About Us

Danja Yoga brings yoga, meditation, and Reiki to people through a welcoming and refreshing approach. Through creating an inclusive and safe environment to practice these modalities, students are invited to explore who they are and take these teachings outside the studio and into their daily lives. We aim to promote a healthier being and community by connecting people and inspiring them to explore their own basic goodness.

Daniel Sernicola, RYT200, RMT, CR, CA is a sought after yoga, meditation, and reiki teacher based in Columbus, Ohio. He is an experienced registered yoga teacher with the Yoga Alliance, having over 1,000 hours of yoga teacher training from some of the most respected teachers today including Sage Rountree, Cyndi Lee, and Marcia Miller. He has certifications in trauma informed yoga, yoga for athletes, restorative yoga, pranayama, meditation, aromatherapy, and reiki. His expertise has been called upon commercially as a yoga and meditation teacher for The Ohio State University, J. P. Morgan Chase, Chamberlain College of Nursing, Young Living, Inc., Osborn Engineering, Barge Design Solutions, and Society for Marketing Professional Services to name a few. His work has been featured in Columbus Underground and he is a regular writer and contributor for Yoga Journal Publications.

Daniel Sernicola, E-RYT200, LSH, RMT, CA

He embarked on his personal yoga journey when he came to the simple realization that he couldn’t touch his toes. In an effort to regain flexibility lost through working out, he started practicing yoga and quickly realized its numerous benefits, extending beyond the physical. Daniel believes yoga heals and nourishes and includes this knowledge in his teaching. His classes offer a heartfelt and eclectic mix of philosophy, asana, pranayama, meditation, reiki and a healthy dose of humor, designed to awaken healing and wellness.

Daniel has worked with athletes for many years to improve and increase athletic performance from both a physical and mental perspective, and makes his classes approachable for all by providing modifications and adjustments for challenging poses. He’s worked with local sports teams including The Ohio State University Men’s Crew, Westerville Crew, Upper Arlington Crew, Greater Columbus Rowing Association, Columbus Coyotes RFC, and Stonewall Sports Columbus.

Daniel is passionate about bringing yoga and mindfulness to youth and teaches a program in the Columbus community for anti-bullying. In October 2016, his work with underserved youth was recognized with a “Distinguished Community Partner of 2016” award given by Kaleidoscope Youth Center. In 2017, Daniel was named one of the top fitness instructors in Columbus by Columbus Navigator.

Daniel is a student and teacher of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism and has developed meditation programs inviting others to realize the benefits of meditation in their lives. As a reiki practitioner and teacher, Daniel has introduced others to this healing energy work through trainings and private sessions.

Utilizing knowledge from a successful career in corporate marketing, Daniel co-founded Danja Yoga, creating a diversified mix of the spiritual, physical, and business side of yoga, meditation and reiki. It is his life’s passion and goal to inspire others and build better communities through this business.

Jake Hays, BBA, AAS, RYT200, RMT began his personal journey to yoga as a weightlifter with a desire to increase his flexibility and strength. Not only did yoga significantly improve his athletic stamina, it brought him new-found peace, awareness, self-acceptance, and self-love. These values are the foundation of his teaching path, which he shares with his students, encouraging everyone to experience their own practice as a journey of discovery by tapping into the energy of radical self-acceptance. Jake’s extensive knowledge of body types has benefited the many students and athletes he teaches with purposeful modifications and adaptations. He’s worked with local sports teams including The Ohio State University Men’s Crew, Westerville Crew, Upper Arlington Crew, Greater Columbus Rowing Association, Columbus Coyotes RFC, and Stonewall Sports Columbus.

Jake’s yoga teaching philosophy is influenced by his athletic background and his belief that yoga is for every body, regardless of gender, size and physical limitations. Through his teaching, Jake invites students to fully experience yoga, including breath awareness, mindfulness and enhanced flexibility, to enhance their strength building and body awareness. He welcomes every student with an open heart by fostering an atmosphere of respect, fun, and judgement-free self-discovery.

Jake Hays, BBA, AAS, RYT200, RMT

Jake is dedicated to sharing his ongoing study of yoga, pranayama, reiki, meditation, and wellness modalities with all his students. Jake trained at Yoga on High and received his RYT-200 in 2014. He is also a Reiki Master Teacher, student of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism, and has certifications and specializations in Yoga for Athletes, Pranayama, Restorative, and Trauma Informed Yoga. In October 2016, his work with underserved youth was recognized with a “Distinguished Community Partner of 2016” award given by Kaleidoscope Youth Center. In 2017, Jake was named one of the top fitness instructors in Columbus by Columbus Navigator.

Jake is co-founder of Danja Yoga and Wellness, Inc. He has a corporate career as a Business Analyst with J. P. Morgan Chase holding an Associate of Applied Science in Technology and Business from West Virginia University and Bachelor of Business Administration from Franklin University.

Yoga

Join A Yoga Class Today!

Roll out your yoga mat and discover the combination of physical and mental exercises that for thousands of years have hooked yoga practitioners around the world. Whatever your gender, age, or body type, yoga has the power to calm your mind and strengthen your body. We believe yoga is for everyone. Our classes are approachable, inclusive, and just plain fun! You’ll leave feeling challenged, yet refreshed!

Public Classes

We currently not offering any public yoga classes due to social distancing.

Sekoia for Men: On hiatus due to social distancing.

Yoga for Athletes

The first thing we usually hear from Athletes is, “I can’t touch my toes and my hamstrings are tight!” We can help. Whether you’re looking for athletic conditioning or recovery, our Yoga for Athletes program is a complement to your training routine. Our goal is for balance, injury prevention, emotional health and mindfulness. We incorporate Yoga practice, concentration, and breath awareness to allow athletes to stay focused and calm in competition and life. Classes and private sessions integrate flexibility, balance, strength, and breath work to improve endurance, power, fitness, and focus for all ability levels and sports. We’ve worked with many sports teams and individuals including The Greater Columbus Rowing Association, The Ohio State University Men’s Crew, Westerville Crew, Upper Arlington Rowing, Columbus Coyotes, and Stonewall Sports.

Private Sessions

Private yoga lessons offer students the ability to focus on personal interests, concerns or goals. Instead of following along with the yoga instructor in a class setting, a private lesson allows an individual to set specific goals and plans, such as personal goals for flexibility, strength or meditation. Contact us to set up your private yoga session.

Trauma Informed Yoga

Yoga can be a tool of healing and empowerment for people who have experienced trauma. Trauma sensitive yoga can help clients heighten their body awareness—to notice what is happening inside their bodies—and thereby learn to release tension, reduce and control fear and arousal, and tolerate sensation. The practice is based on the growing understanding that trauma takes a heavy toll on the body and the brain. Trauma-sensitive yoga empowers individuals to learn to calm their minds and regain a feeling of safety inside their bodies. We offer both trauma sensitive sessions for groups and individuals.

Meditation

Learn How to Meditate!

Many individuals are discovering the benefits of meditation for their lives. Believe what you’ve heard about meditation: it can focus your mind, open your heart, and sometimes surprise you with insight.

Public Classes

Everything you need to get started with a meditation practice can be found in our meditation courses. You’ll learn the basics along with advice for making your meditation practice a priority no matter how busy you are. You’ll also learn how to bring the wisdom and compassion you discover through meditation into other areas of your life. If you already have a mediation practice, our various series can also serve as a refresher.

Private Sessions

Private meditation sessions offer students one-on-one sessions inviting them to discover the benefits of meditation, establish a practice, and maintain accountability. Through personalized Dharma talks and instruction, students can deepen their individual practice through setting specific meditation and mindfulness goals and plans. Contact us to set up your private meditation session.

Reiki

Reiki Training

At Danja Yoga, we offer individual Reiki sessions as well as trainings on how to give Reiki to yourself and others through the Komyo ReikiDo system of Eastern Reiki. We currently offer certifications in Level One (Shoden), Level Two (Chuden), Masters (Okuden), Master Teacher (Shinpiden), and Certified Teacher (Shihan). Our teachers are Daniel Sernicola, Shihan; Barbara Ellen Held, Shihan; and Jacob Hays, Shinpiden. Please see our Events section for upcoming dates.

Reiki Sessions

Ever feel like there’s a blockage in your body, mind, or heart holding you back and making you feel sluggish? You can realign and bring your energies into balance with Reiki. Reiki is a Japanese hands-on healing and relaxation practice for connecting universal energy with the body’s innate powers of healing. It helps recharge, realign, and rebalance our energy field to create optimal conditions of the body’s healing systems. Reiki assists in the restoration of balance on the physical, mental, and emotional levels. During a session, hands will be placed on you in various locations to help balance out your energy. The effects of the session may be felt physically, or they may result in an attitude shift, a creative insight, a solution to a vexing problem, or in a host of other nonphysical ways.

Energy and Space Clearing

You may have walked into a room after a heated argument and felt the heavy energy that lingers or felt like the energy in your personal or work environment is off. Your space might need a clearing of accumulated energies. Space Clearing is a specialized form of energetic clearing that harmonizes and balances the flow of energy in spaces at very deep levels. It is like clearing energetic “cobwebs” that create stress in our homes, workplaces, and lives. Space clearing is a way to break the endless-loop cycle and overlays of negative stress patterns, one gentle layer at a time. A clear space allows us to connect more fully and experience our most spacious selves. Our space clearing techniques derive from Sicilian, Indian, and Tibetan traditions through the use of herbs, incense, smudging, antique singing bowls, bells, and more.

Testimonials

What People Are Saying

“As coaches, we have used yoga, Danja Yoga specifically, to help our rowers both mentally and physically. Daniel and Jake have taken the time to find out what specifics, I as a coach, would like to see with our athletes. Physically, our athletes increase core strength, balance, and even cardio. However, more important to me, are the mental aspects of what yoga does for our athletes. The ability to calm themselves when sitting at the start line, or any piece, is paramount. Daniel and Jake have taught our athletes how to center their thoughts, along with calming the anxiety that athletic competition can bring. Danja Yoga does a great job of tailoring the sessions to help us achieve our end goals.”

Greg Harvie

Men’s Head Coach, Upper Arlington High School Crew Team

“Danja Yoga not only provides the well known benefits of increased flexibility and blood flow, improved range of motion and eases a stressful mind; yoga personally has helped aid in my mind and muscle connection which is a quintessential aspect of bodybuilding. Every lift, I find my physical self even more in tune with my spiritual and emotional self – thus allowing me to reach my fitness goals. It creates a long muscle and a long muscle is a strong muscle.”

Alexis Nicole

Professional Bodybuilder

“My husband and I have been around meditation our entire lives. Through Daniel’s teachings, we’ve been able to understand this practice for the first time. As an Indian woman, I came to this country embarrassed of my physical features including my hair and skin tone. I didn’t feel attractive. Through this meditation practice, I can now look in the mirror and see beauty.”

Meditation Student

“More than anything, our young people need and deserve a safe space to feel comfortable in their bodies, something they are denied in so many other spaces. Over the course of our yoga sessions, we saw tremendous growth in our youth. They grew in strength and flexibility, sure, but most importantly, they expressed using yoga as a coping skill and to reduce stress. In fact, many youth expressed that their weekly yoga class was the “highlight of my week” and “when I felt calmest.” Many youth who were initially very body conscious and anxious became more confident and comfortable over the weeks, and most beautifully, perhaps, was seeing our youth meditate quietly together, encourage one another, and laugh hysterically together – which is encouraged by Daniel and Jake, of course! They have skillfully created a warm and affirming environment that our youth look forward to each week.”

Michele Jordan

Former Center Program Coordinator, Kaleidoscope Youth Center