The Heart of Yoga

In this episode, Susan Swan and Mark Whitwell talk about Susan's experience as a Yoga teacher, including suffering a stroke and continuing to teach while rehabilitating. Susan speaks about recovering language through breath, swearing and the sound of OM, coming face to face with the reality that we live one breath at a time, and teaching yoga in hospital to help other patients recover. Together, long-time friends Mark and Susan discuss the inevitable decline of the body, finding contentment despite it all, the pain of facing judgement and abandonment, and some possible positive outcomes from the impact of the pandemic on yoga teaching. They also discuss what kept Susan going as a teacher during the most difficult times, and meetings with UG Krishnamurti. We hope you enjoy the bhav of this friendship. Links More information on aphasia and on Susan's aphasia book club mentioned: https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/the-aphasia-book-club/ Ram Dass on bodily decline - "It's like taking off a tight shoe" Susan on gratitude — "It was a day. A day of my life. I'm fine. I was fine the whole time," she says. "If you have something that life serves up, you have a choice to say, hey, there is a blessing in here. How is it going to serve me and not impede me?" https://www.latimes.com/health/la-xpm-2012-nov-17-la-he-gratitude-20121117-story.html https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/yoga-teacher-susan-swan-is-photographed-at-her-los-angeles-news-photo/564012471 Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

In this Part 2 (you don't need to listen to part 1 first!) of God and Sex discussion, Mark and Rosalind talk about: Why we need both strength and receptivity How we develop receptivity via our asana Why we must address the denial of the feminine and put a spotlight on sex as a topic rather than avoid it How a Yoga practice is the context in which we become receptive in relationship with another How sex and intimate relationships are a direct participation of Mother Nature's grand plan But do you have to be in an intimate relationship to have a good spiritual life? Is polarity the same as attraction or sexual "chemistry"? How yoga helps us develop the discernment of the 3 L-s: who we Like, Love, and Lust What asana does to actually release the drama out of your relationships Beauty as an inherent feature of every person Why you'll suffer if you seek God… or a boyfriend or girlfriend, for that matter The importance of receptivity in the body in order for sexual energy to flow and not just come out as a stress release Why the concept of "the two becoming one" is a degradation of Tantra Actually, do we even need to talk about sex? Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

In this episode Rosalind grills Mark on the promises made by the Yoga tradition, Yogananda's classic 'Autobiography of a Yogi,' the lust for superpowers and supernatural experience and how it affects everyone, and what Mark's favourite superpower is. What are siddhis anyway? What is the "psychic greed" that we may be numbed into by culture? Understanding spiritual promises as the axiom of modern society Mark talks about Gurus and miracle-makers he met in India and his response "Autobiography of a Yogi": truth or fiction? The transformational power of despair. How the yoga teacher extracts life-denying hopes and fantasies like the pulling of teeth. How can it be true that "All is one" when there are so many contradictory things and beliefs in the world? Siddhis as a marketing technique for spiritual business people Does belief in "mind over matter" deny science? UG Krishnamurti: forget about it, you're not qualified, give up now. Are we tired of years of struggle in linear programs of "spiritual self-improvement"? The relieving "post-surgical" effects of yoga practice and realizing life itself Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

"Dear friends, I was born in the spring of '54 to a farmer father and school teacher mother. Both of them children of homesteader parents. After grade 12 , in 72/'73, I backpacked and worked through Europe and Northern Africa for nearly nine months. Returning home I began farming and attending an agricultural college receiving a diploma in Ag Production. I bought my first land when I was 18, and have been making a living raising crops and cattle ever since. I married well in '81 and together we have raised three children. I had the opportunity to volunteer in Africa for three winters in the last ten years. Leadership education in Uganda and water filters in Malawi. I became concerned about small aches and tightness due to a lot of physical work. Yoga was mentioned and I first tried it in about 2006 to loosen up. At that time there were no classes up here in the north so when we were visiting Maui I took a stab at it. I loved the feeling I got both physically and surprisingly mentally. I wanted to immerse and continue so I looked up a retreat and found the Feathered Pipe Ranch in Montana. I studied under very good teachers there. It expanded my connections and eventually I ended up in Ojai studying with more teachers, including Mark Whitwell who I returned to three more times, meeting at the Peppertree [J. Krishnamurti's home in Ojai, now a retreat —ed.]. I am happy to now be on the board of directors at the Feathered Pipe foundation. Yoga has definitely helped me and I can't imagine not having a daily morning practice that was initially developed by Mark and I'll weave in something different every day depending what feels right. It allows me to keep farming in a sustainable nature both for myself and for the farm. We have to look after ourselves so we can look after the farm." More info here. Highlights What cows have to teach us about health and community Neil and Mark discuss the nature of learning Yoga within the context of real friendship What Neil got from studying yoga with Mark and how profoundly it changed his life Why no hierarchy is the basic condition for the teacher-student relationship What is "furniture disease"? Neil's experience finding Yoga as a farmer in the far north of Canada How Mark 'tricked' Neil into a daily yoga practice The nurturing principle of life in farming and yoga Bringing Yoga to our own communities in language and ways that are relevant to them Who can teach yoga – and when? Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

Sriram is my Gurubhai – brothers of the same teacher. He is particularly interesting to me in that he is indigenous to South India, born into the society and language of Krishnamacharya and Desikachar. Whereas I migrated into that culture and knew nothing of it in my early life. As a modern man in the West, Sriram is an extremely informed Yoga teacher who is able to communicate the nuance of the culture of our teachers in modern and useful ways. Sriram speaks of growing up in South India as a radical young explorer of life and his journey into Yoga — a riveting and a brilliant window into how radical Desikachar himself was, absolutely not a traditionally religious or conservative yoga school. And the inspiring story of his relationship with his German wife Anjali and move to Germany. R. Sriram has been working as a yoga teacher in Germany since 1988. In 1977 he began to systematically learn yoga with Śri TKV Desikachar in Chennai, his hometown - he received private and group lessons from him. Sriram also took private Ayurveda lessons with Dr. V. Narayanaswami and attended group lessons with Śri T. Krishnamacharya. For several years, Sriram taught under the guidance of Śri TKV Desikachar at the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram in Chennai Yoga and contributed to the development of the then young institute. The philosophical source texts of yoga, therapy with yoga, mantra yoga and yoga with children from mainstream and special schools were and are his focus. Thanks to his language skills and the support of his German wife, the Indian dancer Anjali, he has become an important link between east and west for many yoga practitioners. Since the nineties he has taught at many yoga training centers and universities and has brought many people closer to yoga in all its aspects in private lessons. With his therapeutic knowledge he was able to give many people the opportunity to find a new, healthy way of dealing with their complaints and illnesses. In this way, R. Sriram has been able to train many students to become well-founded yoga teachers over the years. These teachers offer yoga all over Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Sriram's childhood in South India and his introduction into spiritual life through music His involvement with radical Chennai theatre communities in the 1970s On meeting his wife, famous German-born Indian classical dancer Anjali Sriram, and the meeting of East and West Memories of J. Krishnamurti and TKV Desikachar and why Desikachar ignored his questions about spirituality Breaking out of cultural expectations and how Yoga helped resolve conflicts Reflections on the culture of the Mandiram community and those teaching and studying there Vedic chanting and the relationship with music Desikachar as "no more than a friend, no less than a friend" and his radical acceptance Dealing with the dreaded question – "What type of yoga do you teach?" Dealing with religious fears and prejudice over 30 years of working as a Yoga teacher in Germany, and how it has changed in that time. You can learn more and connect with Sriram on his: Website Facebook Instagram ________________________________ Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

Litiana returns to the podcast for part two of this conversation on how yoga helped her throw out colonial and religious legacies from her body and embrace her own indigeneity, and truly feel at home in her body. Mark and her discuss her experiences, her vision for teaching dissociated world leaders, and their shared relationship with the Indian High commissioner and her poetry honouring Fiji. "You can't change anybody until you love them first." Her conflict between feeling at home, but never fully belonging to her own self Yoga as a process of belonging to yourself Stepping into your power amidst traditional indigenous and religious society How people reacted to her process of freedom — the labels, the family expectations, and the struggle Is it possible to be at peace with societal patterning? The undeveloped mind of humanity that assumes separation Feeling at home in the world and in our bodies wherever we go An indigenous perspective on healing the dysfunctional inheritance of colonialism Rethinking the meaning of "poverty" and "wealth", and how we use this language Litiana's blend of yoga and activism and vision for teaching dissociated world leaders How Yoga transformed her Christian faith Meeting the Indian High Commissioner Padmaja on her last day of her diplomatic career in Fiji and translating her poem into Fijian Connect with Litiana @yoganesian on Instagram or Facebook, or practice with her and Mark inside our "Yoga for Activists" online course. Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

Producer, creator, model, Yoga and Qi Gong teacher, and advocate for empowered aging and beauty at all ages, Karen Williams joins Mark from New York City to talk yoga, healing, transforming attitudes to aging, embracing difference and emotionally surviving the US elections. Karen Williams is equally at home in front of or behind the camera. She is on a mission to revitalise global attitudes toward aging and embodiment, sharing the obvious truth that each one of us is already the beauty of life. A resident of New York City, Karen is leading the way to a society of love and compassion. Her most recent major project was the 'I AM' series, a digital project to celebrate and empower women over 40, have a look HERE. How Karen and Mark met at J Krishnamurti's home in Ojai, California Each person as participant in their own healing and what we need to tap into our own healing powers How our subtle energy and intuitive abilities communicate without words The yogic shift from embracing beauty to knowing you ARE the beauty The power of the breath to come home into your body and emotions - no matter who you are, no matter where you are at physically. Her experiences sharing yoga in the traditional one-to-one way as part of holistic caring, not as a career. The process of accepting yourself and the "feast" of your own life Can we bring wisdom culture to spaces like the beauty industry? Reflections from either side of the camera. The impact of phrases like "anti-aging" on our psyche – dealing with the world's corrupted age ideals and taking leadership on ageism. The return to love as an urgent world matter, the need to treat each person with respect The US elections and how to go forward Meeting Bob Marley A visualization to release ancestral trauma Connect with Karen @ksewilliams on Instagram. Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

From dark times in Europe through to personal victory. Croatian yoga teacher Domagoj Orlić joins Mark and Rosalind to speak about his twenty-year friendship with Mark, his evolution from a gymnast to a yogi, the influence of J Krishnamurti, and the confluence of Sri Vidya and yoga in his life. What a precious conversation with a dear friend and holder of yoga. "Powerful peace and peaceful power of a life lived straight from the Heart, for the Heart." - Domagoj Orlić Domagoj Orlić first met Mark Whitwell in about 2000, following an interest in yoga since his teenage years. He is a yoga teacher in the traditional mode of "no more than a friend, no less than a friend," the author of multiple books on yoga and philosophy in Croatian and English, the translator into Croatian of 'Yoga of Heart', and 'The Promise', an artist of yantra, and an accomplished martial artist. Teaching yoga as experienced by yourself and adapting it to individual needs of students How Domagoj came to discover the book, The Heart of Yoga, and how it completely changed his yoga experiments The development of a beautiful friendship across the world in the early days of Internet Why Desikachar was upset when "The Heart of Yoga" book was published What does it mean for a student to be "inexpensive" to a teacher Can teaching really be without hierarchy, just as friendship? How the intervention of yoga into Domagoj's life lifted off the karmas of Europe and hardships in his life Discovering J Krishnamurti and re-discovering freedom Why he gave up the idea of pursuing his spiritual life in isolation Cleansing the doors of perception... The process of yoga really entering into the body and how patience is required His release from the fixation on the form and softening of his yoga practice The realization of how life supports yoga and vice versa and the role of breath in this How Domagoj taught his Catholic mother to embrace and practice yoga Why being a yoga teacher is the highest - and possibly the hardest - occupation in the world You can learn more about Domagoj on his Facebook. Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

This week we are so very glad to welcome Richard Schechner, who is a director, pioneer and founder in the field of performance studies, author of innumerable books, Professor Emeritus at New York University, editor of The Drama Review, and… a dedicated practitioner of the yoga he learned from his teacher, T. Krishnamacharya, in Chennai (then Madras) in 1971-72. What a blessing to talk life and India with this great thinker, who also happens to be a holder of the torch of yoga. In this episode, Mark, Rosalind and Richard discuss: How Richard came to study Krishnamacharya in the 1970s Why he doesn't belong to any one tradition, religion or tribe but rather sincerely combines their principles The power of ritual and why being precedes meaning The importance and paradox of "not-that-ness" and opening of infinite possibilities Richard's meticulous notebooks, including Krishnamacharya's direct words during lessons, recorded word-for-word Krishnamacharya's impact on Richard's entire life, and the surprise of being asked to teach The relationship between performance studies and yoga, and how they serve one another The neverending student status in our lives and how we know teaching goes well Person-to-person transmission of knowledge vs. knowledge gathered from books Can you solve a material problem with immaterial means? Reframing the process of declining and getting old Is there hope for humanity? How can yoga help? Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

In this episode, Rosalind takes the position of the everywoman yoga teacher, interviewing Mark on a lot of the questions and concerns people have as yoga teachers in our modern yoga scene. Rosalind and Mark discuss: The initial habit to put teachers on a pedestal and how we undermine it. What is "the Mick Jagger effect"? Dealing with embarrassment of being associated with the 'yoga industrial complex' and fear of not being able to give people what they have been led to believe yoga is. Do people really want their breath? Do they want intimacy? Or just stimulation? Toxic positivity and "yoga speak" in the yoga industry What is the "yoga teaching voice"? What does it mean for a yoga teacher to be 'vulnerable'? Is charging for your yoga classes bad? Should you leave your day job to become a full-time yoga teacher? Nerves and feeling like a fraud as a teacher and how to deal with such feelings. Adjustments: What is going on in adjustment culture and where to go from here. Do I have to know all the asanas and amass "expert" knowledge in order to teach yoga? Subscribe to this podcast for new episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS/XML If you feel moved to submit a question for a future episode, you can do so here: https://www.heartofyoga.com/podcast You can find more from Mark and the Heart of Yoga on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.