Recently a Nia student came up to me after a Nia class to ask me a question. She said that she had talked to another woman about attending a Nia class but the woman didn’t want to because we said “Om!” My student asked me if Nia was religious. I shared with her what happened in the Nia White Belt Intensive I attended and my thoughts on it. What happened in the Nia White Belt Intensive I attended in December 2008, was Carlos Rosas asked one of the intensive participants what was in Nia. Her answer was “God.” Carlos said, “NO! There is no God in Nia!” I don’t know Carlos’ religious beliefs, if he has any, or how he feels about God or religion, but I think he was saying that there is no religion in Nia. It is not associated with any type of religion. It is meant for everyBODY and everyone and people of all faiths and all belief systems can participate and enjoy Nia. It truly is based on the design of the body. It is not based on ANY religion or God.
I personally feel that if you have God or any belief system in you then you will bring Him/it into whatever it is you are doing. But that is not a reflection on the event or activity. With any belief if you believe it you are going to carry it with you. So if you believe in God, Gods, Buddha, Allah, or whatever that will come with you into Nia. But Nia has none of that as a part of it. What Nia DOES have as a part of it is spirit. But that should not be confused with any type of religious spirit or supernatural spirit. Wiki states: “The English word spirit comes from the Latin spiritus, meaning ‘breath'”. And an online dictionary says: “The vital principle or animating force within living beings.” Yet some people often think of spirit as religious, as in the Holy Spirit, or otherworldly, as in ghostly spirits.
Because of that conversation I had with one of my students I had been thinking of this and in a class I said, “Let your spirit out.” And I noticed a few students stiffen. And I continued on, saying, “That is not to be meant religious or supernatural, I mean spirit as in ‘your school spirit’, when people say ‘show some school spirit no one gets all wiggy’. It’s like that. THAT type of spirit.” And I saw people relax. I saw some say, “Oh.” And then I saw some spirit.
I think of spirit as a passion or your inner child. It is the part of you that wants to slide down the banister, run up the down escalator, balance on a curb, jump in the puddles, take your shoes off and slide in stocking feet across the length of the mall, or say “WAAAAHOOOOO!” It is the breath that we often hold in. If your beliefs have your spirit saying or doing something in class then that is fine, but that is not to say that your beliefs are a part of Nia, that is a part of YOU that you bring to Nia.
The type of spirit you would have with school spirit, class spirit, and/or team spirit that is the spirit Nia calls upon and what Nia invites to be released in a Nia class. Let your inner essence dance and be free, don’t be afraid . . . . . . let go.
Terre Pruitt's Blog 