I am first and foremost a Yoga, Ayurvedic and Meditation Educator; and an Addiction, Trauma and Chronic Disease Specialist.
We honor traditional Yoga with the most respected level of training and the most experience available locally. January 1, 2018, marks the 20th anniversary of directing a Yoga studio in Erie! It all started with free classes I began offering in my living room in 1982. We continue to integrate classical principles with current scientific research to provide an effective and sustainable mind, body and spirit practice for all phases of life.
In addition to teaching yoga, I am also a Mindfulness and Stress Management Consultant and my clients include Fortune 500 companies, non-profits and school districts. Contact me at 814-864-1114 or rhadeya@plashayoga.com for an individual assessment of your organization’s needs.
In addition, I am a writer and outdoor enthusiast. As a musician, I founded and led the improvisational world music band Sangita from 1990 to 1995. I am a father of 7 amazing children! My life experiences are an influence in my yoga classes.
I was the first teacher in Erie recognized with the Yoga Alliance as a Continuing Education Provider.
Thank you to the Erie Reader for their “Erie Faces Erie” spotlight! Read the full feature HERE!
How It All Began…
My journey began in 1971, inspired by the Beatles, John Coltrane, Ram Das, Gary Snyder, Allan Watts, the American Transcendentalists, Thomas Merton, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the Bhagavad Gita, The Upanishads, The Autobiography of a Yogi, Zen Buddhism and other sources. One of my first Hatha teachers was Lilias Folan on PBS. Go to my blog to learn more about this journey.
I was the first teacher in Erie to become certified and then registered with the Yoga Alliance at the RYT500, E-RYT500 and RPYT levels. I aspire to teach an integrative and meditative style of Hatha Yoga.
Internationally renowned centers like Kripalu, Integral Yoga-NYC, and Satchidananda Ashram have invited me to give workshops on Raja Yoga and other topics. I have also presented at yoga teacher conferences, teacher trainings, award-winning yoga studios. I am a teacher trainer for four organizations. Currently, I give teacher trainings and workshops on Raja and Ayurveda and Yoga in the midwest and the northeast.
I have written for Hinduism Today, Integral Yoga, MS, and Darshan magazines and several newspapers. Yoga Journal featured my program of teaching adaptive Yoga at the Saint Vincent Rehabilitation Department.
I was co-leader of the Kensho Meditation Center from 1982 to 1985. I also co-led the Erie Siddha Yoga Meditation Center from 1985 to 1991. In addition, from May 1998 to August 2001, I was the Director of Yoga Programs and Services at the Saint Vincent Complementary Care Center in Erie, PA. I have been the Director of Plasha Yoga Studio since 2001.
At the Yoga Alliance’s Leadership Conference in 2011, I was the only teacher from PA to present. I was one of only 10 teachers selected to lead a practice session at this conference in 2012. In 2011, I was elected to be a member of the YA’s House of Delegates. The House of Delegates met at the 2012 Leadership Conference and discussed issues facing the Yoga Community. We made recommendations to the Yoga Alliance Board of Directors. I also serve on the advisory committee for recommending standards for teachers and schools as part of my new Dharma to support and serve teachers in PA.
Mark, Larry Payne, Gyan McCord, and Michael Plasha, presenters at the Yoga Alliance Teachers Conference.
Swami Chidvilasananda, the spiritual leader of Siddha Yoga gave me my spiritual name, Rhadeya. Rhadeya was a character in the great epic the Mahabharata; part of it is the famous Bhagavad Gita. Rhadeya means bravery, loyalty and giving, qualities I have been invited to contemplate for the rest of my life.
I love Yoga! If you can breathe, you can do yoga. What are you waiting for?
Read more about my qualifications
EXPERIENCE MATTERS – FEEL THE DIFFERENCE
