J. Brown Yoga Talks

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Sarai Harvey-Smith talks with J about becoming part of the Ashtanga Yoga community and how she is navigating her way in light of the revelations surrounding abuse by Pattabhi Jois. They discuss Sarai’s process of getting into yoga and becoming authorized at KPJAYI, her love of the practice and teaching, the reasons for her gradual transition away from the system, and her clear position statement and suggestions for the AY community to heal and move forward. This episode is brought to you by Yogalifestyle.com and Karmasoft.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Scott Johnson, founder of Stillpoint Yoga London, joins J for a continuation of the friendship and conversation that started between them when they met in London a few months earlier. They discuss Scott’s former life as an electrician, the importance of family, the motivations for his yoga and center, his relationship to the Astanga Yoga Tradition and feelings about the current crisis the community is facing. They also talk about low-overhead business models and finding shared or alternative spaces. This episode is brought to you by Yogaanatomy.net.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   J interviews Kino MacGregor, founder of Miami Life Center and OMstars, about a few of the hot button topics at the forefront of yogaland. In this difficult conversation, they discuss the current situation in the Ashtanga Yoga Community regarding revelations of sexual abuse by Patabhi Jois, recent contract disputes and related issues resulting from the sale of Cody video app to Alo Yoga clothing company, and Kino’s individual perspective on the business and soul of the mainstream yoga industry. This episode is brought to you by Karmasoft.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Tara Stiles, founder of Strala Yoga, helps J get over some of his personal baggage regarding the Industrial Yoga Complex by giving him insight into her trajectory and teaching. Tara shares the story of her humble beginnings in a small town, the happenstance that led to a modeling career, the process of coming into yoga as a profession, and the trials and tribulations of having a high profile career. They also explore the relative nature of status, and misperceptions we have about money. This episode is brought to you by YogaAnatomy.net.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Peter Blackaby, author of Intelligent Yoga, talks with J about the newly revised second edition of his book and the implications it has on our ideas about yoga and ways in which we teach it. They discuss the fundamental premise that no living thing exists in isolation, how addressing pain is more about life than muscles, and the importance of developing attentive discernment and fashioning a healthy context for practice. Peter also assuages some of J's concerns on standardization and codification of yoga. This episode is brought to you by Karmasoft.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Schuyler Grant, founder of Kula Yoga Project and co-creator of Wanderlust Festival, communes with J on their shared past in the early NY scene and on all that has happened since. Schuyler tells the story of her unusual trajectory into becoming a teacher, the circumstances and motivations behind becoming a center owner, and the inspiration that led to creating a yoga festival that completely changed the game. They also candidly address the financial realities of the profession and industry. This episode is brought to you by YogaAnatomy.net.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Ana Forrest, creatrix of Forrest Yoga, and her partner Jose Calarco, join J for a discussion on their current work and some of the roads that brought them there. Jose fills J in on his role and the current incarnation of the ceremonies they are producing. Ana talks about her early jump into death and back into life, and the progression of her renowned practice from its early origins, through yoga's transition from underground to mainstream, the present day, and tracking right into the mystery. This episode is brought to you by Karmasoft.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Gernot Huber, founder of Yoga Mind Yoga Body, happened to take a few of J’s live stream classes via a mutual friend and had some constructive feedback and criticism. In this talk, they discuss Gernot’s background in silicon valley, his studies in ecology and evolutionary biology, how he ended up being a yoga teacher, and his ideas on learning to disrupt the stress response. Ultimately, they engage in a spirited and friendly debate on the pros and cons of periodically engaging your edge with mindfulness and non-attachment to achievement.   

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Danny Paradise, renowned teacher and writer/co-producer of Love Will Rescue You, joins J to talk about how things have evolved from his first experiences in 1976 until the present day. They discuss the influences that have informed his teaching, including shamanism and the Egyptian roots, and how his practices are designed to show the interrelatedness of different cultures and disciplines. They also touch on the commodification of yoga, celebrity clients, and the Pattabhi Jois scandal. This episode is brought you by Karmasoft.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Theo Wildcroft was kind enough to let J stay with her during a recent trip to England. On their last day together, they sat down to have this conversation about different yoga cultures. They discuss how yoga happens in alternative spaces, distinctions in philosophy that shape a persons teaching, and the challenges we face when trying to forge uncharted paths. They also discuss the thesis she is working on regarding ‘Post-Lineage Yoga', examining the intersection between lineage traditions and the commodification of yoga.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Andrew Tanner, chief ambassador for Yoga Alliance, joins J to discuss the Standards Review Project and the recently released survey. The conversation gets a bit heated as J grapples with his YA status and what he sees as fundamental flaws with both the survey and the organization. Andrew does his best to reassure J that the process YA has embarked on will be open, democratic and transparent. In the end, the spirit of friendship holds in this passionate exchange tackling the many difficult issues at play. This episode is brought to you by Karmasoft.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Jonathan Sattin, founder of triyoga, sits down with J at the head offices in London to talk about how he went from holding yoga classes in his living room to creating one of the premier destinations for yoga in the UK. They discuss what it takes to build an operational structure that can survive and grow for eighteen years, amassing five locations, 200+ teachers, and the inherent challenges that come when you get that big. They also touch on the financial realities at work, current trends, and what it might mean to bring integrity to scale.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Roseanne Harvey, founder of its all yoga, baby and co-editor of 21st Century Yoga: Culture, Politics and Practice, is an old friend of J’s from the blogosphere days who has been away from the yoga world for a time but has recently emerged once again. In this conversation, they talk about the heyday of the internet, that time Roseanne slept in J’s bed, and what is behind her sort-of departure and semi-return to yogaland. They also tackle debt, money, and the yoga of getting our financial houses in order. This episode is brought to you by Karmasoft.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Richard Freeman was the person J most wanted to speak with when starting the podcast and his dream is finally realized in this conversation celebrating the 100th episode. They discuss what yoga was like in the late 60’s, how Richard came to study with BKS Iyengar and Pattabhi Jois, universal threads that run through the many different contemplative traditions he has inquired into, trends that have emerged with the progression of yoga into the mainstream, and the importance of remaining curious about the nature of reality.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Amina Naru, board member and project manager at the Yoga Service Council, owner of Posh Yoga, talks with J about her work bringing yoga into juvenile detention centers and prisons, and the new Best Practices for Yoga in the Criminal Justice System. They discuss her spiritual name, some of the trials and tribulations that have shaped her journey into yoga, her experience of being a black woman in a predominantly white profession, the process of creating community, and the profound gift of shared acceptance, wellness, and purpose.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Tiffany Cruikshank, founder of Yoga Medicine, joins J for a discussion about her early challenges and roots into yoga and holistic healing modalities, and the process of developing her professional work as a teacher and educator. Their conversation includes a consideration of changing paradigms in yoga, how she incorporates or separates her yoga with her work in sports medicine and orthopedics, her experience of navigating the yoga industry, and developing training with a focus on fusing the two worlds of eastern and western medicine.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   J met Maria Kirsten, founder of Yoga for Grown Ups, through mutual contacts in Japan and they kind of hit it off after discovering they share many common experiences and viewpoints in yoga. In this conversation, they compare notes on teaching and discuss a range of topics including the importance of self-directed mentorship, fostering gradual progressions and relationships over time, teaching people about themselves more than poses, finding your root and stabilization, somatization, and asking the big questions about where it’s all going.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Rexx Anthony, founder of Rogue Ashtanga, wrote a blog post entitled "A Cautionary Tale on Operating Yoga Studios" that caught J’s attention and spurred this conversation. They talk about Rexx’s early adoption of Ashtanga Yoga and how the system has changed over the years. They also discuss the trends and tribulations of managing a yoga center, some of the pressing issues facing the industry, the challenges that yoga teachers grapple with, and the personal and professional factors that make up a life in the grassroots world of yoga.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Seane Corn, creator of 'Off the Mat, Into the World', joins J for a lively and wide-ranging discussion on coming into adulthood as teachers alongside yoga going mainstream. Seane talks about the early days of NY Yoga and Life Cafe, her migration west, how she became a “yoga celebrity,” and the political activism that she spearheads. The conversation also examines the evolution of yoga as a profession, healing trauma, sexual misconduct in the yoga world, and the light, shadows and people that have shaped her inspirational teaching.  

You are listening to the free version of J. Brown Yoga Talks. To hear the rest of our conversation, please subscribe to podcast premium at: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/premium.   Or Shahar, from freedomyoga.info, is a podcast listener with a booker who got a bit lucky and caught J in a moment that led to this candid and unexpected conversation about family, cultural divides, and the universality of yoga. Or shares her process of healing depression and trauma, how she ended up making a life for herself in Berlin, overcoming the obstacles that yoga teachers face as professionals, and the challenge of meeting people where they are while still holding true to principles that explore the depth of practice.