Shannon Earthtree Brings Kundalini Yoga To Denver’s Cherry Creek

August 31st, 2011

Shannon Earthtree (Photo Credit: Renee Tormey)

In the last year I have begun to add Kundalini yoga into my daily practice and there is something truly powerful about this style of yoga. It feels as if my circuitry is being strengthened and rewired for the better.

I met Shannon EarthTree eight years ago. She was a new mother, wide eyed and passionate about life and about yoga. She began, as many do, with Bikram yoga, she learned from one of Denver’s finest teachers, Jeanine Armstrong. Shannon enjoyed it but it wasn’t the IT she was looking for.

During her three year search she trained at Shoshoni Yoga Retreat and tried a variety of styles. One day she found herself at a Kundalini yoga class taught by Sue Beck. Before class was even over she knew she had found, ‘the IT’ she was looking for. “At the time, there weren’t any Kundalini yoga teachers in the Denver area so I decided to become an instructor.”

Students at Kindness Yoga in Cherry Creek (Photo Credit: Renee Tormey)

In the early days of her teaching, maybe one or two students would attend class, “I simply kept on teaching.” Today her classes are full and growing. Increasingly, experienced students of yoga as well as seekers of healthy, body, mind and spirit are discovering the ancient science of Kundalini yoga.

I asked Shannon the difference between Kundalini yoga and the more familiar styles, vinyasa, hot yoga and hatha that are so popular today. “Everything that takes place in the classroom is geared towards creating a comfortable and powerful meditation experience. In each class we take time to meditate and deeply relax. The different exercises strengthen the aura, the chacras, nadis and the ARC line.” These terms are specific to yoga and simply stated represent the energetic body. When these systems are strong it is believed the body can function optimally.

I asked Shannon how is a daily Kundalini practice going to change me? “This practice purifies the subconscious mind. For example, the thought ‘I am not good enough‘ begins to fall away and the negative patterns are naturally replaced by healthier thoughts or patterns. There is energy wasted in maintaining negative thoughts. When the subconscious mind is cleared of unwanted thought patterns, space is created for more positive thoughts and your energy level increases. If healing needs to take place, be it the heart or be it the body, Kundalini yoga sets the stage for profound healing to take place.”

Before her class I asked students why they practiced Kundalini yoga they all grinned ear to ear before responding as if the resulting feeling somehow escapes words. Some said, “I feel more awake more enlightened, in what way I am not really sure,” “I feel an overall sense of goodness,” “I never know what we are going to do, it is always a surprise.” The collective sentiment was that they feel better, more alive and more in tune with themselves.

For myself, my first Kundalini class was just short of down right strange and even despite my perception, the results were immediate. As you make your way to your first Kundalini yoga class go with an open mind and a willing heart and well, simply see what happens. Thank you Shannon for keeping this practice alive and growing in Denver.