On Friday the 21st, Yoga Shanti, the premier yoga studio in Sag Harbor, hosted free classes all day long to celebrate their 25th year silver anniversary. The studio, commonly called a “ma and pop” establishment, is considered the “grandma and grandpa” studio across the nation, according to world-renowned teacher Colleen Saidman Yee, who founded the studio alongside her partner Rodney Yee. Twenty-three years ago the pair merged their yoga practices, further developing the shanti method, which later became the heart of the practice at the studio. The shanti method stands out because it is conscientious work that takes into account all aspects of yoga – breathwork, postures, philosophy, and sequencing the movements of the body to create a calming flow.
“We don’t like to take claim [of the Shanti method] because we are on the shoulders of so many giants, so it’s not ours, but it’s ours – the collective.” said Saidman Yee.
The Yee’s believe that what makes running a yoga studio unique from other businesses is the difficulty of extracting yourself from your practice.
“Your product is yourself in yoga – you’re not selling an external third object. Your own passion and compassion for the subject itself is what is the finding of the people who come in and investigate… if your own interest in the subject is bad, your teaching is bad.” added Rodney Yee.
Celebrating a twenty-five year milestone is significant to YS especially because they survived the pandemic. Saidman Yee describes the perseverance necessary to keep inspired in her own practice while being a businesswoman and entrepreneur. People often see this juxtaposition of yoga being a business, Saidman Yee continued, “Sometimes people don’t think of yoga as a business, but it is. It’s our livelihood – it’s our everything.”
“We have cultivated a year round community [where] everybody is embraced” added Yee, in reference to the studio’s relationship with the local community and tourism.
“Running a yoga studio is not easy,” voiced Saidman Yee, “It’s such a labor of love, it is not that necessarily financially rewarding but it is soul lifting. Really it’s the community, we just keep showing up for the community.”
Besides being known for a thoughtful Shanti practice, the studio is recognized for its legacy of community, one that is welcoming and inclusive of all different types of students. The event held on the beautiful summer solstice was emblematic of precisely that.
Peggy Leder Pepemehmetoglu is an art therapist and teacher for kids and adults in addition to being one of the yoga instructors at the studio.
After Pepemehmetoglu’s 8 A.M. flow class, Saidman Yee expressed her appreciation for Pepemehmetoglu’s dedication to the studio in front of her students, describing how Pepemehmetoglu walked through the doors at YS and never left.
“It is my home away from home, and for years it was really my home more than my other home.” said Pepemehmetoglu, “YS has given me so much in my life. I’ve gained confidence from YS – I’ve learned to feel comfortable in my own skin through Shanti.”
When she first began teaching, Pepemehmetoglu wished that no one would show up for her classes to judge her teaching. “This morning I was like wow, I love the fact that the room is full and I could really notice the change [in myself].” said Pepemehmetoglu.
She resonates with how the Shanti method highlights the importance of service. “You serve, you benefit. I do like to give back in that regard,” says Pepemehmetoglu, who has gained not only self-confidence but a sense of community through the relationships built at the studio, driving her to give back in her own ways.
The event on Friday was a celebration not only of twenty-five years of the studio’s opening, but a commemoration of a journey through movement, perseverance, and community.
[Photos by Alexis Cornachio]
Yoga Shanti; yogashanti.com
