Lexa Chernin wants to teach Veda mantras to share the precious knowledge she has received and to help people recognise and find their voice.
By Sophia Ann French
The first time Lexa Chernin heard Sanskrit chanting, she thought it was yoga music, as she heard it at a yoga class. The sound moved her, so she asked her yoga teacher for the name of the song. “I found the song and played it one night after my sādhanā. I had no idea what chanting was or what it meant, but I started sobbing, and I knew immediately that I needed this,” says Lexa. Based near Philadelphia, USA, Lexa is an Āyurvedic Yoga Therapist, an Āyurvedic Practitioner, and a Sanskrit teacher. She found yoga when she attended a class during her first pregnancy. “I was physically uncomfortable and looking for a way to get my body to feel more comfortable. I started yoga, and within a few months, my body felt more comfortable. I got what I came for from my yoga practice. But it felt uninspired, and something was missing. When I heard that first chanting, I knew what my practise needed. From that moment on, chanting became the foundation of my sādhanā. It wasn’t Veda chanting, but it was chanting nonetheless. I studied yoga extensively and then started teaching. I studied āyurveda and became an āyurvedic practitioner. I decided that if chanting was this powerful for me, then maybe I needed to study Sanskrit. So I started studying Sanskrit, and I’ve been teaching yoga, āyurveda and Sanskrit for a while now,” says Lexa.
Finding Veda Studies
Lexa wasn’t new to chanting when she heard about Veda Studies through friends who attended the first Indica Veda Studies Teacher Training Programme. She signed up for a course and loved it, “I had not formally studied chanting. I had done so much on my own, but none of it was formal instruction. I didn’t know anything about svaras. It was really hard, but I’m up for the task. It is such a powerful, energetic practice. It engages my brain, my attention and my focus, and creates a vibration in the body and a connection to something bigger than myself. It absolutely complements my existing spiritual practice. Chanting is something that I can do forever. Even if my body hurts or I’m tired, I can always be chanting, I can always be expanding my brain and creating new neural pathways. It is just such a heart-opening practice for me. It impacts me on every level — physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. The vibration of Veda gets into every aspect,” explains Lexa. She decided to teach yoga because the practice felt so powerful; she couldn’t keep it to herself and wanted to share the knowledge. A similar inspiration encouraged her to learn and teach Veda. “I was very uncomfortable with the sound of my voice. I’m not a singer. But hearing the sound of my voice while chanting was incredibly healing, and I realised I wanted to teach chanting. I just have this urge to teach as I gather new information. I want to share it with my community.”
Indica Veda Studies TTC
Lexa is currently attending the third Indica Veda Studies Teacher Training Programme and feels that “The teacher training is absolutely amazing. It is such a wonderful group of people who are so supportive of each other. It is a very safe place to find your voice, and it gives you a chance to get feedback from Shantala. The feedback we get in the teacher training is much more nuanced. I feel like my chanting has grown exponentially. It has been incredibly helpful with confidence as well. I absolutely want to bring this to my community.” In addition to practical lessons, we also cover a lot of theory in the TTC, and Lexa loves that balance. “It makes it so much richer. It gives context to what we are doing. It’s one thing to just chant, but to understand who we are chanting to or what we are chanting about makes it so much more juicy. It’s not just theory anymore; it has a deep meaning. So I love all of the theory. It just is so rich.”
Lexa on Spirituality
“Can I start with a little saying that I’ve heard. I heard once that religion is going to church, and thinking about fishing and spirituality is going fishing and thinking about God. I think that’s beautiful because spirituality has no rules around it. It’s very intensely personal, and it is ingrained in every single aspect of life. You can be doing anything — driving, fishing, and still be thinking about the divine. I think that’s what spirituality is.” I asked Lexa to share some advice for future students of Veda and students who wish to start teaching Veda. “My advice is to practise, practise, practise. Find time every day and make it non-negotiable to sit and to chant these sacred words. Be in that vibration that they carry, and do not be afraid of the sound of your own voice. Do not be afraid to make mistakes. Just keep at it with an open mind and an open heart. Trust that it will nourish you in exactly the way that it is meant to.”
For further information on Lexa, visit her website, Lexa Chernin.