Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Keval Kaur Khalsa. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Keval Kaur, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
I have been an educator all of my adult life. For decades, I was a dance educator. After discovering Kundalini Yoga and experiencing the transformation that that practice and lifestyle brought, I trained to be a Kundalini Yoga teacher and eventually a trainer of Kundalini Yoga teachers. Because of the incredible impact on my life, it became clear to me that sharing these teachings is a significant part of my life’s work. I taught in different dance and yoga studios in my city – Durham, NC. Since I was on the faculty of Duke University’s Dance Program, I was able to develop and teach a course in Kundalini Yoga as part of the Dance Program’s curriculum.
In training to become a Kundalini Yoga teacher trainer, I was able to be part of teacher training programs in different parts of the United States – Los Angeles, San Diego, Detroit, Nashville, New Orleans. I was also able to be part of the team that brought the first Kundalini Yoga teacher training course to the Triangle region of North Carolina in 2008.
Kundalini Yoga is a less-known form of yoga – most of the yoga taught in the US is Hatha-based or variations created from that lineage. Although Kundalini Yoga is now taught in over 60 countries around the world, there are very few studios that are dedicated Kundalini Yoga spaces, and there were none in Durham. Slowly, I was lead by Spirit to consider opening a studio that would be dedicated to Kundalini Yoga. If that studio was built on our property in southwest central Durham where our home is located, I would certainly have a short commute! I could offer donation-based classes open to all members of the community, and I could set the schedule. I would have a space to offer teacher trainings, and a space for my graduates to begin teaching if they so desired. I could also offer space to like-minded teachers for classes and workshops.
What got me most excited about the idea of a studio was the ability to be a pillar for growing and developing the Kundalini Yoga community in the Durham area.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am many things:
– A Sikh, a yogi, a spiritual being in this human incarnation;
– A white, heterosexual 68-year old woman;
– A daughter, mother, grandmother, wife;
– A movement professional, teacher, teacher trainer, mentor, business owner;
– An enthusiastic student of life.
I was born and raised on the ancestral lands of the Anishinaabeg – Three Fires Confederacy of Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi peoples, otherwise known as Lansing, Michigan. Water has always been an important part of my life – the Grand River that flowed through Lansing; the lakes and rivers in northern lower Michigan; the Great Lakes. I now live on the ancestral lands of the Tuscarora, Occoneechi, Tutelo and Haliwa-Saponi peoples, otherwise known as Durham, North Carolina. The river that flows through my life now is the Eno River, and I treasure visiting Ocracoke Island and witnessing the power of the Atlantic Ocean.
I love being in a human body (which is 60-70% water) and I love embodied expression, be it dance, singing, chanting, yoga. I love teaching – helping people to be more at home in their bodies and experiencing the body as a vehicle for Spirit. As an elder, my focus is now on mentoring the next generations so that the embodied knowledge and wisdom I have learned and experienced can be passed on.
Being in this human body allows us to literally stand up for what we think is right. In this moment on earth, we need to stand up for our Mother Earth, for justice and equity, for the basic rights of all humans and the species that can’t advocate for themselves. I believe we are here on this earth to enjoy life and to be a lighthouse for others.
All of this is what led me to open Kundalini Yoga Durham – a space and community that is accepting, uplifting and dedicated to nurturing the Light of Spirit in everyone. We do this through weekly community classes – a Foundations Kundalini Yoga class on Mondays from 11:30am-12:30pm and an all-level class on Wednesdays from 6:00-7:30pm. These classes are hybrid, so folks can join online or in the studio. We also host special events and workshops. Currently, we are hosting a series of workshops called Better Moving – an introduction to the Feldenkrais Method of body awareness taught by Guild Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner Jody McAuliffe. And watch for future offerings of Sound Healing Workshops, Meditation Intensives, and Kundalini Yoga Immersion Retreats.
For Kundalini Yoga practitioners ready to make a commitment to teaching and/or deepening their own practice, Kundalini Yoga Durham hosts Level I and Level II teacher training courses.
Kundalini Yoga Durham also supports the non-profit organization Y.O.G.A. for Youth, which is dedicated to empowering youth and families in underserved communities through the principles and practice of yoga. Y.O.G.A. for Youth has been training teachers and running yoga programming for over 20 years. For nearly 20 years, Y.O.G.A. for Youth has been a presence in the Triangle region of North Carolina. Kundalini Yoga Durham has hosted and will continue to host in-person specialty trainings by Y.O.G.A. for Youth. I am proud to serve as the North Carolina Program Coordinator and a Lead Teacher Trainer for this LA-based organization.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
In 2015, I had many balls in the air. In my “day job,” I was serving as Director of the Dance Program at Duke University. As a Kundalini Yoga Teacher Trainer, I was taking my last step to become a Lead Teacher Trainer by running a 220-hour Level I Teacher Training course. I was also serving as the North Carolina Program Coordinator overseeing Y.O.G.A. for Youth programming in a number of locations in Durham and Orange counties. And I was helping my parents negotiate a big transition from their home in northern lower Michigan to a retirement community in southwestern Michigan.
At that time, my mother was showing significant signs of dementia. I could see how hard this was on my father, and I realized they would need help and support in this transition to a new home. My father would need help and support in dealing with and caring for my mother. I felt a strong message from Spirit – it was my turn to show up and offer that help. This turned into a temporary pivot as I took an unpaid leave of absence from Duke and moved from North Carolina to Allendale and then Holland, Michigan to become a full-time caregiver for the 15-16 academic year. I had to travel back to North Carolina once a month to run my Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training course, and I worked remotely to maintain the Y.O.G.A. for Youth programming in North Carolina.
This was the hardest year of my life. I’ve always had a deep respect for caregivers, who are undervalued and underpaid in our country. Serving in that role for my parents was extremely challenging AND growth-producing. I had to grow my patience, empathy and serenity with the things I could not control. I wasn’t always successful. I had to fight depression and sometimes felt that I was stretched to my limit.
My lessons from this time? Increased humility, gratitude for having that time with both my parents, gratitude for all the people that helped and supported me, gratitude for an increased capacity for acceptance, living in the moment, and leaning on Spirit.
How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?
From the studio listserv and from our Facebook and Instagram accounts, we send out regular reminders of ongoing classes. We also post about special events and teacher trainings.
We work to keep in touch with former teacher trainees and reach out to invite them to studio events. This spring, we are hosting a “reunion retreat” for teachers that have graduated from our program to reconnect and reinvigorate and reinspire each other. I invite teachers that have graduated from our program to teach/lead workshops in the Kundalini Yoga Durham studio.
Participants in weekly classes are sent notes from the class to encourage them to do a home practice. I offer a free early morning practice – sadhana, which means “daily spiritual practice” – via zoom.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kundaliniyogadurham.com
- Instagram: kundaliniyogadurham
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kundaliniyogadurham
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keval-kaur-khalsa-10a2621a/
Image Credits
James Pettibone, Jan Rigsbee