We recently lost an extraordinary soul, and it has taken me some time to find the words to express my overwhelming gratitude for the impact this person has had on my growth and development as a human being.
She was a Professor of Psychology and former Chair of the Psychology Department at Sonoma State, where she taught for 33 years. During that time, she introduced yoga before yoga studios existed. She was a pioneer in the field of Biofeedback and played a key role in designing some of the first EEG machines.
She was the founding director of the Humanistic Psychology Institute (now Saybrook University, Oakland) and co-founded The Novato Institute of Somatic Research and Training with her husband, Thomas Hanna. After his tragic death in 1991, she took over the program, overseeing it and training others, including myself, in the field.
She also introduced the Equine Hanna Somatics program, the canine program, and Somatic Yoga and directed and produced Somatics magazine.
She tirelessly contributed to the research, constantly reminding us that science would eventually catch up—and she ensured it did.
She worked privately with people, horses, and even elephants in India. Her contributions are too numerous to list, but I’ll say this:
She was my mentor and favorite teacher; she changed my life.
I first learned about her through a former student, Martha Peterson, who wrote the book Move Without Pain. The changes I experienced from that book were so significant that I knew I wanted to train with her. I began by exploring her Somatic Yoga program and knew I had some groundwork to do.
I found James Knight, one of her first Somatic Yoga students, who eventually took over her class at Sonoma State. He founded Gentle Somatic Yoga, and I trained under him to become a Gentle Somatic Yoga practitioner.
Finally, in 2021, after finishing James’ training, I felt ready to apply to her program, and she happily accepted me. That year of training was magical—being with Eleanor was a gift, and I held onto every word as she taught us about the Somatic dimension.
When it came time for my exit interview, I expressed interest in continuing with the three-year Hanna Somatic Education Program. However, I felt intimidated by the prospectus (it’s not an easy program). I remember her loving gaze as she reassured me that she believed I could do it and encouraged me to take on the challenge. I’m getting ready to graduate from that program in February of 2025.
She helped me and so many others step through the looking glass of what we thought was possible, giving us the gift of realizing that limitation only lives in the mind and that reaching our potential is our birthright.
Her name is Eleanor Criswell Hanna, and she will be deeply missed on this earth by the countless beings she has touched.
Rest well, Eleanor. Om Shanti Om.
Pictured below: Eleanor Criswell Hanna on the cover of her 1986 book How Yoga Works: An Introduction to Somatic Yoga.
