Portfolio
Yogini
A female who has adopted a spiritual path towards an end goal of yoga: union (with the universe).
For me, yoga is about understanding, appreciating, and unifying with the Divine Feminine, the Mother within whom we all reside, who will one day call us back and absorb us into her oblivion. Yoga is the thread that binds together all my life activities: researching spiritual and religious female figures; writing poetry on forms of Shakti; composing music inspired by experiences with the Goddess in her temples and in nature; teaching yoga for peacebuilding through connecting with Mother Earth; and mentoring youth to inculcate the feminine in their values, their lives, and their philosophies of life.
Organizations
I am associated with several organizations, including:
Founder and Director
Prafull Oorja Charitable Foundation
An NGO dedicated to training yoga therapists to work with communities in vulnerable situations. Our mission is to harness the transformative power of yoga to uplift and empower those in need — work that has reached thousands of lives across India.
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Currently serving as President
Women’s Yoga Council of India
Formerly the Karnataka Yoga Council under WICCI, the council advances yoga’s role in women’s well-being and leadership. I served as Member (2020–21) and Vice President (2021–23) before being inducted as President — advocating, always, for women supporting women.
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Co-Founder
Sacred Shakti Trails
Co-founded to inspire and raise awareness, particularly among yoginis and researchers working on yoginis and goddesses.
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Member
Yoga Alliance and Yoga Alliance Foundation
Member of Yoga Alliance and Yoga Alliance Foundation.
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Member
International Association of Yoga Therapists
Member of the International Association of Yoga Therapists.
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I believe in the power of women, and women together.
Background & Training
Yoga Teacher Training — Southwest Institute of Healing Arts·Reiki Level 3·Advanced Yoga Nidra and Yoga Nidra Teacher Training·Pancha Koshas and GLAD Meditation·Music Therapy
Raised in a spiritually oriented matrilineal family, I grew up on the lap of Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati. As a teenager, I took mantra diksha from Sri Mata Amritanandamayi and studied under her close senior disciples.
In early adulthood, I was touched by the deity in my mother’s altar, Akhilandeshwari. My mother was appointed as the caretaker and pujari for Akhilandeshwari by Pujya Shri Mathioli Saraswathy, a spiritual leader whose soft, gentle nature and appreciative qualities empowered me to forge my own path in life — spiritually and otherwise.
At 30, I completed my yoga teacher training at the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts. I sought ways to make yoga accessible to all and incorporated yoga into all my endeavours, including my research and study.
Without my knowing, the Goddess has brought me numerous opportunities to serve her through the practice and philosophies of yoga, moulding and sculpting me into the yogini she wishes me to be.
Honors
Awards
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Yogini Maitreyi Award (Research)
Parmarth Niketan · 2023
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Yogini Patanjali Award (Training)
Parmarth Niketan · 2023
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Yogini Award, District Level
WICCI Yoga Council · 2021
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Patanjali Award (Training)
22nd Bihar State Disabilities Sports Award · 2022
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Bihar State Sports Award
Para-sector · 2017
Grants
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Teaching for Equity Grant
Yoga Alliance Foundation & Ivy Child International · 2021
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Research Fellow: Yoga, Peace, and Conflict
Indic Academy · 2020–2021
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Small Grants
United Religions Initiative · 2017 & 2019