Let's Talk Yoga

What actually changes during pregnancy, and how should yoga teachers adapt their teaching? Aru talks with Aparna Ramesh about prenatal yoga across all three trimesters, balancing effort and rest, modifications, props, pranayama, sound, visualization, and the tools that can support a healthy and empowering pregnancy practice.

Episode Highlights:

• Prenatal yoga intensity and effort
• Balancing effort and rest, and teaching beyond “listen to your body”
• The prenatal talk test
• Normalizing breaks in practice
• First trimester yoga practice
• Trimester changes and teaching considerations
• Second trimester strengthening
• Third trimester physical changes
• Heat and hot yoga risks
• First trimester practice focus
• Second trimester practice focus
• Third trimester practice focus
• Prenatal yoga in mixed classes
• Strengthening for pregnancy and motherhood
• Pelvic floor education and practice
• Third trimester modifications
• Props and creative modifications
• Lying on the back during pregnancy
• Prana and pregnancy
• Prenatal pranayama practices
• Prenatal chanting and sound
• Visualization during pregnancy and labor
• Yoga Nidra and sankalpa
• Teaching prenatal yoga with confidence
• Functional and non-ego-driven practice
• Building sustainable self-practice

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What exactly is Yin Yoga, and how is it different from restorative yoga? Aru gets nerdy with Vinay Jesta about sensation, stillness, connective tissue, the meridian system, emotional awareness, and finding the right balance between Yin and Yang. They also discuss common teaching mistakes, practicing Yin online, and what to look for in a good Yin Yoga training.

Episode Highlights:

• What Yin Yoga is and its place in the yoga tradition
• Yin Yoga vs. restorative yoga
• Sensation, stillness, and finding the appropriate edge
• Props, modifications, and working with different bodies
• Yin practice length, sequencing, and connective tissue
• Tension vs. compression and recognizing harmful sensations
• The role of verbal guidance in Yin
• The meridian system and Traditional Chinese Medicine
• Meridians, nadis, emotions, and the psychological aspects of Yin
• Stillness, self-observation, and meditation in Yin poses
• Yin poses, gravity, and different ways to practice
• Yin for injuries, pregnancy, and hypermobility
• Balancing Yin with Yang-oriented practices
• Common misconceptions and mistakes in teaching Yin
• Music in Yin classes
• Practicing Yin through online videos vs. with a teacher
• What to look for in a Yin Yoga training
• Balancing anatomy, skeletal variations, and energetic approaches in Yin

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What does authentic yoga actually look like? Aru shares her personal checklist for examining the depth, roots, and transmission of your yoga practice and teaching. From lineage and Hinduism to pranic experience, sadhana, primary sources, and knowing what you don’t know, this episode explores why sincerity alone isn’t enough—and how we can move closer to authenticity.

Episode Highlights:

• Feeling authentic versus being authentic
• Westernization and cultural drift
• Authenticity beyond Indian identity
• Hinduism and yoga literacy
• Origin versus transmission
• Social media as a red flag
• Platform size versus teaching depth
• Reach versus depth in yoga
• The content creator economy
• When content becomes teaching
• Churn in yoga offerings
• Social media versus real knowledge
• Adhikara and authentic transmission
• Knowing and tracing your lineage
• Guru Shishya Parampara and transmission
• Lineage versus compiled yoga
• Hinduism as working yoga literacy
• Sanatana Dharma and yoga roots
• Yoga texts and traditions
• Experiencing the pranic body
• Prana versus nervous system knowledge
• Pranayama and pranic understanding
• The pranic body in Hatha Yoga
• Deep study with teachers
• Having primary yoga teachers
• Sadhana beyond asana
• Personal practice beyond physical yoga
• Yoga practice versus transactional teaching
• Marketing culture and yoga communities
• Learning from primary sources
• Long-form study and contemplation
• Knowing the limits of knowledge
• Honesty about what you know
• Relationship with the sacred
• Non-instrumental spiritual practice
• Sincerity versus authenticity
• Closing the gap through practice
• Earning the right to transmit
• Self-reflection and authentic yoga

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A closer look at Lakshmi, Saraswati, Durga, Kali, and Parvati—and why these Hindu goddesses cannot be reduced to modern wellness trends, aesthetics, or manifestation tools. Aru explores cultural appropriation, Shakti, devotion, ritual, and what it means to engage with these traditions with greater depth and respect.

Episode Highlights:

• The viral Lakshmi Maxxing trend
• Cultural appropriation in modern yoga
• Hindu goddesses and their symbolism
• Female goddesses and divine identity
• Understanding Shakti beyond feminine energy
• The goddess as divine reality
• Lakshmi beyond abundance and beauty
• The eight forms of Lakshmi
• Lakshmi and auspiciousness
• Lakshmi’s relationship with prosperity
• Prosperity within a dharmic framework
• Using wealth responsibly and ethically
• Saraswati and true knowledge
• Knowledge, discernment, and Viveka
• Durga and extraordinary divine power
• Durga beyond warrior woman stereotypes
• The power of feminine strength
• Kali, destruction, and transformation
• Kali and the dissolution of ego
• Kali, impermanence, and liberation
• Parvati and sustained devotion
• Parvati as practitioner and ascetic
• Living with Hindu goddesses
• Devotion versus transactional worship
• Offerings, gratitude, surrender, and ritual
• Everyday Hindu practices and reverence
• When sacred traditions become aesthetics
• Understanding cultural appropriation with discernment
• Learning from authentic sources
• What Lakshmi teaches beyond accumulation
• What Saraswati teaches about discernment
• Finding courage through Durga
• Transformation through Kali
• Embodying Parvati’s qualities
• The divine feminine beyond manifestation
• Approaching Hindu traditions with respect

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What exactly is a sankalpa, and how is it different from an affirmation, intention, or goal? Medha Bhaskar joins me to explore the deeper meaning of sankalpa, how to discover one that truly resonates, and how it can become a guiding direction for our lives.

Episode Highlights:

• Sankalpa’s meaning and place in yoga
• Sankalpa versus affirmations and intentions
• Sankalpa versus manifestation and goals
• Understanding SMART goals
• Discovering a deeper sankalpa
• Having one or multiple sankalpas
• Sharing a sankalpa publicly
• Sankalpa as a personal mantra
• Cultivating the feeling of sankalpa
• Different types of sankalpas
• Personal versus universal sankalpas
• Choosing the right sankalpa focus
• Moving beyond selfish sankalpas
• Measuring sankalpa progress
• Working through disappointment
• Using sankalpa with difficult intentions
• Finding and taking a sankalpa
• Using self-inquiry to discover sankalpa
• Writing, repeating, and wording sankalpa
• Choosing the right sankalpa language
• Using positive sankalpa statements
• Sankalpa as a healing practice
• Spiritual versus personal sankalpas
• Recognizing fear-driven sankalpas
• Do’s and don’ts of sankalpa
• Avoiding control and obsession
• Using universally applicable sankalpas
• Allowing sankalpa to evolve
• Using a single-word sankalpa

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What are the bandhas, and why do they play such an important role in Hatha Yoga? Sandra Anderson joins me to explore the physical, energetic, and meditative purpose of Mula Bandha, Uddiyana Bandha, Jalandhara Bandha, and Maha Bandha, along with practical guidance for yoga teachers.

Episode Highlights:

• Meaning and purpose of bandhas
• Bandhas in asana, pranayama, and meditation
• Understanding Mula Bandha
• Male and female differences in Mula Bandha
• Contraindications for Mula Bandha
• Understanding Uddiyana Bandha
• Avoiding excessive muscular effort
• Preparing the body for bandhas
• Teaching bandhas without labels
• Signs of effective bandha practice
• Understanding Jalandhara Bandha
• Jalandhara Bandha in pranayama
• Understanding Maha Bandha
• Yoga practice without bandhas
• Presenting energetic practices responsibly
• Teaching advice for yoga teachers
• Sandra's courses and resources

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Why does Sanskrit place so much importance on sound and pronunciation? I’m joined by Dr. Varun Khanna to explore the stories, philosophy, and history behind Sanskrit, and discuss what modern yoga teachers really need to know about the language.

Episode Highlights:

• Meaning of the word guru
• Sound and vibration in Sanskrit
• Origins of Devanagari script
• Sanskrit's role in Indian philosophy
• Sound, vibration, and the subtle body
• Pronunciation and mantra accuracy
• Sanskrit in modern yoga teaching
• Sanskrit as a tool for learning yoga
• Om as the ultimate vibration
• Sanskrit beyond power and hierarchy
• Practical takeaways for yoga teachers

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Strength is becoming an essential part of modern yoga, but what does it really mean to be strong in asana? I sit down with functional strength coach Chhavi Sahal to explore trunk stability, core engagement, flexibility versus strength, and practical ways yoga teachers can build stronger, more resilient practitioners.

Episode Highlights:

• Strength gaps in asana
• Trunk stability and load-bearing
• Strength versus flexibility
• Sthira Sukham Asanam
• Push and pull strength
• Strength beyond yoga
• Building trunk and core strength
• Standing versus supine core engagement
• Posterior chain strength
• Balanced hip stability
• Benefits of strength training
• Strength and yogic practice

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Most yoga teachers have heard of at least one or two of the Shat Kriyas — maybe you've practiced jala neti, maybe you've taught kapalabhati. But the full picture of what these six techniques actually are, where they come from, and why the Hatha Yoga Pradipika places them before pranayama is a conversation the modern yoga world rarely has with any rigor. In this episode, Aru goes deep into the Shatkarma — the six cleansing practices of Hatha Yoga — drawing directly from the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and the Gheranda Samhita to unpack what these techniques were actually built to do, and why "yogic detox" is one of the least accurate ways to describe them.

This is not a beginner overview. This is the episode for teachers, trainees, and serious practitioners who want to understand the architecture of Hatha Yoga — why the body had to be cleared before the breath could be regulated, what the texts say about each technique specifically, and where modern science has quietly caught up to practices that are at least six hundred years old on paper, and likely much older.

Episode Highlights:

• What Shat Karma actually means — Sanskrit breakdown of the term and each of the six kriyas
• The historical context: Swatmarama's Hatha Yoga Pradipika (15th c.) vs. Gheranda Samhita (17th c.) and how they differ in their treatment of Shatkarma
• Why Swatmarama places the six kriyas before pranayama — and what that sequencing tells you about the entire logic of Hatha Yoga
• The difference between "cleansing for wellness" and "removing a specific obstruction so practice can go deeper"
• A full breakdown of all six — Neti, Dhauti, Basti, Trataka, Nauli, and Kapalabhati — with Sanskrit etymology, traditional technique, and purpose
• What modern research actually says (and where it goes quiet)
• Why Trataka is the only kriya that isn't physically invasive — and why that makes it the most misunderstood of the six
• Basti: why it's the most prerequisite-dependent kriya, and why almost no one can do it traditionally
• The two texts don't list the six in the same order — and why that sequencing difference matters more than it looks

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I sit down with Dr. Jayarajan Kodikannath to explore Ayurvedic parenting, child development, and holistic well-being. We discuss prakriti in children, digestion, hydration, breath, mindfulness, emotional health, modern parenting challenges, and practical ways to raise resilient, balanced, and healthy children through the lens of Ayurveda.

Episode Highlights:

• Inspiration behind the book
• Ayurvedic pediatrics explained
• Understanding the whole child
• Prakriti and child development
• Optimizing health from conception
• Healing versus fixing
• Digestion and nutrition
• Water and hydration
• Breath and self-regulation
• Mindfulness and awareness
• Ego and child development
• Sattva, rajas, and tamas
• Perception and mental health
• Parenting in the digital age
• Modern parenting approaches
• Building trust with children
• Supporting individuality
• Common childhood health concerns
• Self-care for parents
• Conscious parenting practices

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