Meet Our Teachers
Alchemystic is proud to showcase the talent and wisdom of teachers who embody our values. These folks have dedicated their dharma to sevā (service to others), social justice praxis, and sharing their ancestral medicine with the community. These teacher bios allow you to get a deeper glimpse into who these facilitators are, and provides ways to connect 1-1 with them and their work.
Christine Siu Abernathy (they/she/he)
Christine Siu Abernathy
magical + queer + southern
Christine is born of diaspora and nourished from the teachings of abolitionist visionaries. Their teachers include Yogacharya Bharath Shetty who studied directly with Padma Vibhushan B.K.S. Iyengar and Ti Harmony who studied Kripalu. Christine has also studied trauma-sensitive yoga with The Center for Trauma and Embodiment, kundalini yoga for marginalized youth with YOGA for Youth, and Sankhya philosophy and prānāyāma with Prasad Ragnekar.
They see healing as a critical component of justice work and use yoga as a tool for accessing abundance, inner wisdom, and power inside all of us. They teach yoga as an energetic practice to support the overall vitality of mind, body, and soul. Their own journey has illuminated yoga as a lifelong practice to transform their life and deepen their connection with others.
They specialize in working with youth, elders, and bodies of varying sizes and abilities. They love supporting their queer/trans and BIPOC fam through yoga as well as people experiencing chronic pain, burnout, insecurities, anger, and low mood. If you have any questions or just want to say hi, drop them a line at @house.of.chi on instagram.
Instagram: @house.of.qi
Yoga is my way of life. Regardless of whether or not I am physically teaching the practice, I bring my ancestry and knowledge of this tradition everywhere I go.
I graduated from UMASS Amherst in 2013 with a Bachelor in Arts degree that I designed myself. I called my degree Writing with a focus on Social Change. My thesis reflected on all of the classes I took in Global Comparative Literature, Women’s Studies, Comp Lit of the Indian Ocean, African-American studies, contemporary slavery, media and propaganda, and creative writing. I proposed that they all weaved together to create my understanding of how oppression and art have coincided throughout history, and how we can use creativity and ancient wisdom to liberate humanity in the future. I also have a minor in biology, and am interested in how spirituality and science can come together to deepen the potential of healing modalities.
After graduating I got my 200 hour yoga teacher training certificate from Corepower San Diego. Although this studio did not provide the true spiritual teachings of yoga that I was seeking, it did give me comprehensive knowledge on anatomy and proper cueing strategies. I continue my education through taking courses and classes led by other South Asian peers and leaders, learning from and sitting with elder wisdom keepers, personal research and svādhyāya, and daily sādhanā. I am now E-RYT certified, meaning I have taught over 1000 hours of yoga, which is a true honor. My teaching style is trauma-informed, nurturing, focused on pranic healing, in devotion to Earth and ancestors, and led by love. Yoga is my way of life, and I saw first hand how integral indigenous healing modalities are in social justice spaces as a manager at international environmental non-profit GreenPeace. I was able to lead a successful and joyful team by applying yoga tools to my management style in order to address and avoid the deep burnout that can occur in folks who do this important work. I am so thankful to the QTIBIPOC teachers that feel called to share their medicine and practice with our community through Alchemystic Studio. Seeing how many folks are bravely sitting in the seat of teacher and culture bearer, who stand for gentle disruption and curious seeking, gives me hope for the future of our communities. There are so many paths of yoga, spirituality, and healing, and they all lead to the same destination: Oneness. Thank you for joining in the dharma of Alchemystic Studio: abolitionist activism guiding us to co-weave a more just and equitable future, and queer re-indigenized yoga bringing us healing and grounding as we walk this path together. 🙏🏽
“I have had the true honor to know Meesha as a passionate activist, a mindful and supportive yogi, and an amazing friend! We bonded over our love for yoga and our drive to protect our earth and the people who live here while working for GreenPeace. Whenever the cause or campaign we were working on would start to feel too big to take on Meesha was always there to help bring things into perspective. In order to reset and shift her mindset through yoga, she would often pop into a handstand, allowing her heart to rise above her head. Meesha leads and speaks from her heart and this is powerful. I am so excited to share this safe space and see Alchemystic Studio grow!”
“My love and admiration on a personal level which I call friendship and sisterhood has grown over the years since I first met Meesha in a yoga class she instructed at Tripower. I felt in my most comfortable yoga zone, the original Indian tradition rather than a too westernized version. Her light, smile, choice of music, Mantras, adjustments, and fabulous sequence made this experience one of my best memories. Often I recall it to give me strength when my own practice or teaching becomes a challenge due to exhaustion. Her passion for yoga reminds me of my own passion for Bhakti 💙And her added beauty and sensuality makes the practice an absolutely unique experience. 💙🙏🏼📿✨”
![This is a rare article written from a diasporic Kashmiri’s perspective quoting folks on the ground in India Occupied and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir about what it means to us to experience true Azaadi (liberation). Please give this a read. 🍁🕊️🤲🏽🙏🏽⛰️
Repost from @shado.mag
Kashmir recently made international headlines, but you don’t need to look through too many articles to notice a glaring omission of Kashmiri voices. As part of the Kashmiri diaspora, @imaanisk - aka @imaanifesto - feels well placed to explain that this deliberate silencing of Kashmiris has been going on for decades.
In order to address this, Imaan speaks with Kashmiris from both Indian-occupied Kashmir (IOK), Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK), including those on the ground, recent arrivals to the UK and members of the broader diaspora in the UK. In this long-read, Imaan takes us through the history of the region, and talks to fellow Kashmiris about belonging, colonialism and fighting against erasure.
Imaan writes: “In a world shaped by the relatively modern concept of the nation state, many people struggle to imagine identities outside its framework. Many communities – from Puerto Ricans to Uyghurs, Hawaiians to Palestinians, Kurds to Tibetans – often face similar questions: Why is your identity so complicated? Can’t you just say what passport you hold? But identity is more than an officially recognised flag, lyrics to an anthem or papers with red stamps; it’s deeply felt, rooted in a people’s history, culture, and sense of belonging.”
⛓️ full piece in @shado.mag bio!
🎨 @heedayahlockman who says: “This illustration depicts a Kashmiri individual whose vibrant identity is fragmented and obscured by censorship and physical barriers. It highlights how geopolitical narratives silence Kashmiri voices and erase their experiences; yet, glimpses of their enduring culture and resilience persist amidst occupation and control.”
[id: A figure wearing a Kashmiri scarf with black boxes blocking out their eyes and part of the image. In the background there is the landscape of Kashmir, hidden behind barbed wire.]](https://i0.wp.com/alchemysticstudio.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png?w=1080&ssl=1)