On one fateful Wednesday night in January, I texted a friend words I never thought I would say: “I just decided to go to Maha Kumbh. I’m leaving tomorrow.” As a chronically over-working PhD student, my connection to my Indian Hindu roots was limited to saying a quick...
How Yoga Transformed a Brooklyn Kid into a Global Spiritual Leader
In this heartfelt and reflective conversation led by host Avi Gordon (director of Integral Yoga Teachers Association), Swami Asokananda (president of the Integral Yoga Institute of New York) shares his incredible life journey—from his Brooklyn upbringing in a...
Virtual Fundraiser for Satchidananda Ashram–Yogaville – May 15 & 17, 2025
Satchidananda Ashram–Yogaville is hosting a Virtual Fundraiser on May 15th and then again on May 17. Please JOIN THE RENEWAL! Join for a heartwarming 30-minute virtual fundraiser to uplift and support our beloved Ashram—a sanctuary of peace, service and spiritual...
Sri R. Sharath Jois 1971 – 2024
Sri R. Sharath Jois, Paramaguru (lineage holder) for the Ashtanga Yoga tradition passed away on Monday, November 12, 2024 in Charlottesville, Virginia where he was teaching a course for Ashtanga teachers. Prashanti Carroll Friedmann, a disciple of Swami Satchidananda...
Honoring Alan Asangan Binstock: An Integral Yoga Luminary
Alan Asangan Binstock was born in 1948 and raised in Bronx, New York. His formal fine arts education began in New York’s High School of Music and Art, followed by undergraduate studies at Hunter College. He moved to Boulder, Colorado and began developing sculpture and...
Iria Leino: A Life of Art, Spirituality, and Yoga
The Finnish-born artist Iria Leino is known not only for her expansive body of abstract work but also for her deep spiritual devotion, which played a central role in her artistic development. Throughout her life, she found inspiration in a rich spiritual practice and,...
How God Came Into My Life
It would be easy to dismiss the question by saying: "Yes, after a prolonged period of intense austerities and meditation while I was living in Swarg Ashram, during which I had the darshan of a number of maharishis and their blessings, the Lord appeared before me in...
H. H. Sri Swami Sivananda: 137th Jayanthi and 100th Sannyas Anniversary
September 8th 2024 marks the 137th Jayanthi (birth anniversary), as well as the 100th Sannyas (monkhood) anniversary of H. H. Sri Swami Sivananda, the Guru of Sri Swami Satchidananda. Swami Satchidananda humbly said of his Guru, " I feel very fortunate to have sat at...
Documentary: “Divine Harmony”
On August 27, 2024 a special kirtan service in celebration of the anniversary of the birth of Swamini Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda was held at the Integral Yoga Institute of New York. Special highlights of the program included special guest, Sita Michelle...
Integral Yoga Podcast: Mataji
In this episode of the Integral Yoga Podcast, senior Integral Yoga monk Swami Gurucharanananda (Mataji) shares insights into her life journey and spiritual path, first as a Catholic nun and later meeting her Guru, Swami Satchidananda. Born in Washington DC on April...
Reflections on a Journey: Unity Under the Desert Sky
I set out on a journey to the 2024 Integral Yoga European Reunion held in Spain not knowing what to expect. It’s been more than six years now of serving as director of the Integral Yoga Teachers Association (IYTA) at Yogaville, and during that time, I’ve gotten to...
“America’s First Guru”
America’s First Guru, by director Raja Choudhury, premiered on PBS in May 2024. The film is the compelling story of how a young charismatic Indian monk named Swami Vivekananda came to America for the first World’s Parliament of Religions in 1893 and went on to share...
“Lotus Girl”
From one of the central figures in Buddhism’s introduction to the West and the founder of Tricycle magazine comes Lotus Girl: My Life at the Crossroads of Buddhism and America by Helen Tworkov, a brilliant memoir of forging one’s own path that Pico Iyer calls...
“The Last Ecstatic Days”
Ethan Sisser, a young man with terminal brain cancer started livestreaming his death journey. Thousands joined to celebrate his courage. Honoring Ethan's wish, his doctor Aditi Sethi transported him to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. What...
A Journey with Sri Gurudev: Remembering Parameshwari Dinsmoor
Integral Yoga's beloved Parameshwari Mary Dinsmoor, an early disciple of Swami Satchidananda (Sri Gurudev), passed away on May 29, 2024, from cancer. Born on Oct. 6,1940, she was a true embodiment of love and selfless service and leaves behind a legacy of devotion,...
Wandering Turtle: A Heartfelt Tribute
Wandering Turtle, a a cherished member of the Choctaw community and beloved member and resident of Satchidananda Ashram–Yogaville for the past 25 years, passed on into the Divine Light on May 15, 2024. Turtle, as he was lovingly known, was a dedicated Karma Yogi,...