During these challenging times, we are here to support you. Please visit ashtangadispatch.com to join us for a special program: Equanimity Through the Storm. We hope you take these few minutes to enjoy this metta meditation with Meghan Powell as a way to ground in loving-kindness - for yourself and for the world. May you be healthy, safe, happy, and know that you are loved by us.
These next episodes will be devoted to one story … Of how a community moves beyond the authoritarian Guru model, and away from the kind of hierarchical structures and rules of silence that have allowed for its members to be hurt, ostracized, and abused. It’s a story about learning from one another - and leaning on one another. One that shifts the focus from rules and dogma - to people and relationships; where leadership is shared and all voices, heard. Because we are the authors. And this is our...
"Hierarchies are easy. That’s why we set them up. But the hierarchies have such a lack of resilience in response to rapid social change. And we're in a situation of rapid social change - in a profession that is seeing rapid changes." - Theo Wildcroft In today's episode, Dr. Theo Wildcroft talks about the identities and labels we attach to ourselves and our yoga practice and how we all benefit from moving from traditional linear models and towards more inclusive and horizontally organized network...
As one of today's most prolific explorers and mountaineers, Conrad Anker is a legend in the climbing world - though certainly not limited to it. Because Conrad has long been a source of inspiration for me. From his many summits (including Everest 3x and Meru) to his humanitarian work and activism - Conrad claims not to know anything about yoga philosophy, and yet his life says otherwise. In today's episode, Conrad talks to me about the necessity of risk, overcoming obstacles, facing fear, and ge...
As an anatomy teacher and neuromuscular therapist - David has spent most of his career working with people in pain and helping them find a way out. And as the person who literally wrote the book on Yoga Anatomy, it makes sense that yoga students in particular - often with an injury or other physical issues - look to David for answers. At the same time, answers are something David seldom gives. Instead, he’d rather hand the power back to students - encouraging them to do their own exploring and e...
"Chanting has helped me become more comfortable with myself. And feeling the freedom to open up in a devotional sense, in an emotional sense. I think it’s really released a part of me that I kept tightly hidden - and I’ve become more comfortable with that. And that’s what we’re trying to do, become comfortable with ourselves, with who we are." Meet Meghan Powell, the other half of Ashtanga Dispatch and hear about her ongoing journey towards developing her own voice. You'll hear Meghan talk about...
Today's guests are hip-hop artist MC Yogi and the creator of the 10000 Buddhas project, Amanda Giacomini. MC and Amanda met at a teacher training at It’s Yoga in San Francisco back in 2000 and have been spent the past 20 years, spreading their love of yoga to the masses through their music and art, but also more intimately, in their Point Reyes studio they began as a young couple and still regularly teach today. In this episode, MC and Amanda talk about their relationship with the practice, thei...
"When we come to that last breath in our life - what's most important?" Recorded on the eve of her 60th birthday, Eileen Hall is a woman who has been practicing for over 30 years, through breast cancer, a mastectomy, and menopause - and is certified to teach in both the methods of Iyengar and Ashtanga Yoga. Complete with anecdotal stories and insight, Eileen gets right to the heart of what it really means to practice yoga. You'll rarely find Eileen out there in the public sphere or even away fro...
Today, I’m talking to Shanna Small, the founder of the Ashtanga Yoga Project and a teacher/student in Charlotte, North Carolina. Our subject is racism. Though not the kind of overt prejudices and discrimination that most of us think of - but a type of racism that is almost more destructive. Because it’s unconscious. It’s implicit. And it’s so deeply embedded within our institutional structures that we barely recognize it. And this includes our yoga culture - a world that is predominately white -...
Meghan attended the 2019 Bali Ashtanga Yoga Conference and caught up with long-time teachers Dom Corigliano, Mark Robberds, Kathy Cooper, Scott Johnson, Radha, John Scott, and Chuck Miller - asking each the same question: What does yoga or practice mean for them? Each had a unique perspective not only in how they answered the question but reflected in how they teach as well. And yet, there were some very definite common themes: nature, family, and the process of change. This episode of the Ashta...
In today's episode, teacher and author Gregor Maehle discusses the corruption of authority in everything from religion to politics - and suggests that if yoga wants to help heal that problem, then it must become a vehicle for dismantling such hierarchical structures, including its own. Perhaps more than in any other podcast to date, this episode with Gregor really had us examining what we believe and why we believe it. Which may have been exactly the idea. In fact, I get the feeling Gregor is co...
In this month's podcast episode, Dr. Monica Gauci discusses some of the more complex issues facing yoga students today - like how Ashtanga yoga is taught here in the west; the effects of age, injury, and life stages such as menopause; and the importance of listening and trusting our heart. The Ashtanga Dispatch Podcast is edited, hosted, and produced by Peg Mulqueen along Meghan Powell - a small but dedicated, mother/daughter team. But it would not be possible without friends like you who genero...
If you want to feel better, healthier, be more resilient and clear, Eddie Stern, says the answer is quite simple: Yoga. In a world more and more divided, yoga may be one those rare and special subjects where we all agree – practicing yoga makes us feel good. And in today's episode as well as in his new book, One Simple Thing: A New Look at the Science of Yoga and How it Can Transform Your Life (due out March, 2019), Eddie combines his own experience with philosophy and science to explain why thi...
Can exploration in movement and other approaches to practice coexist within the Ashtanga yoga tradition? Teacher Mark Robberds, certainly hopes so. And in today's episode, Mark shares some really valuable information about movement - like how variety is critical for our physical development, and in Ashtanga in particular - a way to balance out some of the more extreme movements sometimes involved. But Mark also shared his feelings on a few more serious topics within the yoga community. Like the ...
This is teacher, David Garrigues’ third time on as a guest on the podcast. David is someone who sees the yoga through the eyes of an artist - finding magic in the ordinary and painting the familiar into delightful new forms. Full of all the same passion, that same spark of enthusiasm that sets souls on fire - he also seemed different. Definitely more clear - and especially about his role in this world and as a teacher. In fact, when he says his whole life has been leading up to this point, I bel...
Mary Taylor is a woman who has been consistently practicing Ashtanga yoga for over 30 years - through pregnancy, injury, and more recently, a debilitating illness. What’s more, Mary didn’t enter the yoga room as the star student, but rather, as she says - the stiff student. Yet where her body was not as flexible, the yoga and her teacher, were. And in today’s episode, you’ll hear Mary explain her understanding of the Ashtanga yoga method and how it’s worked for her. Of course, that’s only the be...
Richard Freeman has been a student of yoga since 1968, beginning in the Buddhist Zen tradition and then later studying both the Iyengar and Ashtanga Vinyasa methods of yoga. Which may explain one of the reasons Richard can be notorious for dodging questions that beg for ONE answer. Because, as he says, “It’s sometimes more complex than that.” Though by sometimes, I believe he means ALL the time. You see, this knowing is a trap according to Richard. “All of a sudden, we understand something and a...
Ever wonder what Plato and Patanjali have in common? Yeah, me neither actually! But Ty Landrum finds the the intersection of the two fascinating and quite honestly, his enthusiasm was enough to get me a bit excited as well. You see, philosophy in academia tends to be more an exercise of the mind whereas yoga as philosophy is almost pure experiential. Or that's that way it has always felt to me. But Ty manages to put a spin on both in today's episode. The Ashtanga Dispatch podcast is edited and p...
The following episode of the Ashtanga Dispatch Podcast is a recording from Stillpoint Yoga's weekend Spring Gathering this past May. The annual event is the brainchild of Scott Johnson who has made it a bit of a personal mission to provide space and opportunity for students and teachers alike to come together in more than just practice - but in conversation also. That we may all learn from each other and grow together. This year's focus spanned the following topics: power, lineage, and how this ...
This episode of the Ashtanga Dispatch Podcast is a prerecorded panel discussion featuring Tim Feldmann, (Miami Life Center), Richard Freeman and Mary Taylor (Boulder, Colorado), Manju Jois (Encinitas, CA), Dena Kingsberg (Byron Bay, Australia), David Swenson (Austin, TX), and as moderator, Jessica Walden (San Diego, CA). The audio is courtesy of the Ashtanga Yoga Confluence, Inc. For more about the 2018 Ashtanga Yoga Confluence, visit Ashtanga Dispatch’s recap of this year’s event. https://www.a...
Jen Rene is a teacher I’ve wanted you to meet for a very long time - and mostly because I’m afraid you might never otherwise get the chance. You see, Jen is one of those no-nonsense, incredibly functional teachers who are much more focused on keeping practice real than dazzle you with fancy tricks. Of course, the irony is - this is Jen’s real magic. She’s practical. She’s honest. And she’s not afraid to get messy. I’ll warn you, Jen doesn’t have a filter. She’s pretty straightforward and quite f...
During a weekend in New York just before Christmas, I had the amazing opportunity to catch up with renowned Ashtanga yoga teacher, Eddie Stern and practice at his shala, the Brooklyn Yoga Club. Lots to learn in this latest episode of our yoga podcast - which could certainly feel, at times, more like a science lesson than an interview. Listen as Eddie describes the vagus nerve, an information pathway for a lot of things that are really important for the yogis. Eddie explains that we are an entire...
Finding the spiritual side of a physical practice and discussing the gender bias that exists - even in yoga - are just a few of the topics covered in this episode of the Ashtanga Dispatch Podcast with today's guest, Harmony Slater. The Ashtanga Dispatch Podcast is produced and edited by Chris Lucas, and hosted by Peg Mulqueen.
Philippa Asher is a certified Ashtanga yoga teacher and one of the few female students who has completed the Advanced B series. As impressive as all that is, that’s not really the reason I asked her to come on the Ashtanga Dispatch Podcast. I had read a piece she wrote called Musings About an Ashtanga Asana Practice from 20-something to 40-something. And in there, Philippa talked quite pointedly about challenges and issues of her own - including her own recklessness as well as fertility issues -...
Kino MacGregor is one of the most celebrated Ashtanga yoga teachers in the world with over a million followers now on Instagram. And though it would be easy to chalk up her fame to a winning mixture of beauty, charm, and physical skill - you’d then be missing the REAL reason Kino is who she is and where she is. As the author of 4 books, including her most recent, The Yogi Assignment, a co-creater of Om Stars, an online channel for yogis, producer of six videos, and one of a select group of teach...
Well, the irony for me is, the more I practice and the more I do these interviews, the more questions I end up having! And today’s episode with certified Ashtanga yoga teacher, Mark Darby - or Darby, as he tells me to call him - is no exception. Darby was first introduced to Ashtanga yoga with Pattabhi Jois - Guruji - in Mysore in 1979. You do the math - but lets just say Darby has been practicing and teaching for a very, very long time. Lucky for us, I got the chance to catch up with Darby for ...
We’re in Mysore, India and waiting to be ushered into the shala for chanting class. It’s hot as hell standing outside that afternoon, That's when I first see her - Laruga Glaser. I’m a hot, sweaty mess - while she’s as stunning as every Instagram post I’ve seen of hers. And I’m in awe. Of course, not just she glows in a different way than I am at that moment … but also because it’s odd to see a teacher of her notoriety at chanting class. First of all, they are held in the heat of the afternoon b...
As much as I hate to admit it, pain has a lot to teach us. Maybe that's why my next guest, Tim Feldmann, is such a great teacher - because he's certainly had his fair share to deal with. You see, Tim began practicing yoga after a terrible accident many years ago, left him nearly unable to walk again. Injuries sustained such as those may heal, but they don't always go away and instead, tend to reappear in various forms and struggles. These days, Tim is dealing with his wrist and at the time we ta...
Sharath Jois. Grandson of the legendary Sri K. Pattabhi Jois ... son of Saraswathi Jois ... director of the KPJAY Institute ... and the current holder of our lineage. And yet, if there's one thing I have learned as his student it's this: Sharath would not want this podcast to be about him. It's about the yoga. For Sharath, it's always about the yoga. "Yoga is the superstar. Not me." But he is pretty special. And about as generous, wise, devoted, and kind as ever a teacher should be. Or rather, a...
Today is January 20, 2017 - Inauguration day. And while part of me is relieved to be out of the country at the moment, another part of me is disappointed not to be there with you. This election has been like no other I've ever been a part. We are a country divided and that's scary. And so to process some of this, I turned to Dr. Carol Horton, a former political science professor turned and yoga teacher. Carol has a strong voice and she’s not afraid to use it. But she also has a wise voice, a voi...
