Yoga Day

Christopher Key Chapple, PhD

Dr. Christopher Key Chapple is the Doshi Professor of Indic and Comparative Theology, the Direct of the Master of Arts in Yoga Studies at LMU, and originally brought Yoga Day to LMU!  

A specialist in the religions of India, he has published more than twenty books, including the recent Living Landscapes: Meditations on the Elements in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain Yogas (SUNY Press). He serves as advisor to multiple organizations including the Forum on Religion and Ecology (Yale), the Ahimsa Center (Pomona), the Dharma Academy of North America (Berkeley), the Jain Studies Centre (SOAS, London), the South Asian Studies Association, and International School for Jain Studies (New Delhi). He teaches through the Center for Religion and Spirituality (LMU) and YogaGlo. 

Celebrate the 12th annual LMU Yoga Day with us on campus on Saturday, November 4th, 2023! This year's theme “The Ecology of Embodiment” invites us to reflect on our relationship with the ecosystems in which we exist.  

Dr. N. Ganesh Rao

Dr. N. Ganesh Rao is a world-renowned Professor of Yoga Philosophy. He holds a Doctorate in Philosophy and is on faculty at several universities, including Kaivalyadhama, the first scientific Yoga research institute in the world. He endeavors to enable people to transcend the physical, mental, psychological, and intellectual aspects of life in alignment with Yoga’s ultimate purpose. Throughout his impressive career, Dr. Rao has given lectures, provided training, and helped heal thousands of people across the globe. A professional soccer player and coach for twenty years, Dr. Rao embodies a rare combination of extreme physical fitness, intellectual prowess, and philosophical expertise.  

Hear what yoga wisdom Dr. Rao will share in his session titled “The Significance of 'Attachment' in Yoga (Indian Philosophy)” at Yoga Day 2023 on November 4th at LMU. Come prepared to move, dance, sing, and celebrate all things yoga! 

Mukta Ranpura, Heartfulness Institute

Heartfulness Institute is a global nonprofit organization with thousands of volunteer trainers who serve more than a million meditators in over 160 countries. Heartfulness relaxation and meditation techniques are studied and proven to be effective in reducing stress and anxiety, improving sleep, enhancing emotional intelligence, and exploring the heights and depths of human consciousness. 

The Heartfulness Institute will offer a guided practice and a practical workshop based on the book "Spiritual Anatomy" by Kamlesh D. Patel. Learn about how thoughts and emotions impact the environment; Experience Rejuvenations, a technique to help remove emotional burdens and access new perspectives, joy, and lightness; meet the Institute at the Interfaith Peace Gardens for meditation and Q&A sessions, all at LMU’s Yoga Day 2023: The Ecology of Embodiment, happening on Saturday, November 4th. 

Lisa Faremouth Weber

Lisa is the owner/founder of Heaven Meets Earth Yoga in Evanston, Illinois. She recently received LMU's EXT Award under the Ignition Values Integrate Mind, Body & Spirit. Lisa integrates the therapeutic application of yoga in her classes. She is currently pursuing a Master of Arts, Yoga Studies, with a concentration in Yoga Therapy from Loyola Marymount University. 

Come experience Lisa’s class, Restore, Rebalance, and Radiate at LMU’s 2023 Yoga Day on November 4th! Feel your feet on the ground, expand your awareness, and embody the deep essence of yoga. Let’s guide courage and compassion into action through yoga! 

Mayuri Bandari, M.A.

Jersey born and closely in touch with her South Asian heritage, Mayuri is an actress of East Indian descent. Her performing background lies within both Bollywood & Hollywood industries; she is a national figure skating champion, an Indian dance star, a Bollywood Fitness Co-Founder, and an advocate of activism through the arts. Mayuri is a graduate of UC Berkeley (B.A. Dance & South Asian Studies) & Loyola Marymount University (M.A. Yoga Studies). Through her cultural background, poetry, and dance, she creates works with a powerful social message. Mayuri voices an Ahimsa [non-violent] way of life (beyond diet), women's empowerment, and Brown experience & identity. She is a teacher of Prison Yoga + Meditation at the Twin Towers in DTLA and engages with various communities through movement. 

Come experience the joy of dance as instructed by Mayuri at Yoga Day 2023 on November 4th at LMU! Show off your moves when we end the night with special live musical performances under the stars! 

Gayatri Sehgal

Gayatri is a grad student in the Yoga Studies program focused on intersectional animal and environmental justice. Their spiritual practice consists of activism based in dharma and yogic ethics, yogāsana, mindfulness, bhakti, mysticism, and the vegan lifestyle.

They will be discussing climate activism on November 4th’s Yoga Day: The Ecology of Embodiment. Tackle the big questions our theme asks: What is our impact on the planet? How can yoga help us act in the climate crisis?

LMU Music & Meditation Club with Ellis Peters

The LMU Music Meditation Club (@lmumeditation) is a conscious community of people interested in spirituality & meditation. Each club meeting is designed to give you a glimpse into different meditation practices from a myriad of traditions. A typical meeting for us begins with a meditation, followed by a discourse on spirituality and adjacent topics, a musical meditation with live musicians, and a nourishing plant-based meal. This yoga day, graduate students Ellis Peters and Shuo Wang Koepp (pictured), club head, will lead meditations around the bluff. 

Immerse yourself in the benefits of musical meditation and much more at Yoga Day 2023: The Ecology of Embodiment, taking place all day November 4th at LMU! attendees Practitioners and non-practitioners of all levels, backgrounds, and social identities are welcome to join us in community (sangha). 

De Jur Jones

De Jur Jones, who moonlights as a flight attendant, has been a yoga devotee since 2001. She attended Loyola Marymount University’s yoga therapy program. De Jur is an ambassador for Jivana Heyman’s Accessible Yoga program and found her niche in teaching yoga therapy to marginalized, un-resourced people with Prison Yoga + Meditation, Susan Burton’s A New Way of Life Reentry Project, Journey Out, and Exodus Recovery. De Jur is also a contributor to the Yoga Service Council’s best practices book series and is the featured model in Accessible Yoga: Poses and Practices for Every Body. She is guest faculty at Loyola Marymount University and a Symposium on Yoga Therapy and Research presenter. De Jur’s hope is to use yoga to shine a light on social justice, inclusion, and diversity 

Take De Jur’s “Trauma Informed Yoga” class on November 4th at LMU’s 2023 Yoga Day! The day will be filled with both movement and meditative experience accessible to all. Listen to talks, check out the vendors, and celebrate the yoga tradition with us. We can’t wait to welcome you!