Gitali: Knowledge, Wisdom, and Love

“She has had an impact on so many lives and she doesn’t even live here!”

                                                            Bridget, fellow yogi

It’s true.  Gitali never lived here in Bristol, but her presence at Bristol Yoga Studio has been significant from the moment of her arrival several years ago.  On the most surface level, it could be her expertise as a yoga teacher.  Not only does she know a rich repertoire of sequences and poses, everything from restorative to vinyasa and in between; she can also intuit the mood and tone of individuals and the class as a whole to see what is needed.  This last week, her very last class, I made an offhand comment about having a possible injury to my right foot.  Gitali worked a brief self-foot massage into our class.  As all 12 of us were twisting our toes and pressing knuckles into arches, giggling at the tickling, I marveled at her care and attention for me, and for us.  This is just a small example of who she is.  Whether we need calm or playfulness, she offers us healing energy. 

Gitali also provides wisdom.  She never attended the preachy “I know better than you” school of yoga, where yoga teachers try to fix their students.  Instead, she asks us to be attentive and responsible to ourselves.  She also asks us to consider how we are connected to one another and to the divine energy that runs through each of us, connecting us to one another, to nature, and to life itself.  Last week, she asked the class if anyone had a specific intention, and somebody said, “world peace” as the standby joke.  After we laughed a bit, Gitali talked about how she does believe in world peace, but has come to realize that it has to start in her relationships first.  When she experiences negative emotions about somebody, she asks herself how she is contributing to peace in the world if she can’t experience peace in this relationship.  That is an excellent question for all of us.  Peace isn’t some abstraction that lies within the arcane language of international treaties or documents.  It is something we can cultivate within ourselves.

Most of all, Gitali is an embodiment of love.  In her presence, I feel accepted, loved, and honored, no matter how grumpy or upset I may be feeling, no matter what mistakes I made that week, or nasty things I thought or said.  At the end of each class when Gitali says, “The beauty within me, the light within me, recognizes and honors the beauty within you, the light within you,” it is clearly and deeply meant and felt. 

Farewell, my friend.  We at BYS are going to miss you tremendously, but your love and light are with us.