Satsang: Yoga for Healing Collective Trauma

Online | By donation $0, $5, $10, $15

Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

Because of the high value that the dominant culture places on individualism, it’s common for trauma to be investigated and addressed through an individualistic lens. However, trauma experienced by a group of people is a collective experience—and transforming these wounds together reminds us that we’re not alone on our journeys.

In this workshop we’ll explore the role that Yoga can play in the transformation and healing of collective trauma—in particular, collective trauma experienced as a result of living under structural and systemic oppression.

Satsang, a special time for us to come together as a community. In Sanskrit, Sat means truth and Sangha means community. Satsang offers an opportunity to come together to share spiritual teachings. The philosophy of Integral Yoga is explored, often through an informal discussion. Although spiritual paths may diverge, the act of sharing spiritual teachings with others is inspiring and creates a solid foundation for continued practice.

People of all faiths are welcome.

Kamala Itzel Hayward was a lawyer for over a decade before becoming a Yoga teacher and Yoga therapist specializing in trauma, addiction, and wellness. She is passionate about bringing Yoga and other healing modalities to adults facing chronic stress caused by living under oppression, such as racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, classism, ableism, and more.
She is founder of the Integral Yoga Institute’s Scholarship-Based Yoga Teacher Training for Black, Indigenous, People of Color. For the last 12 years, she has been sharing Yoga with individuals facing housing insecurity and related challenges, including systemic barriers; structural oppression; social dislocation; physical, emotional, and mental health challenges; substance abuse; and addiction. She sits on the Advisory Board for the Trauma Prevention and Recovery Certificate Program at the City College of San Francisco.

2023-01-13T17:52:07-08:00January 13th, 2023|Tags: , , |

Satsang: The Shared Wisdom of the Tao and Yoga

Online & In-Person | By donation $0, $5, $10, $15

Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

Please review our In-person Safety Guidelines.

When we fail to experience our innate connection with the web of life, our lives become a relentless effort to make the world conform to our limited vision. This can lead to a never-ending attempt to arrange and acquire things in order to be happy. Both the Tao, sometimes called the Watercourse Way, and the teachings of Yoga guide us to uncover our natural state and learn to live in harmony with the Universe, and the energy found in it.
Please join Gary and Ramananda for an exploration of how these traditions offer a way to let go of striving and stress, tune into our inner wisdom and learn to align ourselves with the natural flow of the Universe. A simple vegetarian meal will be offered after this in-person Satsang with a suggested donation of $5-10.

Satsang is a special time for us to come together as a community. In Sanskrit, Sat means truth and Sangha means community. Satsang offers an opportunity to come together to share spiritual teachings. The philosophy of Integral Yoga is explored often through an informal discussion. Although our spiritual paths may diverge, the act of sharing spiritual teachings with others is inspiring and creates a solid foundation for continued practice.

People of all faiths are welcome.

Swami Ramananda,C-IAYT, 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 is a co-founder of The Spiritual Action Initiative 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.

Gary Kissiah was introduced to Eastern philosophy in college when he discovered the writings of Alan Watts which led to Zen. He found yoga in 2000 and has been studying and practicing yoga since that time. Gary has a Certificate of Yoga Philosophy from the California Institute of Integral Studies. He has studied yoga at Esalen Institute, Big Sur California; Parmarth Niketan Ashram, Rishikesh, India; and Satchidananda Ashram-Yogaville, Virginia. He has led spiritual trips to Nepal, India and Tibet.
Gary is the author of “The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali-Illuminated” which uses images to illuminate the inner meaning of the Yoga Sutras.
Gary is also a lawyer and teaches workshops on yoga philosophy, ethics and law for teacher training programs. Gary has been a frequent speaker for Yoga Alliance and has been on the Board of Directors of the Integral Yoga Institute-San Francisco.

2023-01-13T14:45:05-08:00January 13th, 2023|Tags: , |

Satsang: Creating a Spiritual Vision

By donation $0, $5, $10, $15 | Online & In-person

Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

Please review our In-person Safety Guidelines. A simple vegetarian meal will be offered after this in-person Satsang with a suggested donation of $5-10.

If we don’t have some clear sense of what we really want to do with our time and energy, we can easily be sidetracked by all the things calling for our attention. Please join us as we use guided reflection to create a personal vision for this lifetime and envision the immediate steps we want to take to fulfill this vision. Having such an intention in harmony with our hearts breathes spiritual life into our lives, frees us from being captive to the consumer-oriented messages of our culture, and guides our way to a meaningful life.

A simple vegetarian meal will be offered after this in-person Satsang with a suggested donation of $5-10.

Satsang is a special time for us to come together as a community. In Sanskrit, Sat means truth and Sangha means community. Satsang offers an opportunity to come together to share spiritual teachings. The philosophy of Integral Yoga is explored often through an informal discussion. Although our spiritual paths may diverge, the act of sharing spiritual teachings with others is inspiring and creates a solid foundation for continued practice.

People of all faiths are welcome.

Swami Ramananda is the Executive Director of the Integral Yoga Institute in San Francisco 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 is a co-founder of 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.

2022-12-26T20:58:45-08:00November 30th, 2022|Tags: , , , |

Satsang: Mystical Poetry Night

ONLINE | By donation $0, $5, $10, $15 | Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

Join us for an evening of sharing words that reflect the voice of our souls. We will read and have discussions, awaken inspiration and peace in the heart. Mystical poetry and sacred songs are powerful expressions of the human experience, the dynamic meeting of the mind with the Grace of the Divine. It crosses the lines of time or even specific religious views.
All are welcome to have a poem or two ready to share or simply listen and enjoy.

We will end with a 15-minute writing exercise led by Susan. Have a pen and be ready to be amazed by what can happen at the end of this highly inspiring collaboration.

Satsang, is a special time for us to come together as a community. In Sanskrit, Sat means truth and Sangha means community. Satsang offers an opportunity to come together to share spiritual teachings. The philosophy of Integral Yoga is explored, often through an informal discussion. Although spiritual paths may diverge, the act of sharing spiritual teachings with others is inspiring and creates a solid foundation for continued practice.

People of all faiths are welcome.

Diana Meltsner, C-IAYT and e-RYT500, has been teaching yoga in the Bay Area since 2001. The classes she teaches include prenatal, gentle, various levels of Hatha yoga, and yoga workshops. Diana is a lead teacher trainer for 200hour Basic Yoga Teacher Trainings at Integral Yoga Institute San Francisco. She is certified yoga therapist and offers individual therapeutic sessions with focus ranging from stress reduction to injury recovery. Her classes include physical postures, breathing, guided relaxation, meditation and other yoga teachings which help people to find deeper sense of well-being and ability to move through life with increased ease, intuition, and stress resilience.

Susan Ford, C-IAYT, RYT-500, began practicing yoga when she was 18 years old. Her first yoga teacher training was Accessible Yoga through Integral Yoga Institute (IYI) and began teaching in 2011. Susan has been an assistant trainer for the Basic Yoga Teacher at IYI since 2012. She specializes in Gentle Yoga and working with people with disabilities, heart disease, arthritis, anxiety, depression and asthma. Her focus is to help students to meet their bodies where they are by introducing and incorporating Raja Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Pranayama and meditation. Susan has been certified in Yoga for Arthritis, Therapeutic Yoga, Raja Yoga and Meditation Teacher Training.

 

2022-04-11T23:30:45-07:00April 11th, 2022|Tags: , , , , |
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