PSYC 10
Yoga, Creativity & Mindfulness Winter 2024

Winter Study is an ideal time to set new intentions, and to focus on physical and mental well-being. This course offers a retreat in which students can de-stress, refresh, and tap into their creative strength. Primarily a yoga class, we will meet 4-6 hours each week to deep dive into the mindful practice of yoga asana and pranayama. The course is a multi-faceted exploration of the intersection between creativity, mindfulness and yoga. We’ll explore accessible ways to cultivate mindfulness, including a guided meditation with Professor Bernie Rhie. In addition to our time in the yoga studio, students are encouraged to keep a daily journal, responding to prompts, readings, and poetry. Early in the month, our group will go on a 2 day retreat at the renowned Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Located in a beautiful natural setting with breathtaking views, Kripalu offers a variety of daily yoga and mindfulness classes as well as delicious organic and vegan food. This will be a nourishing time for students to spend some healthy quiet time and to get to know each other better. Back on campus, we will continue to do yoga three times a week, and will also spend a full day at MassMoca, do some slow art looking, participate in a “sound bath,” and even practice yoga within the galleries themselves. We will also visit the Clark Art Museum, where we’ll enjoy a mindful hike, followed by a guided tour looking at the intersection of art + mindfulness. Throughout the month, students will explore their own creativity, whether it’s creative writing/journaling, or working with paper and colored pencils in a mandala making workshop. There will be a required reading list and a final creative project. We’ll share our projects in the last week of the class, and examples might be leading a guided meditation, sharing a drawing, painting or poem, or designing a yoga or mindfulness self-practice.