Cultivating Rahma and Metta
My name, Rahma, comes from the Aramic root rhm, womb. The act of carrying a child is one of utmost love, compassion and kindness. In the Quran, one of the main qualities of Allah is his rahma for all Creation. The South Asian equivalent is Maitri (Sanskrit), or Metta (Pali). Whether in the Quran, Hadis or in Pali suttas, the idea remains the same, boundless loving kindness for all in the universe.
My hope with facilitating and witnessing your healing journey is that it helps you cultivate rahma and metta for yourself and all beings, big or small, seen or unseen.
My mindfulness-based somatic therapy and bodywork is designed to help build gentle awareness of sensations, body, breath and self. In cultivating a kind and wise understanding of our body, mind and heart, we learn to take better care of ourselves and become more responsive to the needs of those around us.
Metta Movement
Weekly Class Tuesdays and Thursdays
Gentle Movement for Seniors
Weekly Class on Saturdays
Rahma Muhammad Mian
My practise and facilitation is grounded in my Vipassana and Brahmavihara practise. Beginning in 2015, I have sat Vipassana retreats in Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Burma and US, learning from monastics and teachers rooted in the Theravadan tradition. I am trained in Ihsaas, a trauma-informed, somatic healing programme for Muslim women. I also trained in Hatha yoga in South India and am a registered (RYT-200) teacher with Yoga Alliance. I practice Qi Gong and Reiki.
Building somatic intelligence, trauma healing and developing proprioception is at the core of my work. I continue to learn and explore this space attending integrated rest (iRest), core awareness with Liz Koch and somatic experiencing workshops and retreats.
I have been teaching yoga since 2017. Apart from retreats, weekly classes and one-on-one work, I frequently conduct yoga and mindfulness workshops at educational instituitions and community centers like the weekly Yeh Lamha Tum Se Zinda Hay poetry reading and meditation session at the Center for Arts and Wellness. I have taught children aged 3-5 years at Veritas Learning Circle, and 13-15 year olds at Zindagi Trust schools. Expanding on this work with children and young people, I have also conducted yoga and mindfulness workshops with mothers of students studying at Kiran Foundation and Dawood Public School, and with teachers at the Zindagi Trust schools in Swat.
With a background in journalism, media development and strategy, I also teach science, technology and society, and critical media and cultural studies to undergraduates at the Social Sciences and Liberal Arts program at IBA, Karachi, incorporating mindfulness practices and theory in my pedagogy and syllabi.
An active part of the local wellness and Vipassana community, I am one of the co-founders of the Karachi Sangha, and the annual Karachi Wellness Festival.
