Apprenticeships are designed for those who wish to be immersed in the activities and setting of the school for periods of time that exceed normal workshop and retreat lengths.

An apprentice agrees to exchange work for teaching, and are offered a reduced fee for food and lodging. The fee reduction will be based on the length of stay and the amount of work agreed upon before arrival.

Potential apprentices are subject to an extensive interview process. In addition to the classic techniques and philosophy, they can expect to receive training in a variety of skills ranging from cooking in harmony with the seasons, garden management and composting, basic animal husbandry, and simple carpentry.

Apprentices also move in a close relationship with the school’s teachers, providing the opportunity for insight into their own unique character and constitution. This allows for the eventual tailoring of his or her personal practice to meet those individual needs.

Long-Term Residential Apprentices

I first practiced yoga nine years ago while studying at the University of Iowa. After graduation I moved to Encinitas, California to continue an education in the arts, and started a continuous asana practice. Although very passionate about my practice at this point I had very little formal instruction or understanding. After four years of continuing in this way I was introduced to Bikram yoga. A love affair started instantly. I began practicing six days a week, sometimes twice a day. I excelled in my Asana practice, and in 2009 I competed in the Northern California Bikram Yoga competition in Stockton, California. Later that same year I moved to St. Louis, Missouri. It was soon after that I first visited Circle Yoga Shala. This first visit was to attend a Native American Sweat Lodge ceremony. I never practiced Bikram again. Asana had become like a diversion, something I needed as a way to feel good about myself. While living at Circle Yoga Shala, I discovered yoga as a path of self-inquiry and spiritual transformation. My concept of Yoga completely changed and its value increased dramatically. I am currently employed at Circle Yoga Shala as a resident Yoga teacher and long-term apprentice under my teachers Holly and Matt Krepps. In addition to working on the farm, I am continuing my studies in the process of personal transformation.

I am a resident and teacher at Circle Yoga Shala, where I’m studying and practicing the interplay between Bhakti and Hatha yoga, amid the reflection of authentic community and the beauty of the Ozark mountains. Through the study of classical and modern dance, I discovered the intrinsic connection between the body, heart, mind and spirit, and the potential for movement practice to be an invitation to deep sensory awareness of this connection. When I met my teachers, Robin Buck, and Matthew and Holly Krepps, true yoga practice began in a way that overtook my desire for anything other than sensitive, open, honest self-inquiry, and the transformation that unfolds from surrender. My practice continues to grow out of this willingness to surrender to the divine and to see myself clearly and compassionately in the mirror of ancient wisdom. My aim is to be of service by sharing the teachings with a grateful and courageous heart, learning how to walk in a good way with all my relations, and by relaxing ever more deeply into Being.

TESTIMONIAL

It is a testimony to the perfection of this most graceful place that I can barely find words to describe the totality of my experience here. My intention for studying at Circle Yoga Shala was to create stability in my yoga practice and in my life. I went looking for a sense of peace and centeredness, for a ground on which to stand, and what I found was a passionate, honest, loving community of people willing to be my guide as I navigated the depths of self-inquiry. My work on the farm and my relationship to the community became the vehicle for self-investigation, providing a simple, sincere reflection and the lens through which to see myself. As I inquired into the nature of my mind, my emotions, and my actions, the nature of my essence, which is love, revealed itself to me with profound clarity. Through the wisdom of the ancient texts, and the guidance of loving teachers, I began to transform from someone afraid to shine brightly to someone willing to shine because it is the only way to live fully and authentically. I continue to integrate the gifts of wisdom I attained through grace, and I find exactly what I went looking for – genuine peace resting in the understanding that I am not separate, but intrinsically connected to all of life, supported and upheld by the Divine Universe. I am grateful beyond measure for the opportunity to live and practice in this beautiful community. I am forever changed. Jennifer P., St. Louis (Above in the middle with Noah)