Our values:

We have and teach respect for all religions, races, ethnicities, genders, or sexual orientations. All people are viewed as having Buddha-nature or consciousness.

We teach compassion and kindness as the path of helping others.

We believe in and teach the importance of having a Guru, or spiritual teacher, and a spiritual lineage.

We believe in the benefit of being on retreat while studying so that students are immersed in the yoga lifestyle throughout their studies.

Be immersed in the yogic lifestyle:

Begin your day at 5:30am with yoga asana, pranayama, and sacred mantras which collectively help you to connect with your true nature, described in yoga as Sat-Chit-Ananda (Being, Consciousness, and Bliss).

Practice meditation as a daily part of the training. 

Participate in seva, or selfless service. This aspect of the spiritual path involves working with open-heartedness and shared purpose in support of community, without sense of reward.

Learn to work with the root mantra of our lineage, “Om Namah Shivaya,” which means “I bow with respect to Shiva, the conscious energy of the universe, the Self of all.”

Study the Sanskrit language, specifically related to asana. Sanskrit names and mantras are believed to have Matrika Shakti, the spiritual power of words.

Receive introduction to Ayurveda and subtle body system. In the 300-hour training, learn more about how to awaken and purify the seven main chakras.

Gain experience with different meditation practices and techniques, including:

• The Guru Gita, a Sanskrit mantra consisting of 182 verses followed by an arati. This practice is done every morning in the Main Temple. 
• The Yajna, an ancient Vedic fire ceremony used for transformation, purification, and renewal. This practice is done every morning in the Fire Temple. 
• Medicine Buddha practice, a Tibetan practice used to heal oneself and to benefit others with physical, mental, and emotional afflictions.
• Buddhist and Yogic mantras used for mental purification and to train the mind.
• Pranayama exercises used for purification, including the Negative Tension Release practice.
• Visualizations, used as part of meditation practice for both Buddhist and Hindu pujas and sadhanas.