My name is Melody Yoko Reilly, and I am a dedicated yoga teacher who brings a unique blend of experiences with profound spiritual insights to my practice.
Trained in Ananda Yoga at the Expanding Light Retreat Center in Nevada, California, my yoga studies have focused on yogic philosophy and spiritual awakening. When I was about 20 years old working as a fashion model in Tokyo, Japan, my roommate introduced me to yoga. My first yoga class allowed me to find so much inner peace as I practiced tuning in to my true nature and tuning out the outside noise of the pressures of life. With a background in competitive gymnastics, cheerleading, and dance, I really enjoyed the movement and precision of each of the poses. I also loved being upside down and doing handstands so yoga was a wonderful place for me to express myself in ways that I wasn’t able to in everyday life.
After working over 12 years in the modeling and TV industry, I decided to deepen my studies in yoga and what yoga’s true essence is. I read The Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda a few years earlier and as some things happen in life, my Yoga Teacher Training at Ananda School of Yoga and Meditation found me. Created by a disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda himself, Swami Kryianada established Ananda Yoga based on his Master’s Teachings. It was a variation of yoga that I had never experienced before. Understanding the power of the mind, specific affirmations are used with each posture allowing for prana (energy) to be released and flow through the body with ease. The goal is experiencing the eight natures of God and ultimately to spiritual awakening. The newly released energy in the body is then drawn up through the center channel and directed to the Third Eye, the point between the eyebrows, which some consider, the spiritual seat of the soul.
Being immersed in prayer, meditation, chanting, yoga, mindfulness, and gratitude, allowed me to heal on all levels.
Since my YTT in 2018, I have furthered my learning to include Restorative Yoga Training, Meditation Teacher Trainings, Lucid Body Trainings, and currently, A Course In Miracles Training.
Combining my love of freely expressing through the body and compassion, I teach yoga to expand the mind beyond all form into experiencing our eternal state of being.