Deepening into Meditation

By donation $0, $5, $10, $15 Sliding scale | Pay what you can.
Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

Meets monthly, every third Wednesday

“You begin with ambition of some kind. Then, at a certain stage, meditation becomes instinctive. Then you cannot not meditate – it happens to you.” – Chogyam Trumpa

This ongoing group meets on the 3rd Wednesday of each month to explore and refine aspects of our meditation practices – how we sit, why we sit, and how that relates to our lives. The format consists of a group meditation with some direction, a talk on a related subject and a question/answer session with sharing.

 

Prajna took her first yoga class in 1970 in southern California. Later that year she came through the doors of the Berkeley Integral Yoga Institute, and since that time she has loved Integral Yoga.
Over the years she has maintained an active involvement in movement, healing, and meditation. She has practiced yoga, tai chi, and various dance forms; co-authored two best selling books on Holistic Health; lived and danced flamenco in southern Spain; and since 2000, has taught Rosen Movement. In 2010, she completed her IYI Teacher Training at Yogaville, VA and began teaching yoga. She brings to her teaching four decades of meditation practice, the last twenty eight in the Buddhist tradition.

Attuning to the wisdom of the body/mind and opening to the present are the foundations of both Prajna’s teaching and personal practice.

She cooked professionally for many years at retreats centers, cafes and restaurants.

 

2021-01-20T13:54:12-08:00January 20th, 2021|Tags: , , , |

More Inspiration for the Spiritual Journey

We are so sorry to say that this event has been canceled.

 

Join Swamis Ramananda and Asokananda for more inspiration and encouragement on the spiritual journey. In this second online workshop, they will share the teachings and practices that have most impacted their lives and guided them towards spiritual equilibrium.
The spiritual path is beset with challenges and pitfalls, and progress is slow. Almost all of us will greatly benefit from having friends who have traveled this road, who can share their experience, and who care enough to want to support us. These two senior and respected Integral Yoga swamis will discuss what has sustained them for many years and what is inspiring to them at this time.

Half of the session will be dedicated to Q&A. Please bring your heartfelt questions. All are welcome regardless of whether or not the first program was attended.

 

Testimonials
“Sw. Asokananda is so knowledgeable and willing to share with honesty. It’s always a pleasure to hear him speak.” — Devi Peterson

“Studying with Asokananda, experiencing and listening to his guidance and insights is so refreshing to my soul. I loved what he offered to solidify our understanding of experience.” — Sevika Douglass

“Swami Ramananda has deep personal knowledge of the topics and uses his personal experience and compassion to share these valuable teachings in a genuine and compelling way.” — Anne Tedesco

“Ramananda has such a wealth of information…I love learning from him, and I gathered so much. Thank you Ramanandaji. Such a gift to spend time with you, even virtually. Your presence is so powerful.” — Rashmi Galliano

 

About

Swamis 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.

 

Swami Asokananda, E-RYT 500, a monk since 1973, is one of Integral Yoga’s foremost teachers—known for his warmth, intelligence, and good humor. His teaching comes out of his own practice and experience, having absorbed the wisdom of his Guru, Sri Swami Satchidananda.
While he enjoys sharing the practical wisdom of yogic philosophy (especially the great Indian scripture, the Bhagavad Gita), he also loves his practice of Hatha Yoga. He is one of Yogaville’s primary instructors for intermediate and advanced Hatha Yoga teacher trainings.

He presently serves as president at the Integral Yoga Institute in New York City. Before this position, he served as the President of Satchidananda Ashram–Yogaville and Integral Yoga International.

 

Satsang: Enlighten Up

By donation $0, $5, $10, $15 Sliding scale, pay what you can.
Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

Most of us are facing numerous challenges in our day to day lives, making it difficult to keep our balance and even harder to stay focused on our spiritual growth. We may lose hope of making real progress towards experiencing a life filled with deep peace and natural contentment. Join us for this Satsang in which we will use stories, humor and reflection to enlighten up, gain inspiration, laugh at our minds and discover how to enjoy the spiritual journey with all its twists and turns.

Reverend Paraman Barsel has been a disciple of Sri Swami Satchidananda since 1970. He has served as president of Yogaville West, the Washington D.C. and New York Integral Yoga Institutes, and Yogaville East in Connecticut and has served on the Board of Trustees and Spiritual Life Board of Satchidananda Ashram-Yogaville, Virginia. He was co-coordinator of the LOTUS Dedication. Paraman was an editorial consultant on Inside the Yoga Sutras and Inside Patanjali’s Words by Rev. Jaganath Carrera as well as several of Sri Swami Satchidananda’s works including the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and To Know Your Self. He helped to design the first Integral Yoga Hatha Basic Teacher Training program, and has taught meditation workshops, Jnana Yoga, Raja Yoga and the other branches of Integral Yoga for many years. He was ordained into the Integral Yoga Ministry in 2007. In addition to teaching he currently helps with the Ashram Prison Project and, with his wife, has co-hosted hundreds of Sutra Study Gatherings in their home for many years.

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.

2020-12-23T12:56:57-08:00December 23rd, 2020|Tags: , , , |

Guru Puja

By donation $0, $5, $10, $15 (Sliding Scale. Pay what you can) | Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

This monthly devotional service (on the 22nd each month) is a time to come together for blessings from our spiritual teacher, Sri Swami Satchidananda, and to offer gratitude for his guidance and love. A puja (spiritual service) with participatory chanting will be performed. A short video of Sri Swami Satchidananda or talk may also be offered. This service will include our noon meditation.

Swami Divyananda Ma, E-RYT 500, has had a wealth of experience teaching Integral Yoga around the world since 1973. She has taught at corporations, universities, the Commonwealth Cancer Center, and for the Dr. Dean Ornish Reversing Heart Disease programs. She has also served as one of Integral Yoga’s Basic Hatha teacher trainers.

Swami Divyananda Ma took monastic vows in 1975 from the great saint and yogi, Sri Swami Satchidananda. Over the years she has served as the director of the Integral Yoga Institutes in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and as Ashram Manager at Yogaville. She also served for ten years as the director of the Integral Yoga Institute in Coimbatore, India; this immersion into the South Indian culture has given depth to her understanding and practice of Yoga.

Now an itinerant monk, Swami Divyananda is constantly “on the road.” She leads the annual Sacred India Tours to sacred sites in India in addition to international Yoga retreats and trainings. Learn more at sacredindiatours.org.

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