Deborah Koehn

Deborah is a yogini and wise woman with a passion for the earth-based simplicity of the shamanic traditions and loves to draw parallels for finding our true nature as yogis by exploring the ritualistic roots of these wise and connected peoples and the ancient essence of the yogic teachings. Receiving her inspiration from nature and spirit, Deborah seeks to embody a balanced sense of grace, attention to the vibrancy of the inner body and our connection to a greater universe, inspiring students to touch their own yogic souls and to bring asana practice to life from within. Deborah’s studio has always been nature. Having years of experience with the extensive benefits and applications of yoga, Deborah has acquired knowledge, skills and intuition for applying the ancient wisdom of yoga to each individual.  She has touched a broad spectrum of people from contemporary western yoga students to indigenous peoples in remote villages of the Peruvian Andes, from farmers in the rice fields of Bali to Tibetan monks in monasteries deep in the Indian Himalayas. She is caring, compassionate and seva (service) oriented, focusing on yoga as a wellness practice in her teaching. Deborah is on the faculty of the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Spirituality Program introducing medical school students to yoga as a viable and beneficial health modality. Deborah’s first teacher, in 1971 was the mother of yoga in the western world, Indra Devi. Deborah has an extensive background in the teachings of B.K.S. Iyengar, and is deeply grateful for the inspirational work of Angela Farmer and Victor Van Kooten, and for the brilliant teachings of Aadil Palkhivala. Deborah, David and adventure, cultural, film-maker, soul surfer daughter Alison Teal have lived in Mysore India, and studied Ashtanga Yoga with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois. Deborah offers Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher Trainings annually oceanfront at her family home on the Big Island of Hawaii. Hale Kai (ocean house) is an open air, elegant, exclusively solar powered and sustainable retreat created and built by her husband David, Balinese style in the spirit of old Hawaii. Surrounded by tropical gardens, fragrant flowers, hundreds of  aloe plants, and fruit trees, and warm, blue, crystalline waters, Hale Kai offers the opportunity for living the life of a yogi. Deborah and David have traveled in India, living with the Tibetan Ladakhi people in North India, traveling with sadus, holy men, in remote regions of the Himalayas of India and Nepal, climbing the high peaks and also exploring the Rajasthan desert. They have pioneered routes throughout the Andes of South America over 30 years ago. Deborah being the first woman to climb and telemark ski many of the highest peaks of Peru and Bolivia while encountering the ritual, ceremony and spirituality of the high Andean people. Their routes of discovery are still guideposts for adventure travel in Peru. Deborah and David first explored Bali 25 years ago living in a small village, and studying with Balians while surfing some of the best waves in the world. Deborah has also led Yoga Adventures to Costa Rica and Mayan Yucatan and has worked for Colorado Outward Bound School for 8 years leading domestic and international wilderness adventures for teens, adults and women. She has degrees in sociology, eastern religions and dance , is a trained emergency service technician, is trained in subtle energy and nutritional counseling. She speaks fluent Spanish, Indonesian and conversational Quechua, Ladakhi and Nepali. Deborah has been featured in numerous photos, articles and publications including Yoga Journal, Women in Sports and Fitness, Outside Magazine, Fit Yoga, as well as Athleta, Prana, and Patagonia catalogs. Deborah was also featured on ESPN Television