Certified Teachers

Lisa Bertke

Lisa is the founder and owner of the Prana Yoga Center, in Geneva IL, which she established in 2002 for the practice of authentic yoga and to create a community that supports the well-being and evolution of others through the mind-body-spirit practices of Yoga, Ayurveda, and Meditation.

Lisa is a passionate student, teacher, and leader, empowering those around her to live purposeful lives. She draws on the classical yoga texts and 20 years of study and practice under the guidance of Yogarupa Rod Stryker, founder of ParaYoga, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, Spiritual Head of the Himalayan Institute, and mentor Tricia Fiske.

Having experienced the transformative power of the practice, her life’s work is to bring these time-tested wisdom traditions to others. Lisa’s teaching style is an energizing and challenging blend of alignment-based Hatha with the energetics of Tantra Yoga. Each practice includes breath-centered movement, classical asana, pranayama, relaxation and meditation to access a state of deep inner awareness for greater positivity, clarity and courage off the mat.

Lisa is a graduate of DePaul University where she earned a BSBA in Human Resources. She lives in St. Charles, IL, with her husband of 29+ years and is extremely blessed with three incredible sons Jacob, Matthew & Michael. She loves cats, books, biking, camping and service.

Contact:

www.pranayogacenter.com
[email protected]

Lisa Hartjen

Curious to the core, Lisa Hartjen started her spiritual journey around the age of 9 when she began to explore temples, Friend’s Meeting Houses, and churches looking for meaning. Still seeking, Lisa began her meditation practice in 1998 with a weekly Buddhist session at Willow Street Yoga in Takoma Park, MD, where she completed her 200 HR YTT. In 2001, Lisa followed her heart to the Himalayan Institute to study Sri Vidya with her spiritual teacher, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD. Soon after joining the HI Creative Services Team in 2015, Lisa completed her 500 HR YTT and Ayurvedic Specialist certification from the Himalayan Institute.

For Lisa, the practice of Vishoka Meditation helped her find the answers to spiritual questions she began asking as a 9 year old. The answers to her many questions often flow lovingly from the gentle silence engendered by the practice of Vishoka Meditation – a profound practice that Lisa is very inspired to share with her students.

Contact:

http://www.lisahartjen.com/

Maria Luisa Chea

Maria Luisa has fully embraced the practice and teachings of Yoga and Ayurveda as a way of life. Through Yoga she has found a way to integrate her outer and inner worlds on a path of infinite growth and discovery. Her personal practice and teaching are nourished by the teachings of the Sri Vidya Lineage into which she was initiated in 2010.

In 2013, Maria Luisa founded Yoga Sangha, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic a Yoga Alliance RYS200 to share the teachings and gifts of yoga, meditation and ayurveda with the local community.

Maria Luisa is grateful to have received the gift of Vishoka Meditation from her teacher, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait. As a Certified Vishoka Meditation Teacher she will share this gift with enthusiasm and reverence.

Currently, Maria Luisa teaches 200 HR YTT and 500 HR YTT Affiliate Programs with the Himalayan Institute in addition to private and pubic Yoga, Meditation and Ayurveda classes, workshops and retreats

Contact:

Yoga Sangha RD
[email protected]
(849) 357-7499

Marilyn Granger

Dr. Granger has become very much aware of the relationship between the body, mind, and spirit. She seeks to discover new ways of applying the ancient teachings of yoga in the modern world of medicine.

She has been interested in yoga as the science of human consciousness. Vishoka Meditation arises from this science to train the mind to open to the greater awareness of our essence which is joyful and luminous.

Contact:

[email protected]
https://www.somalumina.com/

Mary Johnston-Coursey

Mary Johnston-Coursey was introduced to meditation at age 15, and began a daily yoga practice at age 20. Over the years she explored various styles of yoga before meeting her main teacher, Yogarupa Rod Stryker. She has found her home in ParaYoga, studying with Rod and his teacher, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait. Mary is truly grateful to belong to the SriVidya lineage of the Himalayan Sages.

Teaching yoga since 1981, Mary is currently a member of the ParaYoga certification team. She teaches weekly asana classes, meditation courses, workshops, teacher trainings, and ParaYoga Master Trainings, as well as offering private sessions tailored to the individual’s needs. She loves how all the varied tools of practice ultimately contribute to a deepening experience within meditation, and is thrilled to be certified as a Vishoka Meditation Teacher.

Mary also holds an MFA in dance, and has performed as a dancer, storyteller, and singer.

Contact:

http://maryjohnstoncoursey.com/
[email protected]
(801) 505-2903

Meg Artley

Meg’s physician suggested that she take up yoga to navigate a chronic illness. That was over 15 years ago. Not only did Meg find healing in the practice of asana yoga, she also found a new calling as a yoga teacher, receiving her 200 HR Yoga Teacher Certification in 2012 and her 500 HR Certification in 2018. When she took the Vishoka Meditation Master Course in spring of 2020, she finally understood why and how the mat and the meditative seat lead people to healing, wholeness and joy. As a yoga teacher at age 57, she is always teaching what she is learning.

Contact:

[email protected]
https://lostandfoundyoga.com/

Michael Nickel

Michelle Ostermyer

Michelle Ostermyer is a E-RYT 500 HR Yoga Teacher who has been practicing yoga for more than a decade. Michelle started out as a dancer and studied yoga and dance in NYC with master teachers. She was amazed at how the practice of yoga helped to alleviate the stresses of city living and bring a sense of balance to her life. In 2015, Michelle earned her 200-HR Yoga Teacher Certification. Shortly after, she became certified in Aerial Yoga and bodyART (a functional and holistic movement program that combines strength, flexibility, cardio and breath work). She also has received specialized training in myofascial release for asana classes. Michelle is proud to have completed her 500-Hour Yoga Teacher Certification and Vishoka Meditation Teacher Training at the Himalayan Institute.

Outside of the yoga studio, Michelle loves to connect with nature. She is extremely passionate about living a healthy lifestyle and wants everyone to feel good in their body/mind. Michelle’s yoga and meditation classes focus on exploring inner awareness. She hopes that her students leave her classes feeling empowered and nourished with a deeper connection to themselves. Check out her instagram at www.instagram.com/belleyogi and website at

Contact:

[email protected]
https://www.belleyogi.com/

Natalie Backman

Devoted to the Divine Mother, Natalie shares what she knows of the wisdom of the sages as an unveiling of her heart. Rooted in the Himalayan Tradition, Natalie guides informed and embodied experiences of yoga asana, pranayama, yoga nidra, Vishoka Meditation, and Yoga Sutra based practices of contemplation and self-inquiry – all with the aim of generating true transformation culminating in ultimate freedom and lasting fulfillment. She also offers mentorship to those craving a personalized deepening in their practice and teaching. Based in California, most of Natalie’s offerings are now happening live, virtually, to an international community of seekers and practitioners. Held in grace, Natalie endeavors to live her life as an integrated offering to the Divine. Jai Maa!

Contact:

Natalie Backman Yoga
nataliebackmanyoga.com
[email protected]
(646) 262-4415

Natasha Dooley

Natasha’s yoga journey began over eighteen years ago, shortly after moving to Colorado. Natasha completed her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training with Adi Amar in Jackson Hole, WY and now practices and studies in the Himalayan Tradition with the Himalayan Institute.
Natasha was born in Yekaterinburg, Russia and now lives in beautiful Larkspur, CO on a small hobby farm, with her husband, and two dogs. Natasha currently teaches yoga, meditation, and Yoga Nidra at the Woodmoor Country Club in Monument, CO and to private clients.

Contact:

[email protected]

Nichole Falco

Nichole is a radical healer. She uses the tools of remembering and resurrection to help students to unfold and unravel, like a Phoenix rising from the ash, dissolving old wounds and forming new neural networks. Nichole teaches that inside all of us there is a sorrow-less joy, our natural state that is waiting to be experienced. She has developed a process for fearless reflection she calls Shakti Alchemy which cultivates the strength and courage to bring about a spiritual awakening. Nichole is an expert Yoga Therapist who uses the ancient science of Ayurveda to help individuals discover their unique body constitution, and how to implement a complimentary diet and lifestyle to recover a natural, radiant state. This deep self work is paired with intrinsic guided experiences of yoga therapy and meditation. Nichole is a guide for you to find your authentic personal power by using her own integrated method of alchemical shakti soul work, personal power, higher power and self love.

Contact:

https://www.ahara.life/
[email protected]
(828) 742-6292

Nicole Taylor

As a life-long seeker, Nicole Taylor has extensively studied and practiced Ayurveda, yoga, and meditation. In addition to being a newly certified VMT, Nicole is a NAMA-certified Ayurvedic Health Counselor and a 500-hour trained yoga teacher. She was initiated into the Himalayan Tradition in 2011. Her life’s purpose is to support people in claiming their innate joy, wholeness, and ability to thrive. She plans to share Vishoka Meditation in private sessions, group workshops, and corporate wellness programs.

Contact:

[email protected]
https://www.ajoyfulpause.com/
(215) 499-6154

Nomita Kapur

A citizen of our global and modern world, Nomita remains rooted in the ethos of the Eastern culture and its knowledge base. An economist by training, Nomita began her career in the corporate sector. Always interested in human behavior, she soon forayed into being a corporate trainer and thereafter a professor of Organizational Behavior.

Having taught and trained individuals across different age groups, she now shares her love for teaching through her writings and coaching. Nomita offers sessions on Neuro Linguistic Programming as well as Vishoka Meditation. She is the author of “Drop by Drop” the culmination of her own journey of self-inquiry, successfully merging modern life with ancient wisdom.

Contact:

[email protected]

Pamela Meriwether

Pamela began her yoga and meditation practice in 1999, during her first pregnancy, and her passion for this path of yoga grew from there. Her studies, curiosity and heart have led her to India, Cameroon and to most corners of the US, to seek, serve, learn and teach. The alchemy of everything along her path led her to discover the inherent joy within, through Vishoka Meditation.

Pamela is a devoted student of Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, of the Himalayan Institute, and a humble steward of Sri Vidya and the Himalayan Tradition. Pamela founded The Sakhi Yoga School, in Columbia, South Carolina, where she lives with her husband and where they raised their children. Her life’s purpose is to share the teachings that she has been blessed to experience, with anyone who is willing to receive them.

Contact:

[email protected]
https://www.sakhiyogaschool.com/

Raksha Khushalani

Raksha took the first Vishoka Meditation Teacher Training in November 2021. An economist by education, she is also a Certified Vishoka Meditation Teacher Training as well as a Certified Yoga Teacher and Yoga Therapist.

Contact:
[email protected]

Rayne Watkin

Rayne began practicing yoga at a young age. She also is a practicing Osteopath and feels that the two modalities were made for each other. Her main passion is to share the ancient teachings in order to empower her students. Rayne wants to help her students share their unique gifts with this world and assist them in creating an everlasting relationship with their inherent luminosity. It is with so much joy that Rayne shares this incredible meditation with her community.

Contact:

[email protected]
+ (614) 0812-8237

Riccardo De Paolis

Riccardo received his masters degree in Electronic Engineering in 2007, and after 8 years working for a major IT corporation, he decided to change careers. He realized his major passion was in holistic therapies, and thus, pursued training in yoga and therapeutic massage. He is both a yogi and a yoga and meditation teacher (E-RYT 500 & YACEP, Purna Yoga, Byron Yoga Center, Byron Bay, Australia). Riccardo teaches in several yoga studios in Rome, teaches for companies in Italy and in Europe, and usually runs international retreats and workshops. Riccardo is a qualified Mindfulness teacher having received a Master Degree in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Protocol (MBSR) at the Department of Psychology of La Sapienza University, Rome. He organizes MBSR protocol and workshops for corporations.

Riccardo’s vision is to make yoga accessible to everybody — he believes that yoga is also a moment of joy and fun, in which we are able to facilitate a deeper connection with our own true self. He is honored to share the deep and effective practice of Vishoka Meditation as a Certified Vishoka Meditation Teacher with his students.

Riccardo loves staying in contact with nature, surfing, traveling around the world and creating a positive connection with people and their different cultural backgrounds. Diversity and compassion is part of his personal path and for this reason it is also part of each of his classes and treatments.

Contact:

https://www.onebodymind.net
[email protected]

Richa Eland

Richa has a sincere desire to show all ages the benefit of the Vishoka Meditation practice, and is honored to be able to share stories of the sages who have preserved for us the wisdom of Vishoka—bringing us greater joy and contentment as we age. Being over 50 herself, and active in the Himalayan Institute for over 40 years, Richa’s teaching focuses on introducing her students to the profound tools of Ayurveda for better health, and meditation for improved well being. She is ready to show you the tools to improve the JOY in your life!

Currently living in residence at the Himalayan Institute campus in Honesdale, PA, Richa has over 40 years of practice and study with Swami Rama and Pandit Rajmani Tigunait in Honesdale, PA, Khajuraho, India and Rishikesh, India. She is a Certified Yoga Therapist with the International Association of Yoga Therapy (C-IAYT), a Licensed Social Worker (LSW, state of MN), Certified Classical Homeopath with Council for Homeopathic Certification, a certified Jin Shin Do Bodymind Therapy practitioner and instructor, a Certified Reiki Practitioner Level 2, and a graduate of the Northwestern Academy of Homeopathy, a four year program of Classical homeopathic remedies, philosophy and Materia Medica.

Contact:

[email protected]