Conversations with Ahimsa House

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ahimsa House.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Ahimsa House is the collaborative effort of Mel Franco and Rée Clancy. We met teaching yoga at a studio in Downtown Phx. Due to Covid shutdowns, we were unfortunately both let go. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise because it pushed us to reevaluate how we wanted to teach yoga and what teaching meant to us. After being let go, we individually explored and began teaching yoga online through different platforms. With some successes, some failures, and lots of learning, we decided to collaborate. We saw that we shared common goals and intentions. We both wanted to take what we had already learned from the practice and share it in much of the same way. We both came to yoga in our teens, and while it helped us to navigate many of our own obstacles, we realized well into 30’s that the feeling of “home” was never truly felt in the yoga spaces available to us. In part because of the lack of representation of people of color in those spaces, but also because of the financial inaccessibility. In conversing with each other, and other instructors/practitioners, we came to understand that this feeling was shared. We knew that we could create that space, and that’s what we aim to do with Ahimsa House.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Yes, and no. It’s been smooth as far as our creative flow, building our partnership, and solidifying our vision. It’s been relatively easy and fun building community connections as well. The two of us work well together and play off of each other’s strengths. The difficulties have been with connecting and teaching through a new medium and trying to reach/build our community through online platforms. Just being in front of the camera and finding our “voice” all over again has been a learning process. We’ve had to learn how to produce quality digital content, which is much different than our studio teaching days.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We produce content for virtual yoga practice, as well as organize community events. We aim to be known for creating an inclusive space within the yoga community as a whole. We want to be set apart from traditional yoga studios in the sense that we aren’t trying to provide a workout but to provide the community with tools to deepen their connection to themselves. We’re most proud of leading people to a yoga practice who weren’t interested in yoga before or felt that it was inaccessible to them. We’ve done this by offering hands-free yoga classes for people that may not be able to hold weight on their hands, by offering a variety of class styles, and difficulty levels, and by always fostering a space where practitioners feel safe, welcomed, and encouraged.

Our goal with Ahimsa House is to bring mindfulness to the communities that stand to benefit from it the most. We want to show others how yoga can be used as a tool to boost confidence, understanding, and trust in one’s self. Our ultimate goal with the work we are doing at Ahimsa House is to help others find their power, their peace, and their strength in every sense of the word. We don’t concern ourselves too much with being different or standing out; we focus a lot of our energy on being authentic and true to ourselves. We want to be seen, and we want our community to feel seen; unfortunately, this isn’t achieved in spaces that prioritize athleticism, weight loss, or elitism. We feel that focusing on community, the mental & emotional work behind a yoga practice, and respecting yourself where you are; is far more important.

Pricing:

• Our moxie subscription Live classes are $5 for a drop in, $15 for a weekly subscription and $35 for a monthly subscription.

Contact Info:

• Email: ahimsahousephx@gmail.com
• Website: https://liinks.co/ahimsahousephx
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ahimsahousephx/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ahimsahousephx
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSvpp5HS3ccCryMg91e7oGg
• Other: https://moxie.xyz/ahimsahousephx

Image Credits
Images of Mel Franco, and Rée Clancy taken by Desiree Book, with the exception of the community class, taken by Rée Clancy.