Christine Farnandis is a certified Svaroopa^® Yoga teacher and a registered yoga teacher through YogaAlliance, a national accreditation organization. Her background includes being a chef, animal lover, movie buff, and gardener. She also has a Master’s degree from Oregon State University and taught Women’s Studies at the college level for seven years.

Christine’s extensive training has included over 700 hours of instruction, including anatomy andphysiology, yoga philosophy, teaching methodology, supervised teaching experience, and detailed exploration of over 100 asanas (yoga poses).

Christine became familiar with Svaroopa^® yoga after experiencing acute back spasms, due mainly to overactivity. Yoga taught her to slow down, feel her body, and take care of it. She has been practicing the style since 2000. Christine enjoys guiding students inward, helping them to feel comfortable with themselves and their bodies. The blissful glow on a student’s face at the end of class always reminds her of why she became a yoga teacher - to improve people’s lives by contributing to their health and happiness.

Christine received training from Swami Nirmalananda Saraswati (formerly Rama Berch),originator and heart of Svaroopa^® yoga and founder of Master Yoga Foundation, a non-profit that provides education and support for Svaroopis internationally. Rama received a “cosmic download” through spiritual initiation from her Guru, which awakened her body and revealed to her the workings of the spine as the conduit of consciousness. She became a swami in February of 2009 and was given the name Nirmalananda. She passes on this knowledge through her teachings, infusing them with great clarity, compassion, and love.