by Kara-Leah Grant The guru model is dead in modern Western Yoga. And the list of scandals involving gurus, or teachers, or swamis just seems to be growing longer. Where the hell are all the enlightened and perfect teachers? They don't exist. Our teachers - known and unknown, big and small, experienced and fresh, revered and loved, skilled and talented, wise and powerful - they are also human. Which means that our teachers, like us, have unconscious shit that can get in the way of their … [Read more...]
A List of Yoga Scandals Involving Gurus, Teachers, Students, Sex and Other Inappropriate Behaviour
By Lucinda Staniland & Cara Butler Content warning: Some accounts of sexual abuse in this story contain explicit details and strong language that some may find upsetting or triggering. Editors Note: This list was last updated on 22 September 2020. To our best knowledge, the information given here is accurate but there may be new developments which we are not aware of. Let us know in the comments if you notice something that needs to be updated. The last few years have been awash with yoga … [Read more...]
Yoga & Back Pain: Could Fear Sometimes be the Real Cause of Pain?
by Kara-Leah Grant I've had plenty of opportunities in my life to study pain, often on a daily basis. And now, based on this study and my experiences, I'm wondering: Can fear cause physical pain - like sciatic pain? Here's a rundown on why that might be: In May of 1991, when I was fifteen years old, I started experiencing sciatic pain down my left leg. Of course, I didn't know what it was, and put up with it for a few months. I noticed it was difficult to sit for extended periods of time, or … [Read more...]
Yoga Injuries and Pain During Yoga Class – What’s the Story?
by Kara-Leah Grant, Musings from the Mat Matthew Remski is currently researching asana-related injuries in an attempt to understand what we are actually doing with yoga, and how we can know the value or safety of the postures we practice. After taking the time to read his first article on the subject - What Are We Actually Doing in Asana - I found myself asking questions about my practice and the pain I sometimes experience in yoga. In particular, Matthew says: I would like to explore … [Read more...]
How Bikram Yoga Evolved into Evolation Yoga with Mark Drost and Zefea Samson
by Kara-Leah Grant Mark Drost was once a Bikram Senior Teacher, completely immersed in the Bikram World. Like so many though, there were aspects of the Bikram Culture that bugged him. He could see the yoga was run on fear and control and it didn't sit well with him. After six years in the inner circle, and after meeting his wife Zefea Samson, Mark left. He and Zefea took everything they had learned during their time with Bikram, and prior, and used it to create Evolation Yoga. They … [Read more...]
Is Bikram Choudhury really an alien?
by Kara-Leah Grant, Musings from the Mat On Sunday I drove a 440 km round-trip to see Bikram Choudbury speak. Was it worth it? Absolutely. Not only did I get to meet more of the NZ yoga community, but I also got to check out Bikram The Man in person as he took the stage for a three and a half hour lecture. Yep that's right - Bikram spoke with barely a pause for breath for over three hours, and if it hadn't been for the insistence of the organizers, he would have kept on going. And … [Read more...]
Enlightenment – one drop of sweat at a time?
by Kara-Leah Grant Inspired by Scott Bischke's book Good Camel, Good Life - Finding enlightenment one drop of sweat at a time I took myself off to a Bikram class recently. I haven't been in more than a year, and I was curious. The last few classes I attended, I started class feeling calm and sattvic, and I ended class feeling agitated and rajas. My mind was busier and louder coming out than it was going in. Plus the very last class, I fainted. Only for a moment, as I walked out … [Read more...]
Is the Bikram series a victim of yoga snobbery?
There's a subtle judgment that I've perceived in the world of yoga against Bikram Yoga. Now maybe it's just me, my filter, my bias, what I think I'm seeing... but amongst yogis there's this idea that Bikram is not real yoga. Or not good yoga. Or not good for you. Or something. (See the conversation unfolding on Why the Government needs to make Bikram yoga compulsory for a snippet of this.) There's suspicion about Bikram himself, about the yoga competitions that he and his wife run, about … [Read more...]
Mount Maunganui Yoga Teacher: Ross Howatson
After number of years overseas teaching at a variety of places, including Pure Yoga in Asia, Ross has returned to New Zealand to spread the yoga joy here. He opened the first Bikram studios in Auckland and the Mount and is back teaching at the Mount Yoga Studio - for now anyway. While overseas, Ross was able to study with a who's who line-up of internationally renowned teachers including John Friend, Shiva Rea, Paul Grilley, David Swenson, Rodney Yee, Bikram Choudhury, Swami Muktidharma, … [Read more...]
Queenstown Yoga Studio Owner & Teacher: Peggy Preston
Peggy Preston is owner of not just one, but two yoga studios - she's one busy woman. Dedicated to the healing power of Bikram yoga, she's also passionate about the benefits of Hatha yoga. Not willing to compromise on what she taught and what she offered her students, Peggy managed to open both studios, side-by-side in Queenstown, within 18 months of each other. It's testament to her passion and zest for both yoga and life. She simply loves yoga, and wants as many people to be able to … [Read more...]