Yogi Arvind
President/CEO of Yoga Next
Yogi Arvind is a spiritual: teacher, entrepreneur, activist and filmmaker. You may visit his website to find out more about him: Yogi Arvind(www.yogiarvind.com)
He was first introduced to yoga at the age of 8. At about the same age, he also learned other Indian spiritual philosophies and Sanskrit. He spent most of his childhood and adolescent years in a boarding school in Hyderabad, India. This school emphasized spiritual growth at a young age . He embraces a yogic lifestyle that integrates all the eight limbs of Raja Yoga. He studied and practiced yogic/vedic philosophies from different schools/traditions:
Satyachetana International (India and US branches)
Self Realization Fellowship (India and US branches)
Various Mahayana Buddhist schools
Self study of Yoga, Shaivism, Samkhya, and Vedanta
He generally teaches the non-asana aspects of Raja Yoga: Yama, Niyama, Pranayama, Meditation, Yoga Philosophy, Sanskrit and Chanting. He has been teaching since 2008. He speaks on subjects such as: Yoga Beyond Asana, Meditation & Breathwork, Shaivism and Samkhya. He is passionate about using yogic principles to create a healthy, peaceful and harmonious life. He speaks and offers advice to people from different walks of life about living a yogic lifestyle.
He has embarked on a number of spiritual ventures since 2010, with the purpose of disseminating the wisdom of Indian philosophical systems (Darshanas) such as Yoga, Samkhya and Vedanta. Given below is a summary of these ventures. You may visit their individual website for more information.
1. YogaNext: YogaNext is a movement to improve the education and practice of yoga and take it to the Next Level. The mission of YogaNext is to:
Promote yoga as a science/art of self-realization and self-manifestation
Develop and enforce standards for yoga education
Offer continuous education for teachers
Be an advocate for the yoga community
YogaNext is a non-profit 501(c)3 public benefit corporation in California. It was established in 2011 and has been making significant strides in shaping the future of yoga in America. www.yoganext.org
2. Moksha festival: An annual festival of Yoga, Ayurveda, Sacred Music & Spiritual Art. This festival is currently organized in two locations in Southern and Northern California. It attracts more than 3,000 attendees each year. This festival is an extension of the mission of YogaNext, but has a wider audience and a festive mood. You can find out more about the festival on our website.www.mokshafestival.com.
3. Yoga Maya Movie: Yoga Maya is an exposé on how yoga is taught, practiced and marketed in America. It addresses some misconception of yoga in the west and offers some solutions to expand our yoga practice beyond just the physical. It is a 77-minute documentary, featuring interviews with 12 senior yoga teachers in California, narration and confessionals by Arvind Chittumalla, producer and director of Yoga Maya. You may watch the movie on Vimeo: Yoga Maya Movie