and... What is Jivamukti Yoga?

Jivamukti Yoga is a path to enlightenment through compassion for all beings. The Jivamukti Method is grounded in the original meaning of the Sanskrit word asana as "seat, connection" – relationship to the earth. Earth implies all of life.

Citing Patanjali's Yoga Sutra, which states that asana should be sthira and sukham, Jivamukti Yoga maintains that one's relationship to others (asana) should be mutually beneficial and come from a consistent (sthira) place of joy and happiness (sukham). This is a radical idea that, when put into practice, can dismantle our present culture, which is based on the notion that the Earth and all other animals exist for our benefit and to be exploited for our own selfish purposes.

So the practice of asana becomes more than mere physical exercise to keep one's body fit or to increase strength or flexibility; it becomes a way to improve one's relationship to all others and thus lead to enlightenment – the dissolution of the sense of separateness, the realization of the oneness of being, the discovery of lasting happiness.

The founders of the Jivamukti Yoga Method are Sharon Gannon and David Life. They met in 1983 in New York City and began a creative collaboration that resulted in the Jivamukti Yoga Method.

Sharon Gannon and David Life taught and codified the Jivamukti Yoga practice for decades, attracting many students worldwide who became practitioners and teachers, adept in the Method. In 2017 they retired from public life and entrusted the lineage into the capable hands of Camilla Veen and Hari Mulukutla.

In 2017, Sharon Gannon and David Life retired from public life and entered into the vanaprastha stage (forest dwelling), in order to deepen their yogic sadhana. They entrusted the Jivamukti lineage into the capable hands of certified Jivamukti Yoga teachers, Camilla Veen of Norway and Hari Mulukutla of the United States and created a new partnership with them called Jivamukti Global.

At Sharon & David's behest, Hari oversaw the Jivamukti Yoga School in New York during its final years until its closure just before the 2020 COVID pandemic. Camilla & Hari continue to oversee the operations and development of Jivamukti Global.

Jivamukti Global is the only entity that has the authorization to conduct all of the Jivamukti Teacher Training courses, developed by Sharon Gannon and David Life, including the 300 HR Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training, the 800 HR apprentice program, the Advanced Board, the Jivamukti Immersion Course, and the 75 HR Jivamukti Teacher Training Course (offered by official JY Studios), as well as to authorize the opening of new Jivamukti Yoga studios.