For me, Yoga was about finding answers to insatiable questions that wouldn’t let me sleep at night. It seemed then, in my early 20’s, that I was the only one asking them. Who was I? What was it all for? Where are we going? A deep scrutiny of myself and my life at the time was the beginning of a long and winding journey that slowly revealed to me an ancient truth. A truth that the great religions and spiritual teachers and mystics always spoke of but rarely made their way to the ‘surface life’ of most modern humans. A truth so fulfilling, so worthwhile, so consuming that all other pursuits in life seemed to pale in comparison. The truth that in the core of our being lies an infinite happiness and profoundly unimaginable bliss; the primordial ground of being itself and the very source of our own existence. And as we deepen into it and allow it to permeate our lives and infuse our actions, it begins to assert its power and move through us in a way that allows a higher intelligence to reveal the purpose of our lives. The Yoga journey is a journey of discovering the fact that you are one with the very source of the entire universe. As we melt into that recognition our life then becomes an expression of the Source as our individuality expresses our highest purpose and function in this life.

 My journey began climbing rocks in nature when I was just 13 years old. Immersing myself deep in nature and cultivating a deep and intimate relationship with the natural world through climbing. The humble practice of testing mental, physical and spiritual strength against an unyielding rock. The rocks became my first teachers, and showed me quickly that we are smaller than we think, and yet, we have a power inside greater than we could ever imagine. Spending so much time in nature framed my perception of life and how I related to the rest of the world; from consumer society to college education and my understanding of the relationship between man and the environment, everything was seen in relationship to an overarching natural order and harmony. It would only make sense later that the challenge of climbing combined the elements of concentration, discipline and the art of movement—central features of any holistic spiritual practice—would form the background and shape the trajectory of my approach towards spirituality and life. In many ways, years later, climbing stands as an orienting force in my work, yoga practice and life.

When I was 20 years old, having been immersed in climbing for several years, the discovery of Buddhism through the lens of Rinzai Zen felt like a seamless transition in my life and I was immediately fascinated by the practice of sitting meditation and the ancient art of stilling the mind.  I began to sit silent meditation retreats under the guidance of a Zen Master in a traditional blue-tiled roof temple with deep cherry hardwood floors, nestled under one of the largest sandstone cliffs in the state. The energy was potent and charged with a 1200 year old lineage that utterly fascinated me and propelled me further into meditation and enquiry. The flavor of the simple and direct nature of Zen has colored my spiritual journey over the years and has served as an anchor when waves of esoteric and metaphysical jargon swayed me towards more cerebral interpretations of yoga.

In hindsight, the discovery of Yoga when I was 21 years old seems quite obvious. At that time though, the novelty of finding a practice that was a perfect blend of utilizing the body through movement in order to cultivate inner clarity and peace was revelatory. It blended climbing and meditation and organically carried me into the next phase of my journey. The merging of movement and meditation in a timeless and mystical structure captivated my soul and slowly revealed itself to be my life path.

Though I took my first Yoga class in college in 2002 and tried to practice a few times a week, it would take me 5 more years to discover my first Mysore style Ashtanga classes in 2007, during a summer study abroad to Japan; ironically, right in the heart of busy and crowded Tokyo. This sparked a deep interest in wanting to connect to Yoga at its source in India, and would reveal a life long fascination with the cultures of the Far East and a deep connection to both the Japanese and Indian culture. After studying Philosophy, History and Psychology in college, I came to the sobering conclusion that the answers I was looking for weren’t to be found in America. So in the winter of 2007, literally after hitting the send button to mail my thesis to my professor, I left for the airport, and with a one-way ticket, embarked on over a year of travel throughout India and Nepal in search of the wisdom of the East.  This was a pivotal point in my quest and was replete with chance meetings, serendipity and what seemed like a flow born of destiny. I spent time practicing and traveling to sacred cities and temples, mountains and rivers. I met different yoga teachers and spiritual gurus, lived near and taught English to Tibetan monks in a monastery, hiked through the Himalayas (at one point to Everest Base Camp) and participated in several silent meditation retreats. All this would build an unshakable bridge from my old life to a new way of being in the world. While I was interested in many forms of yoga over the years, and completed trainings in different styles of Hatha and Tantra yoga, and these practices deeply influence how I practice and teach now, the method of Ashtanga Yoga perseveringly asserted itself as the central pillar of my spiritual Sadhana. 

 Now, I try my best to combine the disciplined and precise Asana method with a contemplative practice having roots in Zen Buddhism, Advaita Vedanta and Christian mysticism, as well as strong influences from Tibetan Buddhism and the evolutionary teachings of Sri Aurobindo.  My vision for yoga and my teaching style reflects a desire to root the practice in its spiritual essence and connect the moving asana practice to the stillness and profound insights of ancient meditative practices.  There is a deep desire to find the stillness of Yoga in the dynamic arising of the World and move with warrior like poise to transform the World from the inside out.

Over the years I’ve taken three 500 hour Teacher Training courses in Classical Tantric Hatha Yoga, Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga and a special course on Meditation based on Advaita Vedanta and the teachings of the Sage Ramana Maharishi, in Thailand, India and Mexico respectively. I’ve traveled broadly to study with several senior Ashtanga teachers and studied with them from periods of 1 to 5 months at a time. I’ve also completed 5 vipassana retreats and nearly a dozen other 10 to 17 day silent meditation immersions. Beyond the formal Ashtanga practice I’ve also spent a lot of time working under the guidance of Spiritual teachers, Satsang teachers and Guru’s from a variety of traditions both in India and other places around the world including Japan, Thailand and Mexico, giving me a robust and multifaceted understanding of the many dimensions of spiritual practice.  In the winter of 2016, after several years of Ashtanga practice,I first went to Mysore India, the source of Ashtanga Yoga, to practice with ParamGuru Sharath Jois and on my second trip in 2018 received level 2 Authorization to teach the entire Primary and Second series of Ashtanga Yoga.   Along with Sharath Jois, I’ve also practiced the advanced series A and B of Ashtanga yoga under the guidance of Sharmila Desai and David Garrigues, and continue an ongoing study with David Gariggues.

I share all this because well, that is what one is expected to share in a bio. Despite all these years of experience, I honestly consider myself as a beginner everyday and am forever a student.

  Life is a journey into the very mystery of existence itself and yoga is a tool for taking us to the heart of the unknown, transcending limiting beliefs and old narratives that bind us to the conceptual surface of life and usher us instead into the vibrant joy of being fully alive in every single moment. The practice intelligently uses the body as a medium to both bring us out of the pattern rooted mind and into the immediate present of the moment and the inherent luminosity of our Hearts. There is a direct relationship to our practice, and the relationship we cultivate with the rest of our life, whether it is with work, loved ones or the natural world at large. When we work at dissolving the limiting narratives and momentum of our unexamined Karma we open up to the organic and ever abiding intelligence that governs all of life and find ourself interacting with fascination and awe at the brilliant and mysterious unfolding of our own life, with ever more ease, trust and a courageous faith that a benevolent force guides is ever guiding our lives.

Knowing that what I have tasted and glimpsed through yogic practices is at the universal substratum of the human soul, and really, what we are all looking for, I truly believe it is a far reaching anecdote for so much that ails modern humanity and the 21st century human heart. Knowing the source of our being and true nature of existence can not only bring deep psychological relief but serves an impetus to realign our priorities and devote our lives to that which is most essential, uniting us with a harmonizing force that can bring true peace to us, our families and communities, and the entire world. The prediction of Yoga as a tool for humanity to evolve into the next stage of our planetary progress has been clear from many saints and sages and the popularity and rise of interest in Yoga is just the beginning of understanding the deeply transformative possibilities of the practice. I truly believe Yoga is for everyone and love to break the all too common misconception that Ashtanga is only for ‘advanced Yogis’, revealing that if anyone has the yearning and willingness to put in a little work, they can experience the benefits of practice in just a short time.

The ongoing fascination with Yoga reasserts itself everyday and inspires me to share more and come up with unique ways to interpret the practice for modern times. Please read and watch more on my blog posts, YouTube channel, Instagram, where I seek to share the integral vision of Yoga in a variety of ways as I see it applying to all areas of life and the human experience. It is an honor and a blessing to share my journey with you, and I consider it a sacred link to share this transformative practice and journey of the soul with you this life. Let’s all rise together!!