the sanctity of breaking bread with family, friends, neighbours, and community acquaintances.

To clarify, Thanksgiving isn’t an American Christmas. However, its popularity is strong because this holiday opens the dinner table to recognise the abundance of the harvest season, the gathering of loved ones and familiar faces, and the power of sharing food with everyone - even neighbours.

There is no requirement to be a certain kind of person, to do anything special (other than show up, eat, and maybe express gratitude for something in your life), and best of all - no gifts!

If there is one thing that highlights the nuances of community, which I have only begun to explain, it’s this:

Rather than trying to define our closeness, how active we are in the community environment we share, how ‘well’ we’re doing in work, or life in general, when we enter the space, we are seen and accepted for who we are.

When reading about the many forms a community can take, I felt a spark of interest when reading how a deeply bonded community can be consciously built. In, The Different Drum: Community-Making and Peace (1987) by Scott Peck, the author “believes that conscious community building is a process of deliberate design based on the knowledge and application of certain rules. He states that this process goes through four stages:

1. Pseudocommunity: When people first come together, they try to be "nice" and present what they feel are their most personable and friendly characteristics.

2. Chaos: People move beyond the inauthenticity of pseudo-community and feel safe enough to present their "shadow" selves.

3. Emptiness: Moves beyond the attempts to fix, heal and convert the chaos stage, when all people become capable of acknowledging their own woundedness and brokenness, common to human beings.

4. True community: Deep respect and true listening for the needs of the other people in this community.”

I love this. If there is one thing I can say over the past 7 years of living, working, and playing in this Soul Fire Studios environment - along with many people who are still here today - as a collective, we have gone through many changes and passed through many stages. I wonder if time and continuation are helpful ingredients for cultivating a True Community.

Please feel free to share your own experience about being part of the Soul Fire Studios community, and whether it feels that way for you. 

Get involved! Come to our annual Thanksgiving Dinner, held this year on Saturday 25 November.

Connecting Body and Mind for Better Life Balance - Bhavesh Patel

Practicing yoga regularly at Soul Fire Studios brings a lot of balance to my life. It’s time I get alone to check in with myself, it helps me to manage my stress levels and gives me space to be present. Yoga strengthens my intuition so I listen to my body better to avoid burnout. 

There’s the obvious health and wellbeing benefits but I think keeping a really strong connection between body and mind serves me well. On a good day, I can feel seamlessly connected through body and mind. 

“[Through yoga…] my focus is sharpened and everything seems to flow through the practice as a whole. Even though I’m in a room with other people, when I’m on the mat I can switch off and go into internal mode, to feel through my body and receive clarity.

Soul Fire Studios takes a really holistic approach to yoga, health, and wellbeing. Every teacher has their own style and brings something different to each class. It’s far from being a gym-style yoga practice. 

If you’re just starting out or If you’re ready to commit to your practice, [Soul Fire Studios] is a great place to go – all the teachers really support you through your journey. 

If I’m going through a period or a season where things are getting the better of me, regular yoga really helps to keep me centered. I get a lot of perspective on the mat, as I’m very busy most of the time during the day. I keep finding new and positive reasons why yoga is part of my life so it’s always evolving.”

Island Girl: Heat & Yoga for Healing and Health

“I’m an Island girl. Although New York doesn’t spring to mind as a tropical paradise, when it comes to heat, beach, sea, sunshine and fruit - Long Island has them all!

Hot sunshine, cicadas rattling activity into the morning air, hot yoga as a natural product of the local temperature, summer nights twinkling with the sound of crickets, and meditations around a crackling campfire. What richness for the body and soul.

Growing up in this environment, the polarities of freezing cold and humid heat and the range of effects they bring are quite the experience - especially from the inner perspective.

You may imagine N.Y. busy with hustling workers, creatives, and driven people looking to ‘make it big.’ It’s true. Putting your passions into action on a bigger scale is the dream, but often comes with a cost - your health!

New Yorkers know all-too-well the routine of coffee first thing in the morning, followed or accompanied by an egg sandwich or sweet cheese Danish from the deli on the way to work. We know the constant ‘go-go-go’ mentality makes us feel that ‘the next thing’ is just around the corner, waiting for you to take it and make it or break yourself trying. When people say that New York has an energy, what they feel is that constant state of ON. It’s true. New York is buzzing. There’s a pulse, and that pulse is highly caffeinated. 😝

While I say all of this with a deep love and appreciation for the pep and power I received from this upbringing, there are many elements to this culture that are very harmful.

We can say that a healthier routine is coming, that we will get up at 5am to go to the gym and start the day better, but until we have the time, mental space, and self-nurturing reason to get or prep a juice/smoothie instead of picking up a greasy breakfast, old habits die hard. For so many in the world, work takes up over 80% of their time and energy both in travel time and being occupied, and valuing self-care routines often comes at the bottom of the list.

For me, trying to keep the pace in such a rapid and overdrive culture made me burn out early on. I’m a natural labourer. From 14 years old, working some nights and weekends in high school in a pizzeria, or as a dental assistant, summer jobs painting houses and eventually driving 30-mins to and from work every day for the 40-hour work week. My path was carved out for me. I just had to find a way to fit myself into it.

In many ways, I identified with being someone who worked physically, a manual labourer, so it came naturally to me to eat deli foods and drink coffee like it was water. I knew somewhere within that even though I was young and fairly healthy, I was damaging my body with substances, which included food (and food-like items) as well as cigarettes and alcohol.

It may sound cliche but the truth is that Yoga, with a strong emphasis on hot yoga, changed the course of my life. For me, “hot, cold, fast, slow” doesn’t take away from the experience of Yoga. In fact, there is a great reason why people gravitate toward and create different styles of yoga practice. Ultimately, we are all searching for truth and depth of feeling, and our practice needs to meet us where we are.

My journey into hot yoga began when I was 20. I had a longstanding interest in moving meditation, physical fitness, spiritual and existential musings, and exploring the depths of consciousness for most of my life. I had previously practised Tai-Chi movements in my Grandma’s backyard, loving the deep nature connection this daily practice offered. When the opportunity to join my friend in a Bikram hot yoga session came up in Buffalo, NY, I was intrigued. She said it would be tough, but I was up for the challenge. Little did I know that this experience was going to knock down a door of deep healing for me.

When I experienced the physical and mental challenge of hot yoga, the power to listen to my body was awakened. I began to feel more attuned to every cell within that craved water, healthy foods, and rest - nourishing rest. When I began a regular hot yoga practice in 2010, I stepped forward on a path that would stay with me to this day.

I started to incorporate my daily yoga practice before or after work (adding an extra 15-minute drive further from home, making the 45-minute commute to my favourite studio), sometimes just driving all the way out for a class, then meandering back home on my days off.

I noticed how much easier it was to get myself prepped and organised for the day ahead by buying the foods I wanted to eat, getting a breakfast smoothie made beforehand, prepping lunch to bring to work, as well as dinner salads to share with my Grandma.

Long Island, N.Y. 2011

As the dependency on substances and junk food started to fall away, I remember rockin’ out with the sunroof open in my ‘78 Mercedes “Big Blue,” drinking a Kombucha, feeling high on life and so grateful for the freedom I had found within my body and Self. Life felt SO good!

I began to notice how my body felt from eating meat and dairy, which was slow, sluggish and emotionally painful. My journey with veganism started then and has continued ever since. I delve into this pathway on my personal yoga website Vibrant Vegan Yogi.

In the 15 years since my first hot yoga class, I can say that this modality still speaks to me. It has served me in ways that can only be seen by my continued health and resilience. I know that over the past 12 years of teaching here in Sheffield, there are others who also have a powerful story to share. As I move forward to share what I’ve learned, I do so with the intention that others can realise options for how to value their own personal time, mental space, and physical wellness. The power for healing and health is truly within your hands, and can only be supported further when we learn and practice together.

Want to hear more about Anne Marie’s hot yoga journey? Stay tuned for more HOT topics to come. Click the IGNITE link HERE for more info on the Hot Yoga Alchemy training coming in October.

Yoga as a Self Love Practise - Sophie Groome

Beyond the physical movements of yoga, there’s a wider philosophy that encompasses ideas, principles and practices that guide us towards a more nourishing, compassionate and harmonious way of living. 

In practising yoga, I feel more in touch with myself and other beings around me, especially when we start and end a class by chanting ‘Om’ together. I really get a sense of oneness.

The spiritual aspects take it so much further for me. As well as feeling physically stronger, yoga gives me more energy, enthusiasm and creativity. It’s helped me to find discipline in my life and has lifted me out of depression that lasted many years. 

Sitting in a yoga class and paying attention to my physical self made me realise how much I wasn’t paying attention to most areas of my body. I wasn’t familiar with the feelings going on in my body. I was very out of touch with it. Really ‘listening in’ has made me moderate my self-destructive habits and has given me strength and resilience outside of the classroom. 

Hot yoga can be a particularly uncomfortable experience, but in time, I’ve learned to embrace the heat and that’s had a big impact on how much I can tolerate discomfort in life. Things like feeling cold outside or noises that would usually be distracting or frustrating, I can embrace these kinds of sensations and feel at one with the environment around me.

I think one of the greatest lessons in yoga is accepting that you have good days and bad days and simply sitting with where you are on that specific day. Some days I stumble over when trying to balance and I don’t know why, but I’ve learned to show up as I am instead of getting frustrated with myself. 

That is so reflective of life. There are times when I’m going to feel more super-powered than others and I just have to accept where I’m at. 

Ultimately, making yoga a regular part of my life and embracing the yogic philosophy in all areas of my life has given me a greater sense of Self Love. I’ve never sat with and acknowledged myself enough to feel conscious of what I need and how I’m feeling, until I gave myself the space, time and investment in myself through yoga.

This is how I feel that Yoga is truly a Self love practice, and there is everything right about that.

What I learned from my first Breathwork Ceremony - Laura Lightfinch

‘Working with the breath’ is common practice at Soul Fire Studios, but Lisa Li takes it to a whole new level with sound, energetic healing and shamanic roots. 

Heading into the studio for a Breath Ceremony with Lisa Li, I had no idea what to expect. I wanted to learn more about the power of the breath but what happened over the next two hours was a full-body experience like no other. 

As I walked into the studio, I entered a cocoon of warmth and comfort. In the candlelit room filled with blankets, cushions and bolsters, Lisa sat in the far corner beneath a scattering of twinkling stars - created by a small projector. 

Each finding a mat and adding our own collection of cushions and blankets for extra comfort, Lisa explained that the bolsters on either side of us were for hitting, as she passed round tissues for us to keep handy. I quickly realised that the breathing would be the vessel to something much deeper.  

A Biodynamic Breathwork and Trauma Release Certified Practitioner, Lisa talked us through the process of a breath ceremony and what might happen. “Let your body go where it wants to go,” she said “and let out whatever needs to, come out.” 

“Healing can be found through connecting the mind, body and spirit via the tool of the breath. It’s a fully natural medicine that anybody can tap into to alter their inner state.​” 

After learning the technique of circular breathing, we crawled under our blankets, laid our heads on the pillows and put eye masks in place for 60 minutes of breathwork healing. Here are 5 things I learned from my first ceremony…

1. We have the power to reach a higher state with our own breath.

After fifteen minutes of breathing in the darkness, Lisa asked us to stop and ‘tone’ (AKA hit our bolsters, kick our feet and shout). The idea is to shift the energy in our bodies that circular breathing has brought to the surface. 30 seconds later, we returned to the breath and I started to feel something. 

It started with a tingling in my cheeks, a need to lift my shoulders and bubbling emotion. Within half an hour, I’d gained clarity on some important elements of my life, hugged my body and cried. I couldn’t believe that the simple act of adapting my breath and focusing on my body could have such an impact. 

2. Our bodies hold past experiences and trauma.

Between the circular breathing and the regular toning breaks, I started to really feel where my body was holding onto my unresolved past. My shoulders were heavy and stiff with carrying the weight of my people-pleasing tendencies and I was holding tension in my womb region. 

As we breathed in unison, Lisa moved around the room providing words of support. “Where do you feel it? Let it out, that’s it.” When people began to throw their arms or legs, she’d encourage the room to listen to the body and move whatever needed to move. It felt amazing to not feel tied to the social constraints of ‘looking normal’ and allowing ourselves to be the animals we are and shake the trauma from our bodies. 

3. One hour of circular breathing can heal emotional pain.

I was sceptical of the impact a two-hour workshop could have on me, but when I couldn’t stand up to go to the bathroom without feeling completely intoxicated and unstable, it hit me and in the days that followed, I felt a real shift emotionally.

“The workshop allows the body’s natural healing ability to kick in, giving you the space to process any unresolved stories we may be hanging onto that can affect our health and wellbeing. Stuck energy, stress and blockages in the body can be released within a safe environment,” Lisa says. 

“Breath ceremony holds a transformational space for you to find your own strength and power as a self-healer.”

4. The experience feels different for everyone.

At the end of the session, we came together in a circle - a group of ten people who barely knew each other but shared a very intimate and collective experience. Lisa invited us to share our experiences if we wanted to and every one of us held space for each other to be vulnerable about the pain and energy they felt they had shifted. 

Some people felt physical discomfort and pain, others felt an overwhelm of emotion. Some experienced euphoria and others didn’t feel anything this time. It was a real mix of feelings and experiences. 

5. You can feel safe and held in community.

As we shared our stories, I felt incredibly humbled to witness such personal, vulnerable moments and felt completely safe to talk about my own. While the idea of sharing a deep healing experience with a group of people I didn’t know felt daunting at the beginning, everybody let themselves go where they needed to go and at the end, we could all feel held in our nourishing Soul Fire Studios community.

Book onto the next Breathwork Ceremony with Lisa Li on 5th August

The Reluctant Hot-Yogi: How I Fell in Love with Hot Yoga at Soul Fire Studios, Sheffield - Ruth Naughton Doe

I’d been searching for a yoga class that felt like home since I moved to Sheffield - the day before the first national lockdown in March 2020. Two and a half years later, I set foot in Soul Fire Studios and found it.

I’ve done ‘hot yoga’ before in a studio down South, and let me tell you, I hated it. The teacher was so rigid that you were not allowed to drink water mid-practice, and don’t even think about having a rest. I was told that you needed to follow the arduous sequence at least five times a week to reap any benefit. The people on the mats around me looked nothing like me, but glistening half-naked athletes. No one was smiling. I did my class, and left, feeling dizzy and quite sure I would never try hot yoga again.

Why did I want to try hot yoga at Soul Fire Studios?

So, what brought me back? Well, a recommendation from a friend who I trust. Curiously, she said (I checked the message thread):

“I also can’t explain why, but I feel good there. Often in yoga studios, I feel out of place. I don’t there. You can’t recommend that because it is subjective”

I knew instantly I had to try it. If she felt like she belonged at Soul Fire Studios, then I wanted to find out why. I admit I had often walked past the door on Edgedale Road but dismissed the studio outright because I thought it was just hot yoga. A peek at the timetable revealed they do all sorts including Hatha, Vinyasa, Aerial, and Yin. Hot yoga, not-hot, as well as a range of meditation-based classes and alternative healing workshops.

I signed up for the £33 introductory offer to try as many classes as I could in three weeks. Initially, I had no intention of doing any hot yoga. Yet, my friend kept going on about just how good it felt. I broke my resistance and found myself pitching up to a Saturday morning at 9am, a little bleary-eyed after an ill-advised glass of wine the night before.

The exhausted and inflexible yogi

Before I move on, I want to explain what brought me back to yoga at all.  In September I was prompted to search for yoga classes as my body and whole being seemed to ache from caring for my fifteen-month-old toddler. We have been sleeping in the same bed since… well, since I was pregnant and we cohabited my body! I still spend most nights in her bed, and my back aches from being contorted around an animated sleeping starfish.

Many people claim they are ‘too inflexible to do yoga’. I am going to tell you a big secret - yoga is actually for people like us! I have always struggled to touch my toes. Perhaps a combination of being an inactive teen and then a long-distance runner that never stretched. Compounding this history has been stomach surgery, ankle injuries, hip pain, chronic hamstring tightness and now a caesarean section! My yoga poses have never looked like the pictures on the internet, I have never successfully managed a headstand, and to make things worse, I can’t tell my right from my left and always end up in a jumble!

A further prompt came from my muddled head. After 15 months of caring for a child, antenatal anxiety, postnatal depression, a global pandemic, moving to a new city, and having just started my third new job in three years, my head was full of more racing than a Formula 1 motorsport weekend. I needed my piece of inner peace. I needed to take action to quiet my mind and do something for myself.

What is so special about hot yoga at Soul Fire Studios?

For the first time postpartum, I miraculously found I had the energy to do something. That is how I found myself in class. After my first class, I was hooked! Well, I’m as hooked as I can be in the limited free time I have. Why do I keep coming back? Here are my top 5 reasons:

1.Soul Fire Studios is so friendly and welcoming

My first impression arriving at Soul Fire Studios was the friendly teacher sat in reception behind the desk, and the amazing murals and plant life on the walls. It felt like such a warm, welcoming, and open space, and I immediately felt at ease. You are greeted with big smiles, and there is free water, and drinks available to buy. There are places to sit. It felt more than just a studio, it felt, homely.

2. Soul Fire Studios offers more than just yoga poses – it is connected to the spiritual side of yoga

The class began with some group chants of ‘Om’ and I knew from this that I had found a happy place. I have been a yoga tourist in the various cities I have lived in and have at some point tried every type of yoga and dozens of different studios. My absolute best experience before Soul Fire Studios was an Ashtanga Yoga Shala in Bristol, where before class, the whole class repeated a mantra together. At first, I found it deeply uncomfortable, but before long, I found it extremely calming.  It reminds you of what yoga is about. Yoga is about so much more than just the poses, and I love that Soul Fire Studios reminds everyone of this.

3. Caters for all bodies and helps everyone to feel comfortable

One of my issues with hot yoga before was the disconnection between the spiritual aspect of yoga and the obsession with physical fitness or body sculpting. Having an eating disorder history, I avoid any exercise environment that foregrounds appearance or calories over the joys of moving your body. I am sure it doesn’t apply everywhere, but the rigidity of the hot yoga image and the high-calorie burn claims did seem to attract a certain kind of yogi in the hot studio I attended before. Perhaps the ones who were there mostly for ‘the burn’. That environment makes me feel uncomfortable. The hot yoga on offer here couldn’t be more different.

I also love how Soul Fire Studios has mirrored sections and non-mirrored which caters to people who want to use the mirrors to check their alignment, and those who want to avoid all mirrors to stay sane and focused.

4. Encourages you to look after yourself

At each class, before the yoga poses part of yoga begins, the teachers tend to share some beautiful reflections with us. I can’t remember what the reflections were during my first class, but the general message is usually similar. We are reminded to respect our body, rest if we need to, take care of ourselves, drink water, don’t push ourselves beyond your limit. This seemed the opposite of the classes I had done before, and it felt like a giant cuddle. I always appreciate the lovely reflections from a kind teacher giving us all permission to look after ourselves. 

I absolutely love how personalised the class was for different people, different poses offered in a really caring way. Maybe it is motherhood, maybe it is maturity, but I really believe it is also the atmosphere of the Studio. I felt no impulsion to push myself in the ways that I might have in other classes. That is the sign of a good teacher, one that encourages you to be soft with yourself and honest about where you are in your body.

5. The heat!

The heat from the hot yoga was absolutely overwhelming at first, but it also felt like a warm bath. My body no longer needed to use up any energy to stay warm. I lay on my mat like my starfish toddler and let a warm holiday feeling rush over me. 

It was a bit alarming when water started dripping off every part of my body like an unwelcome roof leak, and I looked around to see if others were experiencing the same problems. I started sliding around on my mat and used the towels I had been reminded to bring to mop myself, the mat and the floor, before placing the towel over the mat for the rest of the class! Problem solved! There is a reason people bring towels.

To conclude  - give hot yoga at Soul Fire Studios Sheffield a go!

I won’t hide anything, when I left class afterwards, I was absolutely knackered. So much so, that I couldn’t work out how to exit the studio, and left my towels and mat behind. I didn’t even notice for a few days (thankfully, they were washed and kept safe for me to pick up another time).

Yet, I walked home down Abbeydale Road on a cold Saturday morning in a t-shirt and shorts, red-faced, looking like I had just been to a HIIT class, and people stared from the bus stop. There was a bounce in my step and my heart felt happy. 

Since this first outing, I have tried to go to class once or twice a week, as often as my toddler and busy work schedule allow. That is something else I love about the studio - I feel comfortable dropping in and out with no pressure to sign up for a weekly class and no one telling you that you must practice five times a week. I simply go when I can. I have a five-class pass that allows me to book any class that week, and also, helpful if you have a toddler, cancel up to three hours before!

Go and give it a go! You might get hooked like me!