Forrest Yoga has two powerful and experienced Spiritual people at its helm guiding its ever evolving future. Together, husband and wife duo Ana Forrest and Jose Calarco create profound experiences and a vision quest for something truly sacred in life. In their unique style, Ana and Jose combine potent pose sequencing with a spiritual intent. They blend live music, invocation, smoke blessing, storytelling, prayer, philosophy, and primordial shamanic practices into each event. And and Jose teach the art of evolving the self and establishing a re-connection with Spirit and Nature.
Forrest Yoga was created to fill what Ana Forrest perceived as a void in the traditional forms of yoga. In her own words, “traditional forms of yoga did not address most of my deeper injuries; my lost Soul, the addictions—the helplessness around the addictions—and the ongoing suffering. The blend of Ceremonies, the poses I’ve created, the sequencing and the infusion of knowledge I learned from the First Peoples of this planet are what helped relieve the suffering and the anguish from having been disconnected from my Spirit. Through that sacred blend, I then learned to reconnect to my Spirit.”
In 2014, Ana and Jose came together in a synergistic collision of cosmic proportions. Their collaboration is continuously creating Forrest Yoga anew. Integrating their worlds of Yoga, Music, Culture, Philosophy, and Shamanism, Jose and Ana create Ceremonies based on their lifetimes of diverse experiences. The Forrest Yoga offering is deeper and more profound than ever before, and is both unprecedented and unmatched in the world of contemporary yoga.
Ana and Jose are inspired by the stories, songs and dances from the Earth’s oldest living cultures.
They design their innovative systems to create an intimate sense of connection, wonder and awe. With Jose’s Musical Shamanism and now as Ceremonial Director and Ana’s lifetime of experience as a teacher and spiritual Woman, the duo weave mystery, and Spiritual connection into the very fabric of Forrest Yoga.
Together, Ana and Jose have toured over 100 cities and 20 countries.
An essential component of the Forrest Yoga system is Ana Forrest’s Spirit Pledge to Mend the Hoop of the People. This pledge refers to the cry of the Lakota Man Black Elk, who lived through the shattering of the spine of his people. Describing the grieving & desperation he saw around him, he said, “The Rainbow Hoop of the People has been broken.” The Rainbow Hoop refers to people living harmoniously just as the colors of the rainbow lie side by side. The people he speaks of are all the inhabitants of Earth; animals, plants, mountains, and humans. Ana and Jose pledge to teach people to use the tools of Forrest Yoga to help themselves physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. All Forrest Yoga Guardians and teachers pledge to do their part in mending the Hoop of the People. All Forrest Yoga students learn firstly to be responsible for themselves. Then as they grow and mature, they discover what they can do to help our planet. Forrest Yoga gives you the toolset to work your own evolution.
Ana and Jose teach how to form a sincere relationship with one’s self and the art of learning to love again.
Every event with Ana and Jose is a Yoga Ceremony. They use smoke cleansing, music, and an honoring invocation to the Ancestors, asking for permission to do their work on the Ancestors’ land. Ana and Jose co-create a landscape of adventure into which students deep-dive and explore beyond the boundaries of what they thought was possible. The final element of each session is the use of Music as a bridge into the Dreamtime during Savasana, where students contact the deepest parts of themselves and learn to delve into the subconscious.
Ana has trained teachers for more than 4 decades and there are now thousands of Forrest Yoga teachers across five continents. Ana and Jose now work together in training teachers to pass forward the magic of Forrest Yoga. Ana and Jose invite you to come and experience the journey into Mystery and Dreamtime.
Forrest Yoga is a Sanctuary for Knowledge, Culture, Music, New Perceptions and learning to love again.
PILLARS OF FORREST YOGA
Forrest Yoga incorporates the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of humanity, and links them through its 4 core pillars for a more profound and holistic evolution.
BREATH
It all starts with the ability to connect to, deepen, and ride the breath into your inner wilderness. You develop skill in breathing fresh energy into the areas of your body that are in need.
INTEGRITY
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Tailoring each pose to work for you, specifically with physical and emotional injuries.
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Mental focus: changing your habitual neurotic thinking to creative problem solving and learning alert silence.
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Learning discernment.
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Deliberately integrating your realizations and breakthroughs into your life.
STRENGTH
Connecting to the core, building emotional and physical strength as you work at your edges of facing your pain, as well as vision questing into the Mystery.
SPIRIT
Learning to find your Spirit, connect to your Spirit, and take the actions that strengthen that connection. When we first begin to quest for Spirit, we meet the yawning terror of recognizing that we are bereft of Spirit.
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If connecting to Spirit feels unreachable, the first step is connecting to heart.
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Put out a heartfelt call to guide your Spirit home, then take actions that entice your Spirit back into your body.
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Recognize what actions drive your Spirit away. For example: drinking and doing drugs, lying, betraying another, gossiping. When we filth ourselves, our Spirit leaves.
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Make the warrior’s choice to live as your Spirit most deeply desires.
Forrest Yoga offers an extensive career path that will take you as far as you want to go. For more information, visit the Forrest Yoga website www.forrestyoga.com.
Forrest Yoga events are offered throughout the year and across the globe. To find a Forrest Yoga Teacher Training or event, see the Forrest Yoga Website: forrestyoga.com.
To do your part in the Rainbow Hoop of the People, start with yourself.
Your personal transformation reshapes the cosmos.