J. Brown Yoga Talks

By J. Brown Yoga

Alternative Health

What's J. Brown Yoga Talks about?

Candid conversations about yoga and beyond with outspoken teacher and writer, J. Brown, founder and director of Abhyasa Yoga Center in Brooklyn, NY. A leading voice in the Slow Yoga Revolution, J advocates for a more intimate, breath-centered, therapeutic yoga practice geared towards well-being and lessening of pain. On topics ranging from yoga philosophy, to the business of yoga, to subjects unrelated to yoga, J and his esteemed guests always have something interesting and intimate to share.

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Daniel Simpson - "Exposing ...

01.18.2021

Daniel Simpson, former foreign correspondent and author of The Truth of Yoga: A Comprehensive Guide to Yoga’s History, Texts, Philosophy, and Practices, talks with J about exposing truth in both journalism and yoga. They discuss Daniels experience of writing for ...

J. Brown Yoga Talks episodes:

01.18.2021 Daniel Simpson - "Exposing Truth in Yoga and Beyond" Daniel Simpson, former foreign correspondent and author of The Truth of Yoga: A Comprehensive Guide to Yoga’s History, Texts, Philosophy, and Practices, talks with J about exposing truth in both journalism and yoga. They discuss Daniels experience of writing for ...
01.11.2021 Lucy Karnani - "Conscious Communication" Lucy Karnani, coauthor of Connecting: Conscious Communication for Yoga Teachers and Therapists, talks with J about utilizing tools for understanding connection and communication. Lucy and J have been interacting for some time and this was an opportunity for them to ...
01.04.2021 Krishna Das - "Grace, Gurus, and Learning to Trust Yourself" Krishna Das, best-selling western chant artist of all time, talks with J about what a real guru is and the practice of chanting. They discuss KD’s experience of Neem Karoli Baba and the role of a guru, his early beginnings ...
12.28.2020 Trina Altman - "Yoga Deconstructed" Trina Altman, author of Yoga Deconstructed®: Movement Science Principles for Teaching, returns to the show to touch base with J on expanding movement diets and meeting goals. They catch up on whats been happening since they last spoke and how ...
12.21.2020 Andrew Rosenstock - "Rolfing, Integration and Somatics" Andrew Rosenstock, host of the Touching Into Presence Podcast, talks with J about Rolfing and other forms of mind/body therapies. They discuss the history of the Rolfing modality, what goes into being “rolfed,” Andrew’s viewpoint on different aspects of both ...
12.14.2020 Elisa Malinverni - "Coping with Covid Fatigue" Elisa Malinverni, founder of Way of The Mother Bern, talks with J about handling the quarantines and moving forward. They discuss the similarities and differences between how Switzerland and the USA have dealt with the pandemic, the blog she wrote ...
12.07.2020 Hareesh Wallis - "Shifting Paradigms and Near Enemies" Hareesh Wallis, Founder and Head Faculty of Tantrika Institute and author of Tantra Illuminated, returns to the show to talk about shifting paradigms of existence and near enemies of the truth. They discuss cultivating a reverent feeling towards life, balancing ...
11.30.2020 Adam Schwartz - "Yoga to the People Shadow Work" Adam Schwartz, yoga teacher and podcast listener, talks with J about the dark underbelly of Yoga to the People NYC. They discuss the @yttpshadowwork Instagram account that started publishing anonymous testimony of manipulation and abuse at what was a premier ...
11.23.2020 Lucie Vogel - "Reckoning of Undue Influence" Lucie Vogel, Original Goat Yoga Mama and survivor of the Dawn Yoga cult, talks with J about holding institutions accountable and a defamation lawsuit filed by Matthew Remski. They discuss Dawn Yoga and her involvement in the organization, when the ...
11.16.2020 Chris Preist - "The Future Buddha is the Sangha" Chris Preist, co-director of Bristol Zen Dojo, talks with J about the teachings of TKV Desikachar and collectivizing institutions of yoga. They discuss Chris’s history and study in both yoga and zen, the process of mind and ego at work ...
11.09.2020 Heather Plett - "The Art of Holding Space" Heather Plett, author of The Art of Holding Space, talks with J the day after the 2020 election about what it means to hold space and learning to navigate in the dark. They discuss the liminal threshold of ambiguity and ...
11.02.2020 Jeff Krasno - "Rising Above the Invective" Jeff Krasno, author and host of the Commune Podcast, talks with J about the trajectory of yoga in our culture and its role in the larger collective fate of humanity. They discuss the origins and spirit of Wanderlust, downsides to ...
10.26.2020 Hong Gwi-Seok - "Somatic Particularity in Iyengar Yoga" Hong Gwi-Seok, author of The Gift of Somatic Particularity in Iyengar Yoga and teacher at the Iyengar Yoga Detroit Cooperative, talks with J about evolving practice and bottom-up social change. They discuss her history with Iyengar Yoga, misconceptions about BKS ...
10.19.2020 Judith Hanson Lasater - "Yoga Myths and Spiritual Practice" Judith Hanson Lasater, author of Yoga Myths: What You Need to Learn and Unlearn for a Safe and Healthy Yoga Practice, returns to the show and talks with J about letting go of the myths that once dominated yoga classes ...
10.12.2020 Simon Borg-Olivier - "Bandhas, Natural Body, Essence of Yoga" Simon Borg-Olivier, co-founder and owner of Yoga Synergy, talks with J about both the science and metaphysics in his work uncovering the essence of yoga. They discuss his experience of studying with the gurus and pioneering yoga in the west, ...
10.05.2020 Seane Corn - "QAnon, Discernment, and Radical Accountability" Seane Corn, co-founder of Off the Mat, Into the World, talks with J about a PSA she posted regarding QAnon and the 2020 election. They discuss the recruitment of wellness influencers and their followers into the QAnon web of conspiracy ...
09.28.2020 Amy Weintraub - "Sacred Sexuality in Temple Dancer" Amy Weintraub, author of Temple Dancer and Yoga for Depression, talks with J about old times and her new fiction work on sacred sexuality. They discuss her pioneering direction in yoga for mood management and mental health, getting caught up ...
09.21.2020 Richard Freeman and Mary Taylor - "On The Bhagavad Gita" Richard Freeman and Mary Taylor, coauthors of When Love Comes to Light: Bringing Wisdom from The Bhagavad Gita Into Modern Life, talk with J about their new translation and interpretation of the Bhagavad Gita. The conversation begins with a check-in ...
09.14.2020 Dr. Monea Tamara - "Racial Justice and Grounding Force" Dr. Monea Tamara Abdul-Majeed, Racial Justice Educator and Yoga Teacher, talks with J about anti-racism and the need for all voices to be heard. They discuss having courageous conversations with family and friends, change making from top down and bottom ...
09.07.2020 Carol Horton - "Grounded Hope in Authoritarian Times" Carol Horton, author of 21st Century Yoga and Yoga PhD, returns to the show to provide a sober analysis of authoritarianism on both sides of the political aisle and perspective on the choices we all are facing. They discuss the ...
08.31.2020 Kishor Stein - "Manouso Manos and Abuses of Power" Kishor Stein is a former student of Manouso Manos who talked with J at the end of last year about the abuse he witnessed, but it was never made public until now. Seven months later, they reconnect to introduce the ...
08.24.2020 Tias Little - "Imaginary Realm of the Wisdom Path" Tias Little, author of The Practice is the Path and Yoga of the Subtle Body, talks with J about liminal spaces and subtle body healing. They discuss his background and evolution from rigorous physicality to somatic embodiment, mining dreams for ...
08.17.2020 Max Strom - "Emotional Healing, Core Human Needs" Max Strom, author of There Is No App For Happiness and A Life Worth Breathing, talks with J about emotional healing and fulfilling core human needs. They discuss experiences and influences that shaped Max’s work, the fundamental relationship between bodies ...
08.10.2020 Nicola Belen - "Yoga of Feeling Connected" Nicola Belen is a long-time listener of the show who has reached out to J a few times and is currently living in Hong Kong, they discuss her story and what things look like there with the pandemic. Nicola shares ...
08.03.2020 Barbara Verrochi - "Long Live The Shala NYC" Barbara Verrochi, co-owner and director of The Shala yoga studios in Manhattan and Brooklyn, talks with J about surviving all these years and so far in the pandemic. They discuss their parallel paths through the early NY scene of the ...
07.27.2020 Amy Wheeler - "Satvic Purpose and Professional Survival" Amy Wheeler, Ph.D., former President of the Board of Directors at the IAYT, founder of Optimal State, talks with J about the current landscape of the “Industrial Yoga Complex” and embodying the principles of yoga. They discuss Amy’s work as ...
07.20.2020 Leana Marie Marshall - "Diversity and Inclusion at Corepower" Leana Marie Marshall, founder of Elle Em Consulting and blackyogateachers365, talks with J about her time at Corepower Yoga and the need for better training around diversity and inclusion in the yoga industry. They discuss the reasons why POC don’t ...
07.13.2020 Dylan Galos - "Epidemiology, Covid, BLM, and Yoga" Dylan Galos, epidemiologist and evaluator, talks with J about the current health crisis and the Black Lives Matter movement. They discuss the role of epidemiology, his background and areas of study, the science behind pandemics, data sets and policy recommendations, ...
07.06.2020 Todd Norian - "Tantra of Unbreakable Wholeness" Todd Norian, author of Tantra Yoga: Journey to Unbreakable Wholeness, talks with J about his time in community and his path to Tantra. They discuss, his thirteen years at Kripalu, his relationship to Amrit Desai, what to make of fallen ...
06.29.2020 Neal Pollack - "Marijuana Addiction and Legal Weed" Neal Pollack, aka “The Greatest Living American Writer” and author of Pothead: My Life as a Marijuana Addict in the Age of Legal Weed, talks with J about cannabis and addressing addiction issues. They discuss shared history from an earlier ...
06.22.2020 Mugs McConnell - "Letters from the Yoga Masters" Mugs McConnell, author of Letters from the Yoga Masters, talks with J about the correspondence and lessons she received from Dr. Hari Dickman. Mugs shares the history of her relationship to yoga, how she ended up having access to over ...
06.15.2020 Charles Eisenstein - "Narrative War and Peace" Charles Eisenstein is an author whose recent essays, The Coronation and The Conspiracy Myth, caused some controversy in the yoga world and J happened into a chance to speak with him in response to the critiques. They discuss separation vs ...
06.08.2020 Timothy McCall, MD - "Beyond Reductionist Intervention" Timothy McCall, MD, author of three books, Examining Your Doctor: A Patient's Guide to Avoiding Harmful Medical Care; Yoga as Medicine: The Yogic Prescription for Health and Healing, and his latest; Saving My Neck: A Doctor's East/West Journey Through Cancer, ...
06.01.2020 Derek Beres - "Conspirituality, Media, and Medicine" Derek Beres, columnist for Big Think and host of the EarthRise Podcast, talks with J about the intersection of conspiracy theories, the wellness industry, and healthy skepticism. They discuss Derek’s history as a journalist and movement enthusiast, the article he ...
05.25.2020 Mel Russo - "Local Yoga, Corporate Gigs, and Personal Touch" Mel Russo, native New Yorker and old friend, reminisces with J about the early days and shares an inside take on the closing of Yoga Works and the future of the studio model. They discuss moving west, living in the ...
05.18.2020 Nyk Danu - "DIY Spirit with a Punk Rock Heart" Nyk Danu, Therapeutic Yoga Teacher and Yin Yoga Teacher Trainer, has been corresponding with J for years and they finally connect to touch base on what’s happening at the grassroots. They discuss Nyk’s history and appetite for learning, hosting your ...
05.11.2020 Derek Sivers - "Solving Problems and Self Expansion" Derek Sivers, musician, producer, circus performer, entrepreneur, TED speaker, and best known as the founder of CD Baby, talks with J about shifting viewpoints, solving problems, and self expansion. They discuss utilizing inspiration, thinking smart instead of strategically, improving our ...
05.04.2020 Joe and Alexis Simek - "Coming Together to Get Through" Joe Simek and Alexis Ridge-Simek, co-owners of Dragonfly Yoga and co-founders of The Fiaria Project, talk with J about their community coming together to get through the shut down. Originally intended to be recorded at a live event to celebrate ...
04.27.2020 Justine Cohen and Michael Ponte - "Weathering the Storm" Justine Wiltshire Cohen and Michael Ponte, owner and manager at Down Under Yoga School of Yoga in Boston, talk with J about what how things have been going since Justine was last on the show three years ago and what ...
04.20.2020 Ryan Cunningham - "Gender Identity Consciousness" Ryan Cunningham, co-host of Unrolled Podcast, returns to touch base on what has happened since their last visit and schools J on gender and identity. They discuss what happened after Ryan went from being a yoga center manager to owner, ...
04.13.2020 Cecily Milne - "New Paradigms and a Yoga Detour" Cecily Milne, founder of Yoga Detour, talks with J about the changing paradigm of yoga practice in the west and the ways in which she has grown and evolved alongside the changing conversation. They discuss her departure from Ashtanga Yoga ...
04.06.2020 Diane Paylor - "Real Deal Holyfield" Diane Paylor, author of Yin Yoga: Essential Poses and Sequences for Balanced Energy, participated in J’s Weekly Teachers Class last year and they re-connect in this intimate conversation about struggles and strengths. They discuss Diane’s mom’s struggle with cancer, her ...
03.30.2020 Rob Walker - "The New Yoga" Rob Walker, author of the The New Yoga: From Cults and Dogma to Science and Sanity, talks with J about taking a hard look at critical questions and proposing common-sense yoga for the future. They discuss how yoga classes have ...
03.23.2020 Michael Hayes - "Larger Bodies, Inclusivity, and Perseverance" Michael Hayes, founder of Buddha Body Yoga and an early pioneer in bringing yoga to larger bodies, talks with J about his early NY roots and the evolving conversation around how to make yoga more inclusive. They discuss Michael’s early ...
03.16.2020 Kaya Mindlin - "Parampara and Authentic Yoga" Kaya Mindlin, founder of Supreme Release Yoga, was referred to J as someone who would speak candidly with him about difficult topics and she did not disappoint. They discuss the meaning of Parampara, misinformed mindsets that modern approaches to yoga ...
03.09.2020 Nischala Joy Devi - "Meditation in the Yoga Tradition" Nischala Joy Devi, author of Meditation in the Yoga Tradition and The Secret Power of Yoga, returns to offer J a yogic perspective on meditation and a practical application of Patañjali’s Yogasūtras. She discusses the concept of “dynamic stillness,” the ...
03.02.2020 Ranju Roy and Dave Charlton - "Embodying the Yoga Sutra" Ranju Roy and Dave Charlton, coauthors of Embodying the Yoga Sutra: Support, Direction, Space, join J to discuss a snapshot of their current understanding of yoga through a consideration of Patañjali’s Yogasūtras and the teachings of TKV Desikachar. They talk ...
02.24.2020 Haley Laughter - "Indigenous Yoga Inspired" Haley Laughter, founder of Hozho Total Wellness, talks with J about the difficulties which affect Native Americans experiencing historical trauma, and incorporating indigenous teachings into yoga practice. They discuss the “assimilation” of Haley’s parents and the effects that had on ...
02.17.2020 Colleen Boyd - "Downtown Desert Yoga" Colleen Boyd, owner of downtown desert yoga in Las Cruces NM, answered J’s call for alternative event spaces and it led to this conversation about the evolution of modern yoga practice and industry. They discuss the early yoga scene in ...
02.10.2020 Greg Peterson - "The Urban Farm" Greg Peterson, creator of The Urban Farm and host of The Urban Farm Podcast, joins J to talk about creating a more sustainable future by becoming more aware of where your food comes from and learning how to grow your ...

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