Yoga Teachers Biographies | Yoga Society of San Francisco

Briksha Mahendra – Tantric Breathwork, Vinyasa Yoga

Mahendra Briksha born in the small village of Himalayas, is a yogi, a certified Rebirthing Breathwork practitioner, Integral coach and raw vegan chef. Mahendra Briksha combines Vedantic-Yogic practices, Buddhist wisdom and Integral insights in his teaching. He has been teaching and leading breathing sessions and meditation classes for 10 years.
He is a graduate of the yoga teacher-training program at the Vivekananda Yoga Research Center in Bangalore, India and holds certificates in Integral Yoga from California Institute of Integral studies, and Yoga Therapy from Purusha Yoga, and has over 200 hours of Yoga Teacher training through Urban Flow with Rusty Wells. Briksha is a resident teacher and manager of the Yoga Society along with co-teaching the 200hr TT. He also co-teaches the 200hr TT for Seaside Yoga Sanctuary.
Briksha’s main mission to share his knowledge and experience is to help people awaken in their body, breath and mind and learn to live a peaceful, and evolutionary life in the midst of busy world.

Schedule:

Tuesday: 8:15 am – 9:30 am Tantric Breathwork

Wednesdayday: 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm Beginner’s yoga & Breathing

Marcelo Carvalho, M.A. – Pranayama

Marcelo Carvalho began teaching yoga in 2001. His yoga classes include asana (poses,) pratyahara (internalizing the focus of the mind and the senses,) and pranayama (expansion of primordial energy – prana.) He emphasizes meditation, yoga psychology, and Self-knowledge as principle tools for personal transformation and healing. Marcelo studies Sanskrit with Dr. Ram Karan Sharma and the Yoga Society Sanskrit faculty. An active member of the Yoga Society of San Francisco, Marcelo has been on the board of directors since 2000, and is elected Board member for the term 2012-14. Although he did not meet Shri Brahmananda during his lifetime, he has embraced him as his Guru.

Schedule:

Monday, Tuesday and Friday: 5:00 am – 6:00 am Pranayama

Friday: 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm Patanjali Yoga Sutras Readings

John Paul – Weekend Warm-Up Yoga

John Paul is a constant explorer who has been studying various body-mind, movement and healing practices since 2005. In his studies, yoga has remained a constant source of fascination. He finds that yoga allows him to flow with the ever constant changes of life, allowing him to “ride the waves” rather than be consumed by them. He hopes to impart on his students a similar feeling of openness and fortitude on many levels of their being.

Warm-up to your weekend with a short meditation, gentle stretches and classical hatha yoga poses, like Downward Facing Dog, Triangle and Sun Salutations. Class is taught in a non-competitive and welcoming way that allows you to stretch, discover how your breath affects your experience and start your weekend off right.

Schedule:

Saturday: 9:00 pm – 10:15 pm Warm-Up Yoga

Carolina Chaves Urruzmendi – Kundalini Yoga

Carolina (Japa Prem) is a Kundalini Yoga Instructor + Practitioner. Her classes are broken down by theme, focus and occasional creative explorations on paper. As an instructor her mission is for everyone to be present and aligned to their hearts. Her highest values are integrity, kindness and courage. Born in the United States and raised in Uruguay, her integrative approach to teaching stems from her connection to her ancestral roots. She received her KRI Level 1 Certification and is pursuing Level 2 at Guru Ram Das Ashram in San Francisco with Awtar Kaur Khalsa. Currently she is getting certified in rebirthing breathwork at The Yoga Society of San Francisco with Briksha Mahendra.

“The Church says: the body is a sin.
Science says: the body is a machine.
Advertising says: The body is a business.
The Body says: I am a fiesta.”

~ Eduardo Galeano

Schedule:

Sunday: 10:30 pm – 11:45 pm Kundalini Yoga

Sharon Hawley – Beginner’s Iyengar Yoga

“Balance does not mean merely balancing the body. Balance in the body is the foundation for balance in life. In whatever position one is in, or in whatever condition in life one is placed, one must find balance. Balance is the state of the present – the here and now. If you balance in the present, you are living in Eternity.”
~ Light on Life, B.K.S. Iyengar, 2006

Profoundly influenced by the referenced book, I began studying the eight limbs of yoga in the method of B.K.S. Iyengar shortly after its publication. In the ensuing years, I have been privileged to study with numerous senior teachers in the system as well as with members of the Iyengar family here and in India. I continue to apprentice with several highly knowledgeable and gifted teachers to whom I am indebted. But my greatest debt of gratitude goes, ultimately, to my students who teach me the most. To quote the 16th-century poet Louis de Camoes, “the more I give you, the more I owe you.” Namaskar.

Schedule:

Tuesday: 5:45 pm – 7:15 pm Iyengar Yoga

Franceasca Seiden – Ashtanga Yoga/Sound Healing

Franceasca Seiden is a filmmaker, writer and founder of Sexual Alchemy Healing Arts (SAHA.) SAHA is a traveling workshop that combines esoteric meditation, magick and vibrational sound therapy via 7 crystal bowls to turn trauma into power. Seiden works with sexual dysfunction, trauma, toxic, shame, PTSD.

She became certified Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga teacher in 2005 she is also is a sound healer, using the crystal bowls to provide Vibrational Sound Therapy and is a lifelong student of the occult arts and sciences conducting full moon/new moon rituals, is an intuitive tarot reader and can read natal charts. Currently she is getting certified in rebirthing breathwork as is part of the residency program at The Yoga Society of San Francisco.

Franceasca has been featured in Discover Hollywood Magazine, iGoLive Video Blog, Occulture Podcast episode #69 and has been a guest twice on The Holy Sessions on Jolt Radio.

Schedule:

Monday: 6:00 pm – 7:15 pm Ashtanga Yoga

Thrusday: 8:30 pm – 9:30 pm Sound Healing

Stefanie Schur – Vinyasa Flow

Stefanie teaches energizing and heart-felt vinyasa flow classes that use playful movement to take you through creative sequences of postures, and leave you in a puddle of peaceful bliss. Her classes are infused with balance, strength, heart-opening, devotion, and some sweat—peeling away the layers to your true self takes work! She sees yoga as a sanctuary of the inner self that brings us back to center, wherever our lives may lead. She believes in meeting her students where they are and honoring the personal journey that brings them to this moment.

After growing up around New York City and getting degrees in environmental science and landscape architecture, Stefanie became a nomad, moving about the country and world, devoted to protecting and healing the earth and all it’s inhabitants. Whether it’s assisting indigenous peoples in the interior forests of Borneo to maintain their independence and traditions, creating sacred gardens in Bodhgaya at the site of the of the Bodhi Tree where the Buddha reached enlightenment, creating open spaces for people to connect to the larger world around them, healing fragile ecosystems, or fostering an ethic of love and kindness through environmental education, she has always felt a profound connection to the earth. She has done extensive conservation and education work for organizations like Sierra Club, Earth Island Institute, Wilderness Society, Nature Conservancy, Grand Canyon National Park, and many National Forests.

stefanieschur.com/yoga

Schedule:

Sundays 9:00 am – 10:30 am Vinyasa Flow

Gloria Purnā – Yoga Core & Yoga for Kids

Gloria Purnā has been practicing yoga since she went on around the world trip in 2001. During that trip, she also experienced a long meditation retreat in Thailand, and she has been practicing Vipassana ever since.She became a certified yoga teacher in 2015. What Gloria Purnā loves the most about yoga is the energy created in a group setting, the yoga teachings, and the integration of body, mind, and soul that yoga brings. Her approach to yoga is harmonious, creative and joyful. In her class, you will be lead through simple yet challenging asanas, as well as gentle and restorative practices such as pranayama and yoga Nidra.

Schedule:

Friday: 6:00 pm – 7:15 pm Yoga Core