Scripture Study: Abiding by the True Self, part 3 of 3

Online | $5-15 sliding scale

Please register in advance; a Zoom link will be emailed 1 hour before the session, or join Zoom directly via your Momence dashboard.

How does the Yoga Sutras guide us to discover our true selves? In a society bound by overarching institutions of bondage and destruction, the Yoga Sutras provide a map to the real purpose for this life. By honestly dissecting our reliance on oppressive systems, we can discover how we perpetuate them. Join Mia Velez in this 3-part series to delve into the Yoga Sutras and discover our path to liberation.
The Yoga Scripture Study series is an offering in which participants learn and discuss how the teachings of Yoga apply to our daily lives. We read passages, take time to reflect upon them, and share with each other how these words and practices support us on the spiritual path. All are welcome to join any one or all of the sessions.

Each session offered individually:


Mia Velez, E-RYT 500, entered the Integral Yoga Sangha in 2016 through the kitchen by helping to cook Thursday community lunches and silent retreat meals. In 2018 she was certified as an Integral Yoga teacher to learn more of the IYI approach and be part of the lineage. Mia is a disciple of the Moy Yat Ving Tsun Kung Fu lineage and is highly influenced by her martial arts training. After completing her first 200-hour teacher training in 2008, she began to see undeniable parallels in Yoga and Kung Fu. When she began teaching Kung Fu in 2014, she incorporated Yoga insight and principles in her classes. Her goal in teaching is to connect with the students and to facilitate a safe space for exploration and self-inquiry. Yoga and Kung Fu are integrated into her daily life as a mother, a preschool teacher, and an advocate for gender, race, and class equality through multiple non-profit groups.

Scripture Study: Abiding by the True Self, part 2 of 3

Online | $5-15 sliding scale

Please register in advance; a Zoom link will be emailed 1 hour before the session, or join Zoom directly via your Momence dashboard.

How does the Yoga Sutras guide us to discover our true selves? In a society bound by overarching institutions of bondage and destruction, the Yoga Sutras provide a map to the real purpose for this life. By honestly dissecting our reliance on oppressive systems, we can discover how we perpetuate them. Join Mia Velez in this 3-part series to delve into the Yoga Sutras and discover our path to liberation.
The Yoga Scripture Study series is an offering in which participants learn and discuss how the teachings of Yoga apply to our daily lives. We read passages, take time to reflect upon them, and share with each other how these words and practices support us on the spiritual path. All are welcome to join any one or all of the sessions.

Each session offered individually:


Mia Velez, E-RYT 500, entered the Integral Yoga Sangha in 2016 through the kitchen by helping to cook Thursday community lunches and silent retreat meals. In 2018 she was certified as an Integral Yoga teacher to learn more of the IYI approach and be part of the lineage. Mia is a disciple of the Moy Yat Ving Tsun Kung Fu lineage and is highly influenced by her martial arts training. After completing her first 200-hour teacher training in 2008, she began to see undeniable parallels in Yoga and Kung Fu. When she began teaching Kung Fu in 2014, she incorporated Yoga insight and principles in her classes. Her goal in teaching is to connect with the students and to facilitate a safe space for exploration and self-inquiry. Yoga and Kung Fu are integrated into her daily life as a mother, a preschool teacher, and an advocate for gender, race, and class equality through multiple non-profit groups.

Scripture Study: Abiding by the True Self, part 1 of 3

Online | $5-15 sliding scale

Please register in advance; a Zoom link will be emailed 1 hour before the session, or join Zoom directly via your Momence dashboard.

How does the Yoga Sutras guide us to discover our true selves? In a society bound by overarching institutions of bondage and destruction, the Yoga Sutras provide a map to the real purpose for this life. By honestly dissecting our reliance on oppressive systems, we can discover how we perpetuate them. Join Mia Velez in this 3-part series to delve into the Yoga Sutras and discover our path to liberation.

The Yoga Scripture Study series is an offering in which participants learn and discuss how the teachings of Yoga apply to our daily lives. We read passages, take time to reflect upon them, and share with each other how these words and practices support us on the spiritual path. All are welcome to join any one or all of the sessions.

Each session offered individually:


Mia Velez, E-RYT 500, entered the Integral Yoga Sangha in 2016 through the kitchen by helping to cook Thursday community lunches and silent retreat meals. In 2018 she was certified as an Integral Yoga teacher to learn more of the IYI approach and be part of the lineage. Mia is a disciple of the Moy Yat Ving Tsun Kung Fu lineage and is highly influenced by her martial arts training. After completing her first 200-hour teacher training in 2008, she began to see undeniable parallels in Yoga and Kung Fu. When she began teaching Kung Fu in 2014, she incorporated Yoga insight and principles in her classes. Her goal in teaching is to connect with the students and to facilitate a safe space for exploration and self-inquiry. Yoga and Kung Fu are integrated into her daily life as a mother, a preschool teacher, and an advocate for gender, race, and class equality through multiple non-profit groups.

Forgiveness: Freeing the Heart from the Past

In-person or Online | $15-30 sliding scale

Please register in advance; a Zoom link will be emailed 1 hour before the session, or join Zoom directly via your Momence dashboard.

Please review our In-person Safety Guidelines.

Deeply painful experiences can create resentment and anger, which are then held like protective armor around the heart, constricting our capacity to love and experience joy. In this workshop, we’ll explore the obstacles to forgiveness and the way forgiveness can act as a healing process that frees the heart from self-judgment and the judgment of others. We’ll examine how unresolved anger and deeply-held resentments act as a prison for the heart, and how we can skillfully work to resolve them. Forgiveness can transform difficult relationships into steps for spiritual growth, allowing us to be true to ourselves and have compassion for others.

Mark your calendar for Cultivating Compassion and Forgiveness, 7-day Meditation and Raja Yoga course with Diana Meltsner, Swami Ramananda and Eric Gustafson
7 mornings: Monday-Sunday, OCT 14-20 ⋅ 7:15–8:00am PT
All sessions will be recorded and shared with participants for later viewing. CEUs for Yoga Alliance offered to teachers upon request.


Swami Ramananda, C-IAYT, E-RYT 500, is the Executive Director of the Integral Yoga Institute in San Francisco, C-IAYT, and a greatly respected senior teacher in the Integral Yoga tradition who has been practicing Yoga for over 45 years. Ramananda offers practical methods of integrating the timeless teachings and practices of Yoga into daily life and transforming the painful aspects of human experience into steps toward realizing one’s full potential.
He leads beginner, intermediate and advanced-level Yoga teacher training programs in San Francisco and offers a variety of programs in many locations in the U.S., Europe and South America. Ramananda co-developed the Stress Management Teacher Training program with Swami Vidyananda, has trained many teachers to bring Yoga into corporate, hospital and medical settings, and has taught mind/body wellness programs in many locations. He is a certified Yoga therapist and founding board member of the Yoga Alliance, a national registry that supports and promotes yoga teachers as professionals. He co-founded The Spiritual Action Initiative (SAI), which brings together individuals committed to working for social justice for all beings and for the care and healing of our natural world. His warmth, wisdom and sense of humor have endeared him to many.

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