In February Yoga Games comes back to Stockholm. As usual there is an amazing line-up of teachers and trainers presenting at this huge event. One of them is Shay Peretz. Shay lives and teaches in Stockholm but has a very inspiring background. In this interview we get to know a bit about who he is and what yoga has done for him. Don't miss the chance to meet Shay in person and take his class at Yoga Games!
Yoga makes you see yourself
In his classes Shay draws inspiration from Forrest Yoga, Ashtanga and Bhakti Yoga as well as from his stay in a monestary. For Shay, Yoga is a lot of accepting who you are.
– I would say that yoga for me is cultivating the art of seeing. I see a lot of people coming to yoga classes wanting to leave with something, something they didn’t think they had before. I think we through yoga are learning to accept what we need to let go of. Seeing your true self. For me personally, yoga hasn’t made me a better person but it has made me see all the sides of myself, including the more unpleasant ones.
Found shelter in a monestary
Shays background is indeed inspiring. He has been practicing yoga since his early twenties, which now makes it over 20 years. But he came to start teaching when he had to deal with difficulties in life.
– 10 years ago I went through some hard times, when I became homeless. Out of desperation I reached out to a monastery called Green Gulch Zen centre which is a monk training school to learn to serve communities. I pretty much went there and asked for shelter and ended up staying for almost one year.
To be a monk wasn’t really for Shay. With a laugh he says that he appreciates some things too much in life to give them up. But he took a wove to serve communities. Here yoga became a platform from which he could share his experiences and help others.
– I’ve been influenced by the ideas of a favourite author of mine, Jospeh Campbell. I highly recommend his books. He writes about the motif of the Heros journey, which has three parts; Separation, initiation and return. Each one of us has to leave what is familiar to go through this initiation process. Hopefully in time we return home, and to our communities, with this new understanding of ourselves. Being able to offer something in return to what we left.
Been moving a lot
Shay has been moving around a lot for his whole life and spent his childhood in several countries. Born in Israel he moved to Argentina at the age of three where he stayed for 3-4 years. After that the family moved to Uruguay, then back to Israel for a while and then he ended up in USA. At 19 Shay moved to California where he moved around a lot until he ended up in Sweden.
– Like so many others I came here because of a girl. I’ve been here for four winters now.
Shay doesn’t feel like the person that gets affected in a negative way of moving around. On the contrary he feels quite comfortable with it.
– I somehow feel that it is my destiny to move around. I like the aspect of being uncomfortable for a while, that gives me the opportunity to be able to grow. It forces me to learn new things and to rediscover myself.
The classes at Yoga Games
Shays classes this year are called East to West Flow and From movement to stillness (read more below) in which we will be able to experience our bodies in a fluid vinyasa flow. No class looks exactly the same for Shay, hence the class will be adapted from the students in the room.
– My classes are always very organic. I would say I’ve been preparing my whole life to teach, it always has a sense of myself. It is important that there is always an exchange with the people in the room and myself. I want them to be able to explore themselves.
Shays class at Yoga Games
Saturday February 10th, 14:30: East to West Flow (Studio 1 Strindberg )
A vinyasa flow musical journey adventure traveling through east and west sound landscapes. Shay invites you to journey through a story-telling flow arriving calmer and more grounded.
Saturday February 10th, 18:00 : Form Movement to stillness (Studio 1 Strindberg)
How do we use asana and the physical body to arrive at a seated meditation? Weaving through a dynamic flow session to a short sited Zazen Medidation. Infusing myth, color, sweat and stillness.
Yoga Games Stockholm – February 9-11, 2018
For the fourth time Yoga Games will take place at Münchenbryggeriet in Stockholm. Three days of workshops and classes with inspiring teachers from around the world. See you there!
Discount for Yogobe members
As a Yogobe member you get a SEK 300 discount when booking both Saturday and Sunday – use code: Yogobe!
More info
- Check out the schedule for Yoga Games Stockholm here!
- Read more about Yoga Games Stockholm and Yoga Games Gothenburg.
- Many of the presenters at Yoga Games are also a part of Team Yogobe - see all videos online here!
To learn more about Shay, check out his Facebook page or Instagram: @darrmalik.
