The Yoga Hour

Living Joyously and Without Reservation

How can we live joyously, even in challenging times? Can we trust in the transformative potential of all of our experiences? Mark Nepo, teacher, poet, and author of the book Inside the Miracle: Enduring Suffering, Approaching Wholeness, joins Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian for a conversation about finding the light that is always present, even when we can’t see it. Listen in as they share poetry and inspiration that opens the heart and heals the spirit.

Realizing Happiness Through Yoga

Would you like more happiness in your life? What tools does yoga offer that could help in this pursuit? Yogic practices illuminate the stillness within us that cannot be threatened by outer circumstance. When we nurture our connection with this inner stillness, we rediscover our innate joyfulness. Sam Chase, author of Yoga and the Pursuit of Happiness: A Guide to Finding Joy in Unexpected Places, joins regular guest host Dr. Laurel Trujillo for a discussion of the opportunities yoga provides to realize more happiness in our lives. Tune in and find out how!
 

Life as a Pilgrimage of Divine Remembrance

What is the role of pilgrimages in understanding ourselves and our lives more fully? These journeys can call us to travel far from our homes, or occur within, as we travel deeper into our own hearts. We return with a renewed appreciation of our true Self. Rev. Charles P. Gibbs, Episcopal priest and author of the book Light Reading: Poems From a Pilgrim Journey, joins Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian to share poetry and reflections of life as a pilgrimage of divine remembrance. Listen in and join the journey that celebrates the beauty of the human heart.

The Search for Freedom: Yoga, Recovery, and Self-Realization

What does yoga offer those seeking freedom from debilitating habits and addictions? Is yoga philosophy and practice compatible with the 12-step program of recovery? Durga Leela, founder of Yoga of Recovery, joins Yogacharya O’Brian for a discussion about liberation—including both its practical and ultimate dimensions. We can all reach beyond our habits and limitations for a life brimming with health, vitality, and freedom. Tune in and find out how.

Inner, Outer, and Lasting Beauty

What is truly beautiful? How can we each enhance our beauty by being more true to who we really are? The beauty of all creation is a manifestation of the Divine. Ayurveda and yoga offer many practices that help us get in touch with our own inner beauty and enhance it on all levels. Tune in for a conversation between our regular guest host Dr. Laurel Trujillo and Dr. Manisha Kshirsagar, an Ayurvedic physician, yoga teacher, and esthetician whose specialties include skin care and natural beauty treatments. Learn how yoga and Ayurveda can help us express more of our inner beauty to the outer world. We can all experience lasting beauty that is more than skin deep! 

Ayurveda for Radiant Health and Spiritual Awakening

Yoga and Ayurveda, sister sciences arising from the Vedas, each offer an entire way of life. Their practices enhance health in a holistic fashion, affecting body, mind, and spirit. Tune in as Acharya Shunya Pratichi Mathur joins Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian for a discussion of the potential for radiant health and spiritual awakening offered by these ancient systems. Simple, profound, practical—three key words that describe what we can learn about how to live optimally with yoga and Ayurveda.

Awakening Through Kriya Yoga: In the Presence of Paramahansa Yogananda

What was it like to study with the great yoga master Paramahansa Yogananda? Roy Eugene Davis, one of Paramahansa Yogananda’s last living direct disciples, joins Yogacharya O’Brian for an inspiring conversation about his years with his guru. Learn what Yogananda emphasized as essential for spiritual awakening, how he advised his disciples, and some of the ways he inspired others to live in the highest way. Discover why the Kriya Yoga taught by Yoganandaji is a path of Self- and God-realization especially relevant to truth seekers today.

Calm and Focused: How Meditation Changes Your Brain

Decades ago, Paramahansa Yogananda taught that the practice of meditation made positive changes in the brain as well as the mind. Now science can show what this meditation master knew from his own experience before there were instruments to measure such changes. Neuroscience research today has shown many differences in the brains of long-term meditators. How does meditation change our brain structure and function? What do these changes mean? Anyone who practices meditation is soon aware of the benefits of increased calm, peacefulness, and improved ability to focus. Tune in as Martin Wuttke, Neurofeedback practitioner and researcher, joins Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian and find out more about how these beneficial changes can change our life for good.
 

The Times of Your Life: Exploring Vedic Astrology

Jyotish, or Vedic astrology, helps us comprehend how the macrocosm of the universe impacts the microcosm of our individual lives. Jyotish gives us a map of our lives and allows us to understand the tools we have been given. How can we use this knowledge for personal growth and greater spiritual awareness? Tune in for a conversation between Vedic Astrologer Komilla Sutton and Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian. Discover how Jyotish can help you in your life today.

One Truth Known by Many Names: The Interspiritual Imperative of Yoga and Vedanta

What do yoga and Vedanta have to teach us about honoring all spiritual traditions and the roles diverse religions can play in building peace in our world? Swami Vivekananda and Paramahansa Yogananda both modeled an interspiritual approach. How have the seeds they planted helped to build the Interspiritual movement that is growing today? What practices do yoga and Vedanta offer that allow us to find the common ground at the mystical core of all religions? Swami Mahayogananda, from the Vedanta Society of Southern California, joins Yogacharya O’Brian to explore the interspiritual imperative of yoga and Vedanta. Tune in to discover how yoga and Vedanta are building bridges that contribute to our awakening world.