JivaChaiChat – Details, episodes & analysis

Mild technical issues during this interview. Please accept my apologies that I wasn't able to smooth out all the rough edges; however, the lessons that Mark gives are worth the minor inconveniences.

Mark Stevens started practising Yoga at art school in 1986 after a career in motorcycle road racing, which left him with a body badly in need of rehabilitation! After leaving art school, he worked as an artist for many years, sustaining a regular yoga practice and studying in the Sivananda and Iyengar traditions. Gradually, the medium shifted from painting to yoga. Mark has an MA in Fine Art.​In 2003, he undertook Sivananda teacher training in Kerala, southern India, and met his teacher, Swami Govindananda; it was a life-changing experience, and on his return, he converted part of his home into a Yoga studio and has been teaching there ever since. Mark qualified in Yogic Meditation with Swami Saradananda in London in 2006.​Back to India for advanced teacher training with Swami Govindananda in the Himalayan Ashram on the banks of the Ganges in 2007.​By this time, Mark had also discovered Jivamukti Yoga and new inspiration in the form of modern-day Yoga masters David Life and Sharon Gannon. He undertook teacher training with them in New York in 2009, discovering a new Yoga family.​The teachings of Tirumali Krishnamacharya also inspired Mark, who undertook a short Vinyasa Krama Teacher Training andhis long- workshops with term student Srivatsa Ramaswami in 2014. The teaching and books of Gregor Maehle also inform Mark's practice and teaching, especially the systems of Pranayama and Yogic Kundalini Meditation that he has codified for us from the traditional scriptures. Mark offers love, gratitude, and all his efforts to the teachers and students who have guided him on the path of yoga, Swami Sivananda. Swami Vishnu Devananada. David Life. Sharon Gannon. Yogeshwari. Swami Govindananda. Ruth Lauer-Manenti. Prahlada. Swami Kailasananda. Swami Tattvarupananda. Swami Saradananda. Srivatsa Ramaswami and Gregor Maehle.

Emergence of Yoga. T. K. Sribashyam. (English Edition)

Nathamuni's Yoga Rahasya. T.K.V. Desikachar.

Yoganjalisaram. T. Krishnamacharya.

Yoga Yajnavalkya. A.G. Mohan & Ganesh Mohan

S. Ramaswami. Samkhya Karika.

https://www.yogastudioely.co.uk/

IG. Yoga Studio Ely

FB. Yoga Studio Ely

YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@yogastudioely1399

Originally from Woodstock, NY, Catherine has been teaching yoga since 2017 after completing the 300-hour Jivamukti training in India, followed by an additional 500-hour apprenticeship with senior teacher Jules Febre. Catherine taught at Jivamukti NYC before its closing in 2019 and has since co-led two yoga teacher trainings and taught in large and small studios around the country. 

Catherine is also a licensed occupational therapist and enjoys integrating both bodies of knowledge into her classes, making yoga fun, accessible, and meaningful for all interested! 

Catherine is honored to pass down the dynamic and inspiring method that her teachers created when developing Jivamukti Yoga. Jivamukti comes from an ashtanga influence with additional focuses on music, scripture, Bhakti, ahimsa, and meditation. Classes are rigorous, fun, and adaptable to all levels and needs. Catherine's dear influences include her teachers, Sharon Gannon and David Life (co-founders of Jivamukti Yoga), mentor Jules Febre (for sequencing, anatomy, and humor), and Sean Johnson (for Bhakti, storytelling, creativity, and song). 

Catherine is honored and excited to share yoga as "a path to enlightenment through compassion for all beings".

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Read her writings

Practice in person (Newburgh Yoga Shala) or one of her recorded classes

Marni is a delight. Join us in the chai shop and find out why. We talk about old school Jivamukti, offering veganism in a graceful way, David and Sharon, and sticking to yoga when you're at a crossroad in life.

More Marni here

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The one and only Moritz.

Follow Moritz on Instagram.

Take a class at his (and his husband's) studio => Peace Yoga Berlin Jivamukti Yoga Studio

Moritz on Spotify

Moritz Ulrich is the Co-Director of Peace Yoga Berlin – Jivamukti Yoga School, an Advanced certified Jivamukti Yoga Teacher, and a Medical Doctor. After having practiced almost daily for several years, studying with different teachers from all Yoga traditions, Moritz decided to start teaching Yoga. This was over 10 years ago. While studying at Berlin Music College he was enthusiastic to share his knowledge. After visiting the Jivamukti Yoga Center in Munich, he realized where he belonged. The love, the strength and the unlimited knowledge of Sharon Gannon (founder of the Jivamukti Yoga Method) inspired him to dive deep into the path of Yoga. He completed the Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training in NYC with his teachers Sharon Gannon and David Life and the 500h Apprenticeship Program with Dr. Patrick Broome in Berlin, followed by the Advanced Certification Board in NYC. He teaches workshops all over Germany and Europe, is part of the international Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Trainings as a facilitator and anatomy/Sanskrit teacher, and is the program director of the continuing education programs at his Jivamukti Yoga School in Berlin.

Nick joins Chris in the Chai Shop where they talk about introducing Jivamukti Yoga into an established studio, the challenges of owning a business, and the joys of studentship.

Nick co-owns M3Yoga with his adorable husband Nick.

M3Yoga will be hosting the Spiritual Warrior Training in October => more info here

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More about Nick -

Nick hails from the DC metro area where he has lived most of his life, though Nick’s family is largely from Athens, GA and is also where he lived for 5 years during elementary school.  He has been a Registered Nurse for 17 years and began his career at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland working in the Cardiovascular ICU, taking care of postoperative patients after heart surgery. He later transitioned into emergency medicine, surgery, and substance abuse treatment. Nick will complete his graduate work in healthcare innovation in 2025.

Nick is an E-RYT 500. He has a passion for anatomy and physiology and has studied under the top medical professionals in the world at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He believes having a detailed understanding of the physical body and how it operates at a cellular level enhances your ability to practice and instruct yoga.

He is influenced from his teachers Noah Maze and Peach Friedman, with whom he completed an advanced 300hr certification in The Maze Method, along with a year mentorship with Noah; and Mitch Burnett and Olga Oskorbina, whom he completed a 75 hour Jivamukti Spiritual Warrior training at Jivamukti Barcelona. Nick is also a Certified Rocket Ashtanga Instructor and has completed over 200 advanced hours in The Rocket System as taught by Larry Schultz with Amber Gean Espelage in Cincinatti, Oh and in Tamarindo, Costa Rica. Nick is a daily Ashtanga practitioner, practicing second series and is deeply appreciative to his teacher Todd Rodrick at Ashtanga Atlanta.

Nick contributes much of his understanding of the philosophical roots of the yoga tradition to studying with Brother Shankara, a Vedanta monk from the Vedanta Center of Atlanta, for many years. Brother Shankara left his body in 2024.

Nick pulls from his broad range of training to help him meet students where they are in their yoga journey. Nick’s teaching methodology is modern and approachable, but not necessarily easy. His classes are often anatomical and technical but always taught from the heart. His classes will educate you, challenge you, and are always accessible. Expect to leave feeling empowered and met where you are.

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Purnima Maria Langen is an Island Girl from Hawaii who moved to the Island of NYC, where she discovered her passion and path in life as a Jivamukti Yoga Teacher. She became inspired to become a Jivamukti Yoga teacher after taking classes at Gold’s Gym with Sandhi Gayatri Ferreira. Her focus and devotion to the discipline of Kung Fu helped her transition to the discipline and study of Yoga. In 2007 she was certified at the 300 Hour level under the Co Founders of Jivamukti Yoga, Sharon Gannon and David Life. In 2009 she completed her 500 Hours apprenticeship under the guidance of Julie Kirkpatrick and Maria Preuster, becoming certified as an 800 Hours Jivamukti Yoga teacher.

From 2007-2013 Purnima was a manager at the Jivamukti Yoga Center in Union Square. She also coordinated Jivamukti Yoga Retreats around the world. She has taught with Parashakti (Dance of Liberation) at the Omega Institute. In 2012 she was blessed to be a guest teacher in the Philippines, the land of her ancestors. She has also taught at the second Jivamukti Yoga franchise in Jersey City.

Purnima seeks to offer classes that are filled with joy, expansiveness and upliftment. She believes that breath and moving from the heart can allow you to go within, to see the light within you. She believes that Yoga is for everyone and every body. Her students are also her teachers. She is a Nicherin Buddhist and member of the Soka Gakkai International. She is guided by a quote by her mentor Daisaku Ikeda: “It’s the Heart that matters most.”

Katie Rose is an advanced-level Jivamukti Yoga Teacher with the highest possible accreditations with Yoga Alliance and Yoga Australia and has taught yoga for over twenty years. 

 Katie is a published author of several books (her newest Trust Life, Trust Yourself, Find Peace can be found here).

Follow Katie Rose on Instagram

Katie's website => bhaktirose.com.au

Rima Rabbath has had an incredible journey! Visit the Chai Shop to hear about her transformation from Professional Tennis Player to MBA Student, Fancy Business Woman, Jivamukti Teacher, and current incarnation as Souk Studio Co-Owner.

Get to Souk (they offer online classes as well)

Rima's website => soukofrima.com

Follow Rima on Instagram & Spotify

April 2025 FOTM => The Jewel in the Heart of the Lotus

FOTM April 2025 Playlist by Candida

More on Candida => candidavivalda.com

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Her name is Jamie Logan and she is an animal advocate, YouTuber, filmmaker, yogi, content creator and podcast host. She is based in NYC and makes videos that get people thinking— Some call it ruining lives and pushing her agenda but she is committed to sharing an obvious truth that most people tend to ignore.

Follow Jamie on Instagram

Jamie has a lot of offerings => click here to find out more

Documentaries: 

Earthlings

Dominion

Cowspiracy

What The Health  

The Animals Film

Jamie and Sharon are on tour! Get tickets here => Sharon Gannon Tour