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Erica "Yoga" Jones is a former inmate at Litchfield Penitentiary who works as the prison's yoga instructor. She is portrayed by Constance Shulman. Yoga's character is based on Yoga Jane in the memoir Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison on which the series is based.

Personality[]

A recovering alcoholic, Jones is now a peaceful "hippie" who does yoga. As a Buddhist, she is very down to earth and spiritual. She leads a yoga class at Litchfield and always tries to break the conflicts of people with another or themselves, cheering them up with Buddhist wisdom.

Still having to fight with her feelings of guilt, which she tries to compensate with her Buddhist lifestyle, she seems to be reassured by her time in prison, as she got to know "girls that remind [her] every day that self-forgiveness is possible".

Physical Appearance[]

Jones is a petite older white woman with short choppy blonde hair. She is presumably very flexible from doing yoga, but this may not be the case as fellow inmate Judy King stated she wasn't. In the first few seasons, Jones' hair was short and cropped, but around season 3, she let it grow longer, and started tying it into ponytails.

Biography[]

Before Litchfield[]

Jones and her family were alcoholics. At one point, she had an acre of land in California that she used to grow marijuana. Jones often had to ward off deer that loved to eat the marijuana. One night, she shot and killed an 8-year-old boy whom she had drunkenly mistaken for a deer, although he was just running away from home because his parents took away his Nintendo. After that, she likely became a Buddhist to overcome her painful feeling of guilt.

Season One[]

Jones is now the mild-mannered yoga instructor at Litchfield. She is typically seen hanging out with Red's crew.

On Piper's first day at Litchfield, Jones is one of the first inmates she gets to know and befriends, as she sits down at the same table as her during dinner.

Jones attempts to be a peacemaker when Watson angers the inmates by exercising at night. Unfortunately, Watson mocks and goads Jones and suggests she molested or killed a child, causing Jones to lash out and slap Watson. Later, Watson, who is remorseful after noticing Jones not teaching yoga, encourages Jones to reveal the truth. She later tells Janae why she ended up in prison -- for killing an 8-year old boy who was running away from home and wound up on her marijuana farm, mistaking him for someone who was after her marijuana. After Jones tells Watson about her tragic past, the two begin a friendship. On one occasion, they use a nail to shock themselves by a chapel outlet, which Jones finds cathartic.

Jones also has a small quarrel with the Litchfield Alcoholics Anonymous group for holding sessions in the same room at the same time as her yoga classes when the chapel stage is destroyed.

Season Two[]


Season Three[]

Jones starts to work for Piper's garments business. (...)

Season Four[]

Jones is assigned to bunk with Judy King in a private cell, she isn't impressed at how Judy gets 'special treatment' over the other inmates, but uses this to her advantage. Late in the season, Jones takes ecstasy with Judy King and Luschek. The three then have a threesome, the morning after which Jones appears upset due to "sleeping with the enemy".

Season Five[]

During the three day riot, Jones hides in Frieda’s bunker with Red, Alex, Piper, Blanca, Frieda, Gina, Norma, and Anita. She then decides to surrender peacefully to the armed officers who were storming the prison. She leaves the bunker with Gina, Anita, and Norma. She is later seen with Gina, Anita, and Norma, surrendering to the armed officers. She is last seen with the other captured inmates, who were boarding buses to go to an unknown location. [[Storm-y Weather]]

Season Six []

Jones is not present in the sixth season of the show, except for a brief cameo in the last episode.

Relationships[]

Romantic[]

  • Joel Luschek (one known time) - a guard she did drugs with along with her roommate, Judy during the prison lock down and had a threesome with.
  • Judy King (one known time) - her new assigned roommate after MCC took over, a former popular TV Chef Personality, frenemy, and had sex with and a threesome with while on Molly with CO Luscheck.

Family[]

Unknown.

Friends[]

  • Janae Watson (former) - fellow inmate and friend of Yoga Jones. After hitting Watson, Yoga Jones regrets this and eventually bonds with Watson. In Season 2, when Janae returns from the SHU after taking the fall for Vee's cigarette buisness, she ends her friendship with Yoga, saying she's "done being your token black friend." After this incident. the two are never really seen spending time with each other, most likely because of Janae's assimilation into the Black Girls
  • Piper Chapman - a fellow inmate and friend of Yoga Jones. During Chapman's first time, Yoga Jones is among the inmates to help her out.
  • Sister Ingalls - a fellow inmate and friend of Yoga Jones.
  • Carrie "Big Boo" Black - a fellow inmate and friend of Yoga Jones.
  • Nicky Nichols - a fellow inmate and friend of Yoga Jones.
  • Lorna Morello - a fellow inmate and friend of Yoga Jones.
  • Norma Romano - a fellow inmate and friend of Yoga Jones.
  • Sam Healy - Yoga Jones' counselor, who seems to have a decent relationship with Yoga Jones.
  • Galina "Red" Reznikov - a fellow inmate, who seems to like Yoga Jones, as she gives her extra food during the first episode.
  • Brook Soso - supported in her hunger strike by Yoga Jones.
  • Frieda Berlin
  • Gina Murphy
  • Anita DeMarco
  • Gloria Mendoza

Enemies[]

Trivia[]

Yoga Jones is based on Yoga Janet from the memoir, who was doing a two-year sentence on a marijuana charge. Kerman describes her as “fiftyish, tall, fair and striking” and “like me — a middle-class drug criminal.” In the show, Yoga Jones confesses to Watson that she’s in jail on murder charges: she grew weed in her backyard, but she was an “old-fashioned drunk” who ended up accidentally killing an 8-year-old boy she mistook for a deer fucking with her crops.

Memorable Quotes[]

"Work hard to make something as beautiful and meaningful as you can, and when you're done, pack it in and know it was all temporary."
— Yoga Jones ("I Wasn't Ready")
"You have to remember that. It’s all temporary."
— Yoga Jones ("I Wasn't Ready")
"Sometimes you just wanna feel something."
— Yoga Jones
"Surviving here is all about perspective."
— Yoga Jones
"I'm thankful for you girls, who remind me every day that self-forgiveness is possible."
— Yoga Jones
"Okay, you want to project your issues onto me... That's cool."
— Yoga Jones
"One of the highest. People in power are always saying so."
— Yoga Jones
"You can't tell people to go and then blame them for leaving."
— Yoga Jones to Alex Vause. ("Tattoo You")

Gallery[]

Others[]

Appearances[]

Navigation[]

Inmate Navigation
Maximum Security Galina Reznikov  •  Lorna Morello  •  Tasha Jefferson  •  Nicky Nichols  •  Frieda Berlin  •  Irene Cabrera  •  Marisol Gonzales  •  Dayanara Diaz  •  Rosalie Deitland  •  Antoinetta Kerson   •  Annalisa Damiva  •  Raquel Munoz  •  Tina Swope  •  Alana Dwight  •  Nicole Eckelcamp  •  Beth Hoefler  •  Maria Ruiz  •  Suzanne Warren  •  Adeola Chinede  •  Charlene Teng  •  Lolly Whitehill  •  Shruti Chambal  •  Elsie  •  Cathy  •  Marie Brock  •  Gail Abbot  •  Silka Webb  •  Aimee Sandoval  •  Amy Roth  •  Kelly Lee Glenna  •  Calloway  •  Claire St. John  •  Mandy Walsh Baker  •  Sally Jo  •  Juanita Vazquez  •  Crystal Tawney  •  Gladys Watkins  •  The Brown Twins  •  Alice Hutton  •  Claudette Pelage  •  Erica Taslitz  •  Aleida Diaz  •  Tali Grapes
FDC Cleveland Alex Vause  •  Carrie Black  •  Carmen Aziza  •  Helen Van Maele  •  Erica Jones  •  Leanne Taylor  •  Angie Rice  •  Janae Watson  •  Alison Abdullah  •  Kasey Sankey  •  Brook Soso  •  Anita DeMarco  •  Gina Murphy  •  Norma Romano
Metropolitan Detention Center Corrine Hill  •  Joyce  •  Felicia  •  Araceli  •  Darius McRae  •  Mazall
Unknown prison Michelle Carreras  •  Brandy Epps  •  Jennifer Digori  •  Stephanie Hapakuka  •  Rhea Boyle  •  Shelly Ginsberg  •  Lea Guerrera  •  Randolita  •  Reema Pell  •  Jeanie Babson  •  Jayne Cooke  •  Emily Germann  •  Ramona Contreras  •  Irene Rosario   •  White Cindy   •  Voth   •  Annette   •  Danita   •  Madison Murphy
Last seen in Minimum Security Irma Lerman  •  Annie Valdez  •  Loretta Fisher
Released inmates Piper Chapman  •  Stella Carlin  •  Mercy Valduto  •  Sara Rice  •  Linda Ferguson  •  Sophia Burset  •  Jane Ingalls  •  Jimmy Cavanaugh  •  Judy King  •  George Mendez  •  Cesar Velazquez  •  Cindy Hayes  •  Gloria Mendoza  •  Blanca Flores
Deceased inmates Poussey Washington  •  Yvonne Parker  •  Tricia Miller  •  Maureen Kukudio  •  Carol Denning  •  Barbara Denning  •  Rosa Cisneros  •  Dominga Duarte  •  Tiffany Doggett
Deported inmates Maritza Ramos  •  Karla Córdova  •  Shani Abboud  •  Swapna Majumdar  •  Dario Zuniga
ICE inmates Santos Chaj  •  Mei Chang  •  Efua Onagbeboma
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