Origin Story
About Kuthuta Yoga
Kuthuta, pronounced "ku-two-tah", is a Tumbuka word that means “to breathe”. Tumbuka is the tribe of Towani Clarke's maternal grandfather in present day Malawi/Zambia in the Southern Africa. No breath no life. Yoga is Sanskrit from Asia and means to “join” or “be one”. Kuthuta Yoga uses the ancient Indian art of yoga with the African spirit of oneness or Ubuntu in our current Eurocentric or Western life to bring us together within ourselves - Body, Mind and Spirit and as well as remind us of our oneness with the rest of life. Kuthuta Yoga offers medium tempo paced yoga classes, in-depth yoga courses and when the mood grabs us retreats. Kuthuta yoga was founded by Towani Clarke in 2009.
Herstory: Towani clarke
Chief Energy Overhauler
(CEO)
Towani Clarke was born and raised in Lusaka Zambia to a Zambian mother and British father. She was introduced to yoga by her mother Sara Longwe, who stumbled across yoga while looking for ways to cope with the tension from both black and the white community members to her inter-racial marriage .
Many years later yoga helped Towani recover from the traumatic breakup of her 1st marriage, hooking her onto yoga for life. Then in 2009, she questioned what she wanted to do in life and took the plunge leaving behind the security of a stable corporate job to live out her two passions of being a full-time yoga teacher and fashion designer. Since 2009, Towani has taught over 1000 students and more than 7,000 classes. The years of teaching have further confirmed, the healing power of yoga.
Towani now lives in Denver Colorado and started the Kuthuta Yoga Online Studio to maintain contact with students spread all over the world and connect to new students looking for holistic body, mind and spiritual yoga.
Our beliefs
Everything is energy.... our body, emotions, thoughts, spirit and the world around us. While our emotions and thoughts can be felt and discerned even if we can't tangibly "see" them, our body and physical matter are energy dense enough for us to see and touch. Without the energy of the spirit we cease to exist as we know in this life.
Everything is connected ... as all the energy in the universe is connected. In other words, we are one with divisions ultimately being illusions. The word "yoga" derived from the sanskrit word "yuj" means yoked (together) or one.
Separation is the underlying cause of dis-ease ... that can manifest in our body, emotions, mind and spirit. In our fast paced often stressful modern life it is easy to become disjointed within ourselves - living long stretches in our heads detached from our bodies and our biological needs that keep us alive.
Yoga helps us connect or rather realise our connection to ourselves, other people, living beings and the world, indeed universe around and in us.
As we age the bundles of energy called our bodies can feel the impact of stress, a sendentary lifestyle and injuries. Yet at the same time we often have less time and resources to workout. This is why the Kuthuta Yoga Online Studio offers light hearted effective classes and courses in Hatha & Yin yoga in person or in the comfort of your own home to rejuvenate your life, improve your energy and balance.
You can attend online classes by becoming an Online Yoga Monthly Member.
There are classes with varying
- Levels of difficulty – ease, challenge or challenge plus
- Class length – 45, 60 or 70 minutes long
- Focus areas – hips, back, stomach, legs and so on
- Speeds – slow, medium or fast
Re/discover Yourself after Heartbreak 6-month Programs
Heal and re/discover yourself after heartbreak through the self-mastery of yoga, meditation, paradigm-shifting & flow.
In 2021, Towani realized, that she wanted to work in deeper and more meaningful ways than a general yoga practice allowed. Towani started developing the Re/discover Yourself after Heartbreak programs. These programs help her clients use their heartbreak to crack open their lives to new sides of themselves and life through the healing and self-mastery practices of yoga, meditation coupled with other paradigm shifting modalites. In this approach my clients heal, grow, re/discover their gifts to improve their lives and the lives of the people around them. The effect ripples out to the community and world around them.
The backbone of the Re/discover Yourself after Heartbreak programs is developing a consistent yoga and meditation practice with carefully designed modules to help you: understand heartbreak, release what no longer serves you, bring in uplifting energy, change some negative aspects of your life into positive ones, find/revive the gifts that light up your life, and the lives of others. You will be able to ingrain all these lessons for a more resilient happy life.
Results... from Kuthuta Yoga
FAQ : Frequently Asked Questions
1. What makes Kuthuta Yoga different from most other yoga classes?
- Kuthuta Yoga teaches the more traditional Hatha style of yoga which is closer to the source or essence of yoga. This means that the classes tend to have a mid-tempo pace that helps beginners get the hang of poses and helps more experienced yogi’s get deeper into the poses.
- Our classes have a specific structure to help you get the most from the class: Centering in the beginning to help the mind focus, warm up to prepare the body, all-round conditioning to work all parts of the body, balance poses to improve balance and strengthen bones, core work for stronger abs and healthier backs, twists to alignment and detoxify, breathing for life, a guided meditation at the end of class to relax not just the body but also the mind and spirit, and finally the centering at the end to gently bring us back to the rest of life.
- Our integrative approach involves the mind and not just the body in the class.
2. What equipment do I need?
Nothing fancy just these few things that we can easily find:
- a yoga mat or blanket
- a yoga block or a couple of thick books
- a folded blanket
- a yoga strap or belt or scarf
3. Can I really get fit with yoga?
Definitely, if you do enough, consistently for example 2 – 3+ one hour classes a week consistently for a month.
4. Can I lose weight with yoga?
Yes, if you do enough, regularly for a sustained time (1 month +) or combine with other forms of exercise with a reasonable diet. I have personally experienced weight loss with yoga when I have done 4+ one hour classes a week over at least a month.
5. What makes yoga different from regular exercise?
Many things which can be summed up in – yoga works the body deeper, but also affects our mind and spirit or energy. For instance, on a physical level, yoga helps balance hormones, improves posture, improves breathing and many other bodily functions. Yoga helps relax and release the mind as well as energize the spirit for you to express in whatever form of religion or spirituality suits you.
6. Is this religious and likely to clash with my religious beliefs?
No. Yoga is not a faith, can and is practiced by people of all faiths. There are people of many different faiths (practicing Kuthuta Yoga) without them feeling it clashed with their faith.
7. Can I do this class if I have pre-existing health conditions? knee or back trouble, blood pressure issues, vertigo?
It depends on the severity of these conditions. It is best to consult with your doctor or therapist before starting class and or get directly in touch with Towani Clarke of Kuthuta Yoga via email (towanic@kuthuta.com) or Kuthuta Yoga Facebook page.
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Kuthuta Yoga you to attend one complimentary online at no charge. We would like everyone to have access to at least one class to help transform their energy.
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Contact Us
Tel: +1 720 797 5559
