About Us...

Ahimsa Yoga Ireland embodies Aoife Ni Mhurchu's unique way of sharing Yoga with her students.

Ahimsa is the first principle of Yoga, and it means gentle, non-harming, non-violence.  It is a love that embraces all of creation.

Ahimsa expresses the essence of Aoife's approach to teaching - gently challenging her students to explore their mind, body and soul, guiding them towards their own inner teacher, the wise voice within the heart.

Why Ahimsa...

I began Ahimsa Yoga Ireland in an effort to define what makes my Yoga teaching unique.  I had always been spiritually curious, and when I came to Yoga back in 2003, I knew I had discovered something special that resonated deeply with me.  Yoga and meditation had a profoundly positive affect on my approach to life, and over the years my relationship with yoga evolved from a hobby, to a passion, to my way of life. 

At first I tried out different styles of Yoga, practiced when I could, read and explored, attended Vipassana silent meditation retreats, talked with others who knew more than me!  Yoga became an important part of my life, but at the beginning I never imagined I could teach it.  Over the years as I studied, travelled, and worked, most often as a language teacher (I taught French and English for years!), I started to feel that Yoga was what I really wanted to dedicate my life to.  I already loved teaching, and to me teaching yoga corresponded perfectly with my desire to both follow my heart and serve the greater good, sharing something I truly believed could improve the lives of individuals, and perhaps society too.  After some more adventures, I eventually returned home to beautiful Ireland to fulfil my dream and in 2012 I began training to be a Yoga teacher.

TRAINING...

I have trained with many renowned teachers including Josh Summers, Lisa Peterson, Tony Purcell, Lisa Temple, Swami Vidyanand, and Teresa Murphy-Moore. I was awarded my first 200h Certification in July 2013.

In 2014 I studied Raj Yoga, Transformational Hatha Yoga and Yoga Therapy with Lisa Temple and was awarded my 500h Certification in May 2015.
In October 2015 I trained in Prenatal Yoga at the Transformational Hatha Yoga School in Greece with Michelle Kaminski.  I have also attended workshops with the amazing Uma Dinsmore-Tuli who specialises in Pre and Post Natal Yoga, Yoga Nidra and Womb Yoga.  

For the past few years I've been focussing on Yin Yoga and Meditation, and was delighted to complete my Yin Yoga training with Josh Summers in June 2018.  The "Yin" approach to yoga is something I believe is so important in the world today, where we often prioritise success as going faster, working harder, doing more.  Yin teaches us the value of finding stillness, and softness, the benefit of doing less.  I am continually studying, training, and deepening my practice - in July 2020 I had the pleasure of completing another Yin Yoga training, this time with the wonderful Grace Tempany. It was a brilliant course that helped me further develop my Yin yoga teaching.

I have had the honour of working with many people, from children, teenagers and adults, to pregnant women, new moms and their babies, and trainee teachers as a guest teacher on various teacher training courses.   During the course of my training I have studied the history, philosophy, theory and science of Yoga, and specialised in Raj Yoga, Transformational Hatha Yoga, Prenatal Yoga, Meditation, Yoga Nidra, Yin Yoga and the Chakra. I have developed and delivered classes, workshops and courses on many aspects of Yoga, which I am looking forward to sharing with more people, so that the teachings of Yoga might ripple ever outward.

HOME...

I believe the body is a gateway to the sacred quiet space within, which in turn connects us to each other, and our environment.  I am particularly passionate about breath and meditation in Yoga as important keys for opening these doors.  By weaving Yoga into our every day lives we can access the tools we need to navigate the sometimes stormy seas of life and discover a way home to ourselves.

I feel that my approach to teaching is authentic and supportive, providing a safe and nurturing space for students to step out of their comfort zones and explore what Yoga means to them.  Ahimsa may mean gentle, but not necessarily easy!  I encourage students to challenge themselves while listening to their body and breath.  I believe that my true goal as a Yoga teacher is to help people learn to listen to the teacher they already have within themselves.