Lecturers and Topics for Mysore Yoga Conference 2023

*There may be last minute changes in our schedule. We go out of our way to find the absolute best speakers each year!

Our passion is to bring unprecedented outstanding educational experiences to the international yoga community. With the help of Dr. M. A. Alwar and Samskriti Foundation we have an excellent conference ahead of us!

Dr. M A Alwar is a legendary Sanskrit scholar, author, researcher, lecturer and spiritual leader in Mysore. Dr. Alwar is the son of the late Sri M. A. Lakshmithathacharya Swami and head of the Samskriti Foundation and Nathamuni Sampradaya. Dr. Alwar is the organizer of the Mysore Yoga Traditions Conference, and has gone to great lengths to procure some of the most prestigious and brilliant speakers in India for our conference. We are deeply indebted to him for his hard work and dedication in making Mysore Yoga Traditions Conference a success!

Dr. Alwar is Professor in-charge of Nyaya Shastra at Maharaja’s Sanskrit College, Mysuru. He is a research Scholar at Indian Council of Philosophical Research, New Delhi and Rashtreeya Vidyapeetha, Tirupathi, Project Director for the Transdisciplinary University Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health in Bengaluru. Dr. Alwar is also affiliated with the Karnatak Sanskrit University.

He has authored five books and edited and published more than 25 books on various topics pertaining to the collection of information on medicine for Transdisciplinary University Foundation.

Dr. Alwar is also currently teaching online classes in Gitartha Sangraha which is the core philosophy of Nathamuni Sampradaya to students world wide.

Links

https://www.ashtangayogastudio.com/gitartha-sangraha

Enjoy one of Sri Alwar’s lectures here - https://vimeo.com/771120629/c578fbf322

Sri BNS Iyengar, Guruji, will talk about the roots of yoga in Mysore. Sri BNS Iyengar, the man who started the entire Mysore Yoga Traditions journey. He is the oldest living teacher of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga in the world and he has taught yoga to the entire Mysore Yoga Traditions crew for decades. Sri BNS Iyengar introduced the world to Mysore’s Sanskrit community and opened up the possibility for unprecedented learning opportunities for the entire world.

https://www.path2yoga.net/2019/07/bns-iyengar-bio.html

Yamini Muthanna studied under the able guidance of Yoga Visharadha Sri BNS Iyengar for over 30 years. Yamini is a purist practicing Hatha Yoga Vinyasa and does not believe in tampering with the techniques evolved by the ancient masters. Yamini runs a school of yoga in Bangalore called Yogastala. She has conducted workshops in London, New York, Washington DC, and Los Angeles. She regularly conducts Yoga workshops in different corporate sectors on the benefits of Yoga in modern living. She has students from all over the world learning the art and technique of yoga with her.

She is also a well known and accomplished Bharatanatyam exponent, teacher and a performer who has been empaneled under the Indian Council for Cultural Affairs, External Affairs Ministry, Government of India. She has traveled as an official ambassador of Indian culture to various countries around the world.

https://www.yaminimuthanna.com/

Dr K. S Kannan is a renowned Sanskrit scholar and the author of many books on yoga philosophy. He has give talks in conferences around the globe. His contribution to last year’s conference where outstanding!

• 2019 Conferred D.Litt (Honoris Causa) by Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidya Peetha, Tirupati.

• 2019 Senior Fellow, Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR), (MHRD, Govt. of India), New Delhi.

• 2018 Nominated Member of the Society, Indian Institute of Advanced, Studies (IIAS), Shimla (Nominated by MHRD, Govt. of India).

• 2007 “Vidyānidhi” – Title conferred by HH Rangapriya Swamiji, Bangalore. 1990 International Merit Award for Paper on Machine Translation (from Sanskrit to English).

Dr. Jayaraman Mahadeva is the Director of Textual Research at the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram in Chennai. He will be introducing us to classical yoga texts and giving an authentic and traditional perspective on these texts. Indian texts take on a new life when they are explained by profound scholars who have classical training and know all the related texts, stories and metaphors.

Dr. M A Jayashree and Dr. M A Narasimhan who are an inseparable and dynamic brother and sister duo, have taught Philosophy and Chanting to countless yoga students in Mysore for decades and have traveled all over the world teaching in many countries. They are outstanding teachers will a great passion for sharing Indian knowledge systems with students from all cultures. Together they lead the Anantha Foundation in Mysore.

Dr. Mahadeva is the Principal of the Maharaja’s Sanskrit College in Mysore. This is the school where Sri Krishnamacharya and Sri K. Pattabhi Jois once taught. Dr. Mahadeva will be welcoming us to his famous college and giving a talk about the Vira Shaiva Tradition that he belongs to.

Dr. Mohan Raghavan is a renowned scholar and scientist. He holds a PHD in Philosophy and Computational Neuroscience. He will be joining us for the second time this year with an in depth explanation Neuroscience and Ashtanga Yoga. Last year we were so impressed with his lecture and very much look forward to welcoming him back again!

Dr. Nagaraj Rao was a child prodigy in Mysore. Steeped in the spiritual and philosophical traditions of India, he is and famous throughout the world for his passionate and insightful lectures. The Sritattvanidhi is a yoga text which was composed in Mysore and contains many insights into the postural yoga practices which developed in Mysore in the early 1900s. Having personally translated portions of the text, and being fluent in Sanskrit, ancient Kannada script and English, Dr Rao will give us a unique opportunity to see into this classical work from the heart of Mysore’s yoga community.

Dr. Darshan Shankar is Vice Chancellor, Transdisciplinary University and Founder Trustee, Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions, Bangalore Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Traditions, Bangalore. India

Anant Darshan Shankar is the Managing Trustee of the Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Traditions (FRLHT) and Vice Chancellor of the Trans-Disciplinary University (TDU), Bangalore. TDU aims to bring in social transformation through innovation inspired by Ayurveda, Natural and Social Sciences and Technology.

During the last 25 years, Dr. Shankar’s work has inspired research and outreach in the field of Ayurveda-biology a new transdisciplinary domain that combines systemic perspectives of Ayurveda with the molecular approaches of biology. In recognition of Darshan Shankar’s, pioneering work in promoting integrative health sciences, he was awarded the Padma Shri Award, by the Government of India in 2011.

Ayurvedacharya, Dr. G. G. Gangadharan is a practicing Ayurvedic physician and currently the Director of M S Ramaiah Indic Centre for Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine based in Bangalore, India. He has been actively leading many initiatives to promote Ayurveda and use of medicinal plants. Dr. Gangadharan is an expert on authentic Ayurvedic methods of diagnosis – specially pulse diagnosis – and treatment. He has dedicated himself to propagation of Ayurveda knowledge and promoting use of Ayurveda and local health traditions at the grass root level in rural parts of India.

Sri TRS Sharma is an original student of Sri Krishnamacharya who can speak directly about what he taught in asana classes and his perspectives on philosophy. He is an author, scholar, yogi and philosopher with a lifetime of experience. He will share his vast knowledge and unique perspective. Having grown up in the heart of Mysore Yoga Parampara and also educated in America, Dr. Sharma has great insight into yoga and the way it has spread throughout the world.

Yogacharya S. Sridharan is the senior most mentor, therapist and consultant at Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram in Chennai. Having met with Sri Krishnamacharya personally and contributed to writing his biography, he will be giving an authoritative talk about the life and teachings of the father of modern yoga, Sri Krishnamacharya. The Yoga Valli is a text which contains the core beliefs and spiritual views of Sri Krishnamacharya. We want to go past simply learning about the historical facts of his life and try to understand his world view and spirituality as well.