Doctor J. Yusuf Quddus Erskine began his life long study of yoga in 1972, while living in a commune that he helped found in rural Virginia. He went for teacher training at the Swami Vishnudevananda yoga ashram on Paradise Island, Bahamas in early 1974. He taught hatha yoga classes for ten years in Charlottesville, Virginia, before moving to California to attend osteopathic medical school in 1985.
During his Virginia years, he was very active as representative of the Sufi Order of the West, headed by Pir Vilaya Inayat Khan. Yusuf-Quddus Erskine presented meditation seminars, performed Universal Worship Services, conducted on-going Sufi Dancing meetings, and yoga classes integrating Sufi philosophy with hatha.yoga. For his livelihood, he opened a vegetarian restaurant in 1975, which expanded to include a natural foods store in 1978.
While on pilgrimage in 1981 to India, which included time volunteering at Mother Theresa’s mission in Calcutta, Yusuf-Quddus’s vocation to be a physician was awakened. Seeking a medical pathway that would allow him to incorporate his yogic experience, he chose osteopathic medicine. He graduated from osteopathic medical school in 1989 in Southern California. Yusuf Quddus Erskine moved to Sonoma County to complete his training, including a family practice residency at Sutter Medical Center in Santa Rosa, Ca.
J. Yusuf Quddus Erskine D.O. started in private practice in Sebastopol, Ca in 1992, providing family practice, osteopathic manipulative medicine and homeopathy. In May, 2004, he was honored by the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors for distinguished service as an advocate and healthcare provider in HIV/AIDS Care. Currently, he focuses his medical practice in Osteopathic manipulative medicine and classical Homeopathy. He continues to provide holistic HIV care to Sonoma Country residents seeking his expertise.
Combining his expertise in osteopathic manipulation, therapeutic exercise, and a lifelong practice in hatha yoga, Yusuf Quddus Erskine teaches an ongoing O.N.E. Yoga class series and occasional workshops. New students are welcome!
