We were sitting in the kitchen one day having a frank conversation about the gay community, as one does. And, as many great ideas do spring from a cuppa chai, so began our project Pink Yoga.
Pink Yoga launched in 2015 as an alternative event for gay men to attend a class exclusively for them. I uphold my personal mantra that yoga is indeed for everyone. However, as with many other marginalised communities, sometimes there is a need for positive discrimination.
Emiliano is my very good friend, a 30 something fine artist and graphic designer, a superb chef and he is definitely gay and proud! I am a black, straight, 51-year-old woman, mother of three and grandmother of three lovelies.
So what do we have in common? We are both artists, we are both Buddhist, we both have a love of food and we both like men! Thereās moreā¦we are both minorities, although his community, does outweigh mine in Brighton lol.
On a more serious note, we have both been bullied and suffered prejudice and discrimination, negative judgement and have often in our lives had to fight for equality and justice.
“Iāve got a great idea” he said to me excitedly one summer afternoon as the sun poured in from his back garden and bounced off the delicious cinnamon cakes he had made for us. “Why donāt we do a yoga class for gay men?” He continued: āWe can call it āPink Yogaā I started to laugh, impressed at his genius yoga genre name. āThat is a great ideaā I said sputtering the chai all over the cake, Iām classy that way.
āIām serious!ā he went on āand you could be the yoga teacherā. I frowned, quizzically and asked him, āwhy would a group of gay men, want to have a class with me? Iām a woman in case you hadnāt noticed and straight at that.ā
Well he then went on to share with me his insights into the often, hedonistic world of gay culture, in which of course he played his own part. He told me that he really wanted there to be an alternative way available for gay men, to spend time together, that was healthy, spiritually inspiring, compassionate and safe. A unique, once a month, yoga event. A place, a safe space in which gay men can feel free to feel, to express from the heart and find a more profound way of being.
Knowing that I had a lot of experience of working with marginalised groups and that compassion is at the epicentre of my teaching, as well as, of course, our Buddhist practice, he felt strongly that I would be the ideal teacher. I must say I was honoured by his request. The gender or sexual orientation of the teacher is not what is important here, just the way that they teach and the ability to create and hold safe space.
And so Pink Yoga was born, our love child, the only one that we would ever have by the way! The members of Pink Yoga grew to nearly 100 over one year with, in fact, very little public marketing. We kept it as a closed group for a long time whilst we raised this love child to be what it is today.
Pink Yoga runs once a month. Every member is respectful; brave, courageous and they are some of the loveliest people Iāve met. They are all very diverse in cultures and backgrounds, vocations and aspirations. We all share the same desire for compassion in this world. Over 90% of members had never tried a yoga class before. I have had some amazing feedback from these guys. I truly admire their willingness to trust me and let me take them on a journey to their souls.
What is Pink Yoga?
Itās the same as any other sensitive yoga class should be.
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās a safe place to learn and practice the eight limbs of yoga
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās about nurturing the soul
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās healing
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās nourishing
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās revitalising
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās compassionate
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās about gently peeling back the layers
ā¦ Ā Ā Itās about inner connection and connecting with other souls
ā¦ Ā Ā It is union
The Pink bit, just means that itās for gay men only. Suffice to say a few members have ventured out into The Yoga Clubās more mainstream classes, which is great too.
This year Pink Yoga will feature in The Brighton Yoga Festival at The Dome and Corn Exchange. There will be a 30 minute yoga taster and a chance to find out more and sign up as a member.
To register for your class, click here:
Amanda S Evans.
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