An Online Directory of Tranquil Space-Trained Teachers
ABOUT US: MISSION + VISION
The Tranquil Space Teachers Collective (TSTC) is a directory of Tranquil Space-trained teachers. After serving the Washington, DC area in studios for nearly 20 years, we are bringing our community online.
Our intention is to provide a way for former Tranquil Space students and teachers to stay connected. We hope this collective will sustain the community that has nurtured so many of us over the years.
The idea to create a collective was born in the crucible of the COVID-19 pandemic. Losing the physical spaces that defined much of our Tranquil Space experience emboldened us to reimagine how our community could continue to gather and flourish. Recognizing that the Tranquil Space spirit is global, we decided to make our offerings accessible to you wherever you are in the world.
The teachers in this collective embody the special touches and commitment to living consciously off the mat that Tranquil Space is known for. On our website, you will find a listing of classes, workshops, retreats, and other events led by our talented teachers. To book, simply follow the provided links to connect directly with each teacher.
As a collective, we are dedicated to honoring the vision and values that defined Tranquil Space:
To collectively provide a nurturing space that welcomes the unfolding of a creative yoga practice that is carried off the mat into one's daily life
To use yoga as a catalyst to live life fully and consciously
Community, compassion, creativity, dedication, initiative, and deep respect for the history and tradition of the yoga practice
HISTORY + COMMUNITY
Tranquil Space first opened in 1999 in founder Kimberly Wilson's Washington, DC living room. Over the next 18 years, the studio evolved and grew, moving from living room to a parlor in a beautiful old church on 16th Street NW, to P Street NW, to a 3-story building on 17th Street NW in 2008, with additional branches in Bethesda, MD and Arlington, VA. Tranquil Space attracted thousands of like-hearted yogis to its nurturing fold—encouraging them to mingle over tea and cookies after class and to carry the lessons they learned off the yoga mat and into the world. From its humble beginnings, giving back to the community was important at Tranquil Space. Through charitable donations, volunteer days, picnics in the park, doga, and studio celebrations, Tranquil Space made mindful mingling off the mat with one’s community an intrinsic part of its mission.
The Tranquil Space Teachers Collective intends to embrace these traditions as we continue to evolve into new spaces.
TSTC TEACHERS
The teachers of the Tranquil Space Teachers Collective are here because of their commitment to yoga and the philosophy of Tranquil Space. All listed teachers completed the 200- and/or 500-hour Tranquil Space teacher training.
Tranquil Space teachers are incredibly special. As the only studio in DC to require its teachers to be trained in-house, Tranquil Space became known for its signature teaching style. Each Tranquil Space teacher was trained in the vinyasa tradition and chosen to teach based on their ability to share their yoga passion, exude the Tranquil Space philosophy, and offer a consistent experience in every class.
Tranquil Space was named among the top 25 yoga studios in the world by Travel + Leisure, and this would never have happened without its teachers’ talent. Serving up inspiration and connecting life on and off the yoga mat were key components that set Tranquil Space apart.
SOCIAL JUSTICE STATEMENT
The steering committee of the Tranquil Space Teachers Collective acknowledges and honors that the origins of our Yoga lineage lie in India. We are grappling with both how our community, as part of the mainstream western Yoga studio culture, has contributed to the appropriation and erasure of a religious and cultural tradition that has its roots outside of the United States, as well as the individual, interpersonal, institutional, and/or social harm that follows from that. We envision a collective, grounded in and guided by open-mindedness, open-heartedness, curiosity and humility, deeply engaging with and exploring the lived practice of Patanjali's eight limbs of Yoga (Yamas, Nimayas, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi).
We also acknowledge that the mainstream western Yoga studio culture has perpetuated (intentionally or not) many of the oppressions, including systemic racism, that characterize American society as a whole. We believe unequivocally that Yoga is for everyone and should support the journey of all beings everywhere toward happiness and freedom, inner peace and justice.
We call in our fellow TSTC members and our current and former students to join us in doing the work necessary
to reckon with the colonization of Yoga by the west,
to broaden the western understanding of Yoga beyond asana, and
to welcome all bodies to the intentional practice and direct experience of Yoga, regardless of race, size, age, ability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, financial means, or background.
We believe doing so can help ensure that Yoga functions as an active and integral part of the movement toward social justice, for “[a]ny act to change the world around us begins within us” (Valarie Kaur). We will hold ourselves to these standards, and we invite anyone who reads this statement to hold us accountable for doing this work, so that we may learn from one another as we move forward.
We intend to serve as leaders in word and in deed. We will encourage inquiry, reflection and dialogue. We will create community and engaged sangha to fortify and nurture our efforts. We seek other opportunities, financial and otherwise, to show our commitment to elevating the voices and teachings of BIPOC colleagues and to advancing the cause of social justice within the Yoga world and beyond.
Please join us on this journey.
CONNECT WITH US ON INSTAGRAM
