Connecting with the Inner Nature: An Interview with Ainara Goñi
In a world where the pursuit of authenticity and inner connection is more necessary than ever, Ainara Goñi invites us to embark on a journey toward our true selves.
In this interview, we explore yoga as a path to discovering our inner nature. Ainara shares her vision of authenticity, constant presence, and the liberation that arises from connecting with the essence of who we are.
Discover how self-acceptance and deep understanding can lead to a freer, fuller life and how you can find your truth in the practice of yoga to make it ever-present.
______________________
What initially inspired you to dedicate yourself to yoga, and how has your practice evolved to this day?
It’s impressive how much my practice has evolved. I started practicing Hatha Yoga at 14, and since then, my path has grown enormously. Yoga has become both my passion and my profession. Being able to reach so many people and help them connect with themselves is deeply enriching for me.
When I began, I didn’t imagine that I would make a career out of yoga. About ten years ago, I started focusing on it more intensely. After leaving Venezuela and coming to Spain, I explored different fields, but yoga began to open many doors for me.
Everything was yoga, yoga, yoga. I decided that if that was the path, I would follow it. It was a very free, unplanned decision. Today, I can’t see myself doing anything else.
Everything was yoga, yoga, yoga
Ainara is an ambassador of oléyoga. Get your 15% discount with the code: YOGAINARA
What continues to surprise and motivate you in the practice of yoga?
The power of self-knowledge, acceptance, and self-approach. It’s a constant discovery. We are growing, changing, evolving, which keeps us in a constant rediscovery.
Each time we come to the mat, it’s a moment to recognize ourselves. Every day feels different because we feel different, but if you look over the years, our change becomes more noticeable.
The practice of yoga has accompanied me immensely in that sense. The physical well-being, with that new body constantly changing, and the mental growth, with the new Ainara who keeps growing and being nurtured in different ways, still motivate me.
Each time we come to the mat, it’s a moment to recognize ourselves.
What inspired you to create the studio 'Prevalece el Yoga'?
This project comes from the idea that, in any situation, the good, the beautiful, and even the unusual prevail. My friend and partner, Federica Gonsalvi, and I went through different situations that led to this beautiful partnership.
We decided to call it 'Prevalece el Yoga' (Yoga Prevails) because we wanted the practice of yoga, what it teaches and imparts, to truly prevail. The name says it all: yoga must always prevail. Under any circumstance, it cannot cease to be. Nothing should corrupt it.
It must always be yoga that prevails (...) let nothing corrupt it
How do you integrate other influences into your yoga routine, and how has this shaped your teaching?
From a very young age, my parents introduced me to the world of dance. I grew up with flamenco and Arabic dance. I loved the mystique and femininity of Arabic dance, but I felt something was missing. One day, I discovered Tribal Fusion Dance, a modern style that I fell in love with.
It’s a dance practiced in women’s groups. We come together and do sequences, not to shine or dance for someone else but to strengthen ourselves, build camaraderie, and empower each other. This perspective is very different from traditional Arabic dance.
When I started teaching yoga, I structured my classes with the coherence I used for choreographies. I had a blank sheet and created a dialogue with the body through movement. My practices were initially very continuous and fluid, following the rhythm of dance.
Now, as I have gained experience and evolved as a person and teacher, my practice has slowed down significantly. It’s a more subtle and profound practice, more connected with the search for each individual’s truth.
Now (...) my practice pauses much more. It is more subtle and deep
Follow Ainara at @yogainara
What led you to incorporate music and sounds into your yoga classes, and how has this influenced your students and your own practice?
Sound is something I’ve explored in an empirical way. Together with a friend who is a sound therapist, I began experimenting with live music in classes, and I found it fascinating. Not only for the personal experience but for what I saw it created in students. The way they came out of the practice was impressive; they reached a very deep state of meditation, even people who had never experienced it before.
Seeing people’s response, I began to incorporate bowl sounds into my classes. Practicing with live sound works on another level due to the vibrations it allows you to experience. It’s a very deep form of healing, and it’s definitely something I want to continue exploring.
What values guide your practice, and how have they influenced your growth as a person and teacher?
I am strongly guided by honesty, empathy, and loyalty. Honesty to know how and where to go within the classes, how to use my body, and how far I’m capable of reaching. That truth where you sit on the mat and tell yourself how I really feel, where I want to go, and how I want to move today.
Empathy comes into how you treat yourself, how you listen to yourself, and choose the variations you can or can’t use within the physical practice. Loyalty is that commitment you have to the practice, to who you are and what you do. I feel these values are fundamental in my daily life and my practice.
I am strongly guided by honesty, empathy, and loyalty
Speaking of philosophy and values, how do you interpret the concept of the ego, and how do you think it influences our ability to connect with ourselves and evolve?
The ego is quite complex to define, especially due to the judgments we hold about it. The ego is not bad; sometimes, we view it as something we shouldn’t have or think being egocentric is negative, but in reality, we need it for our self-development.
The ego allows us to have determination, willpower, and to make decisions with coherence if we use it well. However, if we feed it with pride or comparison, it can work against us. In practice, a well-utilized ego can help me progress, challenge myself consciously and coherently, protecting myself and understanding that it’s my body indicating how far I can go—not the posture dictating to me. The ego can help us stay in a growth process, but we must nurture it from the right place.
The ego can help us stay in a growth process
What does freedom mean to you, and how do you believe we can attain or experience it?
Freedom is the opportunity to allow yourself to be, to let yourself flow, to explore yourself to get to know yourself, and from there, simply be. Without society imposing on you or limiting thoughts arising from external stimuli. When you know who you are and how you are, you allow yourself things differently than when you don’t know yourself or don’t allow yourself to be. That is where we experience true freedom.
Freedom is the opportunity to allow yourself to be, to let yourself flow, to explore yourself
How do you define authenticity, and how do you connect with your authentic self?
Follow Ainara at @yogainara
What regular practices do you have to connect with your essence and stay present?
The first and most essential thing for me is being in contact with nature. There’s no other way. It’s one of the most enriching things that allows me to understand that there’s something beyond. Connecting with that greatness makes me feel that I am a small, yet very important part of it.
The practice of yoga and meditation allows me to have that connection. These are the moments when I am with myself. But beyond the mat, yoga is how you live your daily life—working on your breath while you walk, while you cook, while you’re with your loved ones… Yoga is living in that state of constant presence.
Yoga is living in that state of constant presence
What is the most important thing you want to convey to your students, and what do you hope they take away from your classes?
I like to guide students from less to more, surprising them, preparing them from the physical to the mental… to a point where, through subtlety, listening, and empathy, they can reach depths they hadn’t expected.
I feel that at this moment in our human existence, everything is very fast, very immediate… and I want them to take with them that chance to breathe, to take a pause and enjoy without expectations, opening themselves to the possibility of simply being.
______________________
Throughout this interview, Ainara has invited us to explore yoga as a path to our essence. She has shared her vision of the importance of honesty, empathy, and loyalty, both in the practice of yoga and in our relationship with ourselves and others.
Her focus on connecting with nature and living in a state of constant presence reminds us that true yoga transcends the mat and is reflected in how we live day to day. By understanding the ego as a tool for growth, Ainara guides us toward a freer, fuller life. Her dedication to conveying these values is inspiring as we embark on our own journey of self-discovery.
Thank you, Ainara @yogainara, for sharing your wisdom and reminding us that the path to freedom begins when we allow ourselves to be. May yoga prevail above all.
