The Yoga Hour

Yoga’s Four Paths: Ways of the Heart, Hands, Mind, and Technique

Although yoga philosophy teaches that there is only one Supreme Consciousness as the source and substance of all that is, there are many different ways to realize this oneness. Classical yoga includes four major paths to suit the varied temperaments of students: Bhakti Yoga, the path of the heart, or devotion; Karma Yoga, the way of selflessly using our hands in service to the Divine in others; Jnana Yoga, which uses the mind to go beyond the mind; and Raja Yoga, which uses meditation and other techniques to directly experience the Divine. Join Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian and her special guest Swami Sitaramananda, Acharya of the U.S. West Coast Sivananda centers and of the Sivananda mission in Asia, for a conversation about the four paths of yoga, and find the path that is right for you!

Meditation, Wisdom, and the New Story

In deep meditation we perceive peace and joy through allowing our attention and awareness to rest in the expanded consciousness of our essential nature. We feel connected to all of life. This change in our consciousness opens a space where wisdom develops. From this perspective we can create a new story that honors our essential wholeness. When we share this new story with others, we can reach a tipping point and change the current narrative about our world from a meaningless, material place to a world that works for everyone. Join Yogacharya O’Brian and her special guest Michael Nagler in a discussion about how the roots of daily spiritual practice can flower into improving our lives and the lives of others. Discover how you can live a life that is truly fulfilling by serving the sacred in all.

Embrace Your Openhearted Life: The Way of Compassion

Compassionate living requires wisdom and courage. Kindness toward oneself, other people, and all of life is a natural way of having both at the same time. They must be cultivated as we heal old wounds and become more skillful at offering our help to bring about healing in the world. Yogacharya O’Brian is joined by Ven. Thubten Chodron, an American-born Buddhist nun, the founder and abbess of Sravasti Abbey and the coauthor of An Openhearted Life, for a conversation about the way of compassion. What is compassion? How do we become more skillful at expressing compassion? What are the benefits of embracing an openhearted life? Listen and be inspired to live with your heart wide open. 

Stepping Into the Stream: Discipleship on the Path of Yoga and Vedanta

The guru-disciple relationship as a vehicle to pass on both the knowledge and spiritual consciousness of a lineage of awakened masters is revered in both the traditions of yoga and Vedanta. Join Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian and Pravrajika Brahmaprana, a nun of the Vedanta Society of Southern California and currently the resident minister of the Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of North Texas, in a conversation about discipleship. Who is the real Guru? What are the advantages of a lineage? Tune in and find out more about the way of discipleship. 

Yoga’s Path of Strength, Resilience, and Peace of Mind

Yoga offers exceptional tools for building resilience and healing from trauma. Scientific study has proven the effectiveness of yoga in engaging the relaxation response, sharpening the mind, improving recovery time, and promoting psychological well-being. Beryl Bender Birch has used the yogic tools of postures, breathing techniques, and meditation to help first responders and survivors of 9/11, as well as helping military servicemen and women to find their way as warriors, heal from injury, and adapt to a peaceful life at home. Join regular guest host Dr. Laurel Trujillo and author and yoga teacher Beryl Bender Birch in a conversation about how we all can gain strength, resilience, and peace of mind though yoga.

Self-Discovery Through Yoga

Self-discovery lies at the heart of yoga practice. The Sanskrit word yoga means "oneness, union, or unity"—the bringing together of our attention and awareness with our essential spiritual nature, or returning to our original wholeness. Yoga’s central practices of self-study, self-discipline, and self-surrender all rest on continuous self-discovery. Yoga is a process of finding out more and more deeply who we are, and then living from that realization. Join regular guest host Dr. Laurel Trujillo, with special guests Anil Surpur, president of Yoga Bharati and Ashwini Surpur, director of Yoga Education at Yoga Bharati, in a conversation exploring self-discovery through yoga at all levels of our being: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.    

Keeping Yoga in Yoga Therapy

The word yoga means union, oneness, or unity. The purpose of the many practices of yoga is to help us realize our true spiritual nature, to unite our attention and awareness with our own essence of being. Yoga therapy uses yogic techniques to improve health holistically, in body, mind, and spirit. How can yoga therapy remain true to the original purpose of yoga while meeting individuals where they are? When and how might yoga therapy be used? Join Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian and special guest John Kepner, executive director of the International Association of Yoga Therapists, in a conversation that draws from the roots of yoga and yoga therapy.

The Heart of Yoga: How to Improve Your Cardiac Health

Heart health has many facets: physical, emotional, and spiritual. The practice of yoga is ideally suited to improve cardiac health on all levels: body, mind, and spirit. Many studies have documented improvements in heart disease and prevention through yoga. Retired vascular surgeon, Ayurvedic practitioner, and yoga therapy teacher, Dr. Dilip Sarkar’s journey in integrative medicine began with his own heart attack and bypass surgery in 2001. Join Yogacharya Ellen Grace O’Brian in a conversation with Dr. Sarkar about the ways yoga can contribute to heart health and vitality.

Yoga Is for Everyone!

As a complete path of self-realization, yoga offers a wide variety of practices that can be adapted to individual circumstances, including one’s body type and stage of life. Join Yogacharya O’Brian and Matra Raj, certified yoga therapist, and discover how practices from the yoga tradition can contribute to your vitality and enhance your ability to experience excellence in all aspects of your life. 
• Learn how regular people with busy schedules can experience enhanced health and well-being through asana, the physical postures of yoga
• Explore the benefits of non-asana practices, including mudra—powerful gestures rejuvenating the nervous system and restoring hormonal balance
• Gain insight into the many benefits—physical, emotional, and spiritual—that come from a well-balanced yoga program 
• Let go of limiting beliefs about what yoga is—and about what is possible for you! 

Breathe Easy With Pranayama

Breathing is essential to life, and unique in that breathing can either happen unconsciously or be controlled deliberately. Pranayama, or conscious breath regulation, is one of the eight limbs of yoga described in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the primary text of classical yoga. Amy Wheeler, Ph.D., professor of kinesiology at California State University at San Bernardino, yoga therapist, and yoga teacher-trainer, joins The Yoga Hour’s cohost, Dr. Laurel Trujillo, for a conversation about pranayama.
• Find out about the proven health benefits of pranayama
• Learn how pranayama can help you adjust your moods
• Explore the effects of pranayama to calm and steady the mind
• Tune in and begin to breathe easier!