Swathy was born in Southern India and introduced to yoga by her father at a young age. Growing up, watching her grandmother practice Bhakti & Karma yoga has influenced her to serve with compassion & lead with devotion. She believes that the practice of yoga should transcend the mat into everyday living. In 2015, Swathy moved from Southern India to Sacramento bringing her practice of classical Hatha yoga with her. In 2017, she went on to complete her 200 hour YTT & 300 hour Trauma-Informed Yoga YTT through work trade. In 2019, she graduated from the 300 hour YTT in Sri Vidya Tantra through the Vira Bhava Yoga school. She teaches classes at studios, psychiatric facilities & homeless shelters. She also teaches one-on-one classes & workshops. She runs yoga retreats to India. When she is not teaching she is cooking, spending time in nature or singing lullabies to her cat in her favorite Indian language, Kannada.

Tanya is a teacher and practitioner that found yoga to be the catalyst in her healing journey many years ago. In 2016 she completed her 200hr YTT. Her desire was to share the ways in which yoga had inadvertently had a profound impact in her life, but she also now understands this experience to have been a spiritual longing. In 2020 Tanya completed her 300hr YTT with Vira Bhava. She embraces the aspect of her practice that is never over as there is always work to be done and says her mission is to help students Evolve on Purpose. Her passion as a teacher is weaving the philosophical teachings through an asana practice to aid in facilitating students exploration of what Yoga is to them. Tanya believes yoga is a holistic embodiment of seeking what intrinsically resides within us so that we might find the strength, love and courage to embrace & integrate all the pieces of ourselves with the acknowledgement that we are already whole, and allowing our inner truth to unapologetically shine through.

Casey has a deep appreciation for the entire system of holistic health, nature, social justice, fighting fast fashion, and cats. She’s also a HUGE Buffy the Vampire Slayer nerd. After years of anxiety and feeling like something was missing, she started practicing yoga. Noticing the subtle changes that started happening within herself and the way she showed up in the world, she finally decided that sharing this healing science with others was of the utmost importance. In 2020, she joined Vira Bhava’s 230 hour YTT which broke her open in the most beautiful way, leaving her more curious and inspired than ever. You can find her teaching at Uptown Yoga Loft in Shelby, NC.

Located in Asheville, NC, Katie is a Yoga instructor with a passion for all things women, babies, and community! With 10 years of experience in Early Childhood & Holistic Education, & a 500hr RYT, I aim to merge that childlike quality of awe and wonder with our daily lives through intuitive movement. I believe in the necessity of empowering one another, and believe it is done through authenticity, play, and building community. I approach yoga asana rooted in receptivity & deep embodiment, to foster resilience, integration, & empowerment. I value connection and community building. I also love a good book, a strong coffee, and time spent in nature.

Learn more and practice with Katie

Kimber was diagnosed 10 years ago with a crippling auto-immune disease. With the healing wisdom of Yoga & Ayurveda, she's now 100% symptom free and has mastered making these ancient practices accessible to the modern student. She is an RYT-200 and a personal trainer. She has completed an advanced studies course and apprenticeship at Vira Bhava Yoga and is a student of Cate Stillman at Yogahealer. She is currently working on her 300 hr TT at Asheville Yoga Center.

Tova Fleming carries at all times love for words and story, magic, performance, yoga, music, animism, ancestors, and the earth.

Yoga is one of several practices that helps her rediscover the unique and collective relationships, patterns, and cycles that live in her marrow and manifest in the world through her/our individual and collective lives. It is powerful magic.

“I tend to the world through both ritual and service. My ritual practices include the study, practice, and sharing of yoga, ancestral lineage repair (practitioner-in-training), music, writing, and psychopomp. I currently reside on Nisenan Maidu homelands in Sacramento, California with my partner, dog, and two cats.”

“I have been practicing yoga for over 25 years and completed my first yoga teacher training in 2011. My teaching and practicing style tend to be athletic and energetic which reflects a bit of the magic passed down to me from my lineage ancestors as well as my vinyasa focused training; however, I have also spent considerable time managing a trauma-informed yoga non-profit which influences my teaching style as well. I experience my own practice and teach yoga as embodied prayer with the potential to move energy in powerful and profound ways. “

Learn more about me and my work at: https://www.ignisursa.com

Anu has been practicing and teaching yoga for over 20 years. After being diagnosed with a chronic condition, she turned to yoga when western medicine failed to deliver a solution. Little did she know then that this journey of finding a cure would become a life mission. She believes wholeheartedly in taking yoga back to its ancient teachings. Anu shares embodied practices that encourage healing, transformation and self empowerment.

“The VBY 300 hour tantra program helped me pick up the pieces of me and become whole again. Whole again, yet completely different. Its like the pieces finally fit together. And I didn't need someone else to pick up the pieces, I was empowered to look at the pieces, love them and put them where they belonged. For the first time in a long time, I am home!”

Find Anu at bevajra.com

Mandy Henderly is a yoga teacher, writer, and mother living in Hendersonville, NC. She teaches yoga classes at YAM in Hendersonville, NC. When she's not teaching, you can find her writing, reading, and enjoying life in the mountains with her family.

My experience with Vira Bhava has enriched my teaching because I have delved deeply into understanding myself and my purpose. When I first began studying with Vira Bhava, I second guessed myself many, many times, but pushing through that doubt has made all the difference. Working with VBY and its community has helped me to find my voice and path as a teacher.

You can find Mandy at YAM Hendersonville, NC

Iamyam.com

Meghann came to yoga in 2017 during a very difficult transition in her life. Her first experiences with yoga very quickly lead to a deeper exploration of herself. She completed her 200-hour training in 2019 and began teaching. After a few years, Meghann found herself questioning what yoga meant to her outside of being a teacher. How could yoga be a more integrated part of her everyday life? She attended a few workshops through Vira Bhava Yoga and decided to pursue Vira Bhava’s 300-hour training. She recalls knowing exactly why she wanted to continue with her 300-hour studies; to know herself more deeply and truly. For Meghann, yoga unveiled a deeper love for herself, a love that she had always known was there but couldn’t seem to find. Meghann hopes to share the gift of yoga with others, particularly women who have seemed to lose sight of their inner knowing. She believes that yoga helps us to be more ourselves in the world, and thus a truer reflection of the love within ourselves. Yoga reminds us to return to love over and over again. Meghann is passionate about slow, gentle, yoga that encourages us to be present with the breath so we can feel. She holds a special place in her heart for the generational healing of women. She is also excited about sharing more sound in her current yoga offerings.

After casually taking yoga classes for many years, Kara sought an understanding of yoga that went deeper than asana. She studied with Katie Silcox and got her 200 hour qualification in 2015. After teaching for several years and a family move to a new state, Kara continued to desire further enrichment of her yoga practice. She has experienced the Vira Bhava Yoga 300 hour training with Kelly Golden twice, and relished the immersion into the studies of tantra yoga and the beauty and challenge of self-inquiry.

“I am excited and eager to share yoga beyond asana and to encourage students to live their yoga in their daily lives.”

-Kara Edmonds